We all check and double check, triple check, hell, I even know modellers that quadruple check their rail joints and other factors that cause derailments, but every now and then, do to factors outside our control, we will still have derailments on our layouts. Hell, acouple weeks back, I accidentally had two trains that I didn’t know about occupy the same line going toward each other. To make matters worse there turned out to be a misunderstanding between the
dispatcher and the main line engineer running the train who was assured that I was on the other of the double track line.
My biggest problem is people forgetting to throw switches back to the mainline. Of course I am not always innocent myself[:I]
[#ditto], although my BLI Hudson has derailed twice this week at a turnout that it had negotiated hundreds of times. I haven’t the foggiest, but the answer will lie in the leading truck or the points, I’m fairly certain. Oh well, keeps me busy…just like on the real railroad.
My major sources of derailments, are going through a turnout that’s set the wrong way, and getting hamfisted with the uncoupling pick.
Every so often something will decide it doesn’t want to be pushed through a turnout, or the crossing. Of course, it’s never anything I can reproduce. [banghead]
Major cause of deraliments for me is visitors. Always goes off the track when you have company, otherwise runs and runs flawlessly.
Funny how that is, Whenever somebody is watching it never works right.[:)]
Or it doesn’t work at all [banghead]… Woops! ( or other phrase not appropriate for this forum), Left the track gauge on the rails again… [:-^]
Jeff
don’t you hate when you run your trains for hours over the same switch and it is flawless and as soon as you walk away it recks. errrrrrrrr i have that.
Ben
I saw the best wreck the other day, But it sure did a job on the parties involved! I posteed this a while back looking for parts, but now that I have them on order I can look back and laugh at it. I was running my Rivarossi 4-8-4 northern full speed down the mailine and the drive bolt came loose, which in turn bound up the drivers and i swear that loco jumped a good 3 inches off the track. Im lucky it didnt tumble off of the layout! The passenger cars piled up, the last 3 flipped off the track and flew off the layout(unharmed thankfully), and it was almost run into by the oncoming train on the oposite mailine, led by 2 North American Diesel SD40-2s hauling a grain train.
Trackwork is rarely the source of derailments on my pike.
Just the other night when running with my two boys we had a nice collision. My son was running a manifest on main 1 and I was running the UP transfer (from staging) on main 2 when my son’s manifest, with his new GP60 at the point, hit my transfer 4 cars back from the head end. It knocked 4 of my cars off the rails and his GP60 was in the air on the anti-climber of my GP15.
After some frantic inspection of the equipment, finding all was ok, we noticed the crossover was set diverging main 1 to main 2. My son was quick to point out that I was the last one through that crossover on my last local prior to picking up the UP transfer.
Needless to say, he got on my case for not properly aligning the crossover…I think he got a kick out of that.
Most of the other mishaps I can remember involve similar actions leading upto the derailment. If trackwork is the culprit, I correct it immediately.
Aaaaa, well trackwork is often the problem… Don’t have DCC, so cant blame that, but I think its bout time I got a track and wheel gauge, got that feeling… that it might work! DD
Some of these big wrecks sound kinda cool in a sick way I wish you all had some video of these massive collisions (in minuture), Maybe even do a little slo-mo replay and add some great sound FX.[:D]
bill
There is nothing that burns me up more than when you turn your back for 2 seconds, and CRASH!!! Had my Mic go through a switch hundreds of times with not one problem, needless to say the front oh the loco was hanging 2 inches over the side of my layout, ready to fall to its doom! Found a peice of follage under the loco! My biggest problem is freight cars, got some that jump off the rails anywhere on layout for no reason, had the hammer in my hand once and was going to fix one car for good once!
[xx(]
My derailments are all clearly identifiable as trackwork problem or turnout-the-wrong-way. I’m either lucky or careful or both with my rolling stock - I don’t tend to have “problem cars”, just “problem spots”.
The trackwork stuff is uniformly my own fault - invariably a spot i got in a rush or worked too late one night and got sloppy. No matter how many times the mantra is repeated, it can’t hit home enough - lay bulletproof trackwork to start and you’ll save yourself headaches later.