Have operations night for only those who have read the rules and qualified. A simple set of rules is all you need at first, like when to stop and go etc. You can expand on that later.
hon30critterwe want to teach people to stop stretching the throttle cords to their maximum length!
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Oh, that is always an aggravation. When Scale Rails of Southwest Florida switched to HOGGER packs in the 1990s, they were all stretched soon. I think only wireless throttles will be the solution to this problem.
-Kevin
Living the dream.
hon30critter We are going to start very simply with two trains going in each direction, and the operators will have to communicate with each other in order to figure out how to pass each other. They will have to stop ahead of each of the passing sidings and determine if anyone is coming the other way, and if so, who gets the main.
We are going to start very simply with two trains going in each direction, and the operators will have to communicate with each other in order to figure out how to pass each other. They will have to stop ahead of each of the passing sidings and determine if anyone is coming the other way, and if so, who gets the main.
Well I don’t want to make things sound easier then they potentially are, but when I visited a club this summer I was offered a throttle and did exactly that with another visitor. The fact is it’s not really too hard. At the same time it really is the most fundamental part of entertaining mainline operations. You do have to get it right. I don’t know if you said you are but I think you should use a dispatcher. I think it makes it a lot easier and more fun. That said maybe beginner would be overwhelmed by that.
Whatever you do I am glad to see your club doing some one track mainline operations! For me darting in and out of sidings and meeting other trains on single track is the best part of OPs and maybe even the entire hobby. I hope you have a great experience with it!
Regards, Isaac
I model my railroad and you model yours! I model my way and you model yours!
Hi Big Jim, Sheldon and Henry,
I don't mind doing my share of the work needed to keep the club going. That's what I signed on for when I put my name on the ballot to be the President. The fact is, because we are in the midst of building a new layout and teaching members to operate, there is a lot more work on the table now then there will be in a year or two. I just wish that the guys who already know how to operate would take a more active role in getting operations established.
Thanks for letting me whine!
Dave
I'm just a dude with a bad back having a lot of fun with model trains, and finally building a layout!
hon30critterWe also want to get people to make sure the turnouts are thrown properly before charging through them, and we want to teach people to stop stretching the throttle cords to their maximum length!
You reaffirmed my opinion on clubs.
Henry
COB Potomac & Northern
Shenandoah Valley
Bigjim7Sounds like your hobby is becoming a job. Bummer
That's why I got away from clubs.....
Sheldon
We had the Operating Committee meeting as scheduled, and we did manage to sort out a few things, but as I suspected nobody offered to take charge. There were a couple of key members missing from the meeting so perhaps one of them will step up to the plate. I offered to help with reminders, but I'm not willing to run the committee.
One thing we did accomplish was to come up with a plan for introducing basic operating methods to the members. We are going to start very simply with two trains going in each direction, and the operators will have to communicate with each other in order to figure out how to pass each other. They will have to stop ahead of each of the passing sidings and determine if anyone is coming the other way, and if so, who gets the main. We also want to get people to make sure the turnouts are thrown properly before charging through them, and we want to teach people to stop stretching the throttle cords to their maximum length! In other words, stop your train, move to a new UP5 and then start your train up again if all is clear. People will be able to operate in the sidings as well, but they will only be allowed to go onto the mainline briefly, and only when all is clear (obviously).
Once we have managed to do that reasonably successfully we will introduce a couple more trains on the main and start using the radios.
We are running into a bit of a problem with regard to the Operating Committee. I don't want to lead the committee, nor does our Secretary, Henk, nor does our Treasurer Dave. Between the three of us we are already doing, and have done, most of the work for the club.
All three of us feel it is time for others to step up to the plate. Unfortunately, I'm not holding my breath. I thought that we already had a person to run the Operating Committee. In order to get him up and running I made up a list of all of the things that the committee had to do to get us operating. He handed the list back to me telling me that he didn't know how to do half the stuff on the list so somebody else had to do it. Sorry, but I didn't know how to operate either, that is until I did some research. True confession: I have never operated on a layout! That didn't stop me from at least getting a basic idea of how to operate and what was needed to start.
On Monday night we will have our first formal Operating Committee meeting. I haven't decided what to do. Either I drop the list of requirements on the table and say "You figure it out!" and then walk out the door, or I bite the bullet and coddle them some more. It's not helping that the medications for my back pain are bring back my depression big time.
