two trains on one track

[Sportster]

hi everyone, i`m new to the forum, just finished my first layout, can any one show me how to run two trains on one track on it, thanks to youall so much and keep those trains a`runnin

[sir james I]

No one has answered so.  Before remotes I setup my layout in elecrtical blocks with toggle switches. As one train continued to run I would stop the other in the block behind. The train being stopped would have to be locked in forward only. The other old way was to load each train so they would run close to the same speed.

[alank]

Another old way of controlling 2 trains on 1 track is by rewiring one locomotive's e-unit to be controlled by a whistle relay in series with the e-unit.   This way one locomotive is controlled traditionally and the other locomotive is comtrolled by the whistle feature.   This configuration has nothing to do with speed, only what a locomotive is doing.

There also is an old scheme of controlling 2 locomotives by having the center rail staggered from the outside rails.   One train would enter a space of track, and the wheels of that train would trigger the center rail of the other area of track.   Again you locomotive would need to be locked into forward.

[BigAl 956]

Can you be more descriptive? What kind of trains? Are they modern equipped with a control system or older postwar trains? How do you envision this working?

[Sportster]

hi BiaAl956, i have a small collection of both post war and modern era with tmcc, no turnouts, just put some track together and liked the finished product, as to how they`ll work , i just want one train constantly folloing another with out any collisions, thanks for your help

[BigAl 956]

OK I get it. So you need a way to run 2 trains and prevent them from coliding as one train will always run faster than the other and eventually catch up.

With 3-rail track this can be done using a tried and true method of using an insulated track to activate another track.

What you need to do is set up an insulated stop zone by a station or other logical point on the layout. Insulate the outer rails of the tracks with fibre pins so when a locomotive gets there it will stop with no power.

In another part of the layout configure an insulated track to feed power to the dead track outer rails in effect allowing the stoped train to proceed when the other train is a safe distance away. 

I searched around on the net. Here is a link to a plan from the CTT database that describes a similar layout that you could adapt to your needs.

http://ctt.trains.com/how-to/track-plan-database/2011/06/two-trains-one-main-line