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How Close to the Edge?

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Posted by joe323 on Tuesday, August 20, 2019 10:29 AM

Also I put two clear push pins at the end of my staging track to prevent someone from driving a train off the edge and into the abyss.

Joe Staten Island West 

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Posted by kenben on Tuesday, August 20, 2019 11:30 AM

Big YES fan here! Iʻve seen most of the biggies in the 60ʻs 70ʻs and 80ʻs. Including the Beatles. So it appears today model RailRoaders (RR) and also Rock & Rollers (RR) as well. Maybe Iʻll name my new layout the R&R Railroad. Or the RRRR.

Thanks for the Closer to the Edge answers.

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Posted by Medina1128 on Tuesday, August 20, 2019 12:28 PM

riogrande5761

No, then they would be "Down on the corner, out in the street... Willy and the poor boys are playin'..."

 

 
rrinker

Down by a river?

Down at the end, right by a corner?

 

 

 What, no Yes fans here?

 

                             --Randy

 

 

The lines you were quoting reminded me a bit of Creedence Clearwater Revival.

 

 

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Posted by MisterBeasley on Tuesday, August 20, 2019 12:35 PM

Work very diligently to have as close to perfect trackwork as possible, and have well-adjusted wheelsets, trucks and couplers.

 

It takes an iron man to play with a toy iron horse. 

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Posted by trwroute on Tuesday, August 20, 2019 12:39 PM

Mine measures 1-1/4 inch from track center line to the edge.

Chuck - Modeling in HO scale and anything narrow gauge

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Posted by Eric White on Tuesday, August 20, 2019 4:47 PM

rrinker
Down by a river? Down at the end, right by a corner?      What, no Yes fans here?

Seasons will pass you by

I get up, I get down

Eric

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Posted by riogrande5761 on Wednesday, August 21, 2019 8:52 AM

Steering back on-topic...

If my track is near the edge, I try to create some sort of barrier to prevent trains from going over the edge, either by landscape or a wall using hardbard (yard).

Rio Grande.  The Action Road  - Focus 1977-1983

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Posted by BRAKIE on Wednesday, August 21, 2019 9:06 AM

MisterBeasley

Work very diligently to have as close to perfect trackwork as possible, and have well-adjusted wheelsets, trucks and couplers.

 

 

That's  99.9%  of derailment free operation. The other .1% is human error. IMHO it's better to have some space beween the track and the edge to account for that human error.

Larry

Conductor.

Summerset Ry.


"Stay Alert, Don't get hurt  Safety First!"

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Posted by rrebell on Wednesday, August 21, 2019 10:30 AM

3" is a pretty safe number, never had a problem with that which is what I used and I tested new track at slot car speeds (really the only reason to use those speeds for most of us unless you model Bullet trains).

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Posted by carl425 on Wednesday, August 21, 2019 11:19 AM

Assuming you've got a curve so you can justify it, superelevation can help keep stuff off the floor as well.

I have the right to remain silent.  By posting here I have given up that right and accept that anything I say can and will be used as evidence to critique me.

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Posted by SeeYou190 on Wednesday, August 21, 2019 11:33 AM

carl425
superelevation can help keep stuff off the floor as well.

.

That is really a good idea.

.

Seems basic, but I never thought of it.

.

-Kevin

.

Living the dream.

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Posted by rrinker on Wednesday, August 21, 2019 4:08 PM

Eric White

 

 
rrinker
Down by a river? Down at the end, right by a corner?      What, no Yes fans here?

 

Seasons will pass you by

I get up, I get down

Eric

 

(to constantly work on something under the layout)

And Roundabout fits Canadian Canyons very well - in and around the lake, mountains come out of the sky...

Hmm, now there'd be a fantasy layout, based off of one of Roger Dean's paintings.

                                    --Randy


Modeling the Reading Railroad in the 1950's

 

Visit my web site at www.readingeastpenn.com for construction updates, DCC Info, and more.

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Posted by BATMAN on Wednesday, August 21, 2019 5:08 PM

Okay, so after 12 years of no accidents, I could not sleep knowing my Royal Hudsons would be the ones taking the plunge if anything was to do it, so I put guards across the four-foot span and now I can sleep once again.

Before

After

  

Fate is fickle.

