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MRVP’s David Popp and Jenny Maaske are set to show you that realistic model railroad operation has never been easier to learn and enjoy! Using Model Railroader magazine’s all-new HO scale Beer Line layout extension as their “gameboard,” the two team up to step you through the paces of the Snake Track Job. Along the way you’ll get a trackside tour the industries, plus gain new insights to switching cars and handling paperwork too. You won’t want to miss this essential series, so be sure your subscription to MR Video Plus is current!
If a car is blue flagged you don’t move it. On the Snake Track two cars have been blue flagged a boxcar full of Bricks at Tews Cement and a load of Doors at Steinman. Since they are blue flagged Jenny and David can not pick them up so they will just be doing drops this session. Ben Hur and Tews will be the only place they will do a pickup since none of the cars have been blue flagged and only the hopper at Tews is ready.
David, I would like to know how you go about switching the car cards in the middle of an operating session. thanks, Harrison
As a old brakeman I grit my teeth every time I see pickups dropped on the main..It would be less work to shove the cars back to the train, connect the air hoses, set the brakes and then uncouple the cars.
You may want to consider allowing time for the brakeman to set or release the brakes and to unlock and lock the switch.
just like in the rail world if a car card is blue flagged you don’t move that car. leave it alone and have another crew pick it up.
Hippos! I thought I was seeing things. I have to know what the significance of the hippo was. I know imagination can run wild and if that’s the case fine but, that was unusual.
I think Jenny should be in every MR video. She’s awesome.
A great video. This shows that model railroading is fun. And it shows you don’t need a huge layout to enjoy operations. One thing to keep in mind is you can operate while you are still an unscenicked “Plywood Pacific”; scenery will come with time. Sloping track can be fixed, so cars don’t roll away. Plus, you can add the features that enhance operation – like a track grating and conveyor to unload sand. And maybe figure out how to spot cars without having that curved track into Ben Hur Freezers. Before you spend all that time scratchbuilding the factory.
Am I the only one that noticed the hippos attacking the people on the sidewalk at about 7:40 into the video? Fast forward and look at the bottom right-hand corner of the video. Definitely some hippos on the sidewalk. ๐
The “snake” was an industrial district on the North side of Milwaukee. The district was bounded on the North by E, Vienna Ave, on the South by E. Keefe Ave, 0n the West by N. Richards St. and on the East by N. Humboldt Ave. In the 1970s and 80s the district was served by the second shift Gibson Job based at Glendale Yard. Track curvature into several industries was so sharp that the crews had to chain cars out.
There was no runaround track in the “snake” so crews had to enter the district with the cars arranged properly on both sides of the locomotive. Use “Google Earth to inspect the area. You will be able to see where tracks were located and even see rails left in roadways. It took a pretty smart switchman to tackle the “snake”. It would be a great switching puzzle to model.
I was the Milwaukee Road Northside Trainmaster in the early 1980s. It is sad to see there is nothing left
but memories.
This is a great addition to the beer line. If this doesn’t get you hopped-up to work on your pike I don’t know what else would. I think that it’s great that you involved Jenny to assist in the video. I love the era and the details in the model work. Great Job!
Smooth ops session. Those flag men are a neat addition that enhances a sense of realism. A nice job by the switching crew. Amazing the amount of railroading fun that can be had with a simple switching plan.
Love the Beer Line RR.
My big problem is that the sand filled hopper was set out, but there was no way to unload the sand.
Loads in and Empties out would be a very good solution to that.
You can use the most simple form of that with a double sided backdrop. You put the sand filled hopper into something that hides the car from view. It comes out of the facility that loaded the car. An empty car is then switched into the other side of the double sided backdrop.
That is the simplest form, but there are as many forms as your imagination can find.
Years ago I made a wheel chock of sorts, out of a piece of styrene. I notched to fit over the rails. I made it fit a bit snug on one rail almost a snap fit and with a little bend in it as a handle. that was later replaced with a paper clip and a small hole in the tie.
HI DAVID
WHY TAKE TRAIN FRONT IN SECTION USE THE ROUND TRACK TO PUT FACE THE RIGHT WAY SO BACK TO YARD AS MAY LONG TIME FOR LOCAL CREW LONG TIME OPERATION ?
Good video. A schematic of what the layout represents would help understand how you are operating it. I liked the use of a flagman to protect the crossings. Don’t forget to stop to pick him up! I would like to do this on my own layout, but have not been able to find a flag-person in N scale. Figures are so small in N scale, I am not sure I can kit-bash one. Does anyone make one?
I had the same issue of a drop spot on an inclined. A few well placed weeds and the cars no longer roll away ๐
David and Jenny…….on such a small and flat sloped layout would it be possible to over- weigh the freight cars so they wouldn’t move so much when the engine or another car impacts the couplers? Looks very unrealistic compared to the limited movement that real cars make when coupled. Just a thought for more realistic ops. Thanks
Always good to see an operating session this will be round number three for Beerline
I enjoyed this series of videos on operation of the Beer Line, but I am curious as to why you didn’t use the run around track just ahead of the North Ave Bridge, rather than back to Humboldt Yard.
Great job,as always,lots of info. and ideas.that said,I’m doing a wood crossing.in the day of wood at such, wasn’t there wood planks on both sides of each rail?!I want to get it right! I will wait..
The Beer Line and WSS operations series have been excellent. Thanks for expanding MRVP’s content into those areas.
great instruction. To keep the hopper from rolling, you could set the “handbrake” for the sand hopper using a straight pin placed into the roadbed. Just remember to remove for the outbound move. Here’s a suggestion: how about Preiser producing 1/87 figures of MR staff? That way, I could operate with you, for real!;) Best regards,
For William Lorence: As I remember, the “off spot” car was for the refrigerator company.
Since there is no runaround track; to put the car in the off spot position it would have to be “dropped”. It would also have to be “dropped” when putting it on spot.
This is a hard trick to pull on a model railroad. Basically the engine and the car start from a position well beyond the points of the turnout; get up to speed quickly; use a little independent (engine) brake to create slack; pull the pin; speed up the engine past the points; bend the iron before the car arrives and ride hand brake to stop it. Good idea to bleed the air from the car before doing this.
Looked to me, however, that there might have been room on the spur to leave the car in the first place.
The practice of putting cars off spot is called “constructive placement” and is subject to various demurrage rules which may or may not be the subject of yet another video.
Another great “operations” video! You make the Beer Line look like a lot of fun to operate. One of the biggest lessons that I have picked up from this is dividing the tasks into “jobs”. I have enjoyed time at trackside watching switching but never quite got the idea that the tasks were sorted out to different “jobs”. My career background is different, so I have watched and learned from the video ๐ Your approach makes things a whole lot more organized than by trying to take care of all the switching. Thanks guys.
Great day of railroading. I have a question, on your switches, some of the switch stands you move with a pencil and others you move with the switch stand. Why is that? I have seen both but to me one of the draw back on the ground throw switch stand is they look out of scale, when your throwing bye hand it looks more like railroading. Either way you’ll have done a great job and would like to do the same on my lay out.