Is there a good place to download a train order template? I am trying to get my girlfriends son into the hobby and wanted to have him do actual jobs while using the layout. Any suggestions?
The Ops SIG folks have lots of resources like this.
Try the forms on this page to see if any suit: http://www.pamodelrailroads.com/jwarner/docs.htm
Rather than have him do train orders, which is a fairly commplicated process and requires an understanding of rules, why not let him run a train or two. Maybe have him be the engineer and let a more experienced person be the conductor. Or have him write up switch lists. Or be a tower/interlocking operator at a junction or switch tender at a yard.
If you don’t have a copy of a train order then my guess is you aren’t really familiar with TT&TO operation. That’s a pretty daunting bar to jump to get interested in operations.
If you mean have him play station agent, copying train orders from the DS and passing them on to the train crews, that’s not too much for a first bite. OTOH, if you mean ORIGINATING train orders as needed to keep the railroad fluid, that takes a knowledgeable, experienced dispatcher.
For more than you ever wanted to know about the whys and hows of train order operation (including the exact form, wording constraints and the requirement for the agent to read back the order literally letter by letter) get a copy of Peter Josserand’s Rights of Trains. There’s a lot more to it than scribbling a note.
Chuck (Modeling CentraL Japan in September, 1964 - TTTO, 24/30)