modeling bad rails


bad rails

i am a track inspector and i have never see a train run over that bad of rail that is in that grain train video. i would have shut them down in a minute
 
okiecrip621 said:
i am a track inspector and i have never see a train run over that bad of rail that is in that grain train video. i would have shut them down in a minute
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My buddy is a track layer and he laughed when he saw this.

I guess there is a prototype though, and maybe 40 years ago, this was possible on an industrial siding, I dont know...But, in todays climate, I am sure that this would be shut down by any responsible track inspector.
 
Yes, I posted that on the second page. We're all still laughing at it!

North Coast Railroad said:
My buddy is a track layer and he laughed when he saw this.

I guess there is a prototype though, and maybe 40 years ago, this was possible on an industrial siding, I dont know...But, in todays climate, I am sure that this would be shut down by any responsible track inspector.
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The video appears to be about 20 years old due to the lack of ditch lights and the modern grain hoppers.

The rail looks VERY light, as if it was steam era rail that was never replaced or maintained. In the first video linked of the model of the Guilford Watertown Branch, they literally had this mentality.... don't fix it until you have a problem.
 
Here's a layout I found on YT that sprung to mind when I saw the thread

[YOUTUBE]DSUXSRsXsI8[/YOUTUBE]

the guy explains his technique in the description of the video

The footage shows awful track - that works! - on a model railroad featuring 90's era CSX. Two main segments are shown - handlaid yard trackage, and a mainline attempt at realistic jointed rail.

The layout is a small one on an outdoor porch, so when you hear the sound of crickets in the mix, that is actually real. All of the trackage, scenery, equipment, and weathering was last worked on some 6 years ago, when I was in my teens.

The layout has actually been dormant for 6 years with stuff stored on top and cats sleeping on the foliage. I revived it to take a record of the best portions. Most of the yard tracks are handlaid n-scale rail on tiny wooden ties, with ample kinks.

The yard lead and siding are even more deliberately designed to cause trouble. I put cardboard shims under the middle 30' ft. of each scale 40' ft section of rail, and then spiked the joints down to create the characteristic bowed effect of poorly maintained jointed rail. You'll notice that this is done with N-scale rail on a curved piece of track that heads into a curve switch - I have no idea how the trains stay on the track! The joints are more pronounced on the siding track shown at the end of the video, which is laid with cut 40'scale code 83 rail laid on plastic ties.

I intended to film the manifest leaving and some more switching, but ran out of time. Hopefully next time I visit I can capture some more. This video is incredibly misleading about the overall railroad, though, as it is really the only portion with scenery and that is compromised by lack of background and narrow benchwork. The rest of the railroad is mostly code 100 track and even snap track, with a few other segments of barely operable weedy branchline track.

Finally, the sound is taken from my own rail videos. Much of it is actually from a remarkably similar video of a decrepit branchline in Richmond, VA: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Qoz7pzaQOQs
Oddly, I created this modeled segment years before I knew about the branchline! The mainline sound is a little bit more of a stretch, since I can't even remember seeing B40-8's on a mainline freight.
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waltr said:
Have you seen this video?
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g11qWro1LzQ

There are more like this on YouTube.
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That is nuts! It looks like it is a fairly modern video. They may be willing to take chances with millions of dollars of equipment! But I am not running my $250.00 locomotive and $25 pieces of rolling stock down track like that!!!

I think you have some sort of 'wow factor' when it is recreated in HO, when done in prototype you also have a 'wow factor' but for the wrong reasons!!

in both cases, I kind of scratch my head and wonder how long the novelty would last. :eek:
 
thanks again. what i am wanting to model(in my head) is a very small, local grain elevator that is hardley used and they don't maintain their side track from the mainline
 
also my layout is on a 4x8( yeah, i know lol) with 18"radi curves. I relize that this will limit me to 40'cars. When it comes to Covered grain hoppers, most common are the 3 bay 56' cars. Would it look fun runing 2-3 of those cars on 18"radi curves?