Brent

"All of the world's problems are the result of the difference between how we think and how the world works."

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Posted by riogrande5761 on Thursday, August 22, 2019 7:32 AM

BATMAN
Fate is fickle.

You earned this.

Rio Grande.  The Action Road  - Focus 1977-1983

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Posted by SeeYou190 on Friday, August 23, 2019 5:59 AM

BATMAN
Okay, so after 12 years of no accidents <SNIP> I put guards across the four-foot span.

.

That is an impressive record with such a dangerous looking drop.

.

-Kevin

.

Living the dream.

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Posted by Mister Mikado on Friday, August 23, 2019 11:44 AM

What about that soft ping pong table netting?  Mount a running length of it just below the track edge all around the layout.  -Rob

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Posted by BATMAN on Friday, August 23, 2019 11:54 AM

SeeYou190

 

 
BATMAN
Okay, so after 12 years of no accidents <SNIP> I put guards across the four-foot span.

 

.

That is an impressive record with such a dangerous looking drop.

.

-Kevin

.

 

Yep! Stupid is as stupid does.HmmLaugh

I didn't want to get the Flying Fickle Finger Of Fate award but I see I was too late.Laugh

Brent

"All of the world's problems are the result of the difference between how we think and how the world works."

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Posted by BroadwayLion on Saturday, August 24, 2019 9:04 AM

Mister Mikado

What about that soft ping pong table netting?  Mount a running length of it just below the track edge all around the layout.  -Rob

 

 

That is exactly whaty they are doing in New York City. Putting netting under the elevated trains. Not that the trains would fall off, but enough tie plates, bolts lengths of steel and stuff like that fall off to damage parked cars ore even to impale moving cars.

 

ROARING !!!

The Route of the Broadway Lion The Largest Subway Layout in North Dakota.

Here there be cats.                                LIONS with CAMERAS

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Posted by BroadwayLion on Saturday, August 24, 2019 9:10 AM

How close to the edge can you get ???

 

ROARING

The Route of the Broadway Lion The Largest Subway Layout in North Dakota.

Here there be cats.                                LIONS with CAMERAS

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Posted by Drumguy on Saturday, August 24, 2019 5:20 PM

Some of you guys might get a kick out of this. Been trying to find a name for my entirley fictitious and non-protyoical layout, and my favorite band had named it for me in 1972. Sitting there right in front of me all along.

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Posted by carl425 on Saturday, August 24, 2019 10:55 PM

Drumguy
Some of you guys might get a kick out of this.

Definately!  Good choice.

I have the right to remain silent.  By posting here I have given up that right and accept that anything I say can and will be used as evidence to critique me.

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Posted by "JaBear" on Saturday, August 24, 2019 11:04 PM

Drumguy
Some of you guys might get a kick out of this.

Thumbs UpThumbs UpThumbs UpThumbs Up

Like the herald design, and the weathering too.

Cheers, the Bear.Smile

"One difference between pessimists and optimists is that while pessimists are more often right, optimists have far more fun."

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Posted by Drumguy on Sunday, August 25, 2019 6:07 PM

 

 
Drumguy
Some of you guys might get a kick out of this.

 

Thumbs UpThumbs UpThumbs UpThumbs Up

Like the herald design, and the weathering too.

Cheers, the Bear.Smile

 

Thanks, Bear! This was actually my first loco weathering project. Its fairly quick and dirty, about 20 minutes of airbrishing on on each loco, and 10 minutes of random rust bits with a fine bristle brush. An insult to the true pros at this, but passes my personal 2 foot rule. Currently working on some Long Distance and Runaround F7 A-B sets with a pretty cool paint scheme. Hoping to get those done by mid-October.

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Posted by joe323 on Sunday, August 25, 2019 6:51 PM

BroadwayLion

 

 
Mister Mikado

What about that soft ping pong table netting?  Mount a running length of it just below the track edge all around the layout.  -Rob

 

 

 

 

That is exactly whaty they are doing in New York City. Putting netting under the elevated trains. Not that the trains would fall off, but enough tie plates, bolts lengths of steel and stuff like that fall off to damage parked cars ore even to impale moving cars.

 

ROARING !!!

 

Yes on the number 7 Flushing Line.

