oNeTRAK Debut

oNeTRAK Report

by Bernard Kempinski

oNeTRAK made its national debut at the Magic Rails, the 1998 N Scale East Convention at Orlando, FL. The oNeTRAK subdivision was organized as a loop attached to the rest of the NTRAK layout by a spline. The red line extended through the oNeTRAK subdivision and saw heavy through traffic for most of the weekend. Participating oNeTRAK modules included Brian Brendel's Uppse-Dayse, Monica, WV (end turn),and Mozer, WV; Rich Franco's Sorcerer's Creek; Jim LaBaugh's Sagebrush; John Drye's Gordonsville, Pete Bog and Yasgur's Farm and my CMT2 and North Fork. We also used some of Orlando's 3T modules in the connecting spline to the rest of the layout.

Early in the oNeTRAK subdivision deliberations we made the conscious decision to design the oNeTRAK modules such that they can be configured in a loop. This has been a good decision as the design restrictions required to make the modules close on themselves have not proved onerous while we gained the benefit of extending the Red Line of a normal layout through our loop. This provided action for the spectators while we were busy with other convention activities like clinics, layout tours and hanging around the pool. Furthermore, the NTRAK operators enjoyed watching their trains snake through the single track territory. Note, we used radio DCC at this show, making operations on the single track even more enjoyable.

The flexibility, literally, of oNeTRAK was also evident. Due to an earlier design decision, Gordonsville, our special oNeTRAK wye module was not built in even foot increments. This caused a small gap in the overall loop that we could not make up by "scrunching". We made a temporary connector by cutting a piece of one inch thick styrofoam about four inches wide, placing it in the gap and then clamping it tight with a bar clamp. After some flex track and crude scenery all was well.

On Friday night we conducted a local switching operation demonstration on the oNeTRAK loop while red line traffic continued through the layout. This was a ton of fun. John Drye (JD) was our dispatcher. He kept on eye on Red Line traffic and granted Brian (brakeman/Conductor) and I (engineer) track warrants to use the main line. Operation with Radio DCC was extremely flexible. Since traffic on the main was not too heavy, we were able to switch CMT2 and Sorcerer's Creek in a reasonable amount of time. At one point we pushed the whole train (about 20 cars) in the siding at Sorcerer's Creek but because the siding didn't have room for the whole train, we cut off the head end engines and parked them in a second siding.

We used the simple method of swapping like cars to organize the switching. That is, if we had a covered hopper in our consist, we swapped it with a covered hopper that was sitting on a siding in the oNeTRAK loop. This required a modicum of set up time but no paperwork. We plan to utilize more realistic waybills and car cards later. Brian was very good as the brakeman. As the engineer, I did not look at the rear of the train but watched the engines and listened to Brian. Using a radio, Brian called off car lengths and then feet as I worked the throttle. It was challenging and fun. Combined with the extra thinking required to plan our moves it made for an entertaining session. Several of the folks watching enjoyed the show but felt that it was beyond their capability or interest. I suspect the same applies to most NTRAKers. But for the few that are interested, the potential is there.

Some other lessons learned.

1.	We need more industries to switch on the oNeTRAK loop. Probably more 1x4 modules with a single siding would be handy.
2.	We could also use a small oNeTRAK yard, perhaps a 1x8 or 1x12 with six or seven classification tracks. Our current yards are rather large and take a lot of effort to set up. As a result we will not see them as often as perhaps we'd like.
3.	We need to develop a better method for electrically controlling our junction modules. The current wiring systems and documentation is not clear to first time users.
4.	We should plan additional oNeTRAK set ups at club meets to refine our operational concept including the use of a dispatcher and waybills and car cards.
5.	The DCC radio throttles were great but we did exceed the capacity of the system to accept new locomotives. Using DCC to run the whole layout will require a bit of discipline so that locos not in use are cleared from the system thereby freeing assignment slots for other locomotives.

In conclusion, the oNeTRAK debut was a great success. Many people expressed interest in adopting the concept. Our next step is to develop a oNeTRAK FAQ so that others may benefit from our experience.