Operating Session on Stan Ames SJR&P Ry

JRad · September 19, 2011, 2:36am

As part of Train Ops 2011, Stan Ames invited the LSC crew up to his huge outdoor railroad outside Chelmsford MA. Because I needed to leave early I decided to railfan the SJR&P rather than be part of a crew operating trains. This proved to be a great decision because I had a blast taking pictures on this extremely scenic railroad. Before lunch, members of Stan’s group performed some light engine moves to get all the power into position…

This gave me a chance to climb around the railroad and get a few scenic shots without operators in the pictures…

Bob strikes a familiar pose with Bruce and Ken…

These large curves are part of Stan’s recent expansion…

There is and endless variety of bridges on Stan’s railroad…

Ken, Bruce and Stan out in the layout…

Finally, operations are underway. The Big Rock Local crewed by Bob and Ken has departed Cedar Deck…

… And heads up the mountain…

And they arrive at Big Rock…

Meanwhile, Bruce and Jean have completed assembling their train while Stan looks on…

Bruce & Jean’s train is underway…

Meanwhile, Ken and Bob are en route to their next town…

Bruce & Jean in the woods…

Bob’s wife Martha admiring the gardens…

Bruce & Jean’s train continues to climb…

Marilyn and the other wives enjoy the sunshine on the deck…

Meanwhile, a meet of three trains has the yard master hopping…

The third train arrives in the yard…

The congestion cleared, Bob and Ken’s train crosses the pond on the viaduct…

…As Bruce and Jean’s train crosses the trestle…

Everyone had a great time. Thank you Stan

David_Marconi_FOGCH · September 19, 2011, 2:43am

Thanks for the pics Jon. Looks like a good day

cabby · September 19, 2011, 2:49am

Wow,
Great pictures and a sweet GRR Stan has there.
Looks like you all had nice weather too
Ralph

Great_Western · September 19, 2011, 9:43am

I am, indeed, glad Jon that you ‘railfanned’ and were able to take so many excellent photographs. That is sure some magical railroad.

Over the last few years I have been privileged to see many railroad 'photos of Stateside outdoor railroads but, in my estimation, this ranks as one of the best.

I hope I live long enough for Spock to beam me down (or the technology become available) because Stans railroad is one that I would be very happy to be ‘beamed down’ upon. lol

snowshoe · September 19, 2011, 10:21am

Thanks Jon that is some railroad Stan has. Must be a blast to run trains on.

admin1 · September 19, 2011, 11:58am

Jon Radder said:

(http://lsc.cvsry.com/Post2/StanAmes2011-30.jpg)

A familiar problem, take a great railfanning picture, and there’s always something out of place in the background.

John_Bouck · September 19, 2011, 1:56pm

Quite a rr.
It must be chore to get it ready to op. (twigs, leaves, etc.)
Did you check yourself for ticks afterwards?

SocalJoe · September 19, 2011, 3:53pm

Great pics and awesome layout! Looks it it was a perfect day.

Ric_Golding · September 19, 2011, 5:51pm

Thanks Jon. Stan’s and Bob’s are on the list of places to operate, along with many on the West Coast. The pressure of this job just gets greater. If I have live until I get it all done, I’m going to be around along time.

Glad you all had fun.

Ken_Brunt · September 19, 2011, 8:35pm

(http://lsc.cvsry.com/Post2/StanAmes2011-13.jpg)

Yea, this was the place me and Bob spent a lot of time looking dumb, scratching our heads, pondering and re-pondering the moves…and it wasn’t all that big a spot. But it sure was fun! Thanx Stan for having us over. Had a great time! Oh, and thanx Jon for the great pix, too!!

Noel_Wilson · September 19, 2011, 9:28pm

Look like a real fun time… tk’s for the photos…neat stuff.

Ken_Brunt · September 19, 2011, 10:49pm

Out and about on Stan’s RR…

(http://rgsgardenrailroad.com/2011/stans013.jpg)

(http://rgsgardenrailroad.com/2011/stans015.jpg)

(http://rgsgardenrailroad.com/2011/stans016.jpg)

(http://rgsgardenrailroad.com/2011/stans017.jpg)

(http://rgsgardenrailroad.com/2011/stans018.jpg)

David_Marconi_FOGCH · September 19, 2011, 11:03pm

Nice shots of a great looking RR. Thanks Ken

Rooster · September 19, 2011, 11:48pm

That just RULES!!!
Great stuff guys!!!

admin1 · September 20, 2011, 1:04pm

Stan’s RR is amazing. Here’s the trackplan. The vertical change from Riley (lower right) to Cumbres (upper left) is almost 40 feet! Ken and I switched the “Big Rock Local” from Cedar Deck Yard, to Big Rock, down the wye to Bat House Yard (not via Devil’s Gate), then back to Cedar Deck.

