An ambitious project

Juzzy

New member
First of all, I hope I am posting this in the right place! I have an idea to re-create South Australian regional railway lines using Trainz. For those who are South Aussie or who know the (former) network I plan to start with the Roseworthy-Burra section. I guess I am asking for the thoughts of anyone on the idea and wondering if there is anyone with expertise in creating stations? I would love to create the generic station design that was widely used along the line but don't really know where to start with it.

Ultimately (if the motivation holds out) I'd like to create more of teh network as well, though the size of the route may become an issue, I'm not sure. Is it a mad idea?
 
It depends.

Are you building it to scale? Cause if so that means more build time getting all those details. And then more running time when it comes to operating.

Or if you are compressing it how much so? That can be tricky to make feel right if you are trying to keep the route size down.

At any rate I recommend pacing your self. Don't treat route building like a job and just have fun with it. Put on music or if you have the ability to put a good show on another screen and just take your time. If you don't pace your self it can start to feel like a job, and that can kill your motivation. I had the same thing happen with a route I am working on. I spent up to 40 hours a week working on it, while also working a real job. And after a few months I just stopped, for several years.
 
It depends.

Are you building it to scale? Cause if so that means more build time getting all those details. And then more running time when it comes to operating.

Or if you are compressing it how much so? That can be tricky to make feel right if you are trying to keep the route size down.

At any rate I recommend pacing your self. Don't treat route building like a job and just have fun with it. Put on music or if you have the ability to put a good show on another screen and just take your time. If you don't pace your self it can start to feel like a job, and that can kill your motivation. I had the same thing happen with a route I am working on. I spent up to 40 hours a week working on it, while also working a real job. And after a few months I just stopped, for several years.

I'm thinking full size as it seems like that would makkt more realistic, which is what I hope to achieve. It's more a question of how big can it get without havinmg issues loading etc?

Thanks for advice re not allowingn it to become a job. Very much realise it will take a long time and it's important to keep it at an enjoyable level. The other problem I have is having no experience when it comes to creating my own assets so am hamstrung to a degree by the limitations of what is available. The range of stuff available is excellent, but may be problematic with trying to get authentic looking stations and the like, which is a concern at the moment.
 
If you're building a prototype route, strictly speaking you've posted in the wrong section as this is the area to discuss *model* railway size products.

That said, just think carefully about biting off more than you can chew. Trainz is now to a great extent capable of supporting large prototype routes but don't underestimate the time it will take. A 25 - 30 mile stretch of line finished to reasonable freeware standards, i.e. detailed out to around 1500 metres either side of the track and distant terrain out to maybe 5 or 6km now we have that type of draw distance, will still take several months. If you are considering a prototype then investment in a programme called Transdem, which uses DEM data and mapping to set up a basic terraformed templated route is pretty much essential.

My personal advice would be to start off with something small, indeed maybe a model railway project to see how you progress and learn the tools. In fact, I used to build long prototype routes but rarely do so these days as I just get bored with it and burn out, so prefer nice little model projects which can be knocked out in a couple of weeks or so, instead.
 
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