Stay tuned.
Hi Randy,
The radios have 22 channels.
I found some head sets that include a clip on microphone. They have a single ear piece that is fed by an air tube, much like the police and security use. They are made by the same company that made the hand held radios. They are less expensive than the fancy earbuds that I originally ordered that did not have mics. I'm surprised at the price, but I'm not arguing. If they only last a few months we can afford to replace them.
Some of those radios have multiple channels. If there is say a yardmaster at a main yard, when crewes enter yard limits and need to contact the yardmaster instead of the dispatcher, they would switch to the yard channel, etc.
As for hearing others - that's how it works in the real world, when everyone on a given line is on the same channel, if the DS copies a track warrant to one crew, another crew sitting nearby will hear the same thing on their radio. We've not found it a big deal to have the radio on a belt loop and pick it up to talk into it. About the WORST thing you can do is have the radio and/or headset in VOX mode, every time someone coughs it will go out over the radio. Even with a headset - use the push to talk button.
Once everyone gets used to it - a spare radio in the lounge can act as a sort of 'scanner' listening in on conversations going on out on the road, for atmosphere. I still am not super comfortable with using radios, I think my recorded or otherwise electronically transmitted voice is horrible, and as someone wh does not otherwise talk over radios on a regular basis, it is hard to get used to using proper radio etiquette instead of just talking like you are on a phone. Especially when you can see the person you are talking to sitting at the DS console right over there. But on our modular setup, there's no real way to put the DS in a private area where no one can cheat and just walk over to them, or where they can;t see the physical layout and have to go by the occupancy indicators and crew call ins on the radio.
--Randy
Modeling the Reading Railroad in the 1950's
Visit my web site at www.readingeastpenn.com for construction updates, DCC Info, and more.
Hi Issac,
The radios that one of our members has have the radios built into the ear covers. I didn't know about them when I ordered the hand held radios. He will bring them in next week so we can have a look. If they work out we will return the hand held radios.
Another thing which I am going to look into if the member's radio headsets don't work out will be head sets with microphones for the hand held radios.
Regarding methods of communication, I find radios to be a bit combersom, as either there are multiple radios without headphones or earbuds, which will all broadcast anything you say at the same time, a somewhat annoying effect, or require use of earbuds, which I find get in the way, especially the cords.
I recently visited a layout were the a speaker in one corner of the layout was used with a system of phones (actually only the microphone part was used) placed at convenient locations. I personally like that better.
Of coruse this is just what I would do, as the OP has already bought radios and earbuds and has the prospect of getting more for free, using them may be more economical. I am primarily writing this for people to consider, but there are advantages to using radio too.
I have some goodies to take to the club on Tuesday night.
The first items are the two way radios and earbuds that just arrived. I'm not sure if we will be keeping the radios. After I announced the purchase, one of our members told me that he has six two way radios which he is willing to sell to the club for a decent price. We will have to do a comparison to see if his radios can perform up to the standards of the new units that I bought. I have no idea what condition his radios are in, but if they are problematic they won't get used. I feel sorry for this member because he has offered to contribute a number of things in the past but all of them have turned out to be unsuitable for a variety of reasons.
I also just received some 2mm black foam sheets that are recommended for use as asphalt paving material. We won't have a ton of roads on the layout but this stuff has a very realistic appearance. It will have to be painted because it is jet black, but the texture looks good. Here is the Canadian Amazon listing:
https://www.amazon.ca/gp/product/B07BL296HK/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o05_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1
I also have the backdrop test prints that some of you are aware of. I'm really looking forward to seeing how they work out, and if one of our members can print the panoramic shots himself, we will be able to save a lot of money and have spectacular looking backdrops!
rrinker I'd be surprised if any of the regular dealers you work with would be upset that the club would be selling off donated items to raise money for the club. Especially since you are passing on those offering complete collections to them.
There are a couple of other issues that are involved. One is the manpower required to cover the table. We are short of members when we run the February show because some of our gang are down south when the show is on. That leaves us relying on volunteers to make the show happen. Over the past few years we have had just enough people to cover what needs to be done. The difference of having one person manning a table doesn't seem like much, that is until you have to pull someone out of the very busy kitchen or off of fire safety duties to sell stuff (which obviously we can't do).
