Anyone leave the Independant break on?

[Mesabi193]

I have found that if I leave the independent break set about 50% all the time, gives the trains a more realistic movements when it comes to throttle and train-breaks. has anyone else noticed this? It works alot better... and seems more realistic.

Although I'm not a licensed engineer, I do have a student car, and have run a many times, and I know that I generally don't drop below a notch 2 on a mainline. Many times in Trianz it seems its hard not to speed even in notch 0. I have found with the independent breaks on, in the engine, I'm able to maintain notch 4 or so... making for better sound fx, and more interesting running.

thoughts?

 

[Torpedo423]

I have never done this before, so I might have to try it out later. Normally I can't figure out why the engine wont start moving and it is almost always the independent brake. I'll let you know how I feel about it once I give it a go. Thanks for the idea!

 

[norfolksouthern37]

how about just getting some proper engine specs?

 

[nikos1]

Indeed, also what length trains are you running? I notice some people still run absurdly short trains. Also are all your cars loaded? Makes a difference. Driving with the engine break on no doubt makes for better sound effects but in real life you'd be fired....Only time I do that is when switching a really tight spur so I dont go off the end.

 

[mrmom]

breaks

I also do this..I have watched meny trains and even when there pulling a string of cars they seem to be able to stop a lot faster than we can in Trainz. with the break on I get much better controll of the consist.No runaway loco speeding down the line at 40mph on notch 1 or 2...OUCH..

 

[NikkiA]

I also do this..I have watched meny trains and even when there pulling a string of cars they seem to be able to stop a lot faster than we can in Trainz. with the break on I get much better controll of the consist.No runaway loco speeding down the line at 40mph on notch 1 or 2...OUCH..

I suspect what you're seeing isn't better braking, just more driver experience and the advantage of real-world tactile feedback. A surprise braking requirement in the real world generally results in pretty similar time-to-stop as you see in trainz, IME.

 

[Ghost42]

Indeed, also what length trains are you running? I notice some people still run absurdly short trains. Also are all your cars loaded? Makes a difference. Driving with the engine break on no doubt makes for better sound effects but in real life you'd be fired....Only time I do that is when switching a really tight spur so I dont go off the end.

Any rules of thumb regarding matching the consist to the engine?
I do understand that in real life mis-matches cost money.
Rog

 

[sawyer811]

the state of the cars (loaded/unloaded) does make a difference. I have a 50+ car grain train on the PO&N with 2 SD70Ms and a SD70ACe on the front and two SD45s on the back that barely needs notch 2 to get over North Pass, which is a ruling 2 percent grade headed towards Newcastle (i learned that the line is somewhat of a sawtooth, but the upgrades generally run towards Newcastle) it is unloaded, and as such only weighs about 1000-1500 tons. On the flipside of the coin, on my home-built Williams Bay and North Western, i have a 60-car or thereabouts manifest that has about 40-45 of its cars loaded. It weighs in at over 6500 tons and my big burly Ben Neal 2-10-2 can barely Start the thing. And don't even try to put the brakes on. I went into emergency to avoid the Streamliner and it took me a good mile to stop (guestimating, but i'd say it was about 2-3 baseboards length, with each one being a half mile). That, my friends, is a true train. Now to find how many diesels it takes to start it.

I will say this, that i normally keep trains 10-20 cars, and never really load them, save for a flat or two and maybe a hopper and/or gon just to keep the open loads interesting. they're ridiculously short, and take little to no time to stop. running the big manifest even in DCC was interesting, as the engine labored heavily to get it underway. it was fun...i think i'll go do it again.

 

[NikkiA]

Any rules of thumb regarding matching the consist to the engine?
I do understand that in real life mis-matches cost money.
Rog

(starting) Tractive Effort is likely to be more of a limitation than the power output (HP/kW) of the locomotive, so this document may be of some use:

http://www.scribd.com/doc/33402018/Tractive-Effort-PDF

 

[Ghost42]

(starting) Tractive Effort is likely to be more of a limitation than the power output (HP/kW) of the locomotive, so this document may be of some use:

http://www.scribd.com/doc/33402018/Tractive-Effort-PDF

Thanks, lots to digest there!
Rog