Train Sim discussion group

Crashing trains is easily half the appeal of this game. I once launched a loco backwards at 100% throuttle. It had VERY bad physics so it was up to 80 in no time. The problem was I wasn't paying attention to what I was doing. I meant to be going forward. I was in a C40 and slammed into two old RS-1's that were parked on the turn table and in the roundhouse. The results were impressive! The engine I was driving was on its side in the turntable. The first RS stopped just outside the roundhouse wall. The 2nd RS that was already in the roundhouse went flying UP the hill behind the roundhouse. A very very cool wreck! Plowing off the end of a siding and going down into a river is another great one!
 

ezdays

Out AZ way
Thank you kind sir. Things have kinda slacked off here these past few months. I know I haven't had much time to run my train sim, let's hope there's more time after the holidays.
 

Ralph

Remember...it's for fun!
Glad to hear I'm not the only maniac who decided to have some fun with intentional MSTS wrecks! I also like to try things like create a runaway string of freight cars rolling down a hill on the Sandpatch add-on. I'm driving the helper units behind the train and then uncouple from it. Then I race to try to reach a siding to hide in before the runaway freight hits me. I've managed it once but usually derail the locos by going too fast. The other trick is timing it right so I can slow down and take the switch and then realign the turnout so the freight can harmlessly go by.
Ralph
 

Fusion

New Member
Hi Guys/Gals,

Does anyone know if its possible to run MS Train Sim in widescreen resolution. I have a Dell 24" widescreen LCD and the native resolution is 1920x1200 16:10. The highest resolution in MS Train Sim is 1600x1200. I doesn't look too bad but you do notice a little stretching. I can run it in 1600x1200 4:3 but then I get black bars on the left and right.

Thanks
 

Pitchwife

Dreamer
Ralph said:
Glad to hear I'm not the only maniac who decided to have some fun with intentional MSTS wrecks! I also like to try things like create a runaway string of freight cars rolling down a hill on the Sandpatch add-on. I'm driving the helper units behind the train and then uncouple from it. Then I race to try to reach a siding to hide in before the runaway freight hits me. I've managed it once but usually derail the locos by going too fast. The other trick is timing it right so I can slow down and take the switch and then realign the turnout so the freight can harmlessly go by.
Ralph
Has anyone tried to set up a runaway train senario and then try to catch, recouple and bring it back under control?
 

ezdays

Out AZ way
Fusion said:
Hi Guys/Gals,

Does anyone know if its possible to run MS Train Sim in widescreen resolution. I have a Dell 24" widescreen LCD and the native resolution is 1920x1200 16:10. The highest resolution in MS Train Sim is 1600x1200. I doesn't look too bad but you do notice a little stretching. I can run it in 1600x1200 4:3 but then I get black bars on the left and right.

Thanks
Boy, that's a lot of screen. No, I've gone up to 1280 x 1024 on my 19" Dell (4:3), but that's the best resolution I can get out of it. With that size screen, I'd settle for a bit of black on the sides to keep it from stretching. Your screen ratio is going to screw you up otherwise.
 

AndyWS

New Member
It was thanks to this thread that I ran across the multitude of free MSTS downloads at www.train-sim.com . I registered and started downloading immediately! I've already got several new engines running on my routes, although installing all the files and folders in exactly the right places is somewhat of a pain and I still can't get the proper sound and cabview for the RS units and FTs.

C&NW ALCO RS-36 #4259

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#4259 hauls a train of cement hoppers with the help of a C&NW ALCO RS-32:

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Class J 4-8-4 #611 from the Norfolk & Western steam pack, which also includes Class A 2-6-6-4 #1218, and Class Y6 2-8-8-2 among others. The whistle and bell sound effects for these things are AWESOME!!! No offense to British/European steam fans, but I think releasing TS without any American steam was a serious oversight by Microsoft.

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EMD'S FT A-B-A demonstrator set:

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AndyWS

New Member
Herc Driver said:
Here's a link to great downloads of steam/diesel, passenger, freight, and a new route all free and very well done from Canadian Pacific.

http://www8.cpr.ca/cms/English/General+Public/Train+Downloads/default.htm

I downloaded and tried that Kicking Horse Pass Route. Anyone else do so and notice several problems with it? For example, in one of the two activities that comes with it (the one in which it is snowing) it is physically impossible to get your train up one of the hills. You can have the throttle wide open, all brakes completely off, the sander on; and the train will still eventually slow to a crawl until it is barely moving at all. After about 20 minutes during which the train moves perhaps 40 feet, the coupler between the lead locomotive and the rest of the train breaks.

The other problem comes during an activity I assigned for myself in "explore route" mode. I made up my own "The Canadian" excursion consist with all four F7 locomotives in an A-B-B-A configuration, plus 11 of the coaches. The train was to run from Field to Eldon and back again. To do this I wanted to turn the observation car (the one that features the passenger view from the vista dome) on the wye at Eldon before placing it on the other end of the train so that it would be facing the correct way (rounded end to the rear) for the journey back to Field.

My procedure for doing this seemed to be working well until the last bit, when I was coming through the exit leg of the wye, ready to put the observation car in position to be coupled to the "new rear" of the train. I had uncoupled the lead locomotive, CP 1401 (since the tail part of the wye is so short, it can't hold much more than one locomotive and one coach without running through the buffers before getting in position to switch to the exit leg), ran it around the train and then coupled its nose to the tail of the observation car; then shunted the car into the wye. Now coming out of the wye, the locomotive was in the lead although facing backwards in relation to its direction of travel.

