D&RRR
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The Delaware and Raritan N-Scale Model Railroad
The Delaware & Raritan Railroad (D&RRR) is a freelance N-Scale model railroad based on several short lines situated in central New Jersey. The layout features also two 1st class railroads in the area - Norfolk & Southern and CSX.
The Delaware & Raritan is actually a canal built in the 1830s, connecting the Delaware and Raritan rivers. The canal was used for commercial shipping until late 1930s. Today it is mostly used for recreational purposes and for water flow control.
My home is situated in Somerville, NJ, near the NS/NJT Raritan Valley line, the Bound Brook junction and the NS yard at Manville. The old Delaware and Raritan Canal meets the Raritan river not far from Somerville.
The layout at a glance:
- Scale: N (1:160)
- Size: 25' x 18' (7.6m x 5.4m)
- Type: central aisle
- Era: current (2000s)
- Featured railroads: D&RRR (freelance short line), NS (main line & yard), CSX, NJT (on NS trackage)
- Control system: DCC traction, computer based interlockings and CTC, signaling based on NORAC rules
- Type of operations: mainline traffic (NS & CSX), short line switching and cars exchange (D&RRR), passenger traffic (Amtrak and New Jersey Transit), vintage trains operated by a museum
The layout occupies part of a 35' x 25' basement, with the access stairway in the center. Other parts of the basement are occupied by furnace, water heater, washer, drier and a server rack. The available area is 25' x 18'. The previous owner of the house has installed a mechanical workshop with a workbench, tool rack and floodlights. The workbench is being adapted for work on N-scale locomotives and cars, including the installation of a shelf with 4 tracks and a connecting track to the D&RRR layout.
Project status
Prototype documentation, layout planning and design.
May 2010
Construction started with the locomotive DCC programing and testing tracks. This is a 60" x 6" module that will be fitted above a workbench and will include, besides the programming track, a test track and a storage track. At a later stage it will be connected to one of the staging yards.
Design work in progress for one of the staging yards.
I installed the Java Model Railroad Interface, JMRI, on my laptop and I am testing it with a Digitrax PR3 decoder programmer that will be used as LocoNet interface.
October 2010
About 1/2 of the trackage design is done.
I bought two new locomotives - Kato SD-70M NS #2605 and Atlas GP38-2 CSX #2563 - and fitted them with Digitrax decoders.
I have 8 old Bachmann Spectrum locomotives (4 SD 40-2s and 4 Dash-8s, UP and ATSF, purchased some 15 years ago) but only 3 Micro-Trains coupler conversion kits. Two Dash-8s and one SD40-2 are being fitted with Digitrax decoders and Micro-Trains couplers, the rest will be used for spare parts. I might fit one SD 40-2 with decoder if I need it for cars fitted with Rapido couplers (some track cleaning cars for example). A problem with these older locos is that their wheelsets do not fit the code-55 track that I intend to use. Out of 48 wheelsets only 15 or so are good for code-55 track, the rest need to be regauged.
December 2010
Most of the track design has been done by using xtrkcad, a CAD program for model railroad design included in the Linux Ubuntu distribution. I am doing now the benchwork design for the Loop storage yard area and the wiring on the service tracks that will be installed above the workbench.
The D&RRR layout is consisting of the following areas:
- The Service Yard: installed atop the workbench with 4 tracks including a programming track, used for programming, testing and maintenance of locomotives; under construction
- The Loop Storage Yard: hidden area with a loop and a 12-tracks storage yard; benchwork being designed
- The Valkenvania Junction: connects the main track to the Loop and the Staging Yard under the NS / D&RRR yard
- The South Bridge Station, Amtrak / NJT depot, museum and NS / D&RRR yard
- The Staging Yard with 5 tracks situated along the west side of the NS / D&RRR yard
- The D&RRR yard and main line sections situated across the aisle from the Valkenvania Jct. and South Bridge areas
February 2011
- Most of the track layout design is done
- Service Yard:
- Track laying on tracks 4 and 5
- Working on wiring
- Working on a control panel
- The Loop:
- Benchwork drawings: finished
- Track layout: finished
- Wiring plan: in progress
- Interlockings: design work on Loop, Loop Junction and Valkenvania Junction
April 2011
- Service Yard:
- The service yard module has been installed in its place over the workshop table
- Track laying done
- Wiring done
- Temporary wiring installed to allow DCC locomotives to be programmed and tested until the control panel is finished
- A reversing wye, connected to tracks 2P and 5P, has been added to the project. Work on it to be started soon
- Planning to add a code-55 section of test track
- The Loop:
- Work started on the benchwork assembly
- Interlocking design:
- Route tables done for Loop, Loop Junction and Valkenvania Junction
- Work underway on wiring diagrams for Loop and Loop Junction
April 16, 2011
The Service Yard is open for DCC locomotive programming and testing and for railcar testing.
April 21, 2011
- Service Yard
- DC power pack installed for testing DC locomotives. It functions also as a second throttle attached to the Digitrax DCS50 command station
- First tests with consisting
- Work started on the wye at the East end of the Service yard
June 2011
- Service Yard
- Track laying finished on the "wye".
- The Loop
- Redesign of the track layout in the Loop area in order to improve accessibility. The "Storage Yard" has been replaced by the 6-track Loop Staging Yard on the Eastern side of the Loop.
- Locomotives
- UP #9456 Dash-8 locomotive refurbished and tested before DCC conversion. I have cut a notch in the frame in order to fit a Digitrax DZ123 decoder.
- CSX #2563 GP38-2 repaired and put back in service
July 3, 2011
- Rolling stock
- Two NS coal hoppers made by BLMA fitted with MicroTrains trucks and couplers
- The Loop
- Benchwork being installed for the Loop Staging Yard
July 10, 2011
- Design changes
- Valkenvania Junction moved 3 in to the West in order to preserve a shelf that otherwise would have to be dismantled. The shelf will be used for the installation of the Loop and Valkenvania interlocking equipment.
Features
- South Bridge complex:
- NS / D&RRR interchange yard with 14 tracks
- Amtrak and NJT depot
- Historic roundhouse converted into a Steamtown-like museum - The South Bridge Railroad Museum
- Locomotive service center
- Service yard
- DCC programming track
- DC (analog) installed in the service yard, mainly for testing locomotives before DCC conversions
- Speed measuring section on track 3P
- Track circuits for testing resistor-equipped wheelsets
- D&RRR line with several industries
- D&RRR yard with 6 tracks
- Staging yard with 5 track
- NS main line with NJT stations
- The layout is divided by an aisle crossed by two bascule bridges at the southern end of the aisle
- The main line is double-tracked on most of its length
- Loop-to-loop operation made possible by two turning loops (The Loop and Valkenvania Junction)
- Hidden area with 12 storage tracks at the Loop
- Turnouts: Atlas and Peco #6, #7, #8 and #10 on the main line, #4 and #5 on sidings
- Peco turnouts and double slip crossings used in Valkenvania Junction due to space constraints
- Atlas turnouts used on the rest of the layout
- Track: Atlas and Peco code 55 in visible area, Atlas code 80 in hidden areas (he Loop and the Service Yard)
- Minimal curve radius: Main line - 18.75", sidings and connecting lines - 15", Service Yard - 9.75"
- Curve radius on with the exception of one stretch where the radius is 17.5" because of space constraints
- Maximum grade: 2.5% (most grades are below 1.6%)
