Getting Real Column - 5
schematic of the layout to Bob Warren, who’d volunteered to
help me by dispatching the railroad. Bob came back with some
great suggestions that streamlined the operating scheme. Of
course, he also provided some great feedback after the session
and I’ve implemented several of his proposed changes.
I tested every inch of track and every car and locomotive prior
to the session. In some cases, if the track wasn’t up to par, I
replaced it before the session – including replacing a pair of
troublesome turnouts with new Peco code 83 curved turnouts.
My goal was to achieve as close to 100% reliability of track and
trains as possible.
Then there was the paperwork (several examples of which are
shown here). There’s a little paperwork for a small layout, with
more for a larger layout like mine. I had developed a timetable
starting with a prototype Central Vermont timetable, for inspira-
tion. I also made up a “call board” list of trains (basically a sequen-
tial listing of all the trains I planned to run during the session) for
myself, the yardmaster, and dispatcher, and made up train cards
for the train crews to know what to do with each train in each
town. Finally, I created car cards and waybills for each car.
In preparation for the operating session, I spent several eve-
nings getting the layout; and the associated operating paper-
work; completed. The photos and captions describe some of
this paperwork. I learned to never underestimate the amount
of time and effort a layout owner has to put into getting ready
for an operating session. Not only do you have to make sure
the layout is ready – track cleaned and “debugged,” decoders
programmed, and trains staged; you also need to create the
necessary paperwork.
MRH-Feb 2013