To put it in a different perspective, last year we had almost 3000 people come through the doors and we had about 15 people available to do all the work. In addition to running the actual show, we had to set up and label 165 eight foot tables the day before, and take them down after the show closed on Sunday. In other words, we have enough on our hands already! The last time we had our own sales table we netted about $400. When compared to what we could have sold the stuff to the vendors for, and rented the table for, it wasn't worth the effort.
Then, as I mentioned in my last post, there is the benefit of not having any leftovers to store or dispose of. We don't let the vendors cherry pick. It's all or nothing. Mind you, we will already have tossed any real junk when we take the remnants of the layout to the dump so we are not pawning stuff off on the vendors that they can't sell.
We get a few bucks out of the deal and so do the vendors. Win win all 'round.
Sorry for the long response.
Couple of the clubs aroound here usually have a table set up when they have public open houses to sell off donations or otherwise surplus stuff, anything from a train set box car to a structure kit to books. Caters to the "impulse buyer" who has just finished seeing a room full of trains running. Doubt it makes much money, but every little bit helps, and reduces the stoorage requirements. Most of the time its one or maybe 2 of the six foot folding tables, not a huge 'store' type of thing.
Our group, we have an actual sales group that sets up alongside the layout, with mostly all new stock items that can also be foun din our museum store. Pretty much any venue that allows us to set up allows the sales table as well. There are some of the latest models, mugs, books, calendars, etc. And yeah, people do buy stuff, not just members because they get a discount We do not in any way replicate a fully stocked hobby shop.
I'd be surprised if any of the regular dealers you work with would be upset that the club would be selling off donated items to raise money for the club. Especially since you are passing on those offering complete collections to them.
The old club I belonged to, they actually opened up a hobby shop, became a Walthers dealer, and everything. Mostly to get supplies for the club layout at wholesale cost, but they did keep a stocked store, pretty much 100% trains, for a number of years. That made the accounting rather complicated, since the store was a registered business and had to pay taxes, and the club was tax exempt. To avoid issues with property tax (since they own the building) and also because they really don't need the income any more, I think they took the simplest route and shut down the store. Last time I was there, the main HO scale layout had expanded so much that the smaller tinplate and N scale layouts now occupied the former store space. They just expanded the HO layout even more - I really need to get back there and check it out.
The club has just been given a free layout! All we have to do is get the layout out of the house.
The layout is 4' x 16' and it has a ton of very nicely built structures on it, more than we could ever use on our layout! There is also some rolling stock but we haven't had a chance to evaluate the quality of it yet. Getting the layout out of the house will be easy. It is built in two 4' x 8' sections which will be easily separated, and there is a patio door in the train room so we can take the layout outside to chop it up.
When we got the new clubhouse two years ago we decided that we didn't have enough room to accept donations. That was rather short sighted. (Read - 'stupid'). We were offered an HO collection shortly after that and it was too nice to turn down so changed our rules. That collection netted us about $250.00, and we didn't have to deal with the layout itself.
We will attempt to sell what parts of the donations that we don't use ourselves to the used train dealers rather than set up our own tables at various shows and compete with them. That only makes sense. We won't get as much money as we might if we sold them directly to the public, but we won't be taking business away from the dealers upon whom we rely for the success of our own show in February, and as a bonus we will have no leftovers! Everybody wins.
We also get approached fairly regularly by people who have collections that they want to sell. The club is not in a position to buy the collections, but I always make sure that I forward the information to the dealers at our show who do buy collections. They seem to like that!
Let me know what you think of the mountains hills in the previous post. I'll take all the compliments comments I can get! How's that for chest pounding and begging for praise?!?
Cheers!!
Over the past couple of days I have been working on the 'mountains' that will go in the center of the peninsula. I will be using Woodland Scenics Shaper Sheets to cover the foam structures. Sorry, the pictures are a bit blurry because I was using my iPhone and my hands were shaking:
This will be our skiing scene. There will be a small chalet in the middle and three or four ski runs down the slopes.
The next shot is just around the corner from the ski valley. There will be a fairly deep rock cut on the upper track and a tunnel on the lower track. The 'mountains' (should more accurately be called 'hills' if they are in Ontario) appear to be cut off quite abruptly on the left side. That is actually where the joint between the removable sections will be. The slope will be carried forward on the other section.
