New to ORTS

[jefffarq]

I've just recently installed ORTS, and am running in to a problematic situation.

I'm working on perfecting an activity for my new route (Cima Sub), and have been testing it in ORTS as well as MSTS.

I'm using two downloads from the library that both use the latest physics listed in the library from TurboBill. My player consist is made up of these two downloads. In ORTS, once I get on a steep downhill grade, I cannot slow the train, even going into emergency. The train continues to pick up speed.

It works fine in MSTS - I can slow to a stop, if I need to; but not in ORTS.

What am I doing wrong?

Thanks,

[Vince]

Hi Jeff,
Have you looked at the F5 HUD Brake display panel when you have the problem?
The panel shows brake cylinder for every car in the consist.
If you forgot to hook up the air hose and open the angle cocks for your train you could be attempting that grade with only the loco brakes! I made that mistake when I first used OR.
A trains brake system can be initialized by pressing SHIFT + /.
Check out the F1 help panel.
I note there is a key to export the ORTS keyboard commands so they can be printed. A great help when learning the new Sim.

regards,

[geepster775]

Well, one size train physics does not fit all.

But I understand that characteristics of certain routes will just be ball busters and really exemplify the weaknesses of one size fits all physics. Altho its hard to troubleshoot without anybody getting access to analyze. What are the models in question? Maybe we can compare them running them downgrade on Rogers Pass or Horseshoe curve or something.

I doubt its an issue with OR code. In the real world, trains run away down that hill, too. Probably more a case of physics that have not yet caught up yet.

What are your other conditions? Train speed at the top? Using dynamics, too? I recall reading an accident report on a real world runaway where the hogger inadvertently kicked a toggle switch on the lower console of an SD60M and that switch shut down the prime movers on all the power, resulting in a runaway due to the 100% loss of DB. UP quickly relocated that switch onto the back wall of the cab on all units with the EMD canadian cab.

[geepster775]

I dug around and found the report

http://www.ntsb.gov/investigations/AccidentReports/Reports/RAR9801.pdf

Basically, a 20 mph speed at the top was too fast to stop the train with tread brakes alone.

MSTS physics settings probably do not come close to what's needed in OR.

[jefffarq]

The two pieces of stock are:

Robert Murphy's DODX flatcars loaded with M1A1 Abrams tanks

Del Ray Bascom's UP SD90MAC 8485

On the grade I do have the dynamic brakes on 100%, locomotive brakes on 100%, and the train brake in emergency; I still continue to increase speed.

I've pulled up the F5 HUD, but mine only displays the train brake as one line item showing emergency and brake pipe pressure. There are no entries for each car. Does this mean the train brake is not connected? I've toggled the / key to attach the hose, as the keyboard command lists. I do not see a command to open angle cocks. (I do have the keyboard commands pasted into a text doc, I have it open on a second monitor when driving in ORTS - haven't learned all the commands yet.)

Since the player train was fully assembled from the beginning, do I still have to connect the brake hose?

I'm kind of reluctant to change the physics, doing so will mean I'll need to get additional permission to distribute the rolling stock with my route; not to mention I'm not sure what to change things to. I do have a set of changes given me by one of my testers - haven't tried them yet.

Thanks,

[baldwin]

F5 has several pages. The first page is only a summary. Press shift with F5 until you reach a full brake information page.

I think the problem lies with the DODX cars. These are set up for MSTS, not OR, and as such brakeforce is not far from zero. Brake cylinders are also set up MSTS style.

[baldwin]

I was right in my thought on the DODX cars. Checking in the Force Information page, a loaded car will only generate 44lbf brake force, empty even worse at 14lbf. To run in OR one of two things needs to be done. One is to modify the wag files to get the correct braking force. The other is to construct an Include file that has the correct parameters and give the end user the instructions needed to use it, and there are actually two ways to do that as well.

[jefffarq]

The other is to construct an Include file that has the correct parameters and give the end user the instructions needed to use it, and there are actually two ways to do that as well.

That's a good idea; that way I wouldn't be distributing a hacked copy of Robert's cars, but users could change out the .wag file if needed. I still think I'll check with him on this, though.

Thanks for running this down for me; I haven't had much time lately to fiddle with it. My daughter is getting married tomorrow, we've got a house full of out-of-town relatives, and things (including my wife) have been kind of crazy the past week or so.