Ive always been partial to Airlake Industrial Park.
Note: The runaround is WAAAAAY over there on the main to the west.
Bob,
I think that this industrial park was featured in MR or Trains years ago. If it’s the same one I’m thinking about, no runaround available to be used by the shortline, so instead they have two locomotives that the crew switches back and forth on.
Sooooo, is the idea, pull your pickups and then take in your setouts on the correct end of your engine and put back what you had to move in the correct spot?
Wonder if they work the furthest track from the “runaround” first or last?
Is it a switching local, so they have rights to the mainline and all tracks and can occupy the entire area without worry of keeping the main open.
As an example - The Evansville Western brings in multiple power to a town, splits power and gets it in the correct position to carry out the needs and then puts the power on the correct end of the train to continue on or return to its beginning location, Woodlawn, Il.
Even with the latest transmitters, ie. Revolutions, I don’t think we are that comfortable with MUing and breaking to individual units and then MUing again in the model railroad world. However, having a unit staged at an industrial location at the opposite end of the trains’s power. Does allow modelers to simulate how the big boys do it.
We have used a “staged engine” on the “TimeSaver” and “Inglenook” switching puzzles to handle facing point moves, instead of performing run arounds and that actually allows all moves to be trailing point in relation to the engine being used.
This is what I was trying to state in my posting about switching Mt. Vernon, Indiana.
What looks like a mainline with a passing siding, actually becomes two tracks for sorting from one end and then a captured engine on the opposite end becomes the switching unit for trailing point moves that would have otherwise been facing point moves.
It all becomes a puzzle of time for on time or just in time deliveries of service to the customers. Railroads or private owned power units stage equipment to satisfy and keep the customers.
Ric,
If it’s the same railroad that I’m thinking about then it’s completely operated by a shortline, and they do not go out on the main at all other than a quick interchange with the Class I. The idea with two locomotives is that each one is always a trailing point move. So I would imagine it’s a lot of running around from one engine to another.
Found the article June 2002 issue of Model Railroader
Craig,
Thank you. Great discussion!
I posted our local Stone Transfer facility a bunch of years back.
The job is handled by the Providence & Wooster. They run a 40 hopper train of stone up from the coast against some pretty tough grades to arrive at a facing point industry with no run-around for miles. As a rule, they run with a loco at each end of the consist, both under power with the loads. When they arrive at the industry they cut off the lead loco and spot it well out of the way. The trailing loco is then used to work the industry which is two cuts of loads exchanged for to cuts of empties. On the way home, downgrade with empties only the lead loco is powered.
Update: The above scenario is how it used to work. They now use a different route so the industry is now trailing point. They still run multiple locos front and back, but the switching operation is just a bit different now.
Ric, and anyone interested;
In theory, the Revolution can be programmed to operate two seprate locomotives in MU form; including joining them to share batterys, and separate receivers. All a crew with two mu’d locos would have to do, is use one throttle to operate the train with both Diesel Electric locos to the switching area, then break them apart, and then with a second throttle, do the switching moves separately, from both ends. Some people to save costs, often pair up locos using one receiver, and one throttle. This is fine, but it drops the flexibility that the real railroads have with multiunit power. The Revolution throttles will do it, if a person wants that option.
When rostering the locos for the train, they should be rostered, each with the FRont in a different direction. This prevents the need for turning any unit where there are no turning facilities, at the end of line.
I have often thought of having my own pair of GP38-2 locomotives, each with mu connectors, front and back, and their own throttles, batteries and receivers; just for such an operation in our SG operations here. I would of course have them as the only SG locomotives (Owned) painted and lettered for the IPP&W…!!
Fred
Actually, One doesn’t need 2 transmitters, as long as the locomotives each have a reveiver… One can just switch locomotives, one from the other, just using the cab features (the T buttons)…
Like everything else, it all depends on one’s experience and knowledge of the revolution…
Andy, I think what Fred is thinking is that each loco would work independently at the same time. That would take two throttles. If you just want to run 1 at a time then 1 throttle would do. And it doesn’t have to be a Revolution system. Many R/C systems can work this way,.