WRS 132

A couple pictures of WRS 132.

White River Paper Co.

On Monday night Ross arrived for the operating session with two building for the White River Paper Company. These are foamcore copies of the Superior Paper Company.
The main building will be used for the Shipping warehouse. We will add a metal siding addition for the second track.

Side view of the Shipping Warehouse.

The second building will be the Power Plant.

Yes, I have since the picture was taken, have installed some "ground" under the building. The track with the covered hopper will be changed.

Still have a few more building to make.

later

Doug

Operating Report March 25

Last night there was an other operating session on the WRS. This was the first time the crews and management had a chance to try the new crew assignments.

Bruce busy working the Mill Job, which includes now switching the Mill Complex.

Ross and Glen were busy working the Ridge Run, they are shown at Junction.

Why is this guy so happy.

This is his train, the Duck Run. Yes passenger service has come to the WRS.

The crew on the Dog Run were so fast the camera crew could not keep up with them.

The gang watched the revised DVD of three local railroads after the operating session.

The changes helped the operations of the WRS. There are a few items I will have to check out before the next session. I will have to make a few changes to the Ridge Run to reduce the traffic jam at Roseton. The Mill Run and Dog Run both seem to work ok. The future of the Duck Run is up in the air. The next session may have a tourist run with steam.

later

Doug

WRS Management Announcement

After many complaints from customers in Bartown and Riverside about not receiving regular daily service over the last month, the White River Southern management hired a consultant to review the issues and report back to management.

The consultant presented their report this week. The highlights were, that the present assignment of crews ot the WRS, have left Management short at times and the service to Bartown and Riverside were dropped at these times. The consultant have presented a re-arrangement of crews as follows.

The Mill Run will drop its service to Dogwood and now will take over the switching duties at the Mill.

Dogwood will now be serviced by the Dog Run, which will also service the Bartown and Riverside area on route to and from Dogwood.

The Junction / Blue Ridge Turn will now be combined into the Roseton Local to become the Ridge Run.

Management is hoping these changes will improve service to all customers, specially those in the Bartown and Riverside area.


WRS Mangement

Operating Paper Work Part 2

click on for a larger view
This a the Switch List for Roseton and Whiskey Falls. As you can see each car spot at each Industry in both Towns are listed. The car number for the car to be picked up and the car number for set out are also listed. Any industry with a blank field will be serviced the next day.



click for larger image

This is my major list which tells me what car each Industry spot requires. The coloured column tells me which group the Industry will be switched in. Each train has two colours, Day One and Day Two. For example: Dogwood's Industries are either Red or Blue, Roseton's are Green or Yellow, etc. From this list I select what cars will be filled in the Switch List above.

Doug

Paper Work

This is the "Ross Board" which is used to hold the paper work for the WRS Crews.

The "Switch List" (top center) is the list of cars to be set out and pick up at each industry. Each town and its industries, which is being serviced by this train, are listed on this form.

The "Car List" (bottom left) is a list of cars to be deliveried to each town that the train services or this trip. This list allows the train crew to review the cars they need before leaving the yard.

The "Train Orders" (bottom right) is the instructions for the train crew for the train they are operating.

Doug

Visiting Layouts

When I started designing a layout for my basement, I had ideas of what I wanted in a layout. The design was a two and a half deck with a three hundred plus foot main line with staging yards at both ends of the layout. It was designed to be a bridge railroad with BN on one end and CP on the other. As I worked on the layout, more and more industries were added. The last version I had designed, I was over one hundred and thirty switches required to complete the layout.

After building a few modules for the UMG, I started to calculate the cost in time and money, of building my dream layout. So I stared over, now a single deck layout. But now it was a branch line based in the New England area. This design is some where on the computer.

Last year, I put this idea aside and set up my UMG modules to be my home layout. For all of you that have been following this blog, you know that I have made many changes in that setup over the last year. I was happy with the way things were going. It was meeting the requirements I was looking for.

A few of weeks ago, I when to the train show in Saint John and had the chance to visit and operate on Steve McMullin's Carleton Railway. As soon as I was home, I wanted to make changes. I wanted my bridge railroad again. I looked at my present layout to see if I could convert it into a twin decked layout. But the changes will not give me what I want. So it is back to Cadrail to redesign my future railroad. Until I can finish the design and collect up the material I need, I will continue operating the present White River Southern. I am going to continue working on different methods of operating on the present layout. Which is one of the major reason I set up the modules in the first place, to learn what I want to include in the next layout.

