How Long of a Train do you Run on Your Layout?


Hey Rod, Yes post some up. My youngest son (42) is living in Tassie now, Gardiners Bay, in the Huon Valley. No trains though.
 
I keep intending to go downstairs and put together a long train to produce a video of current long trains on the D&J Railroad empire, but I get overwhelmed by other stuff that needs to be done along with other things going on outside of the home.
These videos are a few years old when I didn't have to much scenery done. It's come a long way since.
I'm sure the O scale people could chime in here with their belt sanders disguised as locomotives but then our HO challenge is to get the tracktive effort all compressed into a much smaller shell.
I'll just post a couple of older videos that provide evidence of the long trains I can run.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Lfq_29VbCiM

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3yXBjbd4Awo
 
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53 on the flat and 48 on the 4% grade, pulling power by HO scale Bachman DD40AX, it's coupler issues that keep me from anything longer at the moment and I'm sure my numbers are low but it is what it is. I was pleased and I suppose that is what counts! LOL
 
My layout resides in a 14'x13'7" room with a folded dogbone configuration. In order to allow for access at the ends of the layout, the longest tangents (straight track) around 7 feet with the return loops at the end. I love to run passenger trains like those I rode as a kid back in the 1940's thru 1960. My longest passenger train, the Denver Zephyr consists of a pair of E-5A/E-7B and seven passenger cars of mixed 72 ft and 85 ft. streamlined, which can negotiate 20" radius minimum curves. I also run freight trains, primarily WWII-era hoppers, usually pulled by a kit-bashed 2-10-4 with a longhaul tender. I usually get 10 of the hoppers running between the coal mine to a coal-fired electric plant. I also run mixed freights of about the same length, mainly with boxcars and ice-bunkered refrigerator cars. My ruling grade is about 2-1/2 to 3 percent with curves at each end. The M-3 (2-10-4) can easily handle a lot more uphill, or I can trot out an F-7 A-B-A/dummy which also can handle longer trains, but much longer and they don't look right on the limited space available.
 
10-14 cars. Like you, what dictates train length is the length of my sidings.
 
I can get away with 24-30 cars with 2 locomotives before it starts to come around a little to quick for me. I can lengthen it some, but have to really slow the train.
 
genebrecht said:
I love to watch longer trains and unit trains run on other layouts.
What size or length of train do you run?
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Totally depends on the layout upon which the train is being run. Most of my operation is currently on the OC&E at the Colorado Model Railroad Museum. One of my regulars is train #251/251 the Coos Bay Ore turn, or more simply the "ore train". It is 80 cars. It is not the longest train nor the most number of cars in a train on the OC&E.

Here it is on "Union Pacific Day" May of 2017. It normally has Great Northern power on the point.
 
I have some serious grades on my layout so train length is limited to one of two things: A.) The number of cars a particular loco can pull up a 3% grade; or B.) The number of locos that I have actually taken the time to speed match so they can be consisted together.

(And, admittedly, C.) the number of rolling stock that I actually own... far fewer than 50 cars, I'm afraid...)
 
So, some of you may be wondering what just happened. Well, we had a spammer from Pakistan create a duplicate of this thread under his own name. A bunch of you replied, not knowing it was a spammer. Then Greg piped up and said "Hey, wait a minute, I wrote that!"
So I've deleted the new thread, and attached your posts (which still apply) to the existing thread. Sneaky Spammer Dude is banned and reported the blacklist services. We now return you to your regular programming.
 
migalyto said:
By the way, Welcome to the group Gene!
Click to expand...

Well, you won't be seeing Gene around. He's a spammer who cloned this thread. The idea is to post some legit content to fool the automated spam system. But we caught him anyway, and he's now removed. The two threads have been merged.

BTW, that was quite sneaky, so I'm not surprised nobody caught on.

Good riddance Gene, don't let the door hit you in the spamming ass. ;)
 
20-25 cars for freights during operating sessions, which is dictated by passing siding length. My record is 19 passenger cars (full length, prototypical consist).
 
Hmmmm, didn't suspect it in the least. Thought it was a genuine post.
I wonder if he is related to that Nigerian Prince. I'm still waiting for my money from him.
 
Coal drags pulled by single Powerhouse 2-8-8-2 with 20-35 cars.
A powered time freights - 25-40 cars.
4-8-4 or 4-8-2 passenger trains are usually 15 or so 75-85 footers.
Teeny power 2-8-0 and 4-8-0's are at about 8-10 cars.
 
Hello!

I have a folded dogbone 127 feet long, in O-Scale 2-Rail. This represents 6096 feet, or 1.15 scale miles.

I have no sidings, as I don't need them, running a single shortline freight, with my only loco pulling 2 Boxcars, 2 Hoppers, a Tanker, and a Caboose.

I run at scale speeds not exceeding 25-30 MPH, so the chuffs are not too close together.

That's it!

Brakeman Hal
002.JPG
 
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