Railworks America

Stock locomotives have very clean exhausts.

How can I give older SD40, SD45, etc. more clag? Now the engine simulation is scripted in obfuscated lua, there is no access to the emitters anymore.

Go into particles. You can make more smoke there.

Yes, but I only want clag when the prime mover is throttled up quickly or under heavy load. I believe that can only be done thru the engine script.

I'll check the clag mods over at UKTS, these apply to UK Diesels but the principle should be the same for US Diesels.

_o_OOOO_oo-Kanawha wrote:Yes, but I only want clag when the prime mover is throttled up quickly or under heavy load. I believe that can only be done thru the engine script.

I'll check the clag mods over at UKTS, these apply to UK Diesels but the principle should be the same for US Diesels.

That's right, it's done in the engine script, with calls to SetEmitterRate (keeping in mind that "rate" is badly named, because what they call rate is actually an interval, so the rate, or frequency, is the inverse of the value you set). Besides changing the rate, you can also adjust the colour, by calling SetEmitterColour with the three RGB values.

mrennie wrote:

_o_OOOO_oo-Kanawha wrote:Yes, but I only want clag when the prime mover is throttled up quickly or under heavy load. I believe that can only be done thru the engine script.

I'll check the clag mods over at UKTS, these apply to UK Diesels but the principle should be the same for US Diesels.

That's right, it's done in the engine script, with calls to SetEmitterRate (keeping in mind that "rate" is badly named, because what they call rate is actually an interval, so the rate, or frequency, is the inverse of the value you set). Besides changing the rate, you can also adjust the colour, by calling SetEmitterColour with the three RGB values.

Unfortunately, most engine scripts are now in .out format. Can a wrapper in normal .lua be used to have its function take precedence over the same name function in the .out file?

I had a very nice looking IMO exhaust mod for the old IHH Big Boy that has its two stacks emit black smoke linked to the rate of firing and white steam linked to the throttle and cutoff. Emitter velocity was linked to the back pressure so the column would rise when the engine was worked hard.
Unfortunately, the chuff was only available for one exhaust emitter, the main one. Since the Big Boy is two steam engines under the same boiler in Railworks, I thought I was being very clever when I gave to front stack main exhaust to the forward frame and the rear stack main exhaust to the main frame. I was hoping for independent chuffs and the possibility that one frame slipping would be noticeable from the exhaust. Alas, too ambitious.

_o_OOOO_oo-Kanawha wrote:

mrennie wrote:

_o_OOOO_oo-Kanawha wrote:Yes, but I only want clag when the prime mover is throttled up quickly or under heavy load. I believe that can only be done thru the engine script.

I'll check the clag mods over at UKTS, these apply to UK Diesels but the principle should be the same for US Diesels.

That's right, it's done in the engine script, with calls to SetEmitterRate (keeping in mind that "rate" is badly named, because what they call rate is actually an interval, so the rate, or frequency, is the inverse of the value you set). Besides changing the rate, you can also adjust the colour, by calling SetEmitterColour with the three RGB values.

Unfortunately, most engine scripts are now in .out format. Can a wrapper in normal .lua be used to have its function take precedence over the same name function in the .out file?

I had a very nice looking IMO exhaust mod for the old IHH Big Boy that has its two stacks emit black smoke linked to the rate of firing and white steam linked to the throttle and cutoff. Emitter velocity was linked to the back pressure so the column would rise when the engine was worked hard.
Unfortunately, the chuff was only available for one exhaust emitter, the main one. Since the Big Boy is two steam engines under the same boiler in Railworks, I thought I was being very clever when I gave to front stack main exhaust to the forward frame and the rear stack main exhaust to the main frame. I was hoping for independent chuffs and the possibility that one frame slipping would be noticeable from the exhaust. Alas, too ambitious.

You can indeed write a wrapper so that your own functions take precedence. I haven't done it myself (never needed to) but I think I read a post by someone who's done that, and the "Update" function in both scripts (the original .out file and his own script) get called on each cycle.

