If you would just drop a

If you would just drop a camera from above at a key location with a properly placed mic.  I find ops interesting to watch.

Congrats!

On passing a major milestone with your layout.

CCTV:

You may have already covered this and I missed it. What be CCTV? (A link if you've already covered it?)

Sound:

My op guys enjoy the sound very much, but I only have about 3-4 operators at the most. (And that makes my medium sized layout a bit crowded/hectic.)

More bodies equal more camaraderie, so yes, sometimes the finer points of sound get a bit lost in the commotion. HOWEVER, I interpret "so much joking, cutting up and laughing during the session" as a sign you've created a fun experience for them.

Perhaps it's time for me to consider flying out to your place in my private jet with my entourage, rent a limo to your place, and allow you to entertain me with an op session on your layout.

Andre

Dave, I love the photo at the

Dave,

I love the photo at the top of the page in this topic. It really demonstrates that huge advantage you have operating in 1905 due to the much shorter (in length) freight cars and locomotives. You have managed to get a lot of railroading into the available space, something that wouldn't work if modeling 2005 instead of 1905. Good job.

I congratulate you with your operating session. That your crew was cutting up and joking around while operating the layout tells me that everyone had a good time. Isn't  that the desired goal of operating with friends? Indeed. I wish I had been there with y'all.

Jim  

Train size

One of the reasons I went to the 1900 era.  A 10 car train looks "normal" and 15 car train looks "large" even though its only 8 actual feet long.

I measured it and except for the extreme north end where I added a siding, I have between 2 and 3 train lengths between stations.  If you do that with a modern 25 car train, that's 18-21 ft long, you need a ginormus layout to have 3-4 sidings with 2-3 train lengths between sidings.  20 ft is 3 "normal" train lengths long for me.

One other comment one of the operators made was he was surprised by the wide variety of car types, the different shapes and sizes of the equipment.  He was expecting a more limited roster.

Thank you, Dave

Dave, you commented on another thread that you aren't putting a lot of stuff out about your railroad because of...a lack of comment or something.

Just for the record, I enjoy what you are doing and what you've accomplished on your P&R. It is well thought out/designed, and the hand laid track is beautiful. Experience in 1:1 Scale almost guarantees a fine railroad in smaller scales.

Thanks for posting this.

 

"Experience in 1:1 Scale

"Experience in 1:1 Scale almost guarantees a fine railroad in smaller scales." Great point. For another illustration, look at the cut in the lower right-hand corner of Dave's photo. There's a "rightness" about that I bet comes in part from observations made during trips over the road.

Congrats!

Getting the whole thing operating after such a long break must feel great.  Joking and laughing operators are happy operators.  And I have to say from what I’ve seen of your railroad on here it looks like it would be a lot of fun to operate.

Sound in locos set a bit on the quiet side could be enjoyed just by the closest people, but not up the noise level overall.

I like the idea of cctv OSing.  When a train comes across a lit train order signal, do they call to copy an order?  I gather you haven’t settled on the finer points yet, I’m interested to see what you come up with.

OS

I don't have signals yet, but I think I can use a radio throttle and an NCE Light It decoder to turn on /off a TO signal.  I wouldn't have crews copy train orders, they would have to go to the dispatcher to get a copy of the orders.  Its quicker for the dispatcher to write the orders.  I don't really have any way for a train crew to talk to the dispatcher.  I might need a way for the dispatcher to talk to the yardmasters about trains that they are going to launch.  Currently I issue a "line up" and the yards build to that line up.  While I love the idea of the yards and dispatcher planning the operation, I don't think it will be really practical during the course of an op session because it will be too confusing to change things on the fly.  It will probably be best to set a line up and work towards that.  Less chance of confusion.

Wow!

It's great to see you get back to operating the layout, Dave! I've been following your work for a few years. While my comments are few, your work is inspiring and feeding my dreams of a circa 1926 HO layout. Several other Pre-Depression Era railroad modelers have also been keeping up with your progress.

I'll have to keep an eye out for ops weekends in your area.

Eric

Dave, I hope to see a lot

Dave,

I hope to see a lot more posting about your layout, the models you build and use, and the layout's operation. We need more about modeling early years of railroading and your models and layout are a great representation of those times. Don't be so shy!

Jim

Congrats...

Congrats on a successful session!  Glad you're back at it.  A layout only truly comes to life during an op session.  

