These resources focus on model railroading and model railroad operations. Because the OpSIG does not control these external sites, please email Resources@OPSIG.org if the links are no longer valid.

Operations e-mail list (Groups.io Group)

The Ry-Ops-Industrial chat group is a great place to talk with other modelers, many of whom belong to the OPSIG, among several other SIG's. The OPSIG is pleased to interact and participate with folks on this chat list, but it is not an official OPSIG function and nothing said on the list should be taken as official OPSIG Board policy.

View the group here: https://groups.io/g/Ry-ops-industrialSIG

General

• LDSig Primer of layout design considerations
• Designing model railroad operations (with bibliography) - Richard Schumaker
• Layout owner's guide to better operation
• Operator's guide to better operation
• Op Session Design - Freelance and Prototype - Byron Henderson
• A Primer for Narrow Gauge and Short-line Operations - Barry J. Cott
• Operations manual for Rick Fortin's SW&SF
• Steven Mallery's Operating rules
• Railroad Glossary
• Car Standards for Reliable Operation from the La Mesa Model RR Club, San Diego
  • Regulations For Rolling Stock (pdf)
  • Video discussion with Car Department Foreman John Cathcart (10 min summary)

Car Forwarding

• Car card sources and usage explanation
• Starter carcard procedures
• Directory of Standard Transportation Commodity Codes (STCC) 
• AAR Freight Car and Passenger Car car type codes
• The Dispatcher's Office Car Forwarding Index

Dispatching

• Timetable and train order operation, a primer
• Guide for crews running under TT&TO
• Overview of dispatcher functions
• Direct Traffic Control (DTC) primer
• Track Warrant Control (TWC) primer
• Track Warrant and Track Bulletin forms sized to match Old Line Graphics carcards
• Communications for Model Railroads - Clinic from Seattle National by Seth Neumann

Prototype Operations

• New River Sub - Heart of the C&O - Bernie Kempinski
• Stories about how the real railroad really runs - Al Krug's (BN) PicTales
• "The Catechism on the Uniform Code of Operating Rules" (dated 5/1/1950), scanned and converted to a series of six PDF files totalling about 30 MB. Said Catechism is actually a training device which explains the majority of rules and how to interpret and apply them. As The Uniform Code derived directly from The Standard Code, said Catechism is a great aid in learning both Codes.
  1. Part 1 - cover through page 35 (2.7 MB) PDF
  2. Part 2 - page 36 through page 71 (2.9 MB) PDF
  3. Part 3 - page 72 through page 87 (3.9 MB) PDF
  4. Part 4 - page 88 through page 101 (3.6 MB) PDF
  5. Part 5 - page 102 through page 111 (1.9 MB) PDF
  6. Part 6 - page 112 through page 144 (4.3 MB) PDF
• Genesee & Wyoming Railroad - extensive resource page
• Consolidated Code of Operating Rules - Revised 1959
• Definition of Terms from the 1962 Uniform Code of Operating Rules.
• The Condensed Code of Operating Rules by Stephen Karas provides a concise set of rules to operate model railroads.
• A list (Excel) of the interchange traffic between the NKP and AC&Y at AU Tower in Bluffton, Ohio, in 1944. Transcribed by Robert Lucas (RobertELucas@MSN.com). Thanks to him and Tony Koester for supplying this.

Yards

• Byron Henderson tells how to switch a yard efficiently