(http://freightsheds.largescalecentral.com/users/bob_mccown/_forumfiles/SJRPmap.jpg)

admin1 · September 20, 2011, 1:09pm

And an aside, this bridge at Stan’s is pretty much EXACTLY what I need for the bridge at the lower loop. I wonder if he’d miss it?

(http://freightsheds.largescalecentral.com/users/bob_mccown/_forumfiles/bridge_SJRP.jpg)

Bruce_Chandler · September 20, 2011, 1:11pm

Thanks Stan and Deb for opening the layout to us. We really enjoyed the visit! There’s a lot to learn about the railroad. According to the flyer: Scale: Fn3 (1:20.3 3ft narrow gauge) Size: 200 ft x 180 ft, 12 scale miles of track Prototype: American 3 ft narrow gauge Local: rugged hills of the North East Era: 1940-1950s Style: linear with 4 main destinations yards, 8 branch lines, 10 major industries, and 14 additional switching locations Mainline run: 4 scale miles (1000 ft) Minimum degree of curve: 43° (2 Meters) Minimum Turnout: #6 for mainlines #4 for yards/Industries Maximum Grade: 2% mainline, 4% branch Elevation Change: 250 scale ft (13 feet) Roadbed: gravel roadbed Track: 110 lb rail (code 332 stainless steel and brass) The track plan doesn’t really do the layout justice - you just have to see it in person.

(https://tttrains.com/sjrp/images/sjrpmap.jpg)

It is operated with car cards. They are really nicely done - each one has a picture of the car and some basic information. The card is laminated and has a pocket to hold the next destination.

(http://tttrains.com/sjrp/images/rostercard.jpg)

At each town, there’s a stand to hold the cards of all the cars that are currently there. You look through them to see if any should go with your train. As you drop a car at an industry or a yard, you also drop the card. Stan leaves his cars out between operating sessions, so this makes a lot of sense. There are lots of places to plug in the DCC controller as well.

Even though it already looks impressive, they are working on some expansions. Here you can see the concrete trenches that will hold the ballast.

I really liked the long runs between towns.

Our train started in Cumbres - at the lower end of the railroad and went all the way to upper woods. It “only” switched Cumbres, Stiege, Upper Shed, Bat House Yard, and the Upper Woods. We had a meet in Stiege with the Misty Flyer.

The bridges are impressive! Here our train crosses the bridge near Sandbox Junction.

We met up with Bob and Ken in Bat House Yard.

And again as they headed down to Cedar Deck Yard and we were on our way to Upper Woods.

Here’s a nice photo crossing of a train crossing Lake Sarah Jane.

A wonderful weekend!

Bruce_Chandler · September 20, 2011, 2:29pm

Like a number of other places we operate on, Stan uses radios to communicate with the dispatcher. One thing he does differently is to use Form 19. When you start up, you are given a stack of Form 19 and a pen.

Each time you contact the dispatcher, you get the next order number and directions that you write down. (You already have a clipboard that has a map of the RR). Your orders will be one of three types:
1 - Proceed: A proceed order allows the crew to proceed in the specified direction to the next specified point
2 - Between: A between order allows the crew full movement between two points
3 - Restricted: A restricted order restricts your movement.

We typically got either a Proceed or a Between on our run. While this is similar to what we typically get on other RR, it just seemed that writing down the order on a Form 19 seemed to add a lot to the atmosphere.

admin1 · September 20, 2011, 3:00pm

Bruce Chandler said:
Like a number of other places we operate on, Stan uses radios to communicate with the dispatcher. One thing he does differently is to use Form 19. When you start up, you are given a stack of Form 19 and a pen.
Each time you contact the dispatcher, you get the next order number and directions that you write down. (You already have a clipboard that has a map of the RR). Your orders will be one of three types:
1 - Proceed: A proceed order allows the crew to proceed in the specified direction to the next specified point
2 - Between: A between order allows the crew full movement between two points
3 - Restricted: A restricted order restricts your movement.

We typically got either a Proceed or a Between on our run. While this is similar to what we typically get on other RR, it just seemed that writing down the order on a Form 19 seemed to add a lot to the atmosphere.

Yea, I REALLY liked the Form 19s.

larry_mosher · September 20, 2011, 3:06pm

Bob McCown said:
And an aside, this bridge at Stan’s is pretty much EXACTLY what I need for the bridge at the lower loop. I wonder if he’d miss it?

(http://freightsheds.largescalecentral.com/users/bob_mccown/_forumfiles/bridge_SJRP.jpg)

Bob… I’ve got 2 that are just like it, 7 feet long…Eaglewings… New…PM me if you’re interested