I am experiencing some inconsistency in the behaviour of the "Run Around" command. Sometimes it woreks fine, other times... I have found a loco going backwards and forwards over the points at the start of the loop; I have found a loco heading off miles fromthe loop; I have found a loco sulking in a near-by siding. What causes it to fail?
Clearly you need a long enough loop, and a long enough piece of track at the end (and clearly I could do this using trackmarks, and not use Run Around at all, but that is not relevant to this thread).
So I created a test layout. Eight trains and eight loops. Each train is instructed to go to a trackmark on the loop, and then run around, but each loop has its own ideosyncraties. You can see the layout here:
http://imageshack.us/photo/my-images/818/f2andy201106100002.jpg/
All the loops connect back to a single line (off-screen to the left in the image), like this was the terminus of a single track line, and each has a signal for trains leaving the "terminus" some way from the loop towards the join. All eight trains were running at the same time on connected track, so if active trains interfer with each other, that would happen here.
From the left:
Track 1: A simple loop, the control case.
Track 2: Signals on both tracks of the loop for the train leaving the "terminus"
Track 3: Loco on spur before loop
Track 4: Loco on spur off start of loop
Track 5: Long section of track beyond loop, with wagon on it
Track 6: Three track loop
Track 7: Three sidings at start of loop
Track 8: Seven spurs off loop
All but track 6 worked.
The signals on track 2 slowed it down the first time I ran it, but not subsequent times. The numerous siding on track 8 slowed that down, but it still got there in the end. The loco on track 5 went someway down the track, but then came and was successful.
Only the train on track six failed; the extra loop seems to confuse it, and it never got going. This is not the problem on my layout; there is just a single loop, and locos are failing later in the process.
So why does it not work on my layout? I tried adding extra sidings to track 5, still works. I made the sidings coming off track 7 into loops (but distinct from the main loop), still works.
So I was wondering if anyone else had any knowledge they could share.
Clearly you need a long enough loop, and a long enough piece of track at the end (and clearly I could do this using trackmarks, and not use Run Around at all, but that is not relevant to this thread).
So I created a test layout. Eight trains and eight loops. Each train is instructed to go to a trackmark on the loop, and then run around, but each loop has its own ideosyncraties. You can see the layout here:
http://imageshack.us/photo/my-images/818/f2andy201106100002.jpg/
All the loops connect back to a single line (off-screen to the left in the image), like this was the terminus of a single track line, and each has a signal for trains leaving the "terminus" some way from the loop towards the join. All eight trains were running at the same time on connected track, so if active trains interfer with each other, that would happen here.
From the left:
Track 1: A simple loop, the control case.
Track 2: Signals on both tracks of the loop for the train leaving the "terminus"
Track 3: Loco on spur before loop
Track 4: Loco on spur off start of loop
Track 5: Long section of track beyond loop, with wagon on it
Track 6: Three track loop
Track 7: Three sidings at start of loop
Track 8: Seven spurs off loop
All but track 6 worked.
The signals on track 2 slowed it down the first time I ran it, but not subsequent times. The numerous siding on track 8 slowed that down, but it still got there in the end. The loco on track 5 went someway down the track, but then came and was successful.
Only the train on track six failed; the extra loop seems to confuse it, and it never got going. This is not the problem on my layout; there is just a single loop, and locos are failing later in the process.
So why does it not work on my layout? I tried adding extra sidings to track 5, still works. I made the sidings coming off track 7 into loops (but distinct from the main loop), still works.
So I was wondering if anyone else had any knowledge they could share.
