Problems with Track Profiles

Hello All

Some months ago I installed the Bernina Express to run with Open Rails. As I expect you know the route uses standard gauge track and I think it is metre gauge track, both of which co-exist. After a while, I found that standard gauge dynamic track in other routes appeared as metre gauge. (That is to say I only noticed after some time - for all I know it might have occurred immediately after installing Bernina - I suspect this to be the case. I have not been able to get rid of this except by installing standard track profiles in all my other routes. (and even then it doesn't always work). I have tried re-installing routes and Open Rails all to no avail. Has anyone else experienced this, and does anyone perhaps have a solution to it? In the absence of an explicit track profile, OR is supposed to generate a track profile from scratch, which it seems to do, but it generates the metre gauge profile!

Regards to all

Tony

Here is an example (Skipton V2)



Tony

Hi,
One question, Is that the commercial Bernina Express route from SimTrain, or the freeware Bernina Pass?

If it's the latter then it uses genuine metre gauge track and, as far as I know, doesn't need the use of a profile.

The former, I believe, uses standard gauge track but, as I don't have it, can't help other than to say that, if required, you should use a standard gauge profile.

I don't think that Open Rails will create metre gauge track without the use of a profile - I suggest that you may have applied a metre gauge profile to standard gauge track in which case, OR is only doing what it's been 'told' to do which is probably why it's appearing in other standard gauge routes!!

Happy New Year, Mate  

Cheers,
Ged

When I installed the freeware Bernina route I intentionally put it in a separate installation from the rest of my routes, like a Mini-Route. I am sure the instructions said to do this. I wonder if your problem is that it is in the same installation as other routes and is corrupting them.
The same used to apply with Mid East Plus though it doesn't seem to matter with MidEastCoast - or if it does I haven't found the problem yet.
Jonathan

Hi Roger,
The freeware Bernina Pass route uses a custom version of the tsection.dat file which is why it had to be installed as a free-standing mini-route.

The MidEast Plus route uses the standard tsection.dat file, build #38.  The reason a mini-route is recommended, controlled by Mini-Loader (which is similar to TrainStore) is due to its size.  MSTS would have great difficulty running it in an acceptable way! It's quite easy to check that out yourself by starting the Mini-Loader and clicking 'Unstore All', then 'Quit', which will close the Mini-Loader. After that find train.exe in the MEP root folder and run it 'as administrator'.  I think you'd be lucky to get it to run!!  Don't worry, no damage will be caused - the next time you start the Mini-Loader, everything will be reverted to 'stored'..

Cheers,
Ged

Thank you all for taking the time to respond to my query. Bernina was downloaded from rhb-trainsim.com and sits in its own installation. (Ged and Roger might remember that I installed the MSTS version at first by mistake, but they soon sorted me out). It definitely uses a track profile. I tried reinstalling Skipton V2 ab initio and it still converted dynamic track pieces to metre gauge.

I also tried deleting every track profile on my disk, which didn't help. It seems to be either accessing the metre profile from somewhere I don't know about, or OR or one of its reference files has been changed somehow. BTW I have a number of OR route installations, one for LNWR, one for LMS etc, and each has its own Global folder. I also removed Bernina.

I'll do some more detective work.

Regards to all

Tony

Just another update - I re-installed Bernina and the installer creates a separate MSTS installation automatically. I checked for profiles and there is NO PROFILE that comes with it. I have also just done a new installation of Thames Mersey and the metre profile applied right away.  

Regards

Tony

OK I've found the solution.
I was checking through every instance of a track profile on my computer and eventually arrived at a folder downloaded as part of the Bernina Route

Train Simulator Bernina_Route_UpdatesForORTS

This had a subdirectory to be copied to the Bernina installation, and it contained a track profile. There was also a text file to go with it, and it contained two key sentences:

It includes also a track profile that is needed to use superelevation when running Open Rails.

and

If you are using superelevation, you must insert 1000 as Gauge in the Experimental Options.

I checked the Experimental Options and sure enough, I had entered the gauge as 1000 (although I had superelevation turned off.
I changed the gauge to 1435, and now everything works fine, except I can't use super in Bernina.

Clearly when OR generates a profile when no profile is present, it interrogates the super gauge entry to obtain the gauge.

Simples, no? (Australians will understand that sentence )

Thanks again everyone, I hope this will increase everyone's understanding of OR.

Regards

Tony

Hi Tony,
I never use super-elevation so have not been concerned with track profiles and apologise for my erroneous comments

However, reading up on the subject, I can see what might be a problem!

As far as I can make out, a track profile file is contained in folder TRACKPROFILES within a route's folder.  This would seem to be OK because that means it only applies to that route, but I have my doubts.
Super-elevation is set in the Experimental tab of the OpenRails OPTIONS menu screen; this includes the track gauge.  As far as I can see, that gauge will apply to ALL routes run using that version of Open Rails.  This could explain why you're seeing some metre gauge track sections in standard gauge routes.  I think it would be more logical if the track gauge was included in the track profile file.

Am I right about this, or have I (quite possibly!) got something wrong?

Cheers,
Ged

Hi Ged

Yes, that sounds logical to me and agrees with what I have experienced. The track profile for a route works only for that route, but the super elevation (my railway man granddad always referred to it more properly I think as cant) applies to all routes AS DOES THE GAUGE entered with the super elevation. But as you say this is experimental, and hopefully this will already have been picked up by the OR team.

The track profile is enormously useful in one particular situation. Some track systems, notably UKFS, cannot use dynamic track because of the different track profiles. However, by using a track profile that matches the UKFS profile (I downloaded one from ET I think it was), dynamic track can be used seamlessly.

It seems that superelevation for different gauges is tricky! But, like you, I don't use superelevation anyway.

I wish you a happy and prosperous New Year.

Kind Regards

Tony