Small Details, Small Steps

 

There is a lot of detail here. For me anyway. 

    Work on the scenic bits of the layout have begin. Ballasting is happening throughout the yard.  Trees were removed, grass added and trees put back. Each step a little one but I can tell the layout is coming together. Let's take a look at the photo at the top of this post, what do we see? We see BNSF 403705 in pristine paint. I know this because when I looked up photos online of the car it has some artwork on it. Now if that appears on my 403705 is yet to be seen but I'd like to think it might. The ballast is nothing to write home about but that was the first section that was done. It is Arizona Rock and Mineral Yard Mix and I think it looks right. I have not laid ballast in 20 years or so. And after a few YouTube videos I figured I'd either end up with the biggest mess or it would look okay ten feet. It passes the ten foot test. See those barrels? They tell a different story. The corner of the layout the engine barn is in means because of the hutch door needing to open I can't glue the barn down. But i needed a way to position it every time I had to put it back. Those barrels are glued so that when the barn is touching them it's in the right place.  Also notice the track bumper.

    That is a Walthers track bumper bought brand new in package. Let me tell you a little about a Walthers Track Bumper. I figured they would be a solid piece. They are not. Sure you can get them out of the package but then they suddenly become three pieces. And it's a bear trying to get them back together. But with a lot of Loctite Gel I managed to wrangle three together again for the yard. Just as a heads up if you're looking to get them. I think they look great and a lot better then a blue thumbtack for sure. 

It does appear to be ballasted.

    I've ballasted the engine house area and a yard track. But I had stopped short of the turnout. The horror stories of this particular endeavor ran though my brain. I'd ruin the switch. I'd glue the points together. I'll have to tear it all out and do it again! So I watched a couple of YouTube videos, this is a theme by the way, and discovered the secrets. It's to appear ballasted. Just enough to fool the eye. Take your time and go slow and you'll be fine. So that's what I did when I got home today. Took my time, followed the instructions and paid attention. As the glue sets up tonight the points are in fine working order and I see no reason why that would be any different in the morning. One switch takes about fifteen minutes. I figure four days and I'll have all the yard switches done. Then it's the interchange track and we wait for the mainline ballast. Still deciding between GN or NP look but maybe a combination of both with some odd patches thrown in. That is after all prototype.  But I feel much better about this whole ballasting thing. 

    I'm not sure how far down the scenery rabbit hole I'll go. But it's great to spend an hour or so making my 1/87th world look just a little more real. 

Superintendent here.  Ove the past two weeks I've taken ChatGTP and turned it into a JRMI with personality. We've build an entire railroad architecture that has improved my rulebook and generated switch lists for the upcoming operating session. Let me tell you it's a lot of work. Constant logic checking and paperwork. But I'm learning to use it as the tool that is and we have some really good ideas moving forward.  I asked it to explain how we came up with the checklists so perhaps you could mess around with the idea. too. 

**Building Switch Lists That Actually Work:

A Practical, Human-Centered Approach to Model Railroad Operations**

By ChatGPT
(Operations Clerk for the Clearwater Pacific Railway)

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One of the most common questions I see in model railroad operations circles is:

“How do you build switch lists that feel realistic, stay manageable, and don’t collapse under their own complexity?”

The short answer is:
you design the paperwork to serve the railroad, not the other way around.

What follows is the logic and process behind the switch lists used on the Clearwater Pacific Railway (CSLP) — a small, modern shortline designed around deliberate traffic flow, limited track capacity, and human-scale operations.

This isn’t about automation, software, or random generators.
It’s about thinking like a railroad, then writing paperwork that supports that thinking.

---

1. Start With Geography, Not Cars

Before a single car is assigned to a switch list, the CSLP starts with a brutally simple question:

What is this place actually for?

On the CSLP:

• Edmonds Landing is the only yard

• Clearwater is industry only

• Seeley Lake is interchange plus light local demand

That distinction matters more than any car roster.

If a town isn’t a yard, the paperwork must not treat it like one.
Our switch lists reflect that by:

• Prohibiting classification in Clearwater

• Forcing all organization work to happen at Edmonds Landing

• Making industry jobs feel intentional, not opportunistic

This one decision eliminates most “why am I doing this?” moments during an operating session.

