Clinchfield: Service "nova Turn - Part 6 - Kilgore And Open Fork Pick-ups"

This service, which features the SD-40 engine, involves assembling a long coal train over a considerable distance on steep slopes. The "tutorial" for this engine includes setting a control lever that determines whether the throttle operates in throttle or dynamic brake mode. Unfortunately, using the dynamic brake is not part of the tutorial, nor is its use described in this service. Lacking any help or advice -- which might be provided by a users' manual for this route [if such a manual existed!!!], I'm tempted to choose dynamic brake mode, but have no clue as to exactly how that would be operated, again, thanks to the absence of a users' manual and the lack of any instruction in the tutorial.

So, here I am again, asking those who know more than I do for advice and instruction that DTG should have provided in the first place.

 

To use dynamic brakes (this applies to the F7 as well):

• Reduce throttle to idle
• WAIT until the ammeter drops to zero (I don't know if the game models this, but IRL failure to do so causes Really Bad Things)
• Set the selector lever from 1 to Off to B
• Wait some more, until the system engages and you get amps.
• Now apply brakes using the throttle lever. The SD40 gives you variable control (even though the game model, wrongly, still uses the "chunk!" sound effect as if it were notched.)
• This takes a while. Don't wait until you're already at the speed limit!

Generally you should use as much dynamic braking as you have to control a descent, and only go to Big Air when you need to knock off a fair chunk of speed. Also, don't use the independent (loco) brake and DB at the same time, since they are actually trying to cancel each other out.

One more note: whether realistic or not, at least in game starting from a standstill in Brake mode seems to make them not work. Start in 1 and then change after you start moving.

 

To use the dynamic brakes:
Make sure your throttle is idle
Set the transition to B (Braking)
Now use the throttle to increase and decrease the dynamic brake

Note, that when you need to apply power again, you do the same process in reverse (throttle idle, set the transition back to series/parallel)

 

Thanks! I'll give that a try!

 

Great summary!