Just a note that I’ve posted videos of two recent op session from my HO Siskiyou Line on my personal web site. You’ll need a good internet connection to watch the content, since it’s streaming video played online (if you’ve got a dial up connection, you probably better not try it).
You’ll find the videos listed right at the top of my web site forum section.
I find putting the events of my op sessions on video helps you see how the session is conducted almost as good as being there yourself. I’m big into realistic operations and hope that sharing an “op session report” like this on video is helpful.
Some folks have commented to me about things they were surprised to see in these videos posted on my web site.
There is stuff laying on the layout (paperwork, bright boy, etc.)
Some things don’t work, like one video clip shows the yardmaster and engineer fighting with a bad coupler that refuses to couple.
Sometimes train speeds seem faster than expected.
First of all, this is live, unrehersed video – you’re seeing the actual op session. Like the prototype, things happen. I’ve watched prototype crews fighting with a bad coupler, banging on it with hammers, etc to get it to work. Most of the time things work as expected, but every now and then, stuff malfunctions – prototype or model.
It’s also true that you will have things break on an operating railroad, and the prototype has a maintenace crew that just roams the yard looking for car repair issues. If the maintenance guys can fix the car on-the-spot they will do so, and bill the owning railroad for it. If they can’t fix the issue where the car sits, they will have the car pulled and moved to the RIP track for more extensive repairs. If the repairs are going to take a while and the car is loaded, they will arrange to have the contents reloaded onto another car.
On the model, same story. If the car is bad enough, my crew needs to attach a bad order note to the car card and set the car out as bad order and in need of repairs. After a session I walk around the layout looking for bad ordered cars. Every session there’s generally at least one bad-ordered car and sometimes several.
As to train speeds and stuff sitting on the layout, that’s one of those things that I need to remind the train crews about every so often. From what I’ve seen on these ops videos, it’s time to remind the crews again that the top speed on the Siskiyou Line is 25 mph. And while I allow laying things on the layout in unscenicked areas, laying stuff on the layout in scenicked areas is verbo