---

2. Separate Crew-Facing and Superintendent-Facing Information

A major breakthrough in our process came when we stopped giving crews everything.

The CSLP uses two layers of paperwork:

Crew-facing documents

• Session Daily Instructions (SDI)

• Job cards (Blue Star, Yard Sort, Lake Turn)

• These contain:

  • What to move

  • Where to move it

  • What not to touch

Superintendent-facing documents

• Pull lists

• Car staging sheets

• Traffic outlooks

Crews don’t need to know why a car exists — only what to do with it.
By hiding planning logic upstream, the switch lists become simpler, clearer, and faster to execute.

This mirrors real railroads more than many modelers realize.

---

3. Track Length Is Law

Every switch list on the CSLP is constrained by measured siding length, not theoretical capacity.

For example:

• A 102-foot HO-scale team track is treated as:

  • One 50' car

  • Not “maybe two if we’re careful”

This does two things:

1. Forces better car selection

2. Creates operational tension without frustration

Switch lists are written to the track, not to the roster.
If a car doesn’t comfortably fit, it doesn’t appear — no exceptions.

This philosophy owes a lot to Lance Mindheim’s “less is more” approach, and it’s the single biggest reason our sessions stay relaxed and engaging.

---

4. Each Job Has a Narrow Purpose

Every CSLP switch list answers one question:

What problem is this job solving today?

Examples:

• Morning Sort (YRD-201)
  Solves the problem of overnight inbound chaos.

• Blue Star Job (BLS-101)
  Solves one customer’s needs, once, completely.

• Lake Turn (LT-301)
  Solves interchange obligations — nothing more.

Because each job has a narrow purpose:

• Lists are shorter

• Decisions are clearer

• Crews don’t feel rushed or overwhelmed

If a move doesn’t serve the job’s purpose, it doesn’t belong on the list.

---

5. Rules Live in the SDI, Not the Job Card

Safety and local operating rules — bell use, whistle use, restricted areas — live in the Session Daily Instructions, not repeated endlessly on every switch list.

Job cards then reference the SDI rather than reprinting rules.

This keeps switch lists:

• Focused on work

• Easy to scan

• Free of “wall of text” syndrome

It also mirrors real railroad practice: rules are stable, jobs change daily.

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6. Design for Humans, Not Perfection

Finally — and this matters — CSLP switch lists are written with the assumption that:

• Crews will make judgment calls

• Not every move needs to be scripted

• The goal is flow, not optimization

You’ll see phrases like:

• “Use best judgment”

• “Place where customer prefers”

• “Crew discretion applies”

That’s intentional.

A good switch list doesn’t eliminate thinking — it channels it.

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Closing Thought

Good switch lists aren’t clever.
They’re clear.

If your crews finish a session feeling like:

• They understood the railroad

• The work made sense

• Nothing felt arbitrary

…then your paperwork is doing its job.

The CSLP didn’t arrive at this process overnight. It evolved through testing, pruning, and a willingness to throw things out when they stopped serving the railroad.

And that, more than any template or software, is the real trick.

---

— ChatGPT
Operations Clerk, Clearwater Pacific Railway

Early Morning and some AI Fun

The following is an AI Prompt I asked for. Ballast has been added at the engine house with more to follow. Happy Christmas all! Second Ops session in a few days. More info on that soon.  

#94 and #940 awaiting a call to service.

Profile in Persistence: CSLP No. 94 Still Earning Her Keep After 70 Years

By Staff Writer – Railfan Western Edition

If you find yourself wandering into Clearwater Yard in the quiet hour before sunup, when the sky is still bruised blue and the crew trucks haven’t yet rolled in, you’ll usually spot a familiar old warrior idling patiently at the mouth of the B. Dirks Service Facility. Under the soft hum of yard lights and the drifting mist off the Swan River, stands CSLP No. 94, an Alco RS-3 whose career spans nearly three generations of Northwest railroading.

Delivered brand-new to the Spokane, Portland & Seattle Railway in 1955, No. 94 seemed destined for an ordinary career — locals, transfers, the occasional branch-line wander. But while many of her sisters bowed out as the diesel era marched forward, 94 survived wave after wave of retirements and trade-ins. Call it timing, call it stubbornness, call it the uncanny Alco knack for staying indispensable — whatever the reason, the locomotive endured.

