Tough to Do Even in N

[Blazeman]

Of course, way back when, CGW would create 200 car trains.

http://www.nonpareilonline.com/news/local/railroads-adding-more-cars-to-trains-in-effort-to-trim/article_1d540436-6047-11e7-bf21-3b005fe085af.html

[Missaberoad]

143 cars doesn't seem all that long... Our loaded Potash trains at work are 180 cars and our IMS trains regularly reach 10,000 feet...
I'm sure I've personally had a mixed freight with ~140 cars...

CN has been known to run 14,000ft trains over the years.

Going back to the 1970's CP regularly ran 150-200 car grain trains to Thunder Bay with a 250 car train making the news at the time...

As far as N scale goes, we used to run trains that long back in my N trak days... 

[Mark5]

N&W routinely ran 200 car trains ...

In 1967, N&W ran a 500 car loaded coal train - 21,424 feet long!

Forget about doing that in N! (N&W used 6 SD45s).

Mark

[C855B]

Paywall, but I got to it through a VPN proxy.

I am concerned about safety in handling a manifest train of this length. Unlike "closed system" trains like coal, oil and to a degree, COFC, the mix-and-match of various car types, weights, lengths and conditions are a witches brew. All it will take is one dynamiter on the wrong side of the node and you have "stuff" everywhere.

[eric220]

Reminds me of operating on Todd Treaster's layout. "Anything less than 100 cars is a local."

[Missaberoad]

Paywall, but I got to it through a VPN proxy.

I am concerned about safety in handling a manifest train of this length. Unlike "closed system" trains like coal, oil and to a degree, COFC, the mix-and-match of various car types, weights, lengths and conditions are a witches brew. All it will take is one dynamiter on the wrong side of the node and you have "stuff" everywhere.

I know we have a pretty sophisticated computer system that tracks the position of loads/empties, Short/long car combinations and a number of other factors when we build trains... Now most of this applies to trains over 6000 tons, only in areas with significant grades/curvature so we get some ugly builds on the flat, but it helps alot in preventing stringlines and other issues, it's been years since we've had that kind of accident...

Other railways may have a different situation, so YMMV 

[Mark W]

N&W routinely ran 200 car trains ...

In 1967, N&W ran a 500 car loaded coal train - 21,424 feet long!

Forget about doing that in N! (N&W used 6 SD45s).

Mark

That comes out rounded to 135 feet of train in N scale.  And five-hundred 40' N scale cars would weigh 35 pounds per NMRA standards.  Do they make a titanium coupler in N scale yet? 

[lock4244]

CN runs a few potash trains each month from mines in Sask to St. John, NB. Symboled as 730, they began less than 24mo ago as averaging 153 cars, 2+1 DPU'ed trains, however the typical 730 now is 206 cars, 2+2 DPU'ed. Think they come in at about 28,000tons on average.

12,000' intermodals are also the norm in all directions out of Toronto... at these lengths, CN puts three units on them. Train 149 out of the Port of Montreal is most often in the 500 to 600+ axle range. In fact, CN will not run 149 if the Port loads less than 6500' of train.

Our good friend Conrail normally ran monstrous train on the WLR through Buffalo. Distinctly recall seeing a 210 well TV westbound in the early 90's.

I think the potential dangers of very long trains is overblown.

[nkalanaga]

Mark W:  If I remember right, they had the locos spaced through the train, for just that reason.  It lessened the coupler stress enough to prevent pulled drawbars and broken knuckles.

It also helped that the run was almost entirely downhill, on a very gentle grade.  BNSF could probably do that between Pasco and Vancouver, as the line has been rebuilt so many times, for the Columbia River dams, that a car can coast the entire distance.  If one gets loose from Pasco Yard, it really can roll to Vancouver.  One made it halfway, to Wishram, before being deliberately derailed, back in the 70s(?)

[Mark5]

Mark W:  If I remember right, they had the locos spaced through the train, for just that reason.  It lessened the coupler stress enough to prevent pulled drawbars and broken knuckles.

Yes, 3 SD45s up front, 3 more 300 cars back.

[brokemoto]

As far as N scale goes, we used to run trains that long back in my N trak days... 

.......complete with repeated break-aways and derailments and running over into at least three other members' running time for the line...........................

[Point353]

Jim FitzGerald once ran an 1103 car train using his "Cotton Brute" locos on a special layout built with 6' radius curves.
See page 6: http://www.ntrak.org/publications/newsletter/1993/NL-J-A-1993.pdf

[AKNscale]

Dang, and I though Fred's 80+ car coal train he runs at Fur Rondy was long, lol.

[Missaberoad]

.......complete with repeated break-aways and derailments and running over into at least three other members' running time for the line...........................

Surprisingly they ran quite reliably for us, including the 200 car dogs breakfast we made late one day by tying together every car on the layout... 

as for stealing other people's time, we had the opposite problem, It was hard to find people to run trains for an entire show... 

[learmoia]

Of course, way back when, CGW would create 200 car trains.

Mehh.. Back in the CGW days.. thats only 8,000-9,000 ft.

~Ian