As for having separately controlled exhaust emitters linked to the actual wheel rotation, that's also possible to do in script. You can even completely replace the core code control of the wheel rotation with your own scripted control of the wheel and gear animation, along with accurate wheelslip simulation, and then add in the control of the chuffing so that it's in sync with the pistons even when the drivers are slipping. But then you'd be into FEF-3/Connie territory (and for an articulated, one step beyond that).

_o_OOOO_oo-Kanawha wrote:Yes, but I only want clag when the prime mover is throttled up quickly or under heavy load. I believe that can only be done thru the engine script.

I'll check the clag mods over at UKTS, these apply to UK Diesels but the principle should be the same for US Diesels.

Unless they were really sophisticated with the old F7 back in those days it does just what you are looking for. I just decided from the old days of watching the real thing that they weren't making enough smoke on the throttle up so I made more and it thins out after the prime mover levels off which is what they did back oh too many years ago.

mrennie wrote:

_o_OOOO_oo-Kanawha wrote:

mrennie wrote:

_o_OOOO_oo-Kanawha wrote:Yes, but I only want clag when the prime mover is throttled up quickly or under heavy load. I believe that can only be done thru the engine script.

I'll check the clag mods over at UKTS, these apply to UK Diesels but the principle should be the same for US Diesels.

That's right, it's done in the engine script, with calls to SetEmitterRate (keeping in mind that "rate" is badly named, because what they call rate is actually an interval, so the rate, or frequency, is the inverse of the value you set). Besides changing the rate, you can also adjust the colour, by calling SetEmitterColour with the three RGB values.

Unfortunately, most engine scripts are now in .out format. Can a wrapper in normal .lua be used to have its function take precedence over the same name function in the .out file?

I had a very nice looking IMO exhaust mod for the old IHH Big Boy that has its two stacks emit black smoke linked to the rate of firing and white steam linked to the throttle and cutoff. Emitter velocity was linked to the back pressure so the column would rise when the engine was worked hard.
Unfortunately, the chuff was only available for one exhaust emitter, the main one. Since the Big Boy is two steam engines under the same boiler in Railworks, I thought I was being very clever when I gave to front stack main exhaust to the forward frame and the rear stack main exhaust to the main frame. I was hoping for independent chuffs and the possibility that one frame slipping would be noticeable from the exhaust. Alas, too ambitious.

You can indeed write a wrapper so that your own functions take precedence. I haven't done it myself (never needed to) but I think I read a post by someone who's done that, and the "Update" function in both scripts (the original .out file and his own script) get called on each cycle.

As for having separately controlled exhaust emitters linked to the actual wheel rotation, that's also possible to do in script. You can even completely replace the core code control of the wheel rotation with your own scripted control of the wheel and gear animation, along with accurate wheelslip simulation, and then add in the control of the chuffing so that it's in sync with the pistons even when the drivers are slipping. But then you'd be into FEF-3/Connie territory (and for an articulated, one step beyond that).

Well, perhaps when you give the Big Boy and Challenger a makeover?
A new cab and engine script and functions will do to bring them in line with your outstanding FEF. I'll even pay for the new cab and physics enhancement.

Would a separate script be a more simple solution? When I rename the exhaust emitter and hook it up to my script? Or when I add a separate clag emitter that is controlled by my script only, enhancing the default exhaust? This way it is easier to mix smokers and non smokers, perhaps I should even try to fire up my exhaust stack fire scripting attempts again.

There probably is still a practical limit as to the maximum number of particles in the air? Then again, Diesel exhaust doesn't have to linger and drift like steam locomotive exhaust.

Edit: thanks, Buzz. I'll open up my old RW2 install and check out the F7. Many things have been simplified over the later versions of Railworks, IIRC, the old F7 also had quite decent sounds.

I'm also interested in this topic.
I want my old diesel to spew black smoke and rusted parts.

OK results may vary but all I did was change the alpha values in initial color from0.039216 to 0.109216 and in the HC final color again changed just the alpha from 0.015686 to 0.07686.

Made much more smoke on throttle up and a little more at constant RPM of the prime mover.

Idle.



Revving up.

That looks great!!