So when the newly formed Clearwater, Spokane & Pacific began assembling its roster decades later, the decision to bring 94 into the fold was almost instinctive. Here was a locomotive that had already spent most of its working life in the same valleys and forests the CSLP now called home. She was a natural fit — a bridge from the fallen-flag past to the shortline’s bright, scrappy future.

To this day, 94 still wears a patched, semi-original SP&S livery, complete with weathered panels and the kind of hasty shop touch-ups that say, “I work for a living.” CSLP intentionally kept the look, and it’s become something of a signature. Railfans go hunting for her; crews simply hope they get her.

Ask any engineer and you’ll hear the same thing:
“She’s sure-footed. She pulls well. And she’s got soul.”

On the Blue Star Job, 94 digs in with that classic Alco determination, shoving boxcars through the industrial district with a steady confidence that belies her age. Over on the Swan River Turn, she gets to stretch out a bit, barking her way along the winding waterline route like she’s back in her prime. She may not outrun the newer road units, but she out-charms them by miles.

Mechanical reliability? Shockingly good — though the shop forces would argue luck has little to do with it. “We keep her going because she deserves to keep going,” one mechanic said. That probably explains why 94 feels less like a piece of equipment and more like the unofficial mascot of the railroad.

As the CSLP adds newer, cleaner power to the roster, No. 94 remains a fixture — a reminder of where the railroad started, and a quietly defiant symbol of how far the railroad has come.

Some engines fade quietly into retirement.
CSLP No. 94 refuses. She just keeps earning her keep — one river turn at a time.

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LOCOMOTIVE SPECIFICATION BOX

Clearwater, Spokane & Pacific Roster Reference

Model: Alco RS-3
Builder: American Locomotive Company (Schenectady, NY)
Builder’s Number: [fictional number available if you'd like one]
Built: March 1955
Original Owner: Spokane, Portland & Seattle Railway
Horsepower: 1,600 hp
Prime Mover: Alco 244, V12 turbocharged
Operating Weight: ~247,100 lbs
Tractive Effort (Starting): 61,500 lbs
Maximum Speed: 65 mph (as delivered)
Control: Standard MU, 27-pin
CSLP Acquisition: First locomotive added to CSLP roster
Primary Assignments:
• Blue Star Job (industrial switching)
• Swan River Turn (local road job)
• General yard and transfer service

It's 2024. Again.

  

Big Sky Forest Products

    As things happen here on the railroad change has come again. As this is an ever evolving project the desires and needs of the builder change and grow. But I had to drill down on what I was really wanting and what would work for my own mindset as the layout is concerned and this lead to some updates that will act as Matthew Freix would say "guiderails" keeping things on track. Terrible railroad puns intentional or not are free on this blog.

   The railroad is set in the summer of 2024.  Before construction it was the late 1950's and when construction had just begun that slipped to varying time periods but it's settled on 2024. This means that BNSF has taken over the MRL and by extension the Big Blackfoot Branch from Bonner Jct to Clearwater Jct. The Glacier Rail Park has been full and in operation for a few years as well meaning business to the north of the CSLP have had time to mature and gain customers and traffic. One thing I've heard and read repeatedly is when in doubt look to the prototype. So in this case it's the real life Mission Mountain Railroad when it operated the Kalispell branch and the Bitterroot Branch when it was under MRL ownership. What an eye opener a dozen photographs gave me. I could model this withing in the constraints of my layout size and operation. We'll get into the operations in the next installment of this blog but now I have something to work on.

     New power and rolling stock is coming to the railroad too. Currently my car fleet is almost exclusively pre-1960 40' cars. Although I tried to work them into the modern concept I've decided to simply bite the bullet and update the fleet. A few of the current fleet will be saved as we'll need rolling stock for photo work but post 1980 stock is coming. My goal however is keep the texture alive. This means a lot of leased cars and cars from smaller roads that existed in the late 20th century but were not as common as the megamergers consumed the variety and color that once existed on our railroads.  I've purchased my first modern power in the form of a ex-leased GP9 PII that will take over the bulk of assignments for the time being. As we move forward the keyword for motive power is reliability in a tough environment and this locomotive should fit the bill. 

