Getting ready for operations - Preparing for the first session.

[rickb773]

First Op Session - The "Learnings List"

1)  (We lost one participant before we even started to illness.) We started the day (we basically had a 5 hour window) by having a boots on the ground tour of the prototype in 1) Westville and 2) Woodbury. (A history lesson and an orientation walk.)

2) We then watch a DVD with PRR & RDG steam engines going through the Westville section we modeled.

3) Pizza time.

4) Only 1 participant had any operations experience so we watched the David Popp video on card operations from the Model Railroader "Dream, Plan, Build" DVD series.

5) Time to run trains (only 2 hours left)

   •   We then eagerly attacked the train loft. Although I had cleaned up all the yard turnouts the night before and everything was running perfectly then, the next day we still had some contact issues. (Time to get some contact cleaner and to clean the wheels on many of my engines.)

   •   In spite of having an experienced yard guy (he actually blocked the cars for the locals) the yard was still an initial bottleneck.



   •   Even though south Woodbury did not have a separate switcher on the prototype , I think it will need one on my layout.

   •   We need to drop northbound cars in the Woodbury yard on the way south to keep from clogging up the main yards when we turn trains for their return trip.



•   I think the layout has proven it can keep 4 people very busy and is relatively balanced if we can keep the main yard flying.

Skipping the morning and evening commuter runs we planned to run the following.

   1.   Philly transfer into Pavonia (took longer than expected to get the transferred box cars sorted)
   2.   WY843/842   Deepwater coal drag
   3.   WY33/34   Millville local
   4.   WY841/840   Deepwater local
   5.   WY79/80   Tank train sweeper
   6.   Pavonia to Philly transfer

In the 2 hours we had left, we accomplished the first 3 runs.

In the end:
•   We had fun
•   There is still a lot of planning that needs to be done to clean up the bottle necks.
•   In the fall we will have another go at it.

[MichaelWinicki]

Sounds like everyone had a good time!

Congrats on initial ops session!


Yard management, yard management, yard management.

That's what it's all about (usually) when it comes to operating any layout in organized manner.

Doing whatever you can to keep the yards flowing evenly (without the bottlenecks) will go a long way to making the thing seem more prototypical.  Reduce trains or shift them on the schedule to reduce those bottlenecks.

[rickb773]

Doing whatever you can to keep the yards flowing evenly (without the bottlenecks) will go a long way to making the thing seem more prototypical.  Reduce trains or shift them on the schedule to reduce those bottlenecks.

I am trying to copy a prototype schedule so it is a balancing act between following the real schedule and making changes to actually make it (semi-smoothly) work.  (For example putting a dedicated switcher in the south Woodbury mini-yard (that the prototype did not have)).

[MichaelWinicki]

I am trying to copy a prototype schedule so it is a balancing act between following the real schedule and making changes to actually make it (semi-smoothly) work.  (For example putting a dedicated switcher in the south Woodbury mini-yard (that the prototype did not have)).

Yep, good to be flexible when it comes to trying to mimic an actual schedule.

[Ntrainz1]

Rick,

Thanks again for a great experience. The tour of Westville/Woodbury really brought your layout to life.

Can't wait for round II!!!!!!

Bob.

[rickb773]

Rick,

Thanks again for a great experience. The tour of Westville/Woodbury really brought your layout to life.

Can't wait for round II!!!!!!

Bob.

Thanks for coming Bob. Enjoyed your company and it was nice to have someone with me to enjoy watching the Pavonia yard crew sweat bullets. 

[conrail98]

Looks like everyone had a great time. Definitely be flexible and not afraid to move things around if needed. One thing I've seen on the layouts I've operated on is the yardmasters will leave the yards pretty much ready to go for the next session. Depending on the person running it, this could mean everything is assigned to the right track for the next sessions work or even completely blocked. I know we always attempt to block everything by town and even industry order when possible, but sometimes there isn't enough time and that's okay too,

Phil

[rickb773]

...One thing I've seen on the layouts I've operated on is the yardmasters will leave the yards pretty much ready to go for the next session. Depending on the person running it, this could mean everything is assigned to the right track for the next sessions work or even completely blocked. I know we always attempt to block everything by town and even industry order when possible, but sometimes there isn't enough time and that's okay too,

Phil

I actually did that. In the 4 tracks available, I set up the cars for local Camden switching, the Millville local, the Deepwater local and Deepwater coal drag/Refinery sweeper. All the yard crew initially had to do was breakdown the Philly transfer onto the right tracks, get them head-end power and get them out of town. (Sounds easy, doesn’t it  ). This was two of the guys first time dealing with waybills and car cards so that slowed the process. Our experienced operator actually did block the cars for the outbound trains. In return that made it easier on the guy running the Millville local, so he got his switching done fairly quickly and got his train back to the yard (to add to the yard’s confusion). No good deed goes unpunished!