Also, on the far left of the hill you can see the opening for the rock quarry. I'm not happy with how the quarry scene looks. The hole in the mountain where the quarry sits doesn't look very natural, so I'll redo that once I figure out how to make it look better.
This is a shot of the tunnel construction. Note that the tunnel construction is not being done by me. I build things rock solid. The shape of the hill over the tunnel has to be adjusted to make it look more like a rock cut than the rounded mound that it currently resembles. I'm trying to be patient!
This is another part of the hill system. One side will be a pulpwood foresting scene and the other will be a background for a small industrial scene.
The ribs still have to be shaped to add a little more variation to the slopes, but I'm happy with the progress so far.
Last night I wrote about the club having an electrical inspection for some new lighting, and how we were worried that the inspector might not be too happy with the position of the layout relative to the electrical panel. Well, we got really lucky today. The inspectors were too busy to bother making a trip just to look at five new lights, so they passed the inspection sight unseen. In other words, they never got to see the layout/electrical panel issue. I told everybody to run right out and buy some lottery tickets!!
Cheers,
We got a great start on the mountains and related tunnels on Tuesday. I'm going in on Thursday to do some more work on the mountains and I will take my camera.
Tomorrow will be a bit of a test for us. We had some new lights installed a couple of weeks ago and they are great. The electical inspector is coming in tomorrow to approve them. That should be a no brainer. However, we might have a problem with the position of part of the layout relative to the electrical panel. We, actually I should say "I", cheated a bit when planning the layout by putting the loop around the service area right beside the panel. If the inspector goes nuts on us I will only take part of the blame. Everyone else approved the plan, so we are united in our risk taking.
If the inspector finds fault with our design it's actually not a hugely insurmountable problem. We will have to make a cut through the top of the return loop where we won't be interferring with any of the service area structures, and then make the section removable when necessary. The cutoff piece will be fairly large so we will have to design a way to make it stable but I have confidence that we will be able to come up with a workable solution.
I'll tell you more tomorrow after the inspection.
gmpullmanI hope it turns out very well for you and the club.
Thanks Ed!
This time round it will only be family and a few close friends. Once we have some reasonably decent looking scenery in place we will open things up to the general public. That will be in a year or two.
An open house is an excellent idea, Dave. I don't recall our club actually doing something like that. We had the annual "flea-market/train show" at the high school gym but other than that we were pretty much cloistered in the basement under the B&O depot. Out of sight — out of mind.
I believe a community "outreach" goes a long way toward being a "good citizen" and letting the local folks know that you folks are a welcoming bunch.
I hope it turns out very well for you and the club.
Regards, Ed
We have decided to host an invitation only open house on October 8th. We will be primarily inviting family and close friends so that they can see what we all have been babbling about for the past two years. I have taken the liberty of inviting a few other people who have been in contact with the club over the past few months as well.
By that date we should have completed all of the industrial sidings, and the liftout bridge to the staging yard is already operational which was one of the things we wanted to accomplish before the open house.
Perhaps more importantly we will have had a couple of real, or more accurately, 'attempted' operating nights under our belts. Maybe, just maybe, we might be able to have a night without any cornfield meets!!! It's a little way off but I will let you know how it goes.
Cheers again!!
Just a short update. (Ha you say! When has this guy ever made a short post?!?)
The bridge between the staging area and the main layout is up and running. When I designed the staging yard, which was a later addition to the main layout, my initial plans for the connection from the layout to the staging area were cumbersome to say the least. I imagined a monstrosity of a hinged bridge that would have been quite complicated to build and rather heavy as well. Fortunately my fellow club members ignored my suggestions and came up with a very simple, much smaller liftout that works perfectly. I'll get some pictures in the next week or two.
We are diligently working on coming up with a simple operating system. We have a couple of layouts in the area which hold regular operating sessions that a couple of our members routinely attend, so we are basing our initial plans on the methods being used by our neighbours.
I have been trying to work on the mountains in the center of the peninsula but I'm having a bit of trouble envisioning how I will build them. I think I'm just going to start carving foam and gluing it lightly in place to see if I can build the profiles I want. The space is a bit tricky. On one side of the mountains there is a gravel pit, and on the other side of the mountains there will be a ski chalet with a couple of slopes. There isn't a lot of space to build a mountain between the two scenes so therein lies the challenge. I want things to look as realistic as possible so I will have to take care to keep the slopes' 'angle of repose' correct. The angle of repose is the technical phrase used to measure the angle at which a particular material will form a slope without collapsing. However, I want to make the mountains as tall as possible so I have some experimenting to do.
