Was involved with a programing confusion in my NCE throttle..Two of my only 3 HO digital locos were in front of me on the layout..I looked up and started fretting "Where's the ten wheeler, where's the ten wheeler !!! Ran all over room. nowhere in sight !! Oh God, what now ?!! looked in 2 stall engine house but still didn't see her ! Other end of engine house, there she was, pilot wheels and 4 of the 6 drivers ready to drop to the slab floor off of the short piece of track going out the back stall door which ends over the area in framework where pop up hatch will be !! The 2 last drivers and tender where still grabbing the rails !!! Saved again !! PHEEEEEEEEw !!
OK Mark, now slowly turn your head to the right and kiss that sweet angel sitting on your right shoulder, ya heah.
Don't ya know it ! Meant to say two things..1) nearly same thing happened about two months ago..engine hanging at end of tail of switchback at a cliff over a plywood riverbed !! 2) It's easy to use 'recall' believing prior engine is set at 0 speed step but instead was still rolling at speed step 1..Or, to brush up against walkaround cab's speed wheel, rolling loco selected for it while using another hand held, mine being an NCE PowerCab, when running another engine..
I was not that lucky in the 1971 earthquake that was centered in the northeast corner of the San Fernando Valley (I was living in Burbank at that time). I have a United PFM Consolidated that took a header off the table and lit on its cow-catcher. I straightened it out the best I could but it still has a 'cute' little turned up nose!
Can you make changes in your layout to prevent a loco from hitting the floor? Your hobby faerie is trying to tell you something.
Yes I/we could..I even entered a post a while back suggesting hanging netting under open grid/L girder layouts until ground forms are added..Have I done it? Nope..Go figure ! It comes down to about 2 things: watch your cuffs and shirtsleaves at all times when reaching in, and be very sure locos are not creeping somewhere while on another loco or distracted by something..My hearing is poor from 35 years of bass playing. Those of you with normal hearing will hear the chugging or diesel whine ! I don't always..But I will hear the crash to the floor ! I do now have real rocks at these cliffhangers..So it most likely won't happen again..(yeah, right !)..
I don't know what, short of having the loco off of the track, (which was open grid) would have done. During the quake I watch our refrigerator "walk" across the kitchen floor to the sink and then proceeded to empty the upper freezer contents into the sink. The house shifted off most of the foundation piers and the chimney tore away from the wall and fell to the ground. It was quite an experience. :wideeyes: But the little engine still runs great ... just looks a little funny. *grin*
I had the same experience with an N scale Atlas Trainmaster. I was showing my buddy my new ground throws, flipped the switch back and forth and back, we sat there chatting and on the next run around she rolled into the stub spur leading around the outside edge of a curve and ending on the edge of my benchwork. We both looked at it as it rolled and my friend had a funny look on his face, that was when I realized where it was too late. Luckily it stalled with the front truck hanging over the edge but didn't tumble over. The next week I had a railing installed on my layout.
I had the same experience with an N scale Atlas Trainmaster. I was showing my buddy my new ground throws, flipped the switch back and forth and back, we sat there chatting and on the next run around she rolled into the stub spur leading around the outside edge of a curve and ending on the edge of my benchwork. We both looked at it as it rolled and my friend had a funny look on his face, that was when I realized where it was too late. Luckily it stalled with the front truck hanging over the edge but didn't tumble over. The next week I had a railing installed on my layout.
I'm begining to think that due to the shapes of all the things under all locos this close call thing, hanging on by second truck, driver, tender, fuel tank, was some blessing the god of MRRing left us with as it seems to happen alot to alot of MRRers..a warning after a third chance..that " Woe be with thee if thou do not now shoreth up thy stub ends ! "
