Shed 84C - A celebration of all things Railworks

Rants, ravings, musings and forthcoming goodies from the world of Railworks 4: Train Simulator 2013

Friday 22 June 2012

Ten of the best

List time... simply my ten favourite commercial routes, in no particular order.

  1. Edinburgh to Glasgow (Thomson Interactive)
  2. Bristol to Exeter (Just Trains)
  3. London to Brighton (RailSimulator.com)
  4. Settle to Carlisle (RailSimulator.com)
  5. Newark to Peterborough (Creative Rail)
  6. Portland Terminal (G-Traxx)
  7. Woodhead (RailSimulator.com)
  8. Totham (Just Trains)
  9. China Clay For Export (Creative Rail)
  10. Falmouth Branch Line (RailSimulator.com)
This was actually far harder to compile than I thought it would be. The fact that I have left out excellent routes such as The Isle of Wight, West Coast Main Line and Glasgow Airport Rail Link (to name just three) only goes to show what a fantastic choice of routes there now is for Railworks.

More Free Wagons

Another new item of rolling stock has been made available for Railworks in the form of an unfitted 12 ton coke wagon by Peter Ellis http://members.uktrainsim.com//filelib-info.php?form_fileid=29220. Peter has previously modelled a number of custom buildings in the Kirkby Stephen area that can be seen in John Griffiths' excellent, free Settle & Carlisle route http://members.uktrainsim.com/filelib-info.php?form_fileid=28298.

S

Thursday 21 June 2012

New Free Wagons for Railworks 3

The very talented Malcolm Mackay has just released three new and completely free wagon packs for Train Simulator 2012 over at DPSimulation.org.uk, which is rapidly becoming a must-visit site for Railworks freeware and also hosts exclusive free content from Darren Porter (Darpor) and Peter Gillam (karma99). The wagons featured include:

  • BDV Bolster D Pack
  • BPV Boplate E Pack
  • FEV Conflat E Coke
and are available here: http://www.dpsimulation.org.uk/rollingstock.html. Many thanks to Malcolm for making these available to everyone.

S

Doug Smith, 1977-2012

With great sadness I have heard of the passing of Doug Smith, proprietor of smittyslocomotiveshed.com, AKA HeavyChevy at the age of just 35. Doug was a very active member of the US Railworks community and my thoughts are with his family and friends at this time. S

Wednesday 20 June 2012

Class 47 Megapack from Vulcan Productions

VP have released another excellent freeware pack featuring some brilliant new liveries by Nattydred; perfect for fans of the later BR era. 
Featured liveries include:


  • GWR 150 Green
  • Highland and Eastfield Large Logo
  • Stratford white-roofed Large Logo
  • Scotrail
  • Original and revised Network SouthEast
Get it here: http://www.vulcanproductions.net/br-class-47-collection.html
S

Sunday 10 June 2012

Holyhead Breakwater Railway & Ay Valley V. 1 Uploaded

I have now uploaded both of these routes, now pending approval on UKTS and available on RW-Trainsim.co.uk. 4Shared links below.


Holyhead Breakwater Railway


The Holyhead Breakwater Railway was a stretch of industrial railway or tramway approximately 2 ½ miles in length that served to carry stone blocks from a quarry on Holyhead Mountain (Mynydd Twr) to  the Holyhead Breakwater, at just under 1 ¾ miles in length, the longest breakwater in the United Kingdom. The line was entirely isolated from the national rail network and ceased to be used in 1980, its sole function being usurped by lorry traffic. It is perhaps best known today for being the final home of the British Rail Andrew Barclay Class 01 0-4-0 diesel shunter.

The route as represented here for Railworks 3: Train Simulator 2012 depicts the breakwater railway network at its most extensive, with sidings located at the quarry carved deep in to the side of Holyhead Mountain linked to a small engine shed at Soldier’s Point by a single track that descends a gradient of approximately 1 in 50, a brace of sidings on the wharf at the mainland end of the breakwater and three short loops on the breakwater itself. The approximate period setting for the route is the early 1970s, but like many other industrial backwaters in Great Britain, little of substance seems to have changed since the 1930s.

http://www.4shared.com/archive/ZHImvUcp/Holyhead_Breakwater_Railway.html?

Ay Valley Route


The Ay Valley route is a fictional network of lines set in the West of England, focused on a main line that runs roughly parallel to the real-world Great Western Main Line. The focus time period is approximately from 1990 to the present day, although it is possible to run scenarios set in the 1970s and 80s as well with a little artistic license.

This portion of the route focuses on the major city of Westhampton, with the emphasis on urban and suburban passenger and local freight services.


http://www.4shared.com/archive/Xn-ybmfQ/Ay_Valley_Route.html?
Full list of requirements for each route are included in the enclosed PDF manuals.
S

Tuesday 5 June 2012

Holyhead Breakwater Railway

This is something I have been attracted to for a long time. This unique stretch of industrial railway (or to be more accurate; tramway) was at its most extensive no more than two and a half miles in length and is perhaps best known as the final resting place of the BR class 01 diesel shunter.
It is to my mind the ultimate single purpose railway, existing entirely for the purpose of moving stone blocks from the quarry on Holyhead Mountain (Mynydd Twr) to the breakwater in order to maintain the structural integrity of the breakwater. I have modelled the line at it's most extensive when it ran from the quarry on Holyhead Mountain all the way down to the far end of the Holyhead breakwater itself via an engine shed at Soldier's Point and a small siding complex on the wharf at the mainland end of the breakwater. In later years the line was truncated just beyond the engine shed, and stone conveyed by lorry from the quarry to the wharf.
The line itself is steeply graded, and although I have been unable to unearth an actual gradient profile, the ruling gradient of approximately 1 in 50 seems a fair "guesstimate". In an additional break from reality, I have added three passenger platforms along the route at the quarry, Soldier's Point and breakwater lighthouse to increase operational potential. I also intend to add rudimentary signalling (probably using modified ground semaphore discs) to allow more than one-engine-in-steam operation.
I hope to have the route completed withing the next week or so, and uploaded to both UKTrainSim and RW-Trainsim.co.uk as freeware. Please note that I have made extensive use of assets from the Phorum Peninsula charity route and the Falmouth Branch Line by RailSimulator.com, both available on Steam, for this route.
Further information on the history, heritage and present day activities of the Holyhead breakater and its associated railway can be found at the excellent http://www.holyheadbreakwater.com/index.htm.

Saturday 2 June 2012

Things to look forward to #2

The fourth and final incarnation of the wonderful Cresston by Darren Porter will be arriving shortly over at http://www.dpsimulation.org.uk/. Slightly delayed (blame Network Rail - I hear the track gang made a bit of a cock-up!) but sure to be well worth the wait, clocking in at an impressive 200+ miles of track and with a whole heap of quality custom assets included