Annie's Virtual Pre-Grouping, Grouping and BR Layouts & Workbench

[Annie]

Martin, in Trainz there are all kinds of bits such as different frog parts, check rails & etc available to dress up points and make them look more realistic.  The only problem with them is that it's a bit tedious fitting these parts nice and neatly, but despite that the pointwork does look so much better once it's done.

[Edwardian]

These are the textures for the building reduced by 50% James.  As you can see they aren't a building as such; - it's how they are fitted to the building's 3D mesh that transforms them into a building.

 

 

 

Oooh, I could do stuff with that ....!

 

 

Another little triumph.  I've finally figured out how to place an interior cab driving position.  What documentation there is is pretty vague and not well explained so I ended up having to do a lot of experiments before I was successful.

 

This is G15 No.125.  The window 'glass' makes the view ahead slightly blurry, but still fine for driving.  G15's No.127 and No.128 have also been modified to have interior driving positions as well and once they have their new number plates made and fitted they'll be good to go.

 

 

A look back inside the  shed  cab.  The footplate crew must be very fussy because look how clean it is.

 

 

We could lend you a cloth?

 

 

Thoughts on sea marsh grass.  After trying a few different kinds of grass models I think this is about the best one.

The digital model grass has been laid down very thickly indeed and I'm wondering how far I can go with it before my computer rolls over and dies.

 

 

I like this.  I finally found my pictures of the rough pasture in the salt marsh at Burnham Overy Staithe.  Makes the beef tasty.

[Annie]

Thank you for the salt marsh rough pasture pictures James.  They are going to be immensely useful since they show very clearly the variety of plant life to be found in such places.

 

I thought you might find the textures from the old workshop building useful James.  I'll most probably be using some of them myself with doing retexture work on digital buildings.

[RedGemAlchemist]

Ok, I've started downloading some stuff. My Trainz layout will be a fictional joint GER/NER line in Lancashire circa. 1910. That way I can have a nice mix of my favourite locomotives like the NER H Class (LNER Y7) and GER S56 (LNER J69).

My current loco lineup as it stands are:

GER
S56 0-6-0T (aka LNER S56)
S46 4-4-0 (aka LNER D14)
Y14 0-6-0 (aka LNER J15)

NER

H 0-4-0T (aka LNER Y7)

Plus an assortment of stock from both. Thanks Annie for much of the GER stock.

Edit: I meant Lincolnshire, not Lancashire which is on the other side of the country. I've reverted to Norfolk anyway as the GER didn't really get as far as Lincolnshire.

Edited January 26, 2019 by RedGemAlchemist

[sem34090]

Hurrah!

 

Some day we might get you into a multiplayer session with Lancaster and a few others.

 

A heads up that Trainz A New Era can currently be found for under £5 in a variety of places.

[Annie]

Ok, I've started downloading some stuff. My Trainz layout will be a fictional joint GER/NER line in Lancashire circa. 1910. That way I can have a nice mix of my favourite locomotives like the NER H Class (LNER Y7) and GER S56 (LNER J69).

 

My current loco lineup as it stands are:

 

GER

S56 0-6-0T (aka LNER S56)

S46 4-4-0 (aka LNER D14)

Y14 0-6-0 (aka LNER J15)

 

NER

H 0-4-0T (aka LNER Y7)

 

Plus an assortment of stock from both. Thanks Annie for much of the GER stock.

I've just uploaded my GER 3 plank drop side wagon to the DLS  Red so soon you'll be able to add another wagon to your collection.  Being so sleepy lately it was a fairly horrible business getting it finished and ready for upload, but we got there in the end.

 

 

Darlington Works has just released their NER class 'O' (LNER G5) and it looks good too  https://darlington-works.weebly.com/lner-g5.html    A pack of 5 for $6.99 which has to be a bargain in anybody's book.

Edited January 25, 2019 by Annie

[Annie]

Hurrah!

 

Some day we might get you into a multiplayer session with Lancaster and a few others.

 

A heads up that Trainz A New Era can currently be found for under £5 in a variety of places.

Steam has TS2009 Settle & Carlisle for Trainz at $NZ5.00 or so at the moment on sale.  I already have it, but I got it again since having it on Steam makes it transportable across all my computers without having to mess around with file transfers.  An oldie, but a goodie and on a decent computer with all the sliders hard over to the right it looks Ok too.

