Derails

The derails I ended up using were Details West #DR925, purchased through  Hobbylinc .  That link also includes some nice photos of what you get in the package, though I ended up only using two pieces:  The derail base and the derail itself (either right- or left-hand).  I thought it was actually really easy to add a working "hinge" between the two:  Simply drill both out using the molded indentations, pass a piece of piano wire through, glue the "stub" end to the base using thick CA, then cut off and glue the other end.

To replicate the IAIS derails, I painted mine yellow before assembly.  To install, I simply CA'd them to the ties at the appropriate locations, being careful not to get glue in the hinge points.  Once the glue was dry, I used my Dremel to remove the raised rib along the non-rail side of the base, then touched up the yellow paint.  This was done to allow the derail to lay flat when it's open, preventing it from creating clearance issues for passing equipment.  However, it's important not to remove that rib until the derail is glued in place, as the integrity of the base would be compromised if it wasn't already glued to the ties.

Unfortunately, 5 of the 6 derails on my prototype are in very "trespassy" locales that are no longer accessible, and when I did have access to them back in the era I model, I didn't think to take good closeups.  Also unfortunately, the one I can still shoot, at Searle Petroleum, is unique among the six.  The other five are all the flop-over style, while the Searle derail is a high-stand style that's thrown much like a turnout, as shown below:

When it's opened, the derail slides away from the rail rather than flopping over.  To keep things simple for modeling purposes, I chose to just use the flop-over style offered by Details West for all six.

Here's a crummy prototype pic of the derails to the left of the vertical sign on the Atlantic Spur (left) and Pellett track (right) at Atlantic, Iowa:

 ...and here's the Pellett track derail:

 Here's a pic of the Searle derail in the open position:

 Finally, another consideration I learned about derails is that, in HO scale, they can be very hard to see if the layout is high enough, or they're far enough away, that you're looking out across the rails at them rather than down.  Here are a couple examples at both ends of Hillis siding, where the derails (circled in red) are 18-24" into the scene.

  

 

 

Derails

Derails are also directional,  The derail in one direction, but non necessarily in the other.  Normally derails in industrial spurs derail cars coming out of the track, towards the main or lead.  On a mechanical facility and some tank car loading racks they might derail equipment entering the track.

They are also directional in which way they derail cars.  The object is to derail the cars AWAY from the main track.  For example the derail in the picture under the Atlantic Spur picture is on the wrong rail.  It will derail cars towards the main.  If it was on the outside rail it would derail cars away from the main or lead.

The oddest derail derailment I had was at a spur used for storage a local was pulling cars of the spur and derailed 3 out of 5 cars.  The odd thing was the middle three cars were derailed, the first and the last cars, and the engine, were still on the rail.  The derail was on but not locked and the crew swore they unlocked it and flopped it over.  My investigation revealed that there were wheel marks on the inside of the derail and that it was a "standard derail", which meant it was designed for 90+ lb rail.  Unfortunately, since this was a house track on a former interurban line the track had 75 lb rail on it.  Best I could tell the crew did open the derail, reached into the track and pulled the cars out of the track, however the flanges hit the open derail frame and caused the derail to flop back into the derailing position.

dave1905

Dave thank you. I have a handful of derails (for years) and was wondering how the directions of derailing should be. Confirmed what I thought. 

Tom

Derails can also "blow out"

Derails can also "blow out" if not spiked adequately to a tie.

I had that happen on a short line I operated which was on a spur which handled coil gons for a steel fabricator. By the time our short line got a hold of line the tie condition was poor including those leading into the industry by the fouling point of the main.

Sure enough, one afternoon the steel company realeased the handbrake on an mty gon and it flew right down the spur knocking the derail off the track and coming to rest fouling the main track switch. There was no derailment and replacement of a couple of ties got the derail properly re-located and fastened securely.

Derails have only one purpose and it's to derail equipment when placed in the normal position...over the rail. I can tell you as an engineer there were several times when one of my conductors failed to remove the derail before going into a track and as we starting shoving into that track I felt the engine bump and lurch a bit before I immediately stopped the movement. There was no need to tell the conductor why I stopped...he knew...he forgot to "pop" the derail.

