The Schoolcar Experience

[beanz]

53 minutes ago, MarkGuy said:

You’ll get it. Least ur first day on the road wasn’t nearly as bad as mine, which was this morning. Doors out at most of my stops, overshot the punch at one and had to open the window to reach out. Only did like one barely good station stop.

and later on barely passed a quiz bc I got lazy with studying a certain portion we covered yesterday: today wasn’t my day but I’m working on a comeback tomorrow 

That was your first road ops? I'm sure everybody has shitty first road ops. It took til my 3rd road ops to have more than a couple of decent stops. My first time I was so overwhelmed just trying to take in all the signs and signals that my stops all sucked. It takes a while to get used to taking in all the information and then be able to make a decent stop. Don't worry give it time. I'm supposed to go on road ops again on Tuesday and I'm looking forward to see how much I've improved. 

[MarkGuy]

29 minutes ago, acabral136 said:

That was your first road ops? I'm sure everybody has shitty first road ops. It took til my 3rd road ops to have more than a couple of decent stops. My first time I was so overwhelmed just trying to take in all the signs and signals that my stops all sucked. It takes a while to get used to taking in all the information and then be able to make a decent stop. Don't worry give it time. I'm supposed to go on road ops again on Tuesday and I'm looking forward to see how much I've improved. 

Yes my very first time on main line. Yeah it was a sensory overload digesting all that info. Next road op is next wed. I think I realized the problem.

My tss told me when to start taking brake in a station and I began moving from running release towards full service a bit but he said he didn’t feel it. I didn’t also at first but after I finished my turn I realized the braking was likely delayed. Not 100 on that but I’m gonna try experimenting next wk 

[MarkGuy]

7 hours ago, acabral136 said:

That was your first road ops? I'm sure everybody has shitty first road ops. It took til my 3rd road ops to have more than a couple of decent stops. My first time I was so overwhelmed just trying to take in all the signs and signals that my stops all sucked. It takes a while to get used to taking in all the information and then be able to make a decent stop. Don't worry give it time. I'm supposed to go on road ops again on Tuesday and I'm looking forward to see how much I've improved. 

Also gd luck in your practical tomorrow! You can do it 

[Jay-Oh]

On 9/4/2019 at 4:37 AM, Dave2836 said:

Good way to get taken out of service if System safety or a TSS catches you on the road.

If you say so. Either way - it's not a regular technique I use anyway.

[SevenEleven]

15 hours ago, Jay-Oh said:

If you say so. Either way - it's not a regular technique I use anyway.

Pop and stopping is considered improper operation, so it shouldn't be used. Not saying we all perfect out here but it was just friendly advice given to keep you out of trouble. 

[beanz]

On 9/7/2019 at 2:54 AM, MarkGuy said:

Also gd luck in your practical tomorrow! You can do it 

Passed my practical. However 3 of my classmates did not and I am still anxious for them. Hopefully they can pick it up on their second and final shot. 

[MarkGuy]

3 hours ago, acabral136 said:

Passed my practical. However 3 of my classmates did not and I am still anxious for them. Hopefully they can pick it up on their second and final shot. 

Congrats! Why did they fail?

[beanz]

11 hours ago, MarkGuy said:

Congrats! Why did they fail?

2 of them due to moving with handbrake applied during the cut or add. The other one missed an off centered brake stem and could not figure out where air was escaping from while he tried to charge. Nerves got the better of them. 

[nipaaaa]

13 hours ago, acabral136 said:

2 of them due to moving with handbrake applied during the cut or add. The other one missed an off centered brake stem and could not figure out where air was escaping from while he tried to charge. Nerves got the better of them. 

they can fail you for off centered brake stem? wow. Yea handbrakes are pretty important. I heard over the radio today on the road that a train was in smokes at union square and the crew said a handbrake was partially applied. Whoever did that put in from city hall is gonna be trouble.

[beanz]

4 hours ago, nipaaaa said:

they can fail you for off centered brake stem? wow. Yea handbrakes are pretty important. I heard over the radio today on the road that a train was in smokes at union square and the crew said a handbrake was partially applied. Whoever did that put in from city hall is gonna be trouble.

He ran out of time trying to find out why he wasn't charging. 

