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 Posted - January 03 2015 : 3:17:40 PM
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My layout doubles as my workbench, or vice versa. And the 54" X 60" size means my imagination comes into play more than any scale railroad "operations" than I can pull off (though I do want to ultimately be able to "automatically" couple and uncouple those old Mantua hook and loop couplers).
However, with the track plan that I just tore up, I had this coaling operation that would require two locomotives to pull off changing the gondola that supplied the coal; one to pull it out of the coal yard and another (using a front end coupler) to pull it out to the passing track. Just plain not practical. I mean it's one thing to have to bring the crew out to move an Elmer's glue bottle, but quite another to move the gondola for a fresh coal supply.
This new arrangement allows me to do that and even have a slightly more realistic small freight and passenger operation (passengers loading from the freight station). The flat car in the middle of the distant yard tracks is where the bucket loader will be. Not sure yet where all those rocks are going to end up sitting. I have grown a bit fond of the surrealistic/old-time toy feeling of the rocks on the sparce "layout"; partly out of wanting to avoid a big plaster mess on the scale of a big ballast mess like I ended up with trying to ballast the rails. Ultimately, I would like to get the track looking better with paint and some sort of gravel "bed". I just envision it as a 9 inch per hour job . . . which I guess isn't a bad pace.
If you've taken the time to read this far, I owe you one.
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Posted - January 03 2015 : 3:23:42 PM
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| Looks very promising. Those nice old time cars ,engines, buildings and people figures you have would also look good in TF Railroader News when you get a chance.
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Posted - January 03 2015 : 4:29:50 PM
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Looking pretty good. Especially with the rocks and the other western style scenery.
-Steve
"A lot of modellers out there who go to these train shows see broken HO stuff and go, 'This is useless' when, in reality, they can still be used for modeling whether it's as a prop on your layout or a cool project to make something old new again."
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Posted - January 03 2015 : 9:23:23 PM
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Given that it's also a workbench and that puts constraints on scenery, the desert camo sort of paint job on the surface makes for a good ground cover. It looks more real than just bare wood or one solid color.
I like the big sweeping curves and the various switches and sidings. That should be a fun layout to run.
Carpe Manana!
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Posted - January 03 2015 : 9:58:35 PM
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I'm sure you will make this work Barry! I too, await the 9 inch per hour track ballasting....
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Posted - January 04 2015 : 09:02:38 AM
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You, like many, have decided that automatic uncoupling is how the real railroads do it. Well they don't. The only automatic uncoupling done on the railroads now is usually in yards when trains are broken up and new trains made up. The brakeman's job is alive and well. He is always there when a pickup or drop off is made to couple and uncouple the cars and break lines and do a necessary break test. This goes on for every car and set of cars picked up and dropped off.
* A train proceeding along a spur track approaches a switch to a spot where their train will be broken up to allow for a drop off. The locomotive stops there and a brakeman leaves the cab and climbs down off of the locomotive. The train proceeds forward, hand signal by the brakeman now control the train. At the point where the train must be broken the brakeman signals a stop. He then at certain times signals the engine to reverse and slack'in up the cars. He uncouples the cars at that point set the air hose up to pull apart, closes the air valve at the rear of on the new last car. He them climbs up on the back of the new last car . While hanging off of the car ladder signals the locomotive to go slowly ahead towards the switch. He is in control again. I wont go on from here and cover all the different scenarios necessary to complete this operation or do other types of pick-ups and drop-offs.
* The idea of all of this is to show that when operating a layout in a real way, the use of a few people, and manual coupling, and uncoupling, is done. So don't feel bad if you must uncouple your cars on your model railroad. It is how it is done.
frank
toptrain
" It's a Heck of a Day " !!!
Edited by - toptrain on January 04 2015 09:13:24 AM
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Posted - January 04 2015 : 11:30:10 AM
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| That is a very good point Frank.
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Posted - January 04 2015 : 10:02:39 PM
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Yeah, but from the perspective of your HO-scale people, a magnetic or ramp uncoupler, and an imaginary little brakeman, is more realistic than a 600-foot-tall giant reaching down to uncouple the cars every time  It's all about perspective.
--CRC
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Posted - January 04 2015 : 11:12:20 PM
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Great info, Frank! I never knew how it has been done in recent years....
My Father was a brakeman in his younger years...
Edited by - walt on January 05 2015 12:26:57 AM
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Posted - January 05 2015 : 3:12:14 PM
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This is what things look like today. I was pretty tickled by the curved turnout, but the frog is not powered and the engineer has to throttle up about 25% to stumble through it. Guess I'm in the market for a good replacement turnout.
The second video is showing the alteration of the yards to facilitate moving coal gondolas in and out of the bucket loading yard. Videos could certainly be of a better quality, but I had an itchin' to do 'em.
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