Barry

Derail placement

Joe,

Great work on the track derails. If you have room, place the derails about a half a car length back from the clearance point. The idea is to have the car stop (after being derailed) before it fouls the adjacent track. We did this on Conrail and CSX sidetracks to industries coming off of non-signaled tracks. Placement of a derail on a sidetrack coming off a signaled track was in accordance with a signal dept. plan and usually located a little further than half a car length back from the clearance point.

Fran Giacoma

Derails .. no thanks

I worked for CP rail in the 80s coming from  North Bend to Coquitlam with 119 buggies of grain  , some envious kids had pulled the derail  switch off a siding and put it on the main . I remember looking into the setting sun then observing this yellow thing obstructing the shiny ribbon rails looking over at the hogger ( spareboard ) piglet , back then . We shouted  :#%^ Derail  at the same time .Well it was on backwards and the lead SD 40-2  shot that thing out like a cannon . down the tracks and into a field . Derail for me ..no thanks . 

Fantastic

This. Is fantastic thank you for sharing this fantastic work with us.I wish I could share it to my new Facebook group TRAINS ACROSS THE WORLD my goal is to bring everyone together in this world to share the love of this hobby in one place from railfanning, how to videos, layout updates, photos abandoned railroads and anything about train's 

Nice derails

Nice job on the derails Joe.  I did have the same thought as Dave on that one being on the wrong rail for the location.

Not all derails are directional - for example  https://www.aldonco.com/store/p/691-2-Way-Hinged-Railroad-Derail-for-Locomotive-with-manual-sign-holder.aspx. 

I don’t know, but I’d guess the single direction ones may be more reliable?  If installed correctly of course.  There was an incident involving an escape lumber car hitting a commuter rail train back in 2008 that apparently hopped over a directional derail that had apparently been installed backwards.  Long railroad.net thread:  http://railroad.net/forums/viewtopic.php?f=65&t=50057&start=360, short news article:  https://www.patriotledger.com/x1565507003 (the article says boxcar but as the picture shows it was a center beam flat).

Derail placement

Ack!  I got so caught up in trying to be "accurate" by placing the derail on the same rail as the prototype that I didn't think about the impact to that placement when I moved it further down that rail, closer to the main.  Thanks for the tip Dave.  Good thing I bought an extra!  I'll plan to swap that one out tonight.

Fran, thanks for your kind words.  That's good advice about locating the derails further back.  However, given the limited capacity of the derail-protected tracks on my layout, I had to stretch the bounds of realism and place them in more practical locations.  For some, those choices were also dictated by accessibility.  For example, even though track space wasn't as much of an issue at Pellett Petroleum (photos 3 & 5 above), those big green storage tanks would have made it very difficult to reach their derail if it was placed prototypically.

So yes, to any others considering the use of derails, don't follow my lead in their placement if you can help it.  My objective in adding mine was to immerse operators further into the prototype world, but since I don't actually have to protect my mainline from runaway cars, those operational considerations took precedence over strict prototypical accuracy in this case.

Better?

Since I was already compromising this scene by moving the Atlantic Spur derail (middle track in this Andy Brown photo, just to the right of the Atlantic Spur station sign) closer to the mainline, I don't suppose it was much more of a compromise to move it to the opposite rail in order to make my models derail properly. 

Here's the updated scene, with the Atlantic Spur derail now directly above the peak of the Pellett pump house roof, on the rail closest to it.  The Pellett derail is on the same rail in the lower right corner.

Still not an ideal solution since crews working the Pellett spur have to open two derails to get to it, which seems weird.  Now I'm wondering if I should forego the Pellett derail (foreground above)?  It's only protecting a very short portion of the Atlantic Spur - a former branchline that now serves a grain elevator north of town. 

What say you, prototype railroaders?

Is it there on the prototype?

Dear Joe,

My question would be, is the "dbl derail" config there on the prototype?

The kids nowadays say

"...pics, or it didn't happen..." 

...when it comes to close-to-prototype modelling of a specific location + era,
I'll take the leading of verified photographic evidence as my primary-source every time... 

