Petra Pizza - a continuous loop American outline - in 4 square feet

A HO scale 600mm x 600mm ‘Pizza’ model railroad layout with a simple circle, detailed mountain scenery and some interesting operational possibilities.

Micro Layouts for Ease of Moving

This HO scale micro layout was one of a number proposed to be built to replace my previous modular Dolton / Illinook / Blue Island / Barr layout. With the possibility of an impending move some time in 2020, I decided that it would be best to minimise the layout moving stress and dismantle the previous modular in favour of some smaller and easier to move modules. The micro layouts I have since built were the result.



Layout Description

The “Petra Pizza” is a 600mm x 600mm square (a bit under 4 square feet) layout, with a single circle of track, mountainous scenery, and very tight curves (for HO scale). It represents a small quarry branch to a small fictional town called Petra somewhere in Maryland, USA, which is also the location of a quarry which is the main industry served by the branch and the only industry modelled on the layout. The name "Petra" means "rock", which seemed appropriate for a region whose main industry is a quarry.



The curves on the layout are around 11 inches on average (which means there are some parts of the circle tighter than that)! You might be tempted to think this limits the cars and locos that can run on it. Well, it does. But not as much as you might think. As far as motive power, a Bachmann DCC Onboard EMD GP 4 axle loco I have works ok, and the shorter wheelbase Alco S series switcher I have also works ok. As far as rollingstock, I have some 22 foot mineral hoppers and 40 foot open hoppers which serve the quarry, some 40 foot MOW cars which run as a tourist train, and some other carefully selected 40 foot cars that can handle the tight curves.



I am hoping to purchase a small Plymouth switcher to operate the branch, as it will look a lot more at home than the longish GP locos. I also have two FT-A diesels which work quite well on the layout and don't have as much overhang as a GP does.

Operation

Operating a layout that is just a circle of track might seem somewhat boring. But I have worked out a relatively interesting way of operating it none the less. A train including some open / mineral hoppers starts off somewhere on the layout away from the stone loader, representing Petra Junction, the place of interchange with a class 1 railroad. The train is started, and makes it’s way up the mountains, passing through many tunnels, for a set number of minutes, then it arrives at the Petra stone loader. At this point the train crew has to align each hopper under the stone loader so they can be loaded. Once all cars are loaded, any extra cars (eg box cars or fuel tankers) are aligned with the trackside shed / depot a little way from the stone loader for unloading. Once that is done, the train starts again back to Petra Junction.










The operation of the weekly MOW cars as a tourist train is operated in a similar way, starting at the Petra Junction depot, and running to Petra depot up in the mountains. But instead of stopping for each car to be loaded under the Petra stone loader each car has to be stopped in front of the Petra depot due to the high rainfall causing undergrowth to grow just about everywhere except in front of the depot.

 

Thanks Gary.

The kadees on the wagons are short (or maybe standard) shank. The open hoppers have the coupler on the truck rather than the body which might actually work better on curves this sharp. The kadees on the GP are also short (or maybe standard) shank. Which is part of the reason I use a caboose immediately after the loco. If am able to buy a Plymouth 2 axle switcher I think it will work much better than the GP and FT-A on the tight curves - I might be able to run trains without having a caboose immediately behind the loco then.

Regards, James

 

Hi Gary.

I found a Plymouth ML-8 on ebay for $129 this morning, from Queensland, which I promptly purchased!

The Kadee style couplers are the most realistic couplers, in my opinion. But I do find them a bit fiddly to uncouple with an uncoupling stick, especially in tight spaces. The 'euro' style couplers on the Frateschi models are pretty easy to uncouple, as are the British RTR ones.

Are you Gaz3801 on YouTube? If so I have watched and liked a number of your videos over the last few months.

Regards, James

 

Hi Gary.

As far as small US outline switchers I've got

• A couple of Bachmann DCC Onboard Alco S2/4's with sound.
• A BLI EMD NW2 with DCC & sound.
• An Athearn EMD SW1500 with DCC.
  
• 2 Bachmann DCC Onboard GE 70 tonners, although they are getting a bit beyond repair.
• A Bachmann DCC Onboard GE 44 tonner.

I've also got a British Ruston & Horsnby 48DS (DC), and the NSWGR X200 class (DC).

