Trains fouling adjacent tracks in the yard- fixed it with close clearance ties marked.
Club members failing to understand how a crossover works. Either its left lined for straightaway or diverging movement.
Or club members who specialize in electrical aspects of the hobby, trying to do trackwork.... Yikes... Or folks doing track work thinking they're doing a great job and leave gaps in the track of over 1/8th of a inch, and still claim their experts.
Then blame my equipment when my in guage wheels, rolling stock, properly weighted, kadee #5 equipped train wont make it a full loop without derailing.
Fun stuff....
Did anyone mention cats coughing up hairballs?
Someone mentioned obstructions on the track, but I'd like to elaborate: many times I have left tools on the tracks, either across the rails or between the gauge. Small jeweler's screwdrivers, uncoupling picks, and bright-boy are examples. If the small screwdrivers straddle the rails, I usually don't derail because it causes a short and I can't run at all! These incidents always happen when I'm in a hurry to test run after trackwork or scenery. Another cause of track obstructions is something my cats have knocked over previously without my knowledge. They seem to favor my telephone poles and crossbucks.
Bubbytrains
I’ll wait a while and see if we get more, then update the list.
Some of the fixes are obvious but others may need some possible solutions. Therefore I plan on selecting some and ask for your ideas to correct them.
Gary
Reading through the thread, it's no wonder that trucking overtook railroads. ;)
Fouling a clearance point on a turnout/yard ladder.
This could be called exactly what it is... Operating error causing colission.
Ricky W.
HO scale Proto-freelancer.
My Railroad rules:
1: It's my railroad, my rules.
2: It's for having fun and enjoyment.
3: Any objections, consult above rules.
One that got missed is ballast in the flange side of track and turnouts, causing wheels to ride up.
dstarr Good list, but somehow we missed "Rolling stock too light. Needs to be weighted up the NMRA standard." I had a mine branch with a grade and a curve. The train would go up, but always derailed backing down. After adding weight to NMRA standard, I could back down and stay on the track.
Good list, but somehow we missed "Rolling stock too light. Needs to be weighted up the NMRA standard." I had a mine branch with a grade and a curve. The train would go up, but always derailed backing down. After adding weight to NMRA standard, I could back down and stay on the track.
How did we miss THAT
David Starr www.newsnorthwoods.blogspot.com
This is a good list already.
When installing track. I check for kinks at rail joints both horizontal and vertical. I use a gauge everywhere along the track.
Next I place a straight edge on the tops of the rails to locate any peaks and valleys . This last step helps make sure rails are on the same plane, and prevents cars from tipping back and forth as they move down the track .
GARRY
HEARTLAND DIVISION, CB&Q RR
EVERYWHERE LOST; WE HUSTLE OUR CABOOSE FOR YOU
OK Here is what was contributed to this post. Thanks to all!
Thanks to the MR Forum members who contributed to this list. Peahrens, 7j43k, Selector, DS4-4-1000, seeYou190, Lone Wolf and Santa Fe, BRAKIE, mobilman44, ROBERT PETRICK, IORNROOSTER, John C Taranto, Trainnut1250
Common Causes
Didn’t forget this list. Ive been under the weather...
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HMxJtMoTnx8
BroadwayLion Cat on the Tracks (any scale) ROAR
Cat on the Tracks (any scale)
ROAR
didn't think of that!
The Route of the Broadway Lion The Largest Subway Layout in North Dakota.
Here there be cats. LIONS with CAMERAS
I'll add - Body mounted couplers on long passenger cars on tight curves.
give me a couple days to put it all together and I'll post the report.
- Sprung trucks taking an uneven set from track work and not leveling back out.
- Narrow guardrail gaps and tight spacing between frog point and guard rail inside edge.
- Truck swivel impeded by under body details
Guy
see stuff at: the Willoughby Line Site
Here is another one:
Long cars being coupled to short cars because they have a different amount of overhang on curves and the longer car will pull the short car off of the track.
This list when finished should help a lot of model railroaders that cant figure out what is causing a derailment. I'm also going to add that the cause may not be the site. Often the loco or car derails a good distance before it becomes obvious.
For categories I'm thinking
Operator error: (too fast, loco/tender connection)
Track work: (curves, S-turns, kinks, gauge, transitions, gaps, level)
Turnouts: (Level, points, guard rails, frogs, size)
Rolling Stock: (trucks, wheels, axles, weight, couplers, clearance)
Locomotives: (wheels, number of wheels & configuration, front and rear wheels)
Stuff on track: (parts, figures, ballast, nails, etc.)
Rail gaps that become too wide due to changing weather conditions.
Stiffly sprung diaphragms on passenger cars, operated on sharp radius curves.
ROBERT PETRICK Whatever is on the list going forward, double it for going backwards. Pushing a string of cars is always tricky, even if everything is near-perfect. Did anyone mention speed? Robert
Whatever is on the list going forward, double it for going backwards. Pushing a string of cars is always tricky, even if everything is near-perfect.
Did anyone mention speed?
Robert
Robert,There shouldn't be any issues in pushing 20,30 or more cars period. I did at the Columbus HO with cars equip with X2F couplers back in the 60s.
Again that falls under not accepting anything less then 100% trouble free operation and contrary to popular beliefs it easy attainable.
Larry
Conductor.
Summerset Ry.
"Stay Alert, Don't get hurt Safety First!"
Level to uphill transition too abrupt.
I had no transition at all on my second layout many years ago - took me a while to figure it out.
Paul
LINK to SNSR Blog
Did anyone mention "Excessive Speed"?
I would put that under the sub cat of "operator error".
ENJOY !
Mobilman44
Living in southeast Texas, formerly modeling the "postwar" Santa Fe and Illinois Central
snjroy - Lack of weight on leading trucks
- Lack of weight on leading trucks
Hasn't been a problem for me. I installed two leading and one trailing two-wheel trucks on my logging tanks with no weight or springs. No derailments.
And, in general, I've not noticed lead truck problems on my steamers. But mainline steamers have always run on 36" curves and up. Even my loggers have a min radius of 18".
I do wonder if the leading truck problem, at least for two wheel trucks, for long wheelbase locos on sharp turns couldn't be that the lead truck wheels go out of tangent with the rails.
Ed
As a rule our models can be quite forgiving but,things they hate that will cause issues.
Sloppy kinky laid track and old BB and Roundhouse cars hastily built with defects overlooked.
Speed..Yup that "S" curve between switches taken at Marc one or light speed.
Truck mounted couplers.
Trucks to tight won't allow trucks to turn freely-not sloppy by being to loose.
Long wheel base engines and cars on sharp curves.
Bridge painter falls from bridge, is dragged 500 scale feet by a freight train, and the train derails. Painter is discovered beneath the locomotive, dusts himself off and continues work on the bridge.
It takes an iron man to play with a toy iron horse.
Penelope Pitstop tied to the track again.