TrainDesign

I’ve been using this app for a couple of years now so I have become at least moderately proficient at it. I am using it exclusively for designing layouts using Märklin K and C track. It is the plethora of track dimensions in the Märklin line that make the app difficult to use and this is not the fault of the app itself which does a wonderful job of maintaining the scale and dimension of each piece of track as it is added to the layout design. Once a layout is properly designed, constructing the layout on the ground using the track pieces specified in the design will produce the intended result and that is what I need and what this app does. My one complaint is that a saved layout can not be altered or updated and the new version saved while preserving the original design should one want to save it for future reversion or reference. It seems that a “save layout as” function would be easy to add and this would greatly enhance the usefulness of this really good design app.

Your layout is limited to about 5’ X 5’. You can go larger but you can only move the layout when it is this size. I have to zoom in move to where I want to work then zoom back in. But that’s not all. When zooming out or in, if you aren’t in this 5x5 zone, you cannot could on the zoom moving into where you want to go. So I had to learn to work zoomed way out. Needs some serious work. Don’t count on building on a large layout. You can design small segments! Also needs to have inch/feet option, only has metric. You can set the grid to 304mm and you have 1 foot grids. Has a learning grid. (Work around) However, Nice program when it works. Fix these issues and they could charge $20 or more for this program. Some help screens would help the learning curve.

I’ve used this for a while now, mainly for O, an HO. It is very useful for the price. I’d like to see Fastrack and Realtrax added, but I’ve made due with the O27 library. What would also be useful would be the ability to use track from multiple manufacturers on a single track plan. A few more buildings might help too. In spite of this, I’ve found it a useful app.

Useful track layout app. The latest version has Lionel O Gauge, as well as may others, and can be dimensioned in inches. When you're done, it give total layout dimensions, and a count of track by type. It also has videos for app instruction.

I was quite surprised with how well and easy this app is to use. You can spend $40 to $100 for a desktop software, but this does the same thing for a couple of dollars.