Does anyone have any advice for driving the Db br class 143 I want to get better at driving it and have a great day everyone.
Hello, I would also like help driving the 143 since there is no manual. There are many things I’m unsure of. Do we use the AFB to slow down, if not how do you slow down- do you shut off the AFB and then use the brakes. What are the traction settings next to the main AFB lever, what do they do etc Any help would be appreciated since the tutorial doesn’t cover how to drive this locomotive properly. Many thanks
Don‘t use the speed selector for slowing down. Put the speed selector to off and then use the driver‘s brake valve to manually apply the brakes. Next to the speed selector, there‘s the traction lever and auxiliary control. The traction level dictates how much force the loco applies while accelerating. You should put it in a position resulting in ca 40-50kN of force per traction motor being applied (obviously less in wet weather conditions). The auxiliary control allows you to manually dial up taps bypassing the speed selector. More on this in thread I‘m about to link. Have a look at this thread. I put together pretty much all I have on driving a 143 realistically there - inclusing some of my experiences.
anyway, since I havent seen this answered elsewhere - I was checking BR112 and BR143 the other day and found out that in reality, BR143 did have vmax 120 km/h and BR112 vmax was 140 km/h... and in game they go 160 km/h no problem... is there some reasoning behind it or is it just DTG goofiness? edit: doing some testing, and it looks like BR143 is showing 120 km/h limit on 150 km/h track limit, so I guess in this case I was wrong... will do some testing with BR112 once I am done with this run edit no.2: ok it is in fact BR112 that IRL is supposed to have vmax 140 and has 160 in-game
It can be a bit confusing as there have been two different 112:s. But I believe that both have Vmax at 160 kph.
vmax of the 112 is 160km/h. In regards to the 143, wouldn’t be surprised if she was able to go faster than 120 in theory. DR simply had no use for a loco faster than 120.
ok I checked both English ( https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/DR_Class_243#DR_Class_212_to_DBAG_Class_112 ) and German wikipedia ( https://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/DR-Baureihe_243#DR-Baureihe_212_bis_DB-Baureihe_112 ), and looks like the ones who were "porting" stuff over from the German wiki "forgot" some stuff there - English wiki e.g. omits that BR 112 and 114 were kind of variants of each other, kinda modernized 143s, and only lists vmax 140 km/h, while German wiki shows all that and lists vmax as 160 km/h
The AFB-style system is not fully realistically depicted in TSW - it is in virtualRailroads' TSC versions. (And the original cab is also available in TSC) Normally, when stopping, you push the "Freier Auslauf" switch which will then notch down. The brake is blended, so electric brakes are applied depending on your speed when using the train brake. After coming to a stop, only then do you touch the speed lever and set it to off. In TSW though, you must turn it off and then brake. So in that respect the vR TSC versions are better (those scripted by Maik Goltz) You can use the AFB for speed changes, but not for braking when you need to. This is wrongly explained by Matt in a tutorial which tells you to put the AFB down to "On" to help braking - that's not how it works in real life and is a violation of guidelines (The AFB is NOT a brake). You leave it where it is, use Freier Auslauf and the train brake. Also, you do not start with the power level in 100% position, but with low traction force setting. Although TSW tells you to, you will get wheelslip correctly on some 143 models if you start with 100% force. This is a full educational film from the Deutsche Reichsbahn on how the BR 243 (its original name) is operated. The programs "Nur Fahren / Nur Bremsen" are simulated, as well as "Bedingter Auslauf". This program was used for commuter services with short stopping intervals. The loco automatically cuts traction and notches down when the selected speed is reached and will then coast (until the speed lever is moved again) "Nur Bremsen" (brake only" is used when downhill sections are expected. This avoids constant braking and throttling, as coasting is enough to accelerate again on downward grades. "Nur Fahren" will not use brakes to regulate the speed, used uphill. Btw, the camera position of the 112/143 is too high in TSW, I've fixed this and it will be included in the next update of my mod.