 

N3V put it into the latest new Trainz  TS2019 version which I feel was a big mistake because it ended up looking like an elderly lady with a terrible makeup job instead of the Trainz classic that it is.

[RedGemAlchemist]

I've just uploaded my GER 3 plank drop side wagon to the DLS  Red so soon you'll be able to add another wagon to your collection.  Being so sleepy lately it was a fairly horrible business getting it finished and ready for upload, but we got there in the end.

 

Darlington Works has just released their NER class 'O' (LNER G5) and it looks good too  https://darlington-works.weebly.com/lner-g5.html    A pack of 5 for $6.99 which has to be a bargain in anybody's book.

I saw. They also do a freeware GER B74 for if I want to go forwards in time a bit to 1913. Shame I can't find an S69 (LNER B12) in anything other than payware.  

[RedGemAlchemist]

That being said, freeware NER stock on Trainz is rather thin on the ground. An H (Y7) and an E1 (J72) are what I've found so far.

EDIT: As for GER locos, I've also found Michael Whiteley's GER G15 (Y6) steam tram.

Edited January 25, 2019 by RedGemAlchemist

[Martin S-C]

Hurrah!

 

Some day we might get you into a multiplayer session with Lancaster and a few others.

 

How does MP work with Trainz? I can assume you don't all use the same stock?

[Lancaster622]

I found the instructions and they are here:

 

https://steamcommuni...s/?id=954348774

[Martin S-C]

Thanks, that's the kind of thing I assumed was needed for a basic connection but how do you guys play with non-standard and modified stock and routes?

[RedGemAlchemist]

Right, so let's start off with this unnamed GER station, just starting to take shape, with, for help with scale, a GER S56 which I will have to reskin slightly as the  blue on its livery is way too dark. 

I probably should have started with the landscaping first. But that's something of a running theme with my work - doing stuff in totally the wrong order. If anyone has any advice I appreciate it as it's been ages since I used Trainz 2012. The plan is for this to be my starting terminus. Name is a work in progress as is everything else as I've only been at this for about 2 hours.

Edited January 25, 2019 by RedGemAlchemist

[Skinnylinny]

Steam has TS2009 Settle & Carlisle for Trainz at $NZ5.00 or so at the moment on sale.  I already have it, but I got it again since having it on Steam makes it transportable across all my computers without having to mess around with file transfers.  An oldie, but a goodie and on a decent computer with all the sliders hard over to the right it looks Ok too.

Thanks for that, Annie - I've just paid the hefty sum of £3.59 to update to Trainz 2012, which looks like it'll make a large range of stock and scenery available that I couldn't get on 2009.

[Lancaster622]

Thanks, that's the kind of thing I assumed was needed for a basic connection but how do you guys play with non-standard and modified stock and routes?

 

That is something I am going to have to play test as the C62 in my Japanese Inglenook layout isn't standard to the official Download Station but I am thinking along the lines that worked in FS2004/FSX that as long as you had the actual piece of content that the game is looking for all should be well.

 

In the word of Stallone's Judge Dredd "The theory's sound"

[Annie]

That being said, freeware NER stock on Trainz is rather thin on the ground. An H (Y7) and an E1 (J72) are what I've found so far.

 

EDIT: As for GER locos, I've also found Michael Whiteley's GER G15 (Y6) steam tram.

The NER is a total orphan when it comes to freeware Red.  Paulz Trainz does a lot of NER models, but most of his models need fettling to a greater or lesser extent after being downloaded.  I have a lot of his NER stuff and the only real reason I do buy his models is that no-one else is making what he makes.  The newest additions page on his website has the best of his NER models since these were all specially commissioned by a fairly fussy historical modeller.  The other NER older models can be a bit of mixed bag, though I managed to knock most of the ones I purchased into shape,

I have done a few NER coaches in my 'litho' style with the aim of being able to create branch line and secondary line passenger trains with them and I've also done a NER goods van.  I may do some more NER coaches later on since all the ones I've done so far are 'Ordinary' coaches meaning they don't have lavatory compartments.

 

For the GER you really need a different station building Red.  Try these ones: -

 

<kuid2:79563:28004:1>  GER medium country station.

