Crashes

Runaways

This is what happens when cars get loose on a 7.2% grade; fortunately there were no hazmats on board in either wreck. This has happened several times, caused by:

1. Coupler height mismatch—There is no standard and different manufacturers use different heights. When a high coupler lifts over a low coupler, it's a runaway. I have since adjusted heights to my own standard to prevent recurrences.
2. Broken coupler assembly—The screws that hold the coupler draft gear to the car fell out and the coupler fell off. Another time, the pin that holds the coupler together fell out.
3. Coupler knuckles pop open—The knuckles on Bachmann couplers tend to open when under tension. I glued them all closed to cure this.
4. Derailment—In one derailment at the top of a hill, the runaway cars were going too fast to round the short curve over the pond and they went in (right photo above). My daughter-in-law rescued the caboose before I could grab the camera, but I caught the Gramps tank floating nicely upright under the waterfall.

A Dive Into the Pond

The mallet derailed on the trestle over the pond when it hit an obstacle on the track. It dove in at the same place the gramps tank is floating in the picture above, and it took the electronics/battery car in with it. Urgent rescue operations precluded the taking of photos. The mallet suffered a broken dummy front coupler which has since been replaced with a functional coupler. Afterwards, the loco would not run in reverse and the receiver had to be replaced. The battery pack failed several months later from internal corrosion.

Derailments on a Self-Aligning Switch

Two locomotives have derailed on the same loop switch and fallen off the platform. In one wreck the coal bunker and stack came off the Shay but it was otherwise undamaged. In the other, the Mallet was undamaged. All cars survived without damage. These trains are pretty rugged, but the pachysandra does help cushion the fall.

The Shay derailment (photo below left) was caused by dirt in the switch points which prevented them from fully throwing, leaving the points slightly spaced away from the rails. Now I clean the points before I run trains—duh.

The Mallet derailment (photo below right) was caused by a broken switch throw-bar which left the two points rails unconnected to each other and spaced away from the rails. The plastic throwbar was screwed to thin fragile flanges on the points rails and one flange broke. I have also had the tiny screws come un-screwed in these Aristocraft switches. I have since replaced the screws and plastic throwbar with a brass wire.