News just in from RSC, another famous American route in creation.

[mrennie]

Beautiful!

[mrennie]

Here's one for you Mike.

I think it would make a decent tutorial locomotive for Mike.

It's far too complex for a tutorial (we'd get bogged down in a lot of detail). For the tutorial, we should look for something simpler. The idea, to be able to get through the tutorial without too much delay, would be to show how to get all the important bits and pieces working, and then leave it up to each individual to enhance it with details "al gusto".

[buzz456]

[buzz456]

[mrennie]

OK, now you're torturing me (Chinese torture? ... this tickles me pink!)

[mrennie]

Any idea where I could get original engineering drawings? ... I mean 1/8th scale, the full set.

[_o_OOOO_oo-Kanawha]

Here are engineering drawings/erecting blueprints, but at a price. http://www.livesteamlocomotives.com/drawings/by_rr.htm
No GN I think, but lots of other very desirable steam locomotives.

Would a repaint of SP&S 700 with a few child objects such as those flying pumps do to model a GN S2-class 4-8-4?

[mrennie]

Here are engineering drawings/erecting blueprints, but at a price. http://www.livesteamlocomotives.com/drawings/by_rr.htm
No GN I think, but lots of other very desirable steam locomotives.

Would a repaint of SP&S 700 with a few child objects such as those flying pumps do to model a GN S2-class 4-8-4?

Yeah, that's where I bought the plans for the Consolidation. That was why I chose it, because it was one of the very few that had an (almost) complete set of drawings for the loco. The others have a very limited, mostly incomplete set. I think I'll have to contact the national or state archives and see if they have a service for supplying copies of drawings (probably at a price).

[BNSF650]

Sure hope they get the background right. And add all the GN Stations

Maybe they can get BNSF to help like they did with MSTS

[buzz456]

Found this one.

[hertsbob]

We have assimilated you ;)

Thanks!

Just been having a look through the sites people have kindly posted and I came across this. Seriously, what is that chap doing on the roof? Please don't tell me that was standard switching practice???



Cheers

Bob

[_o_OOOO_oo-Kanawha]

It was. US freight cars don't have roofwalks and ladders for nothing.

In those days, before walkie-talkies, switching was done by hand and whistle signals to communicate between the locomotive enigeer at the head-end and the switchmen on the ground.
When there was no ground level eye contact possible, the switchmen climbed the cars to signal to the engineer to push up, pull off, couple, etc. With mile long trains there probably was a relay chain of switchmen passing the commands along. US steam engines had loud whistles to give their own signals and confirm the proper reception of the hand signals to the whole yard. Early US Diesels had backwards facing horns just for the purpose of signalling the caboose/helper crews. Note that in period cab views you often see two horn ropes dangling, one for the forwards "road" horn, the other for the rearwards signalling horn.

Read any steam era rule book and you'll be amazed about the various signalling procedures.

[Chacal]

Note that in period cab views you often see two horn ropes dangling, one for the forwards "road" horn, the other for the rearwards signalling horn.

Thanks. That's been nagging me for years.

[hertsbob]

Well that's fascinating. Thanks very much for the explanation.

In answer to a question I believe you posed yesterday, there are grain elevators all over the place across the route especially on the eastern side. We also have numerous logging/wood-related facilities along with some gas and oil sidings at a couple of locations. Not to mention the rather large aluminum plant at Columbia Falls.

I'm sure there are many people here who know far more about the route than I do, but I reckon there should be something here for almost everyone, which is probably why it's already proven to be a popular route in other sims.

Cheers

Bob

[BNSF650]

here you go RSC

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YX0IqNoFNOs