To shoulder, or not?

[Lawrence]

Having spent waaaay too much time on this forum  , one of the many questions I still have is about track laying. 

 

Some of the pictures on here show raised track beds with the 'shoulder' (like the Kato preformed stuff), and some show track laid flat on to the ground.  Are there rules that state when (and where) a raised track bed should be used or is it dependant on the geography of the line?

 

I am interested in this in the context of a small semi rural area, the plan is to have a small station with some shunting work available in the area too, with a mixture of industrial, commercial and domestic buildings (all in 48 x 8 inches)

[David]

Remember that the shoulder is typically ballast, earth or a combination of the two. The purpose is to make the tracks level (with a minimum or no grade) and to prevent the sleepers (ties) from moving too much over time. So it comes down to the question of whether the terrain is flat (hilly/forested areas typically having a large shoulder due to the need to build up the ground to create a long level surface), and whether it is practical and economical to sink the sleepers into the ground itself, or lay them on the ground and pour ballast on top. The type of sleeper (wood or concrete) also plays a role here, as does how remote the tracks are - the best arrangement can depend on whether the track will receive regular maintenance or not.

[bikkuri bahn]

Good points made by David.  I would suggest you find a prototype railway close in concept to the railway you want to model, and try to find as many pictures of the infrastructure as you can.  Of course the standards you set are ultimately up to you, but it helps to have a prototype as a reference and inspiration.  If you need to be pointed to any examples, please feel free to ask- just provide some specific parameters of your model- whether you will operate diesel or electric, primarily passenger, some freight, JR, or private railway, location in Japan(important!), era- modern, 1980's, JNR, etc...

[Lawrence]

As I suspected then David, it depends on the geography of the route.  My previous layout was Baltimore & Ohio and my mainlines had raised track beds outwith the station areas and all my 'yard' areas were kept on the flat so to speak.

 

Good points made by David.  I would suggest you find a prototype railway close in concept to the railway you want to model, and try to find as many pictures of the infrastructure as you can.  Of course the standards you set are ultimately up to you, but it helps to have a prototype as a reference and inspiration.  If you need to be pointed to any examples, please feel free to ask- just provide some specific parameters of your model- whether you will operate diesel or electric, primarily passenger, some freight, JR, or private railway, location in Japan(important!), era- modern, 1980's, JNR, etc...

 

A lot will depend on what comes back from Tokyo next month, however I am finding it quite difficult to really get started into any sort of research (but the forum and it's members are a real bonus), primarily because of the language barrier, and it does seem quite a niche market with few, if any, english language books, the one I did find on amazon I couldn't really justify the cost.

 

Once I get my rolling stock next month, I will put some pictures up of what I have and invite ideas from the experts.

[bikkuri bahn]

My previous layout was Baltimore & Ohio and my mainlines had raised track beds outwith the station areas and all my 'yard' areas were kept on the flat so to speak.

 

That's a good rule of thumb also when modeling a Japanese railway too.  My long observation of Japanese railway practice gave me the impression (in a historical sense) that standards are close or just below perhaps the British railway scene before the Beeching run down and at least on par with the steam era American railroads- which of course the Japanese studied and emulated in their rapid modernization drive.

 

As for resources, as I mentioned previously, just give some examples, and I and others here can find you the pictures on the net that may be of help.