FORUM CLINIC: Operating like the prototype

[jfugate]

TOPIC THIS POST: Figuring out what trains to run

Read this forum clinic post by clicking here.

[ShadowNix]

Mike,

 

Great point on naming the sidings, etc.... I never new that.  Something fun I can let my kids help me with someday too!

Brian

Brian

[jfugate]

TOPIC THIS POST: What do we mean by 'prototype operation'?

Read this forum clinic post by clicking here.

[MIKE0659]

Great idea Joe. I went and read your first one and you're doing a great job.

One suggestion you might want to work in someplace though, if I may?

Remind everyone to name every single track and siding on their railroad. If you spend any time around the prototype, you will find they do it. Even if it isn't the official railroad name, the local guys have names for everything. Every track has a name, even if it is just a number, it is still named.

Some names are rooted in the past and have no link to what is there now. The "New Siding" that is over 70 years old. The "Turntable Lead" that hasn't led to a turntable for 30 years. The "Scale Track" that has no scale, at least for 20 years. But it's the name that has been used and everyone is familiar with them. The old heads pass them down to the new kids, and so forth.

It's a basic, but important component of operations. I'm guessing you know this, but I've run across many who don't.

Keep up the great work, I'm looking forward to reading the rest.

[tstage]

Joe,

I really like it so far.  I appreciate the discussion/explanation on the difference between the railfan and engineer modeler and how that reflects in their approach to modeling and enjoying their layout.  I look forward to the upcoming installments.

Tom

[howmus]

Sounds like another winner, Joe!  I will definately watch this thread as I am just about ready to start some operations with some friends and have no clue of where to start.......

[jfugate]

Sounds great Joe. Will you be representing both diesel as well as steam?

Actually, prototype operations is more related to time and era, than the equipment per-se. Many of the concepts will apply to any era, and the era-specific topics will be post 1970 track warrants. Later, we can expand the discussion to include pre-1970 Timetable & Train Orders.

But T&TO operation can get really involved, so saving it for last will be best since people will have all the other less complex discussion under their belts first.

[WickhamMan]

Nice start. I'm looking forward to the rest.

 

 

[ShadowNix]

VERY, nice, Joe.  Keep it coming!!! 

Brian

[GearDrivenSteam]

Sounds great Joe. Will you be representing both diesel as well as steam?

[Railfan Alex]

***** (Five Stars)

Great Idea!!!!!

[jfugate]

TOPIC THIS POST: Railfan versus Engineer

Read this forum clinic post by clicking here.

Post your comments or questions here in this thread on the MR forum. This keeps the forum clinic thread itself free of any distracting posts or digressions.

[Anonymous]

Joe;

Having observed this hobby for over forty years now I can tell you this much:  the insertion of the word "operation" into a phrase is automatically going to be a Bru-ha-ha Breeder; it is almost always immediately followed by weeping, wailing, and gnashing of teeth.

I will admit that I am more of a railfan operator than a how-many-cars-can-I-shove-into-the-spurs-on-this-particular-trip operator; I prefer watching trains roll although I do, upon occasions, enjoy watching a peddler drop and pick up cars at an online industry; call me impatient if you will but I get just a little nausious of that after four solid hours of it.  I simply don't orient my railroad around that particular function - I know of some who do.  If operation is your bag then have at it; don't tell - or imply - that I am out of the mainstream of model railroading if I don't share your enthusiasm.  Discussion of prototype operation quickly degenerates - at least in silent opinions if not in audible verbage - into rationalizations of "IDIOT(S)"and "BLASPHEMER(S).  I am sure, at this particular moment in time, there are literally dozens out there reading this post shouting those exact invectives at me for my I-don't-enjoy-operations heresy and further advocating that I should be called to account before the Spanish Inquistion!!! This attitude is usually followed with statements like, "The XYZ railroad ................"; I have encountered this on numerous occasions and I am sure you have also.

