Comprehensive list of causes of derailments

[rockymidlandrr]

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....

[Shock Control]

Did anyone mention cats coughing up hairballs?

[Bubbytrains]

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.

[gdelmoro]

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. 

[Shock Control]

Reading through the thread, it's no wonder that trucking overtook railroads. ;)

[ricktrains4824]

Fouling a clearance point on a turnout/yard ladder.

This could be called exactly what it is... Operating error causing colission. 

[caldreamer]

One that got missed is ballast in the flange side of track and turnouts, causing wheels to ride up.

[gdelmoro]

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. 

How did we miss THAT

[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. 

 

[Heartland Division CB&Q]

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 . 

[gdelmoro]

OK Here is what was contributed to this post.  Thanks to all!

 

Why Model Trains Derail and Troubleshooting ideas.

 

This information is divided into 3 Categories; Common Causes, Less Common Causes, and You’ve got to be Kidding!

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

 

 

Track out of  gauge Track not level (BOTH Ways) along the length and side to side. Note that properly installed track may be super-elevated but this requires detailed attention to Rolling Stock. Mismatched rail code causing height variation. Rail joint too large. Track obstructions (on or near) Nails, scenery, buildings bad weld or joint. Turnouts (not level, improper gauge or wheel clearance at guard rails or frog. Curve radius too tight for locomotive or rolling stock Improper Wheel Gauge Coupler height (coupler and trip pin). Kink at rail joint (easy to do with flex track) Turnout points not firmly contacting stock rail (both sides) Turnout points not shaped right to fit stock rail at top of points Wheels both in gauge, but slipped toward one end of the axle so that, when tracking, neither axle's wheels are directly behind/in front of their counterparts on the next axle; Points rails not sharp enough; Couplers that aren't really compliant or suited for matching; Couplers that aren't mounted suitably for the curvature radius being used "S" curve in track Turnout not reset to proper position. (left switched to siding or spur). Turnout switch points dance around, not held in place by ground throw or switch machine. Turnout directly after curve causing a S curve. Turnouts too tight for longer locomotives or rolling stock. Loose ballast in a turnout. Wheel sets not properly set in trucks. Coupler ‘brake hose’ too low. 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. Excessive Speed Everything on these lists going forward, double it for going backwards. Pushing a string even if everything is near-perfect. Stiffly sprung diaphragms on passenger cars, operated on sharp radius curves. 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   Less Common Causes Trucks are deformed wheels don't all sit flat on track. The Steam loco is connected to the tender by the cable but the bar is disconnected. A piece of a loco detail or rolling stock has come off and is on track or causing wheels to lift. Vehicles or livestock on track Switch machine too close on curve causing loco plow or other body part/detail to hit. Un-coupler magnet to high or not flat/level Poorly adjusted truck movement on rolling stock Steam loco lead or trailing trucks not sprung properly Steam loco floating / sprung drivers not properly sprung (too strong or weak) Diesel loco wheelsets just a tad out of gauge.  The flanges should be centered in the NMRA gauge slots, not just sorta fitting into the slots Sudden  Grade Changes  Axles not seated properly in the trucks' bearing cones; Sags or humps leading through the points and toward the diverging leg of a turnout; Frog poorly designed or made allowing wheel drop or improper tracking; Wrong tire and flange profile for the NMRA-compliant turnout Lack of weight on leading trucks 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     You’ve GOT to be Kidding! Main higher than the sidings. Where the grade change for the siding occurs "inside" the switch.  Very bad Problems at the ends of modules where the foam shrank and lowered all the track except at the end that sits on plywood

Steam engine to tender connector that lifts the engine in a curve Hanging wires from motor/engine Unbalanced weight on engine Improperly installed pilot trucks on steam locomotives! Rail gaps that become too wide due to changing weather conditions

 

[gdelmoro]

Didn’t forget this list. Ive been under the weather... 

[Lonnie Utah]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HMxJtMoTnx8

[gdelmoro]

BroadwayLion

Cat on the Tracks (any scale)

 

ROAR

 

didn't think of that!

[BroadwayLion]

Cat on the Tracks (any scale)

 

ROAR

[gdelmoro]

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.

[trainnut1250]

 

- 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

[Lone Wolf and Santa Fe]

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.

[gdelmoro]

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.)

 

[mvlandsw]

   Rail gaps that become too wide due to changing weather conditions.

[JOHN C TARANTO]

Stiffly sprung diaphragms on passenger cars, operated on sharp radius curves.

[BRAKIE]

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 

 

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.

[IRONROOSTER]

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

[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 

[mobilman44]

Did anyone mention "Excessive Speed"?

I would put that under the sub cat of "operator error".

 

[7j43k]

snjroy

 

- 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

[BRAKIE]

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.

 

 

 

[MisterBeasley]

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.

[Lone Wolf and Santa Fe]

Penelope Pitstop tied to the track again.