Hello. Fianlly getting started in the hobby. Question: What is blocking? Where can I look to read about it?
Thanks,
RC
The use I've always heard for blocking refers to sorting railroad cars. When switching out cars, conductors usually organize them by the destination those cars are going to. Each group of cars that goes to a destination is referred to as a "block" and the act of sorting the cars is "blocking cars." It expedites dropping off and picking up cars at interchanges because you don't have to sort out each car as you set it out, they are already together in a group.
Noah
Or it could refer to seperating a model railroad into electrical blocks so as to allow for operating multiple trains without DCC.
You might try posting your questions here: This forum gets a lot more people visiting it.
Good luck!
Good point Tyler, I didn't think about the Model railroad definition too...
"Blocking" would refer to blocking of freight cars...model railroad tracks can be set up in separate blocks, but I've never heard that called "blocking".
As noted, it basically means setting the order of the freight cars in a train so that they're easier to work with either along the route or at their destination. A train going from City A to City B might have some cars to drop off along the way for Industries A, B and C. Normally, the cars would be set in the order they're going to be dropped off, so if Industry A is the first site the train will reach, the cars for Industry A would be first, then the cars for Industry B, then the cars for Industry C...followed by the cars going all the way thru to City B. That way when they arrive at City B, a switcher can grab the entire cut of cars from the end meant for City B and sort them out as to where they go within the city, rather than having to hunt thru the entire train for a car here and a car there.
Obviously, many factors can determine what order a train actually uses, but that's the general idea.
Could mean radio blocking also.
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