Atomic Systems

when the driver moves the reverser you can see the rod move as well.
(for walschaerts valve gear)
how come this doesn't work for trainsim

almost as strange as non working turntables

Sadly there is no mechanism within the game to enable this. The only moving parts on steam locos must be interpreted by the game as 'wheels', so every thing moving you see on a steamer is a 'wheel' as far as the sim's game engine is concerned. Thus they move at a constant rate while the loco is in motion. A reverser does not animate in this way so can't be shown as moving on the loco.

People will be asking for opening doors and rotating destination blinds soon.

People will be asking for opening doors and rotating destination blinds soon.

Opening doors do exist..IIRC on some Underground trains for one..

tinsley wrote:

People will be asking for opening doors and rotating destination blinds soon.

Opening doors do exist..IIRC on some Underground trains for one..

I think Martin was thinking of slam type doors...Strangely enough someone was asking about rotating destination blinds the other week...and it was muted that they could be animated by the wipers...until the obvious became clear.
There was quite a discussion on steam engine positioning of valve gear on TS com the other week...generally speaking I think most modellers set it at about 30%...(if that makes sense...I'm not a steam man).

So.... then, how do they animate windscreen wipers and pantographs?

Hoosvat

Wipes and pantographs have to be named appropriately, so MSTS can animate them. There is documentation for parts that can move, but not for doors any other moving parts - so its safe to assume these aren't possible. Its not just about animation, there has to be code there to link the animation to controls/keys.

Doors are only possible for electric stock, as the P key won't work on anything else.

timbooth wrote:Doors are only possible for electric stock, as the P key won't work on anything else.

Tim, I think you meant to say "pantographs are only possible on electric stock... "

Wipers go back and forth continuously while they are 'activated' (turned on) - no use for a kettle's reversing lever. Doors use the electric eng file's pantograph keymapping, and with them lowered the power is off and your train won't move, so once again, of little use to a person trying to animate a steamer's reverser

Basically you need to wait for a 2nd gen sim to get an animated reversing lever. As an amusing aside we had one of the anti-'puter 'real' modellers come up to our stand at Warley and when he was told that the simulator does not allow the reversing lever to be animated he went off making scoffing noises... so presumably all his 00 gauge engines have them properly animated then.

there was going to be opening doors on MSTS 2 until microsoft cancelled it for some reason