Bob and I had a great time watching Tim and Gene sweat bullets.

When everyone gains some familiarity with the layout, things should go much quicker. We achieved our goal – everyone had fun and the guys seemed to appreciat the prototype tour we took before we began.

[rickb773]

Two more items to add to the "Things Learned" list:

1) Shelf space. The aprons worked well for holding car cards/waybills but when you get to a town and need to sort out which cars you are picking up (directional) and which are remaining, shelve space is invaluable. Multiply that a thousand time for blocking cars during your yard work. So I installed narrow shelves near both yard areas and it makes things immeasurably more doable. (L girder construction comes in handy!)


[Can you figure out what my next "when I get around to it" summer project will be from this picture?  ]


2) Wooden stools. The layout is 55+" inches high (N gauge trains look much better at eye level) but we have a majority of legs well past the half century mark and a respite between trains is welcomed and with a 30" stool you are even closer to eye level. Walmart had nice looking sturdy 30" stools for less than $20 so I picked up two of them.

[Ntrainz1]

Planting some grass soon?

[rickb773]

Planting some grass soon?

Yup and assuming I actually get this thing to work, would someone please recommend what size and grass manufacturer I should use on an N scale layout?

[CVSNE]

Rick,
Sounds like a great success - especially when compared to my first couple of sessions!
Yards can quickly become the achielles heel of any op session - the reason is simple - our mainlines are always too short and switching is close to 1:1 time - so the yard almost always seems to lag behind.
Couple of suggestions I might make, especially if your yard is the log jam is to:
(1) Give the YM some specific instructions - a train line up sheet - that spells out his work for the day in chronological order. For example, is he knows there's two southbound trains coming to the yard before the first northbound train, he can focus on getting the southbound cars ready and ignore the northbound class tracks - for now.
(2) The YM's biggest challenge is keeping the yard "fluid" - which in my experience means about half empty. Consider helping him with this and have a couple of tracks preblocked before the session starts so the YM has a chance to get ahead of things.
(3) One of the best things I did was have the YM "report to work" before the rest of the crew starts running. I let the YM get started the minute he gets to the layout for the op session, only stopping for the actual "pre brief." It seems to help get things moving smoother.

Hope this helps,
Marty

[rickb773]

...
Couple of suggestions I might make, especially if your yard is the log jam is to:
(1) Give the YM some specific instructions - a train line up sheet - that spells out his work for the day in chronological order. For example, is he knows there's two southbound trains coming to the yard before the first northbound train, he can focus on getting the southbound cars ready and ignore the northbound class tracks - for now.
(2) The YM's biggest challenge is keeping the yard "fluid" - which in my experience means about half empty. Consider helping him with this and have a couple of tracks preblocked before the session starts so the YM has a chance to get ahead of things.
(3) One of the best things I did was have the YM "report to work" before the rest of the crew starts running. I let the YM get started the minute he gets to the layout for the op session, only stopping for the actual "pre brief." It seems to help get things moving smoother.

Hope this helps,
Marty

I actually did numbers 1 & 2 and I had all 4 outgoing trains pre-blocked with the exception of the arriving Philly transfer run which then had to be broken down and added to the 4 pre-blocked trains in the yard.

I think your number 3 would be a tremendous idea or I just may start with the Philly transfer having already arrived and been broken down. That way the YM could send the first 2 trains on their merry way and possibly have time to do the Camden industrial switching before the 2 trains arrive on the other side of the yard (destination yards) and need to be broken down.

Thanks Marty.

[rickb773]

"Blazeman" and 2 of his buddies dropped in from Pennsylvania for a short visit. We ran the return trip of WY80, the  Tank Sweeper (collects cars from the Sunoco and Texaco refineries) from Paulsboro to Camden and WY841, the Camden to Penns Grove local.

WY841 was started from Camden with a mere 6 cars only to more than double in size by the time it hit Woodbury. They did drops/pick ups in Westville and North Woodbury but had to leave before completing the South Woodbury yard work. So I completed that.

I am now left to break down 2 trains, run WY840 from Penns Grove back to Camden and do the Camden industrial switching. At this rate it will be about 6 weeks to finish the first day's schedule!

[Blazeman]

Rick: Thanks for hosting my little group the other night. At our GAMR meeting the following evening, our trip was reviewed and lessons learned were noted and will be applied to our sessions.

Larry