Ok that is enough of my typing for now. Will update you as things develop.

later

Doug

Next Operating Session

The WRS will be operating again on March 24th.

As usual I have a list of things to get done before the next operating session. I have noticed a few spots where we are having power pick up issues. I will have to install a few more feeders.

Also I am going to combine the Roseton Local and the Junction / Blue Ridge Turn into Ridge Run.

later

Doug

Operating session Part 2

The night started with the arrival of Bruce, Ross and Glen. Bruce chose to try on the Mill Job. After picking up his train orders he started on his way. Ross chose the Mill Run and Glen pick was the Roseton Local. I am still doing the Yard Switcher. After Glen arrived at Roseton, I left the Yard Switcher to run the Junction/Blue Ridge Turn which departs from Roseton with the other half of Glen's Roseton Local. I parked the Junction/Blue Ridge Turn at Junction. Glen contunied with the local switching job at Roseton and Ross set out cars in Dogwood on this way to the Mill. After arriving at the Mill, Ross parted his locos at the end of Track 1 and drove the Mini to Dogwood to switch the cars he had just set out. Bruce started delivering the cars from the Mill Run. By now Pierre had arrived and started to switch the Juntion/Blue Ridge Turn. David and Don have now arrived and departed with the Bartown Turn. The loco they were assigned had problems and had to be replaced. Ross returned to the Mill once completing the work in Dogwood. Pierre complete the Junction/Blue Ridge Turn and returned to Roseton to have his cars added to Glen's train. In the mean time I was busy in the Yard moving and sorting the cars from the Interchange Tracks to the Departure Tracks for the next day. Once the Interchange Tracks were cleared, the cars on the Arrivial Tracks were sorted and placed on the Interchange Tracks.

Glen and Ross where holding their trains at Roseton waiting clearance to return to the Yard. But becuase of the late departure of the Bartown Turn and the loco issue, it was running late and blocking the main in Bartown. After they cleared the main, Glen and Ross returned to the Yard with their trains. After dropping their cars in the Arrivial Tracks, the engines were returned to the Engine Terminal. Don and David finished the Bartown Turn and returned to the Yard.

That was another operating session in the books. We all had fun.

later

Doug

Operating Session March 10

Last night we had another operating session on the WRS. The pictures below show the crew busy at work.

Glen busy at Roseton

Ross and Don at Dogwood

Pierre and some unknown operator at the Mill.

After completing the set of orders, the laytop was setup and the crew viewed a DVD that Don had shot and edited of three local layouts including the WRS. It was interesting seeing some of the shots of the different layouts, some of the camera angles provide views that we normally to not see or can not see because physical issues. It was also interesting to see the operations on the WRS. There were a few shots of the layout before the last major change and the present layout. there were shots that made the layout almost look finished. And others showed how much more work I have to do. I hope that it will show people that operations can be interesting and fun. How much of the DVD we viewed that will end up on the finished version to be shown at the MFMR convention in Amherst in May, time will tell.

later

Doug

Moonlighting on the Carleton Railway

On last Saturday night I was able to do a little moonlighting on Carleton Railway.

My first job was to run Train #22 a freight from the Avondale to Millville. After departing the yard at Avondale, the first stop was at Waterville to drop off a few cars and pick a few. The next stop was Rosedale, then South Newbridge, then Nortondale and final stop at yard in Millville. Where the train was sorted.

Train #22 holding at Nortondale

The second job was Train #44, another freight from Avondale to Millville, with stops along the way. This train had a Canadian Pacific unit has it will continue on to the CPR Gibson Subdivision after arriving at Millville. (While that was should have happened. I left it on the arrival track at Millville.)

The third job of the night was the #14 Fiddlehead the local passenger train from Millville to Avondale. This train stopped at every town and village on the way. Once arriving at the station in Avondale, the engine is run around the cars and becomes the #17 Fiddlehead. I was only able to return the train to South Newbridge before my hours ran out. May have been able to complete the trip if not for an issue with the #12 Nor'easter. Required the Fiddlehead to return to Pembroke to allow the Nor'eastern to pass.

Some of the other visiting operators, Ray and Don from Yarmouth, with Doug, a Carleton regular (in the back).

a WRS regular Bruce busy operating the Avondale Yard.

I am hoping that I will again have another chance to moonlight on the Carleton Railway. Many thanks to Carleton Railway's President Steve McMullin to allowing this short line operator to work on his railway.

later

Doug

Next Operating Session

Next session will be March 10th.

If you see this operator, please return to home Yard.

Doug