[Late Clear]

On 9/4/2019 at 4:51 AM, Dave2836 said:

First of all... Understand the kind of equipment you have.  The R32/42 has 2 shoes on each wheel, the 32s on the charlie sucks big time for braking accuracy.  They slide big time.

The R68 has good dynamics and good brakes but a small tappet valve so expect a delay.  The delay is even more pronounced on the 68A.  Come in hard and depending on the grade, you can grab a healthy brake mid station (before mid station if downgrade) and can smooth it out to the end.  Best braking trains in the system.

New techs have blended braking which is an abomination.  The braking force is linear (as opposed to the exponential applied force on the smees) thats why you have to pull back more on the handle to stop the train then let some air go to smooth it out.  If you just hold a brake (no matter how much) it will keep rolling at decelerating speed and then buck at the end.  Also it is unreliable in inclement weather.  The trucks were made to not skid, which is iron because of it's light weight it actually skips on wet rails (thank you blended braking for false hope).

This should be pinned.  

You won’t learn this in school car.  

Great post.   Thank you for this.  

[MarkGuy]

Man today's road ops was so much better. We operated from Coney uptown, then back down. I got about 8 stops, and most of them were near or on the marker. But I'm doing the rookie mistake of fanning the brakes to a stop. I felt the sweet spot the first time I operated today, but kept grabbing and releasing brake to each stop after. Gotta work on feeling the train better, and holding a medium brake to the marker.

[beanz]

Passed my signal test, midterm, and first yard practical. Got my final yard practical coming up tomorrow and then the stressful stretch is over. We actually lost 2 people in my class so far. 1 guy was having a hard time balancing the material and his personal life so he took himself out and plans to put his name back on the list later on. The other guy failed his retake of the practical. Some aspects of this job can be really easy (midterm, 1st signal test) but some of it can take u right out if u aren't on your game. 

 

Anyway, already got my yard posting papers. This is all moving so fast but I'm loving it. 

[MarkGuy]

17 hours ago, acabral136 said:

Passed my signal test, midterm, and first yard practical. Got my final yard practical coming up tomorrow and then the stressful stretch is over. We actually lost 2 people in my class so far. 1 guy was having a hard time balancing the material and his personal life so he took himself out and plans to put his name back on the list later on. The other guy failed his retake of the practical. Some aspects of this job can be really easy (midterm, 1st signal test) but some of it can take u right out if u aren't on your game. 

 

Anyway, already got my yard posting papers. This is all moving so fast but I'm loving it. 

Congratulations on your success so far. I've been acing my tests and quizzes so far, but my practical upcoming has me a bit nervous, given that it's timed. And in the b division, it could be on a variety of train classes. 

Great news is, my third road ops was this week, and I hit the marker on all of my stops, and my tss said they were smooth. So my confidence is building, though I'm not patting myself too hard at this point, since next month is make or break for me.

[beanz]

13 hours ago, MarkGuy said:

Congratulations on your success so far. I've been acing my tests and quizzes so far, but my practical upcoming has me a bit nervous, given that it's timed. And in the b division, it could be on a variety of train classes. 

Great news is, my third road ops was this week, and I hit the marker on all of my stops, and my tss said they were smooth. So my confidence is building, though I'm not patting myself too hard at this point, since next month is make or break for me.

That's wussup.. I don't get any more road ops days until after yx, but at least I'll be able to operate during that time. 

 

Just passed my final practical today. I'll be station switching this week, yard posting for 10 days after that, and then yx for 2 months. 

[MarkGuy]

30 minutes ago, acabral136 said:

That's wussup.. I don't get any more road ops days until after yx, but at least I'll be able to operate during that time. 

 

Just passed my final practical today. I'll be station switching this week, yard posting for 10 days after that, and then yx for 2 months. 

Nice!  Question: how much of an emphasis did they place on time for your first practical? Did the tss have a timer on them? 

[Dave2836]

10 hours ago, MarkGuy said:

Nice!  Question: how much of an emphasis did they place on time for your first practical? Did the tss have a timer on them? 

If you look like you know what you are doing they will let you finish even if you take more than the regular alotted time.