I was moving at about the posted yard limit of 15 mph, when all of a sudden my projected speed indicator went to zero, so I put on some extra throttle. My projected speed was still zero. The "wheelslip" indicator light turned on, so I put on the sander. Still projected zero, and I'm already down to about 10 mph. I threw the throttle wide open. No dice. My train ground to a halt, then began to move the opposite way. However, it only moved a few feet before the "wheelslip" indicator switched off, and the locomotive suddenly regained power and started back in the direction it was before. THEN just as quickly it stopped and reversed again. The train was now bouncing back and forth with the locomotive and car bucking hard against each other as though they may come off the rails at any time.

My reaction was "WTF?!" The grade here is not that steep, especially compared to what is seen elsewhere on this route. One locomotive certainly ought to be able to keep one passenger car moving. Stranger still, the coach seemed to be stuck to the locomotive. I opened up the coupling driving aid and attempted to uncouple the two, to stop the uncontrolled bucking and extricate my locomotive so it could pull out, maybe take on a helper and have another run at it. However, even if I did this during the part of the "cycle" when the locomotive was in control and pulling the coach, the two vehicles would not seperate spatially and would almost immediately re-couple automatically. Finally I closed the throttle, put on the brakes and stopped the train. Then I released the brakes, and with the sander on threw the throttle wide open. The train IMMEDIATELY started bucking futiley back and forth again. I found that if I kept rapidly double clicking on the coupler to keep uncoupling the cars the split second after they joined back together; the train could make some forward progress.

However, the train was now constantly making the whoosing air sounds of letting off brakes, even though I had done so quite some time before. It was also constantly making the click-creak sound of switching the reverser back and forth, even though I was not doing so and the indicator said the control was staying in the proper position. At least my train HAD finally progressed to the place where I planned to spot the observation car, then rejoin all the locomotives and run them round to the other end of the train and back the entire rest of the train into the OC. Just as I was about to put on the brakes, I got the "Train Simulator has encountered a problem and needs to close" error. This has happened each time I have tried to execute this procedure.

CRAZYNESS! Any thoughts! Does the observation car have a mind of its own that causes it to resist locomotives???!!!
 

AndyWS

New Member
Foreign power on the Kalispell Branch

Some "virtual railfanning" on the ex-BNSF (now operated by some shortline) Columbia Falls-Kalispell, MT branch. Here CP GP9 #1613, BNSF GP38-2 #2081 (one of the stock locomotives for the route) and WSOR GP35 #3501 haul a mixed freight southbound on the north side of Kalispell.

CP1613SB_Kalispell1.gif






CP1613SB_Kalispell2.gif


CP1613SB_Kalispell3.gif


CP1613SB_Kalispell4.gif


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About to cross 4th Avenue on the east side of Kalispell:



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Now at the end of the line in Kalispell, the two lead locomotives have uncoupled and are backing around the wye, preparing to switch the cars into Kalispell Yard.

CP1613SB_Kalispell7.gif
 

black8

New Member
"Error 1325.gamepacks is not a valid short file name"

BTW Clark, I sent you a PM yesterday, check your inbox if you would.
Hi ezdays. Although your post is about 4 years old, I wonder if your PM to Clark had the solution to the "Error 1325.gamepacks is not a valid short file name" problem. I have the same error trying to install the MSTS gamepacks plug-in into Gmax. (I have also sent a simlar post to Clark)
By the way, I am new here :wave: and I am also to be found under the same name on the Elvas Tower and UKTrainsim sites.
Thanks
Jos
 

black8

New Member
I just downloaded the TrainSimGmaxGamePax, but when I install it I get "Error 1325 gamepacks is not a valid short file name" Has anyone else had this problem? :confused: :confused:

Hi Clark
Although your post is about 4 years old, I wonder if you found the solution to the "Error 1325.gamepacks is not a valid short file name" problem. I have the same error trying to install the MSTS gamepacks plug-in into Gmax. My system runs on XP too. (I have also sent a simlar post to ezdays)

By the way, I am new here :wave: and I am also to be found under the same name on the Elvas Tower and UKTrainsim sites.
Thanks
Jos
 

ezdays

Out AZ way
Sorry Jos, I have no recollection of what this was all about. I no longer have my PM's from back then and haven't used Train Sim in a long time. As you can see from this thread, interest just kind of dropped off, maybe it was because MS announced the new version was pending, but here we are, years later, and nothing new yet.

I do remember buying a copy of Train Sim for someone and shipping it to them. Perhaps that's what the PM thing was all about.:confused:
 

black8

New Member
Sorry Jos, I have no recollection of what this was all about...
OK Don, that is a pity but thanks for answering. Btw the new MSTS will not happen as Microsoft has laid off the department that developed what was called MSTS 2. Well the good thing is that the people that improved the original MSTS are now continuing to do so, and I think you would be surprised what has been accomplished. When you are interested visit the www.elvastower.com , www.train-sim.com (both mostly US railroading) or the www.uktrainsim.com (mostly UK railways, click on "forums" at the top of the page) websites. The following link will lead you to the topic about the stopping of developing MSTS 2: http://www.elvastower.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=7496
You may want to take a look.

Greets
Jos:cool:
 
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