Then there are the larger US road switchers:

• A Bachmann DCC Onboard CN GP35.
• 3 Bachmann DCC Onboard GP40s - B&O, Chessie, and my own half hearted attempt at an IHB looking model.
• 2 Bachmann DCC Onboard FT-A's.
• A Kato DC RS11.
  
• I also have a Bachmann DCC Onboard SD35, a Like Like Proto2000 GP9 converted to DCC, and a N&W GP20 DC that no longer work.

And then just for something a little different, I have a Frateschi DC RFFSA Brazilian EMD road switcher which I use on a Brazilian themed micro switching layout.

A bit of everything. And as you said: "Can't have too many locos on the roster".

The larger US road switchers aren't being used on the micro layouts I've built as there just isn't the room for them, but otherwise they work well. I am thinking I might need to build a 'box file' MPD to display them in and move them around on, just so they are getting used. Or maybe a simple larger circle of track that can be stored away when not in use so I can give them a bit of a run now and then. Haven't quite decided what to do with them yet.

Regards, James

 

Hi Gary

It's interesting that you had trouble with consistent running with the BLI NW2 - I do with mine as well. I do find that cleaning the wheels and track before I put it on the layout helps, but sometimes the wheels are just in the wrong place (eg, multiple axles on a plastic turnout frog) and it will stall. I wonder whether it's the loudness of the sound as it is a lot louder than the Bachmann DCC Onboard S2/4s I have (which are far more reliable) and the louder sound would draw more current meaning it would stall more easily. Sometimes the sound cuts out for a while on the BLI NW2 (after it restarts from a stall) and it runs pretty well for a while then until the sound comes back on. It also runs better when the weather is warm - maybe lower resistance when metal parts expand a little?

Regards, James

 

A petite Plymouth for the HO scale Petra Pizza micro layout means no more large 4 axle diesels locos need to be used for motive power.

For some time now I have wanted to find some motive power for the Petra Pizza micro layout that better suits the short trains sharp radius curves on it. I had been using GPs and FT-A which are somewhat over powered for the short trains, and the sharp curves caused a lot of overhang, and required a caboose between the loco and the other cars. Recently I ordered and received a Walthers Plymouth ML-8 4 wheel switcher (or is it a rail tractor?)

​

It is not much bigger than the X200 class NSWGR rail tractor I received a week or so ago, so it could probably be classed as a rail tractor. It would haul similar tonnages as the X200. I ordered the Plymouth through eBay, and I thought that it would be DCC equipped. But alas, I mis-read the listing – it is able to be fitted with a DCC decoder, but is not DCC equipped. Not to worry.

Above: ML-8 at the Petra depot.​

I have a number of locos that I no longer use, for various reasons. One of them is a Bachmann DCC equipped GE 70 tonner, which has a dodgy drive train which I haven’t been able to fix. So I decided to butcher that GE 70 tonner and remove the decoder and do what I did with the Tropical Pizza layout: I wired the decoder from the GE 70 tonner into the Petra Pizza layout.

Above: ML-8 with 3 open hoppers loaded with stone from the Petra quarry loader​

This means that I can run anything on the Petra Pizza layout whether DC or DCC (any DCC equipped loco used on the layout will just it is being controlled by a DC system).

Above: ML-8 with short passenger train of MOW cars.​

After a bit of testing, and experimenting with trains, I found that the Plymouth ML-8 will haul about 4 heavily weighted 33 foot open hoppers, or a few passenger or box cars without any problems. And it looks great on the layout going around those sharp curves!

 

Hi Gary.

Yes, the ML-8 is a beauty. Runs well and is quiet.

To be fair, the Bachmann DCC Onboard GE 70 tonners I have (I have 2, 1 still works ok) are at least 10 years old and spent many many hours doing industrial switching on my previous large-ish modular layout, and worked as yard switchers and branch line motive power on the even larger modular layout I had before that. Over all, I think they have done pretty well and they don't really owe me anything.

Regards, James

 

A recent video I uploaded to YouTube featuring an IDR NSWGR X200 and Walthers Plymouth ML-8 rail tractors on the layout.



Regards, James

 

Yeah, they both run rather nicely and seem speed matched quite well. There is a 'gear meshing / clicking' sound in the video in places that I thought was one of the locos, but it turned out to be the auto focus on the camera! Phew!

Regards, James

 

Yes, it would definitely have been PITA if the sound was one of more of the locos! Especially as they are both less than a month old and have hardly been run at all.

Regards, James