<kuid2:79563:28001:1>  GER small country station

<kuid2:79563:28003:1>  GER small wooden signal box

<kuid:381430:2534>       GER/LNER  Stickney station  (Jay Holland)

<kuid:381430:2534>       GER/LNER   Stickney waiting room  (Jay Holland)

 

Jay Holland also does Stickney station in LNER condition (boo hiss) as well as various GER bits like a canopy and spare chimneys that might be useful. 

 

Michael Whiteley's GER G15 (Y6) steam tram is a nice cheerful model and I have three of them on the Hopewood Tramway, but be aware that it's a bit too short and is more like a G13¾ than a G15.  Otherwise there's not much and from what you've listed you've now found them all unless you want to add Claud Hamilton to the list.

[RedGemAlchemist]

Thanks for the heads up on the stations. To tell you the truth the buildings were more a placeholder.

 

And I have the Claud Hamilton, as I said I'm running it as a different S46 class member.

And I'll be keeping the tram as it's perfect for my little branch line. Might go to just GER and bump the date forwards so I've got six locos for it. Bump to 1920 and both the B74 and L77 become available.

[Annie]

I could send you a copy of my modded version of the G15 tram engine Red.  It has a proper interior as well as work done on the livery and lettering and it has number plates as well.  

[RedGemAlchemist]

Didn't know that option was on the table. That would be excellent, thank you very much.

[Annie]

Not a problem Red.  It's not a model I was ever going to upload to the DLS as I would have needed to obtain the original creator's permission first and unlike my other models that use meshes & etc sourced from the creator group i belong to I would have try and find a way to contact Michael Whiteley to get permission........ and it all starts to get a bit too difficult for me to bother with.

 

What I'll do is put everything for the G15 into a Dropbox folder and PM you the link.

[sem34090]

The Stirling Single has now released from Caledonia Works for DTG's simulator: http://digitaltraction.co.uk/mainsite/products/great-northern-railway-stirling-single-locomotive/

[Annie]

Edward Heaps (edh6) made a set of Stirling singles for Trainz which are lovely pieces of digital modelling, but these ones from Caledonia Works have taken it right to the next level.

[Annie]

A question - in Trainz, would it be possible to make up meshes for the missing details in the pointwork - frogs, checkrails and such? Their lack is noticeable in some pics. One of those little things that bugs me!

 

The threeway point in the goods yard at Windweather is a good example of the gentle art of adding frogs and check rails to points in Trainz.

 

And another win for Team Mega Sleepy Girl!  

The small faux GER 2-4-2 tank engine No.044 that might (or might not) have been inherited from an unknown minor railway absorbed by the GER now has an interior cab view.  As is usual a lot of fluffing about was necessary along with a couple of mistakes (teaching experiences) along the way, but we got there in the end.  I use an invisible camera that I adapted to be a cab interior viewpoint, which means that no special cab interior model is necessary so long as a cab interior of some kind is modelled as a part of the base body mesh.

 

[Annie]

After even more fluffing around No.044 has been converted to a tramway engine.  This is a really nicely made engine, though the body mesh when I saw it in the attachment maker software is a bit terrifyingly complex for such a small engine.  Just as well my computer has 16Gb of RAM!  Its textures are of the kind that are made of hundreds of small pieces, but after a lot of messing around I did manage to change the buffer beams and buffer shanks to dark blue instead of red.  The buffer heads themselves got a tidy up as well with better textures but each buffer head seemed to have a lot of texture parts to it so it took awhile.

The tramway skirts and bell were fixed in place using the attachment maker software I've just recently taught myself how to use and I took the opportunity to retexture the bell model into looking like tarnished brass for No.044.  The two behemoth tram engines use a much more smoke stained and grimy version of this bell.  The tramway skirts are based on the mesh for a long signboard and it was just the right length for the job.  It would have been nice if the mesh had been a little wider, but I think it will do.

 

No.044 now has a much wider working range over the two tramways than it did before; - especially over Hopewood Tramway metals since that line has a lot of roadside sections and that is certainly pleasing.  All in all it's now quite a useful engine.

 

[RedGemAlchemist]

An update on my terminus. Introducing Dawsbury. Also the S69 has been replaced with a similar but smaller R24, seeing as the DLS has both.

Sorry about the low-quality screenshot. My little GER branch is starting to really take shape now.