I explained in the last article how our train crews consist of one, two, or three operators playing the roles of conductor, engineer, and switchman. There are other jobs for our operators to perform when we have more operators available than we need to crew all of our mainline trains. I will describe these jobs in the order of their importance for our operations.
The dispatcher assigns crews to trains and other operators to any other jobs that need to be filled. As crews deliver cars to their destinations, they bring the marked washers or loads to the dispatcher. The dispatcher uses a form to keep track of job assignments and to mark credit to train crews for each car delivered. For more information on what we do on the Lake Town & Shire with this record of car delivery credit, see the article on the company store. You can download the dispatcher form we use here. Since our operating sessions are divided into two one-hour sessions with a snack break in the middle, our dispatcher form has two sections so jobs can be reassigned after the break. After marking credit for cars delivered, the dispatcher hands the shipping washers and delivered loads off to the shipper for reuse. Often, one person does the jobs of both the dispatcher and the shipper.
It is the task of the shipper to place the marked washers and loads on empty cars. The job of the shipper is absolutely essential. Without a shipper, an operating session would end as soon as all the cars on the layout were moved to the destination for which they were marked at the beginning of the session. If all our young operators are assigned to train crews, then one of the adults does the shipping. How the shipper decides which washer or load to put on an unmarked car is described in the article on car movement.
When we have enough operators available, we assign a crew to the yard switcher in the main yard at Rivendell. This crew moves cars from sidings on either side of the double mainline to the other side as needed. For example, a car marked for delivery to Hobbiton, which is west of Rivendell, might be on the siding next to the mainline used by east-bound trains. The switching crew would move this car to one of the sidings next to the mainline used by west-bound trains. When no crew is available for the Rivendel yard switcher, an east-bound train would have to pick up this car and carry it all the way to the return loop at the east end of the layout and back before delivering it to Hobbiton.
The stamp mill for the Mines of Moria is just outside the Rivendell yard. When the Rivendell yard switcher is operating, it also has responsibility for switching the siding for the stamp mill, bringing loads of refined ore to the interchange at Rivendell and taking the empty ore cars back to the stamp mill.
A separate circle of track serves as a branch line between Dale and Lonely Mountain. A freight or mixed train runs this circuit. There are no sidings and the only stops are at small stations in Dale and Lonely Mountain. We assign new operators to this branch line to learn how to run a locomotive using a remote throttle.
The stamp mill for the Mines of Moria is just outside the Rivendell yard. When the Rivendell yard switcher is operating, it also has responsibility for switching the siding for the stamp mill, bringing loads of refined ore to the interchange at Rivendell and taking the empty ore cars back to the stamp mill.
A separate straight length of track with two sidings serves as a branch line for the Mines of Moria. This branch line carries supplies from the stamp mill located on the mainline to one of the mines. It also carries unrefined ore from the mine back to the stamp mill. After a new operator has learned to operate a locomotive on the Lonely Mountain branch line, we assign him or her together with an experienced operator to the Mines of Moria branch line. Here the new operator can learn the basics of switching before being assigned to a mainline train crew.