Joe Staten Island West 

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Posted by rrinker on Sunday, August 25, 2019 9:45 PM

Drumguy

Some of you guys might get a kick out of this. Been trying to find a name for my entirley fictitious and non-protyoical layout, and my favorite band had named it for me in 1972. Sitting there right in front of me all along.

 

Oh the possibilities for scenic ideas, and town names. Don't forget the crack express passenger train, the Siberian Khatru. If you stray into solo albums, be sure to have the town of Sunhillow. Oh, and nothing runs on a schedule, it's all just Perpetual Change.

 I was hoping you'd find this thread.

                             --Randy

 


Modeling the Reading Railroad in the 1950's

 

Visit my web site at www.readingeastpenn.com for construction updates, DCC Info, and more.

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Posted by Doughless on Monday, August 26, 2019 8:29 AM

So how does current keep-alive technology impact this decision. 

Those locos keep running a long time after the signal from the track is cut.  Maybe they'll travel six inches on smooth terrain?

Or even worse, battery power.

- Douglas

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Posted by rrinker on Monday, August 26, 2019 11:17 AM

 That's why I don't like'em. Haven't needed them yet, even up to #6 unpowered frogs. 6 inches? My little Walthers Plymouth switcher will run at least 6 FEET on my desk mat after lifting it off the rails if it was moving when I picked it up. If I have anything that actually NEEDS a keep alive, it will get a decoder that uses a 3 wire type, not a cheapy 2 wire one. At least with ESU decoders, with the 3 wire keep alives, you can set a CV that controls just how long it keeps going, rahter than just a generic "keep going until the cap is discharged". You only need a second or so of power to get over a dead frog or small dirty spot on the track - if your track is dirtier than that, clean it.

 To protect gaps for liftouts and so forth, now you need to either set it up so that a DCC Stop signal is generated, or there is a soft physical barrier for the loco to run into. Or the 3 wire keep alives, programmed to limit the run time.

                          --Randy

 


Modeling the Reading Railroad in the 1950's

 

Visit my web site at www.readingeastpenn.com for construction updates, DCC Info, and more.

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Posted by doctorwayne on Monday, August 26, 2019 11:34 AM

rrinker
....To protect gaps for liftouts and so forth, now you need to either set it up so that a DCC Stop signal is generated, or there is a soft physical barrier for the loco to run into. Or the 3 wire keep alives, programmed to limit the run time.

You can also wire the lift-out with a plug to energise it, but when unplugged, will also kill a length of track (as long as is necessary) on either side of the lift-out.
The sketch below shows the set-up, although I ended-up not using the 1" connector sections, instead including them as part of the lift-out....

Wayne

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Posted by rrinker on Monday, August 26, 2019 2:53 PM

 Yes but when the keep alive keeps the loco running for 6 feet or more after the power is cut - that's a LOT of track to kill when removing the liftout. With a non-keep alive DCC loco or a DC loco, they stop as soon as they get on the dead track.

 Of course, even if the locos DO stop dead, if you are backing the train towards the Gorge of Eternal Peril, you'll push all the train on the floor and then the locos will stop.   Or if you are running multiple units, they will keep going until the skidding of however many are past the cutoff gaps plus the weight of the train exceeds the ability of any units still under power to keep pushing. At which point they will sit there and grind U's in the rail. Almost certainly still better than shocing an expensive loco to the floor, but without a physical barrier as well as electricla cutoff, there's nothing foolproof.

                                  --Randy

 


Modeling the Reading Railroad in the 1950's

 

Visit my web site at www.readingeastpenn.com for construction updates, DCC Info, and more.

  • Member since
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Posted by doctorwayne on Monday, August 26, 2019 7:14 PM

rrinker
Yes but when the keep alive keeps the loco running for 6 feet or more after the power is cut - that's a LOT of track to kill when removing the liftout.....

You're right about that, Randy.  I could, however, on my DC-powered layout, which is basically wired as a single block, have the removal of the lift-outs kill the entire layout. 
I did, in another thread, I think, describe how a train did make it to the area of the not-in-place liftout, with the expected consequences.  That's because I didn't bother to add that kill-the-power-at-the-lift-out feature to this layout. Bang HeadWhistling

Wayne

  Bang Head

 

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