[MarkGuy]

13 minutes ago, Dave2836 said:

If you look like you know what you are doing they will let you finish even if you take more than the regular alotted time.

Oh that’s a relief thx!

[beanz]

10 hours ago, MarkGuy said:

Nice!  Question: how much of an emphasis did they place on time for your first practical? Did the tss have a timer on them? 

Yea what the previous poster said. As long as u on it they don't stress u much on the time. If u walking slow or look lost then it becomes an issue. 1 of my classmates who failed ran out of time trying to find a mistake he made. In that case time matters. 

[MarkGuy]

On 9/21/2019 at 10:36 PM, acabral136 said:

Yea what the previous poster said. As long as u on it they don't stress u much on the time. If u walking slow or look lost then it becomes an issue. 1 of my classmates who failed ran out of time trying to find a mistake he made. In that case time matters. 

You were right. Just passed the practical a few hrs ago with the rest of my class. It was pretty easy actually 

[beanz]

1 hour ago, MarkGuy said:

You were right. Just passed the practical a few hrs ago with the rest of my class. It was pretty easy actually 

Nice, congrats! I just started yard posting this week. Did some station switching at Utica and parkchester with some old timers with sweet jobs. 9 to 12 relays, hour and a half lunch, and then almost 2 hours of WAA. I'm talking about people with 28+ years on the job. No wonder some old timers don't retire until well into their 70s. Job gets easier with time. 

 

They were all cool though and gave me mad game. Next week is some yard posting at actual yards and then yard extra for 2 months. 

[MarkGuy]

2 hours ago, acabral136 said:

Nice, congrats! I just started yard posting this week. Did some station switching at Utica and parkchester with some old timers with sweet jobs. 9 to 12 relays, hour and a half lunch, and then almost 2 hours of WAA. I'm talking about people with 28+ years on the job. No wonder some old timers don't retire until well into their 70s. Job gets easier with time. 

 

They were all cool though and gave me mad game. Next week is some yard posting at actual yards and then yard extra for 2 months. 

Thx! Sounds fun. For me gotta worry about that second practical as well though.

[Snowblock]

Conductors: You are given a radio for a reason. Learn how to use it. Don't wait for your partner to answer if the train is moving. My #1 peeve as a Train Operator was when I had a conductor who was afraid to use their radio. My #1 peeve as a dispatcher is conductors who refuse to answer the radio because they think only T/O's are supposed to answer. Also learn how to read the air gauge. It will let you know what is going on up front. Do not close the doors at a terminal if the train isn't charged yet!

Train Operators: I must emphasize this again. Do not UNDER ANY CIRCUMSTANCES operate a train with customers on board while in YX. You are there to move out of service trains only.

[MarkGuy]

5 hours ago, Snowblock said:

Conductors: You are given a radio for a reason. Learn how to use it. Don't wait for your partner to answer if the train is moving. My #1 peeve as a Train Operator was when I had a conductor who was afraid to use their radio. My #1 peeve as a dispatcher is conductors who refuse to answer the radio because they think only T/O's are supposed to answer. Also learn how to read the air gauge. It will let you know what is going on up front. Do not close the doors at a terminal if the train isn't charged yet!

Train Operators: I must emphasize this again. Do not UNDER ANY CIRCUMSTANCES operate a train with customers on board while in YX. You are there to move out of service trains only.

I take it you heard about the Friday incident at Stilwell too?

[MarkGuy]

On 9/20/2019 at 4:15 AM, acabral136 said:

Passed my signal test, midterm, and first yard practical. Got my final yard practical coming up tomorrow and then the stressful stretch is over. We actually lost 2 people in my class so far. 1 guy was having a hard time balancing the material and his personal life so he took himself out and plans to put his name back on the list later on. The other guy failed his retake of the practical. Some aspects of this job can be really easy (midterm, 1st signal test) but some of it can take u right out if u aren't on your game. 

 

Anyway, already got my yard posting papers. This is all moving so fast but I'm loving it. 

We all finished the final yard practical and sig exam this week.

 

On to road posting. @Schecter all ima tell u bro is that train operator training isn’t overtly easy but it’s nowhere near beast mode difficult in terms of subject matter. It’s intense because of the amount of things you gotta learn in a short time but doable.