Randy

Dave, What are the boxcars in

Dave,

What are the boxcars in this  yard scene? I believe you are modeling 1905. Are all these cars good for 1905? I will have to get some for my early setting too.

Thanks,

Jim

Interesting sub-topic Dave

I'm sure that you are aware of these options, but I'll throw them out for general consumption.

Depending on the amount of crew members I get, I can either do a dispatcher (the bare minimum, who writes their own orders), or I can incorporate the dispatcher with a "super operator", that handles all stations. 

For OS, I once again took the cheap and reliable way out, and I use cheap, purchased from Target, FRS radios.  The crews OS from all "open" stations (as listed in my timetable) to the dispatcher, with the crews taking on the role of "station operator".  If they are close to the dispatcher, they don't need to use radios, they just talk to the dispatcher using the same verbiage they use over the radio. 

For dictating and read back of orders, I have two FRS radios set to a different frequency that the operator and dispatcher use to talk to each other (keeps everybody else from having to listen to the chatter). These individuals sit in different parts of the basement, separated by about 20 feet, but two cement walls and about eight feet of dirt as the crow flies. (well, clay around here). 

I have about 10 handsets, and two "foot pedals" for push to talk between the operator and dispatcher that I have not installed.  I'm not sure that I want to go there.  I need a power supply to make the system work, but more importantly, I need some sort of headset and/or scissor-stand for the dispatcher and operator.  This old stuff is getting very expensive.  Also, I'd have to string wire for the handsets, and unless I want a "party line", I'd have to rework the phone handsets with a push-to-talk feature.  

Maybe, some day I will go down this path, but like the discussion with fast clocks, right now, cheap and dirty gets the job done.  It has worked for 50 sessions.

I don't have either semaphore style or indicator light train order signals.  If I do eventually decide to do actual train order boards / signals, I would go with the the NCE light driver and train order signals.  That significantly cuts down on the wiring.  The other thing I would want to incorporate if I do that is to have a panel for the operator to set the train order signals.  I would incorporate this into a input board into the command station also.  

I don't at this time do Form 31 train orders, only Form 19.  I also use strictly "display" train order semaphores to "make the scene", and utilize colored cards on my fascia (red or green, red indicating a 19 order) to indicate that an order is waiting, which the operator will hang once completed for the crew on the bill box, or if it isn't written yet, the train stops until the operator walks the order over to the town. 

The train order board westward now indicates that the crew must pick up an order.  The eastward board is green, indicating no order.  I went with a really dark green (I had a rattle can on the shelf) that unfortunately blends in with my black fascia, but there is no problem. It makes it REALLY easy for novice or boomer crews, if they simply remember the phrase "If it's not red, it's not red at all.  If it can't be seen, it must be green". 

So, simple solutions to required Train order challenges.  KISS in practice. 

Regards,

Jerry

Always Pays...

To read each post in a thread of interest. Just picked up a great tip about simulating train order boards, and its given me some ideas to explore.

Thanks Jerry!

Signal cards

I would be tempted to used two sided cards one with a semaphore set to stop and one with a semaphore set to clear.

1900-1905

Radio, you should be using telegraph keys!

Cars

Jim:

Here's the breakdown of cars.  For boxcars and reefers, plastic kits are primarily MDC boxcar kits and Roundhouse RTR 36 ft cars (mostly the newer runs).  Technically most of them are 1910-1920 carbodies with 1900 era paint schemes.  The kitbashed cars are MDC 36 ft boxcars cut down to 34 ft  with new underbodies and doors or the AHM "California Fruit Express" and Bachmann boxcars with new roofs, underframes and doors.  The old MDC underframes were recycled as underframes under the kitbashed gons with a scratch cast superstructure.  The RTR gons are a few Bowser PRR GS and the rest Mantua and Tyco with details and lettering added.  Unfortunately the vast majority of the resin kit cars are out of production Virginia Car & Foundry, and Silver Crash cars.  The wood kits are Labelle and Central Valley, some of which were used and bought assembled.  The scratch cars are a couple styrene cars and the rest homemade resin boxcars and gons.

For your purposes, Westerfield, F&C and Bowser are your friends.  They have a lot more 1905-1910 cars than they have 1890-1905 cars.

Cars

Th

Thanks for the information Dave. Interesting assortment of early cars for sure.

Jim