Guests NIGHTMARES

Looks like someone needs to step up their PM program.

Rule # 1 before inviting any guests to see the layout is to refer to "Murphy"s Law". 

Rockstars,it happens to me all the time.

I can run my trains thru switch's into reverse loops into sidings and never have a problem.

People arrive, I am ready to go and then like you say engines stop dead in the middle of the main, derailments due to switch's not throwing back all the way.

 

Not sure why it happens but it does so your not alone on this one.

 

Oh by the way I like to listen to RUSH in the summer months while I am working on my layout and then in the winter months the Trans Siberian Orchestra.

I remembered you had a post asking about music preference while working on your layout a while ago.

 

Mark strittmatter

TCA # 14-69917

 

Don't feel bad because it happens to all of us.  My problem is that it even happens when I'm running them while I'm all alone.  Sometimes, it just seems like some nasty gargoyle gets inside my layout and makes my life miserable.  I don't let him win though.  Perseverance pays off.

Thank God, I am not the only one.... It does seem that my trains run perfectly for me when I run them by myself but when I want to show them to family or friends, a problem occurrs that previously never happened!  I guess my trains have developed a bit of "performance anxiety."   As Brian stated above......."Murphy's Law!"

 

-Pete

 

Or either Smith's Law or O'Toole's law: "Murphy was an optimist."

My biggest problem is forgetting to reset a turnout and driving one train into the back (or front) of another one!  Only happens when guests are in for a visit.

 

Ed

 

I think what happens to me when people are over to see my layout is I am concentrating on their comments and questions.

When certain questions are asked how can you do this I go into what I call "DCS Salesman mode"!!!!

 

 When this happens I am talking about the remote and all the features and functions and totally forgetting I got a 25 car mixed freight sitting in a siding and a coal train needing to take that siding to get off the main and then out of nowhere, Murphy shows up!!!

 

If I was by myself I would be paying attention and this would most likely not happen.

Ah who am I kidding even by myself at times this has happened.

 

Just my theory!!!!

 

Nick...you are not alone!!  For whatever reason, I can have everything working properly and then as soon as visitors arrive, something happens.  I have found that while visitors are viewing the layout, I run ONLY in conventional.  That way, if something happens, it usually doesn't involve a train all of a sudden taking off at rocket speed...LOL!!

 

Alan

My grand boy was over the other day and he made the SNIEEEEEED remark ...papa Nick???? are you going to have a big wreck today?Reputation is a hard thing to loose lol.Nick

So true! I was running trains Friday afternoon. I got a phone call, ran upstairs and went into the garage. After fiddling around for almost an hour it dawned on me the trains were still running, without flaw! I shut it down and had supper. An OGR forum member stopped by at 7:30pm, and no sooner did the trains start running and..... DERAILMENT ! really uncanny.

For me conversation with guests and running trains is fine.  Although, it never fails that as soon as I look away from the trains for a second that something goes Crash.  I like running multiple trains, it's more exciting for me and everyone else.  The challenges of multitasking a handful of trains usually goes ok, it's when I start answering questions or make eye contact that I need more Ram.

 

Thats about out the time I hit the Red Button!  You know 

That is exactly my major problem, also

 

The old "Failed to reset the switch" problem almost cost me a Big Boy.

Six inches from the end of a siding and a five foot drop to a tiled floor, someone yelled,

get the Big Boy !!!

 

 

I do not have the same focus when guests are involved. It is a good thing I am not on my cell phone, too!

This topic is a riot!!!!!!

Me too! More then that I can't add, but as "Passenger Train Collector" brought up above sometimes when friends are over I think my name is Murphy.

I listen to Rush Limbaugh all day too.

Last weekend, I was running a pair of scale-wheeled locomotives that run great on the club layout. They were running fine, then derailed in a tunnel as soon as the guest showed up. Get the locomotives straightened out and re-consisted (you lose it on DCS 4.2 in a short) and get everything running. Then on the next pass, one of my Atlas cars breaks a coupler and I lose half the train. Remove the bad-ordered car...then one of the cars (a hi-rail car) picks a switch and jack-knifes barely missing a train on the other track. Now, mind you, none of this happens when there are no guests. Gotta love it.

