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Great Northwestern Railway
Providing
“Conestoga Service” to the High Desert and Rocky Mountain States
Route of the LUXURIOUS “San
Juan” passenger trains
Welcome to the
A freelanced HO scale switching
layout.
The story of the GNW is that they bought up the old
narrow gauge right of way from the Colorado Southern (itself later merged into
the Burlington Route and the AT&SF), including the old R.O.W of the Denver,
South Park and Pacific, which the GNW has rebuilt in standard gauge. Later acquisitions developed the GNW as a
north/south line connecting the Great Basin to south central US. It is now primarily a bridge line between the
SP at Tucumcari, NM and the D&RGW at Green River, UT. There is also the South Park Division
providing connections to Denver, CO.
The model RR is set somewhere between Colorado and New
Mexico along the main. Only a few dozen
feet of mainline are modeled, connecting two 8-track staging yards. A single major yard, Valley Gate, is placed
along this main. A branch line comes off
the main to Warm Springs, a fairly industrialized town. The operating scheme is the exchange of cars
between industry and mainline trains by means of locals and manifest
freights. There is also commute service
between Valley Gate and Warm Springs, and a daily Amtrak train, the San Juan,
through Valley Gate.
The era is late 70’s/early 80’s with a mix of first and
second generation diesels. Due to
limited cashflow, the GNW necessarily uses second
hand power for most of its trains. SP
provides the power for most of the through trains.
Enjoy the story!
~ Directory
~
About the Railroad
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The Whistlestop NEWS FLASH: TRAIN SERVICE STARTS TO |
Size: The layout is situated in a area approximately 15 x22,
configured with an around-the-walls shelf and a single peninsula. With 28” min radius curves, there are a
couple pinch points with less than 2’ aisle width.
Train
Controls: Train controls are DCC by
MRC PA Wireless and PA tethered throttles at the yards. All locos are sound equipped.
Train
movement scheme: All trains except
passenger and one express freight are extras and run
off a train sequence. Passenger
service is run per the timetable.
Authority
to the main is via written track warrants, as issued by the dispatcher. Operators are expected to know the limit of
their authority at all times.
Car
Movement Scheme: Cars are moved by car cards and waybills. The Micro-Mark card system is used. “Train Packs” are used to define trains and
carry instructions.
GNW Model Railroad Concept and Standards
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The Whistlestop #8 - Sand Creek Trestle The Whistlestop #7 – Sound on the GNW! The Whistlestop #1
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OPERATOR’S
SECTION
Planning to Operate at
the GNW?
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THE ENGINE
HOUSE STORIES FROM THE SHOPS |
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The Story of the GNW GE Gas-Turbine
Electric Locomotive AKA Athearn Veranda GTEL with a Soundtraxx Tsunami
Decoder |
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So you want to install LED’s in your Locos? Be sure to do some homework. Hint: what one person calls white is another person’s BLUE! Check it all out in this little study called: |
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SOME TIPS AND TECHNIQUES IN PROGRAMMING SOUNDTRAXX
TSUNAMI DECODERS:
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BEMF Tuning - Tuning a Soundtraxx
Tsunami for Slow Speed Control
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Advanced Ops: Tuning a TSU to simulate a heavy train with: UPDATED! |
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All
About Sound Decoders (Note: This study was done in early 2007. Since then, the GNW has standardized on Soundtraxx Tsunami Decoders. These files are kept here for posterity’s sake!) |
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The
Sound Decoder Comparison and Test Program
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And the Sound Decoder Test Program Follow
Up Comparison |
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And speaking of SOUND – Here is a YouTube video of a crazy idea using a couple Soundtraxx EMD non-turbo sound decoders…
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So what if you want to marry an MRC Prodigy Advance system to a CVP Zonemaster booster? Read and find out… |
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We
hope your visit to the Great Northwestern Railway was a pleasant one, and we
look forward to seeing you again soon!
Detlef Kurpanek
Chief
Brass Hat
Of
the
Great
Northwestern Railway
Email: GreatNorthwesternRwy@msn.com
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Site Last
Updated: January 14, 2013
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