Operations - and operations principles and procedures - are not written in blood, a fact lost on more than one model rail.  "I am an operator and if you don't operate your layout the way I operate my layout then you obviously are not really serious about operations!!!"  I enjoy reading "Trains of Thought" but T.K. is a legend in his own mind!!!  

Now, there are some hard facts of life regarding (prototype) railroad operation and I try to run/operate my ABC railroad on sound operational principles and practices, but it is the ABC railroad and not the PDQ Railroad, or the XYZ Railroad, or the Sneaky Falls, Regurgitation, and Pacific Railroad.  Being a freelancer (a heretical word which is usually accompanied by another explative, "lazy") you will almost never hear me say "The 'real' railroads never or always did or did not do something" specific because I really don't know (and, with a few exception, don't really care) whether these "real" railroads never or always did or did not do something specific; such advocacy carries the implication that any railroad which does something differently is not a "real" railroad!!!  My ABC Railroad may not have a 'real' corporate identity but it is singularly unique in its requirements and its operational policies and procedures is going to be singularly unique.

I'll follow your forum but I'm going to keep my boots off of the floor and my tongue in my cheek - that's to keep from choking off spasms of laughter - while I do; I am extremely curious to see if you can moderate this topic to keep it from degenerating into a virtual donnybrook.

[ShadowNix]

Great idea, Joe.  But I concur with Paul...keep it here.  I also would request you split it up by eras, or at least inform when such specific operations were used.  Otherwise us noob's will be operating our 1950's train in the 1980's instructions.... LOL. Anyways, I look forward to your post.  Perhaps email Bergie and see if he can sticky it.

 

Brian

[jfugate]

Sounds like a good idea to me.  I would prefer to keep it here.  I don't mind signing up for your forum, but I usually don't have the time to check more than one forum.

Which eras are you planning to cover?

Enjoy
Paul

Paul:

I hear you. I think what I would do is as I post installments over there, I would add a post to this thread and include a link so the content is only one click away. That way you wouldn't have to crawl my forum over there to find it, you could just stay here on this forum and this thread would be "grand central station" to the content ... I would just host it over there so I can control the formatting and presentation easier.

I'll start working on postings and we'll give it a try ... think of it as an experiment.

I'm going to be covering Track Warrants, which is a more modern method of granting authorization for trains to move that works especially well for model railroads. I'll be using my own HO Siskiyou Line as an example. Later we can also discuss Timetable and Train Order (pre 1970) if you like, since I have some experience operating T&TO as well on a model railroad, having done it as a visiting operator to several other layouts.

[tstage]

I am always up to learning about prototype operations.  That's something that is and will always applicable to my layout.  Joe, will you be concentrating more on modern (ca. 1970-present) prototype operations vs. older (pre-1970) operations?

Tom

[NS2591]

I'll be there. I'm trying to build my layout so that it can be run by prototype practices. the hardest part is I'm not exactly sure how to use car cards and waybills. As for it being here or on your forum, It doesn't matter to me.

[WickhamMan]

Another awesome idea from Joe. Just give us a link to the clinis and I'm there.

Thanks.

 

[IRONROOSTER]

Sounds like a good idea to me.  I would prefer to keep it here.  I don't mind signing up for your forum, but I usually don't have the time to check more than one forum.

Which eras are you planning to cover?

Enjoy
Paul

[Dave Vollmer]

Absolutely.  Sign me up.

[SilverSpike]

Sounds good to me Joe!

Any time you want to share with us your vast model railroading expereince I am "ALL EYES AND EARS."

Have you already started this clinic on your own forum?

Cheers,

Ryan

 

[jfugate]

How about a new clinic - Operating like the Prototype ...

However, I would be inclined to post the installments over on my own forum under the operations section. That way, I would not have to continually bump it like I have to do here, I can easily post images without issues, and I could even post some short video clips if I want.

What do you think? Is this a topic anyone would be interested in?

People could post comments over here in this thread if they like. You can read my forum without joining it, but you would have to sign up over there to post comments. If we keep any questions and discussion over here then you wouldn't have to join any new forums if you didn't want to.

Thoughts?