I build a layout at Christmastime at the Redford Theatre in Detroit to continue a long standing tradition of having a display every year.  It seems my biggest issues, derailments, electrical issues, uncooperative locomotives, etc... Always occur minutes before the doors open and our patrons enter.

The challenge every year is figuring out how to engineer the layout so it doesn't require as much attention as the year previous

I've joined the club along time ago, especially at Christmas time.

Ralph

"Nightmere"?The correct spelling is:knitemear.  

Dan

I've had really good luck with my trains when I have visitors.  Normally I set up and check everything an hour or so before, of course, which really helps keep down the number of surprises.  

 

There was the first time when forum member DGJones visited, and for some reason I still don't understand, my Vision Hudson just tumped over sideways: not even going that fast or anything, and I never did find out what caused it.  But that is the only "knight-mare" I've had in the last five years. 

try have that happen while running at a train show in front of 100s!!!!

had a derailment and then no matter what I tried, the trains would just not run again.

I had to pull everything off the 4 track main line and start putting things back one at a time until I could find the short circuit culprit. took me a good 20-30- min, meanwhile some kid was standing there as he had watched the derailment. and he pipes up and says

"Hey mister, do it again"!!

I cured this by yelling "good bye" before they enter the room.

With all the hours I spent in the famous Lionel showroom and the Gilbert Hall of Science I don't recall seeing any operational difficulties whatsoever.  Same with the New York Society of Model Engineers outside 3rd rail layout in the Lackawanna Hoboken Terminal.  I wonder how they managed that?

 

Pete

The problem with guests is you're busy talking and not paying attention to what you're doing.  That's a recipe for a train wreck!

Do most of these happen with the visitors or because of them? While we can crash trains with the best,  the guest operators always seem to be over achievers!!

Show them the throttle and whistle/horn/bell buttons and within minutes they are into all kinds of commands they should not be

 

Music? Nick Drake, Pink Floyd, The Searchers, Nat King Cole, Vampire Weekend, Joe South, Atlanta Rythym Section, The Allman Brothers, Turtles, Captain Beyond, The Beatles, Mason Proffit, Patty Loveless, Brian Wilson Band (their version of "They Can't Take That Away From Me") Cold Play, Nancy LaMott, etc., what ever might be on the radio or YouTube. Just got a record player for those old 45's!!

Visitors/guests ok. They typically don't care about the details just love seeing the layout, the smoke, the sounds. I especially enjoy it when kids come over. You never know what engine they want to see or how they will react.

 

Family is where things go south. At a recent gathering my dad complained about how slow the speed was, my brother kept making Gomez Adams jokes then went on to blather at length about his girlfriends dog's eye infection (not surprising because he's an idiot). One brother in law ran his mouth -- again -- about demolishing the south wall for added train space. When the other brother in law set his beer in the middle of the train table that was it. I told them all to GTFO! and that was the end of family in the train room. They don't ask and I don't invite them in.

 

Wow, been waiting to sound off on that one for a while. Thanks Rockstars for the opportunity.

 

As usual, your father was right!

 

Pete

That sweet little princess heard you shout "Great, The Family's Over"huh?

Yeah, but I'll never tell him you said that!

Keep 'em comin brah you never fail to crack me up!

I can only add to this Topic by quoting that great Yankee

philosopher Yogi Berra, "Running trains is 90 percent mental

and 50 percent aggravation."  I can identify with all of the above.

 

However, when alone, and running for a hour or two, not one, not

one problem.

 

Many thanks,

 

Billy C 

The Key is always have a pre-viewing... helps you work out the bugs. Ask the neighbor's over, or maybe one friend, have a beer and just watch the trains run for a few hours.

Run everything and take notes on issues. Next day fix all the "weakest links" and you pretty much flushed out all the surprises.

 

 

 

Don't install anything new during this fix and repair time, you will just add more disappointments and failures... just fix the issues...

I listen to Rush Limbaugh all day too.

 

No offense but this is the wrong Rush.

I was referring to the Rock Band RUSH.

Apologize for the confusion.

 

Mark strittmatter

TCA # 14-69917

I get distracted by people's question's also

It's usually, Can I have another beer