I have seen 2 bay 36' cars, but they do not have quite as much variety and are more expensive.

fyi: am new lol
 
North Coast Railroad said:
I think you have some sort of 'wow factor' when it is recreated in HO, when done in prototype you also have a 'wow factor' but for the wrong reasons!! :eek:
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We call that Pucker Factor, as in when certain parts of your anatomy are clutching the seat through your drawers.
 
Ken G Price said:
I lucked out and have 5 places where my track work is off enough to cause rocking of rail cars with out any derailing. Not planed, but the good thing is that the track does look bad but works good.
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Say Ken,
I have one similar place at present, that happened by accident too, but have a long way to go with my track laying. My spot happened on the incline to the Serpha Copper & Iron works as I somewhat crudely cut the incline ramp and didn't bother to smooth it out so uneven and the track I used had been bent before and generally straightened out so it makes for an interesting challenge to maneuver the cars up the grade and around the curve too.

My 2-8-0 Loco climbs off the curve so I believe the Old Climax and Box Cab Diesels are about the only loco's so far that will handle the bad trackage.
That's alright though as it makes for more interesting operation.
 
cf2004 said:
hi,
I was wanting to know some tips on what I can do to model very poorly maintaned side rail (that how still be operational) on my future HO layout.

thanks
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It can be done and I've done such on past industrial switching layouts.

After laying the track I took a watch makers hammer and gently tap the rail till I got the deferred maintenance track look I wanted and then I simply slapped a permanent speed restriction on it..

A word of advice..Make sure your freight car trucks is finely tuned and in guage.
 
okiecrip621 said:
i am a track inspector and i have never see a train run over that bad of rail that is in that grain train video. i would have shut them down in a minute
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Gary,There are/was urban industrial branches that seen deferred maintenance for years and see operation daily..

Track inspectors was helpless because the railroads knew how to the loopholes..

Even today there are shortlines that has substandard track.
 
LoudMusic said:
How does track even get that bad? How does it bend like that? Now I want to see a train roll over it!
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Simply put its called deferred maintenance due to low maintenance funds-fix the main tracks first and deferred the low profit branch lines.

Then the branch line is spun off to a port authority and then usually lease to a short line operator which may not have the funds for upgrading the track so,they use it as is with a speed restriction.

The short line operator may apply for a infrastructure grant if traffic warrants but,there's no guarantee the operator will be approved for the grant either especially if the line in question handles few carloads..
 
No, not "how do they let it get so bad?" - "how does it scientifically bend like that?". Rail is an I-beam. It shouldn't create valleys that sharp even if it's had the shit pounded out of it with no support underneath. It's almost as if it's been intentionally mistreated.
 
Ok..Heat,cold,lack of ballast,rotten ties,poor natural drainage can cause track to dip,bow and warp.
 
LoudMusic said:
No, not "how do they let it get so bad?" - "how does it scientifically bend like that?". Rail is an I-beam. It shouldn't create valleys that sharp even if it's had the shit pounded out of it with no support underneath. It's almost as if it's been intentionally mistreated.
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A big part of why it looks so bad is due to tele-compression.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Perspective_distortion_(photography)

A tele-photo lens will compress distances in the picture so the curve (bends) on that track look to be closer together in distance. Note how sharp the 'turn outs' seem to be.

Still pretty bent up track but anything will bend if enough force is applied (like the weight of a loco).
 
waltr said:
A big part of why it looks so bad is due to tele-compression.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Perspective_distortion_(photography)

A tele-photo lens will compress distances in the picture so the curve (bends) on that track look to be closer together in distance. Note how sharp the 'turn outs' seem to be.

Still pretty bent up track but anything will bend if enough force is applied (like the weight of a loco).
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That's a really good point, and as a photographer (who has referenced that very Wikipedia entry to a friend) I feel a bit silly.

How far away do you think that hopper is from the nearest piece of track in the frame?

Also, there is some optical illusion going on as well. At a glance that hopper looks almost as wide as the rails at the bottom, but put your finger on the screen so that it completely covers the hopper and then slide it down to the bottom of the frame between the rails. Surprise!
 
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