While this is absolutely correct, mind that if you are in a hurry (oops! A 1000-Hz surprise!), applying the train brake will automatically shut off power to the traction motors. This isn't healthy for the train and the mechanics will give you dirty looks (note that it takes time to run back down through the taps), but it does work. As Spikee1975 says, in reality there's a power-cut switch.
The 143 doesn't have one in the conventional sense like a 110 or 155. There is, as Spikee says, an auxiliary control so that you can tweak it manually, and then there's a "kill switch"; but there's no big wheel to turn.
I really don't get it why they didn't implement the vital "Freier Auslauf" rundown, but all the other features that likely most players will never use. And yes, the Auxiliary control is an "Up/Down" tap changer. Set the Speed Selector to "On" to use it. Very useful for starting with heavy freight in bad conditions.
Well, those videos were interesting! Given that my German is just about at the ordering-in-a-restaurant level and not remorely technical, English auto-translation of auto-generated German subtitles makes interpretation.... an adventure.
I had the term "tap changer" always associated to a noisy and slow mechanical transformer switch device. These would indeed have to take their time to "run back down through the taps". Afaik the 143 is equipped with a thyristor driven tap changer. Thus my question. But of course, solid-state tap changers are also "tap changers".
So you have to move the speed selector to zero before stopping in TSW, which has the disadvantage of shortly engaging the electric brakes (unless you use the mouse to slam the lever to off - which you need to do for correct LZB exit sequence as you only have three seconds to reset the AFB). Also note that there is much more use of the traction force lever in real life (which in fact IS your throttle control), before braking it's reset to zero (doesn't affect the e-brakes in TSW though). This is also valid for other locos, I see many players on Youtube using only the AFB for lowering speeds. They forget that you have passengers in the back who want a smooth ride. So in real life, when going from 120 to 100 for example, you throttle off, coast or only use electric brakes, when at target speed, set the AFB to 100 and slowly reapply throttle. You never use the AFB for braking. This is a superb YT channel, you can see how exiting LZB works in real life at around 6 minutes... quick AFB to zero during the three-second-phase and reselecting target speed to avoid braking.
So, Bielefeld DOES exist, after all. Thanks for linking this video. It really clarifies a thing or two. And it reminds me of circumstances I've always found most immersion breaking in TSW: The fact that a controller (or a keyboard) just can't translate lever strokes correctly. There's no "slamming the lever" or "manipulate it gentler". The button input either transitions the lever with determined speed or it doesn't move at all. There's no "hitting the button harder or gentler". It's also most uncomfortable with the lap brakes like the ones from the BR 363 or the Class 101. The real driver would make a fast lever transition from '100% Release' to 'Lap' and from that position gently manipulate the lever to apply or relief the required brake pressure. Of course, this not TSW's fault. I think only a raildriver can address this shortcoming. Does it work with PS5 BTW? PS: Mensch, was ein Dreckswetter, brrrrrrr....!
All it would need was control combinations or extra keys. Shift+A for full throttle, and a zeroing key like in Zusi, which uses numpad 8 for throttling up, 5 for neutral, 2 for down. Same for AFB (7, 4, 1) and dynamic / e-brakes (9, 6, 3).
Btw, Tharandter Rampe is the perfect route to hone your 143 driving skills. It needs adjustment of force (120% for the steep grades), and you can also try using the Throttle / Brake Only programs there.
well, much could be solved if DTG properly implemented joysticks/levers usually sold as accessory for flight sims... some of those have quite a lot of buttons and nice levers that could be mapped/calibrated and used in train sims as well (RailDriver is kinda hard to get in EU, besides being crazily expensive by itself) edit: I would be quite content if I could lets say use like two levers from such stuff - for brakes and throttle... and for everything else keys are just fine
Here a few documents which should help you to drive the--> 112, 114, 143, 155, 101, 146, 185 (files will get deleted in 1 week) https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1yWctQTMnlxjLcH4migDH4RTWMkKuGY3H