We are going to have an invitation only open house on October 8th so we can show our families and friends exactly what we have been talking about non stop for the past two years. I would like to extend the invitation to any of you who are in the area. Please send me a PM if you would like to attend, and I will give you the address and times. Don't get your hopes too high. It is still a plywood paradise.
Bigjim7Nice pics. Looks great and fun. Thanks
Thanks to you Jim for your positive comments!
rrinkerWith Rush retired, we need some Canadian group to follow, eh? --Randy
railandsailAs far as the size of the ties in front of roundhouse, wouldn't the normal situation have the ties amost buried flush in that area?...so no worry about size of ties or code of track??
Hi Brian,
Good point! The ties won't be quite so obvious once the scene is finished. I actually thought about 'paving' the whole area between the pit and the roundhouse floor but I like your suggestion better.
Thanks,
hon30critter Thanks in advance for all the wonderful comments on how nicely the floor is weathered, but that's not the point of the picture. If you look at the two pieces of track that have been dropped into place between the turntable and the roundhouse, a good eye will recognize that one is Code 83 and the other is Code 100. Here is a closer view: A couple of our more cost conscious members had suggested that we could use Code 100 track here because we had run out of Code 83. Placing the two codes beside each other answered that question pretty quick! The difference in rail sizes is visible but not overwhelming, but the difference in tie sizes kind of slaps you right up the side of the head. Problem solved! We ordered more Code 83 track!
Thanks in advance for all the wonderful comments on how nicely the floor is weathered, but that's not the point of the picture. If you look at the two pieces of track that have been dropped into place between the turntable and the roundhouse, a good eye will recognize that one is Code 83 and the other is Code 100.
Here is a closer view:
A couple of our more cost conscious members had suggested that we could use Code 100 track here because we had run out of Code 83. Placing the two codes beside each other answered that question pretty quick! The difference in rail sizes is visible but not overwhelming, but the difference in tie sizes kind of slaps you right up the side of the head. Problem solved! We ordered more Code 83 track!
Hi Dave,I like the yellow caution zone around the pit rails.
As far as the size of the ties in front of roundhouse, wouldn't the normal situation have the ties amost buried flush in that area?...so no worry about size of ties or code of track??
Brian
My Layout Plan
Interesting new Plan Consideration
hon30critter Hello group! (I almost added 'ies' to the term group, but I actually don't want to feel quite that close to all of you!)
Hello group! (I almost added 'ies' to the term group, but I actually don't want to feel quite that close to all of you!)
With Rush retired, we need some Canadian group to follow, eh?
Sorry for my sick sense of humour.
We supposedly held an operating session on Tuesday night, but in truth it was the same old round and round while trying to avoid head on collisions. It still astounds me how many people haven't yet learned to look at a turnout before going charging through it!!! I still have faith that we can conquer that mountain!
In response to previous requests for more pictures, here are a few shots:
The first is a view of the roundhouse floor placed loosely with a couple of trial track sections temporarily dropped in place:
Here are a couple of other shots from Tuesday night:
The staging yard is under construction. It is also a huge mess! It would seem that this is the area where all the crap has been deposited over the last few days! You all know how that works!!
See the hole in the foam? That will be the quarry. The backgound hills will be built up about 9" to 12" behind the quarry so it will look like it is built into the mountain. The other side of the mountain will have a ski hill with a small chalet. The forground scene will feature the Walthers Glacier Gravel Company:
Here is a group shot during our operating exercise in avoiding collisions session:
What you may not notice is that we have have five additional double tube LED overhead lights installed. The room is much brighter! The landlord was nice enough to cover half the cost. The (predictable) problem is that now the original single tube fluorescent fixtures look rather dull. We plan on changing those a few at a time over the next year or two at our own expense. It won't be huge bucks.
Finally, I would love to show you a video of this wee beastie in action:
It is a Rapido and it was working beautifully, that is until I pulled out my camera. Then it just quit moving. It still had all the sounds and lights (lots of lights!), but it refused to budge. I will leave it up to others to comment.
Cheers guys!! Thanks for your interest!