Happy Modelling,
Aim to Improve,
Prof Klyzlr

Great series!

Great series!

Double derail

Hi,

even though rather unusual I could imagine a double-derail situation if there were several things to be protected. One could be the main line being protected from run-away cars on the industrial siding, while the other would protect an unloading spot for haz-mat cars.

But that is pure speculation.

Have fun!

Sorta

I'm sure somebody could find serial derails someplace.  The only time I've actually seen something like that they were different "directions".  The one closer to the main was required by the railroad to protect the main from cars rolling OUT of the industry and the inboard one was there to protect a loading track from trains coming INTO the industry (associated with a white or blue flag).

Taking another look

Well...I thought it was a bit more complicated than that.   I try to model as close to the prototype as what my limited abilities and space allow, but this is a case where I originally felt I had to compromise.  As you can see in this photo, the prototype has derails on both tracks, directly across from one another:

However, in my case, duplicating that arrangement would limit the Atlantic Spur (left above, right below) to a 3-car capacity.  That spur serves an elevator another mile or so up the line, but since my representation of it in model form comes to an abrupt end at my aisle, this little segment of that track is all I have to work with when spotting cars to that elevator, so I wanted it to hold as many covered hoppers as possible.

For that reason, I originally positioned the derail for the Atlantic Spur waaaay down close to the mainline, as shown earlier in this thread.  What I'm ashamed to say that I didn't stop to consider previously is the fact that, in my ops plan, the elevator served by this spur typically only orders 6 cars at a time (representing 25 on the prototype).  Even with them extending out close to the clearance point on the mainline, the most you can fit on my representation is 5 cars, so it's always been necessary to re-spot this customer in the course of an op session in order to fulfill their entire order.

Your post encouraged me to take another look, and in doing so I realized my mistake.  The right answer all along was to put the derails where they are on the prototype (everyone in unison:  "Duh Joe!"), limiting the Atlantic Spur to a three-car capacity, and then spot Harlan Elevator in two groups of three cars.  It's times like this that I wish MRH had a face-palm emoji, but I guess "embarrassed" () will have to do.  It's certainly appropriate!

So here, ladies and gentlemen, after far too much head-scratching and hand-wringing, is my final answer:

Excellent!

Perfect - the derails are exactly where they are on the prototype, you have the same level of operating interest, a nice solution!

Ken

Thanks Ken!  I love when the prototype's solution also happens to be the best one for the layout.

I also found that by moving both derails just a couple ties closer to the main, I opened up more possibilities:

1. If I remove the elevator's 45-tonner, I have room for a fourth car on the Atlantic Spur - allowing for those times when FSC, the second customer on that line, gets a car of fertilizer.  (I normally keep Harlan Elevator's switcher, ADMX 4441, on the Atlantic Spur to act as a reminder of the elevator's presence just up the road.)
2. When there are no cars spotted to Pellett, I can shove Harlan's first three loads there while re-spotting, which works well since the IAIS often uses that track for staging eastbound cars so the road train doesn't block crossings in town while making the pickup.

Very cool...

Nicely done, it's been fun following along on your meandering journey right back to the prototype's original solution.    

I admire your efforts to stick to the prototype, and you're doing a fantastic job of it. Very inspirational. 

Randy

Randy

Oh yeah.  You can only dangle a solution in front of me for so long before brain cells ignite. At least that's what my teachers at Midvale used to say.

Derail Position

To be most effective derails should be installed on the outside rail of curved track. Split rail derails are more effective than other types.

Derail placement

Nice job, Joe. You got the basic concept of the prototype and made it manageable from a “model operations standpoint”. 

I look forward to following your next project.

Fran Giacoma

Fran

Thanks very much Fran. I appreciate your encouragement. 

Final details on derails

I finally got around to adding scale DERAIL signage to the layout, as well as updating my track charts to include derail notations as my prototype does.  Here are a few pics:

While the signs are small, they still help a bit with drawing the eye to the derail location:

Finally, here's an example of one of the updated track charts.  The highlighting isn't prototypical, but I thought it might help to draw more attention to the Derail notations.