sorting out operations

[asciibaron]

i'm working on a chart of all my industries, interchanges, and staging destinations; basically figuring out the total number of cars each will hold and then determining the car types that need to be spotted there.  i'm having a problem with the staging.  if each track will hold 14 cars and i have 6 tracks for the various trains to leave staging, i'm not sure how to balance the staging without making the layout a race track. 

if CB-1 starts with 9 cars from Maybrook, drops 3 and picks up 6 in Warwick, it now has 12 cars.  for the next operating session, what do i do with those 12 cars - if i flip the cards to the next position, there's no way the bulk of the cars will remain as through.  i guess it will take a few times to get the sessions refined, but this has me scratching my noggin.

[Philip H]

A couple of thoughts come to mind.

• Do some shuffling/fiddling in between sessions to restage cars for the next run.  This presumes that cars going into staging are then delivered to a series of off-road entities before reappearing.  Or, you could just run them out onto the layout, switch some indistries at random, and run them back.
• Make your staging a destination itself, such as a classification yard that is in another division.  Doing this you could have an operator actually work it like a classification yard (probably switchlist based).  Could set up a whole bunch of opportunities.
• sit back, have a refreshing beverage, and don't worry about it!

[asciibaron]

A couple of thoughts come to mind.

• Do some shuffling/fiddling in between sessions to restage cars for the next run.  This presumes that cars going into staging are then delivered to a series of off-road entities before reappearing.  Or, you could just run them out onto the layout, switch some indistries at random, and run them back.
• Make your staging a destination itself, such as a classification yard that is in another division.  Doing this you could have an operator actually work it like a classification yard (probably switchlist based).  Could set up a whole bunch of opportunities.
• sit back, have a refreshing beverage, and don't worry about it!

i'm trying to reduce the amount of setup that needs to take place before a session - a full on session will only take about 2 hours, i don't want to spend an hour setting it up.  

with the staging tracks (and the corresponding train) set as a destination, the problem happens on the next session when the cars get moved.  i guess i can set the rotation so that every 4th session i need to re-stage the layout.

i think i have it sorted - every other session is a local spot with the pickup taking it in the opposite direction.

here's an example of a tank car:

waybill #1 to Hagerstown (local pulls car and leaves it in Warwick to be picked up by CB-1)
waybill #2 to Jones Chemical in Warwick (car is on CB-2 and will be set out in Warwick for the local to spot)
waybill #3 to Boston (local pulls car and leaves it in Warwick to be picked up by NE-2)
waybill #4 back to Jones Chemical (car is on NE-3 and will be set out in Warwick for the local to spot)

if i setup the connections correctly, everything should stay balanced.

some cards could be on side 3 and others on side 2 during a session to balance things if i need to make adjustments.  i'm just worried that my final train of the day will have 30 cars due to missed connections or over allocating set outs from thru freights.

i have 8 on-line destinations that can handle 14 cars.  no car is taken from an on-line site and delivered to an on-line site -  all pickups leave to staging at either end.  as long as i keep the rotation balanced it should work out.

if not, the beer fridge is right there to lend a hand.

[wm3798]

Any cars bound for Lurgan, put in a box and mail them to me.  We'll take care of moving them along to Connellsville or Baltimore.

Have a nice day.  By the way, I just bought another dozen 70T WM hoppers.  They'll be arriving via the Reading at Allentown as soon as they're out of the car shop and loaded at Ida May.  You better get some track laid.

G. Leilich

[oakcreekco]

All the time spent in "planning operations" before building is time well spent IMO.

I put in countless hours before building a 18" x 9' HO switching layout. I've got the switches placed to a "T", along with magnetic uncouplers, and it was well worth it.

An extra inch here or there can make all the difference in operating enjoyment

[asciibaron]

All the time spent in "planning operations" before building is time well spent IMO.

i'm sorting things out as i build.  no track is down and i have a loose idea of a track plan.  the operating plan is driving the design of the layout.  Ed will like the level of activity.  the layout is being setup around a two person team - one gets the locals and the other all the road trains.  a 3rd operator can work Warwick yard instead of the local crew pulling double duty there.  a 4th operator can act as a dispatcher lining up meets between the local and the road trains.

the 3rd and 4th operators are not required and mostly they will be talking trash while the real men run the railroad  

there is a mandatory reverse Rule G - all operators must have a drink before being assigned a throttle  - there are no cup holders.

[oakcreekco]

"No track is down"


That's where all the time planning pays off. It's suprising what a couple inches in length, or a switch in a one inch different location makes.

Good luck and have fun

[wm3798]

the 3rd and 4th operators are not required and mostly they will be talking trash while the real men run the railroad  

On the Western Maryland, those clods get laid off...

there is a mandatory reverse Rule G - all operators must have a drink before being assigned a throttle  - there are no cup holders.

Talk about bad planning!  No cup holders!  Sheesh! :

Lee

[John]

get a copy of xtrkcad .. build your layout in there to scale, then run the virtual trains it allows on the track .. that way you can mmodel your ops ..

[asciibaron]

get a copy of xtrkcad .. build your layout in there to scale, then run the virtual trains it allows on the track .. that way you can mmodel your ops ..

i use 3rd Plan It - that has been the problem thus far - i'm focused on the track plan - i've decided to just wing it and build an organic layout - i have town areas defined and what industries go where, now i'm using cardboard to run track to them to see if it will work.  i really like this approach - i used 3rd Plan It to get the grades sorted for the main and to check siding setups, but mainly, i'm winging it.

well, i did layout the staging using virtual trains to ensure a decent sequencing and that it would all fit once it was out on the road.