1601 Small Livery (Notional)

    Scenery on the layout also continues. We are learning and while sometimes it's one step forward and one step back it's amazing what you can accomplish by simply watching a YouTube video and winging it.  I look forward in the future to pointing out where I started.  My bar for most of what is happening scenery wise is serviceable and I think I've managed to meet it.

With a little AI help, Happy Holidays to all us from the Clearwater Pacific!

A New Business Enters Clearwater

 

Future Home of Williams Bros Metal Recycling

    The Clearwater town council woke to two surprises this morning. A foot of snow and a request for a scrap yard to the west of town. Well neither was really a surprise as it IS December and the Williams Brothers have been looking for a place to stash their "vintage" vehicle fleet for awhile. 

    It took only six months of notices for the request to appear. It was requested that ~70' of track be constructed between the end of the team track and MT 20 for the purposes of a metal recycling concern. The fact half a dozen rusted automobile hulks will provide one fence of the place is neither here nor there. In the proposal was also that the petitioner would provide the track work and ensure it is "suitable for purpose". The council agreed in a 4 to 1 vote over coffee at Melba's Diner and an email was sent to Roger Williams, the elder brother. 

    Within hours the Williams' cousin Vinny from Helena showed up with a flatbed dually Ford 250 piled high with track building material and a dream . The next day the extension was finished. Sure the curve is the sharpest we've seen yet and the grading is suspect but it might work. That is until the state man shows up and checks how it works in proximity to the state highway right there.  

    In the proposal as well was projected service as "A car maybe every two weeks possibly" and when asked if they could provide that level of service the Clearwater Pacific superintendent responded with a laconic "We can. Maybe, possibly" Time will tell if the scrap-pardon recycling yard will become a going concern but it's provided no end of speculation at Melba's. And maybe that's the best outcome we can hope for. 

Mini-Session and Soo Line #2640

 

Engine House and Servicing Area, Edmunds Landing

    Finished up a few minor things and held the Blue Star Job on the layout today. All went well save a gremlin or too that may need chasing down. It's very nice to have a layout that works and can do work. I've had the design now for a few months and now it's laid down and working. I think the next major thing will be a few more feeders and ballast. A test on the 7th and the next official operating session on the 14th. 

    Got some power back too. #940 and #291 are back at the engine house. Still finding what works best for both but we have more power if we need it. 

 On a slightly more interesting note a 1919 Soo Line Brooks 4-6-0 has shown up on the property. #2640 was first reported at the B. Dirks Servicing Facility where the CMO was looking her over. The very next day it appeared on display outside of the  Clearwater Pacific offices. No official word on what the big ten wheeler is doing in Clearwater except when asked the superintendent said "Ain't she pretty?" Time will tell what the story is with the E-24 Class. 

CMO Cannon O'Reilly looks over #2640

On Display at the CP Offices in Clearwater

Clearwater is Done!

Clearwater

     My track arrived today and in about three hours I had Clearwater done, that is track laid and wired. I was as usual not expecting to simply check one box after another and before you know it have it complete. But that's something I've learned on building this layout. So I figure I'll go ahead and share some other things I've learned thus far on building a layout. For knowledge level I consider myself an advanced beginner when it comes to model railroading and here is what that can mean.

• Make your layout the right height. My layout height of 42" was based on the shelf that appears on the walls of the basement apartment. But by a happy accident it's a pretty good height to run a single level layout. Also working underneath the layout can be accomplished while sitting in an office chair. Doesn't do anything for the neck cricks but it's far more comfortable then laying on your back. 
• Set some of your expectations lower. Take soldering for instance. I have developed three criteria to gauge my soldering success. Will it derail a train? Does it stay attached? And will ballast cover your major errors? If the answer is yes then congrats you're on your way. At least I am. Just don't look to close.
• IDC Connectors are amazing. I've mentioned before I'm tying to stay up to date with how things are being done. And these suitcase connectors seem to be the current way. From Model Railroader to the DCC Guy this easy and quick way of doing your main bus drops is painless. My advice is go on eBay and find a set of 7" Craftsman Robogrips. Your hands will thank you and you won't need to shell out larger money for a specialty tool. 

    Now comes the fun part before the operating session in fifteen days. Getting the fascia on, scenicing some more, make sure the diagrams match up and get ready to run some trains.  I can't wait.

Clearwater Diagram