Murchison Stage 2

MURCHISON COUNTY

Installation Guide & Tutorial

The Murchison County Stage 2 layout

A complete SG/NG layout for TRAINZ TS2009 TRS2006 & TRS2004

INTRODUCTION

COMPUTER SPECIFICATIONS & TRAINZ SETTINGS

DOWNLOADS

INSTALLATION PROCEDURE

TRS2004 - removing Vintage Road Traffic

TRS2004 - changing Road Traffic Direction from LHD to RHD

MURCHISON LAYOUT SPECIFICATIONS & MAPS

Layout Specification

The Rail Routes

The NG Logging Route

The Sea & River Routes

INCLUDED SESSIONS

Session 1 "HELICOPTER EXPLORATION"

Session 2 "LOCO EXPLORATION"

Session 3 "SEA & FJORD CRUISE"

Session 4 "RIVER CRUISE"

Session 5 "RAIL FERRIES"

Session 6 "SG ORE - MINE TO MILL"

Session 7 "NG LOGGING & MINING"

Session 8 "WAGON & INDUSTRY BASE SETUP"

MURCHISON INTERACTIVE INDUSTRIES Standard Gauge

MURCHISON INTERACTIVE INDUSTRIES Narrow Gauge Logging

ANIMATED TURNOUTS

FAQ

Troubleshooting

INTRODUCTION

WELCOME TO THE MY WORLD - THE TRAINZ WORLD OF MURCHISON STAGE 2

I believe that MURCHISON 2 is a spectacular inter-active layout for TRAINZ TRS2004 and TRS2006. It is the result of approx 3500 hrs of layout building and has been a mammoth undertaking and far far in excess of the time I expected to spend.

I have tried to capture the realism of the real world but within the confines of a software program that has many limitations. However TRAINZ is also an excellent program that has huge potential provided that you think outside the square

I hope you have as much fun running the layout as I had in building it.

Happy TRAINZING

Sirgibby

Thank you for purchasing the NATURE SERIES content which are the key ingredients that help to achieve the high standard of realism exhibited in the MURCHISON layouts. By purchasing the PAYWARE content TRAINZONE is pleased to bring together for you the route, all of the freeware content and this tutorial.

I hope that you will have much railroading pleasure in operating MURCHISON COUNTY, the second in the release of the Murchison layouts, that incorporates and integrates both SG and NG railroading into one extensive layout.

MURCHISON was born as a NG logging line with a SG interface at the town of MURCHISON. MURCHISON stage 2 is now the addition of this SG mainline, but with many surprises including a NG mining interface as well as numerous other branch and NG terminals. Murchison County also integrates VULCAN's Rail Ferries for moving rolling stock between the ports, a scenic flight aboard Vulcans new Puma helicopter and a Scenic cruise on the driveable RANGATIRA steamship as well as a River cruise up the CLUTHA river on the SEGWUN river steamboat.

For those who are more keen on the NG logging scene the Stage 2 layout does not bring any significant changes to this area of the layout but does now provide the opportunity for you to move the logs from the forests, through the mainline interface, to a large mainline mill and the markets. The upgrade to the MURCHISON LOGGING portion of the layout will be completed for STAGE 3 (the final Murchison release due out in Jan 2007)

COMPUTER SPECIFICATIONS & TRAINZ SETTINGS

The MURCHISON COUNTY Stage 2 layout is available in two versions

MURCHISON STAGE 2 - High Detail

The Murchison stage 2 is crammed full of fine detail ... right down to the letterboxes.

MURCHISON STAGE 2 - Standard

	The standard version contains all the trackage, terrain modelling and interactive industries of the high-detail version but has had the trackside models thinned out to make its running smoother on more modest computer systems.
	*However don't think you're getting a short-changed version. The standard version is a very comprehensive and spectacular layout*

MURCHISON STAGE 2 - Standard Version - (minimum computer specifications)

The minimum computer specifications for running Murchison Stage 2 (Standard) layout is as follows

	P4 2.4 CPU or equivalent
	512 Mb ram
	Nvidia GForce 3 video card or equivalent

This is the minimum requirement for running Murchison Stage 2. While you may experience some stuttering, mainly in the built-up town areas, you should be able to obtain reasonable running by carefully adapting the performance improvement tips noted above

MURCHISON STAGE 2 - Standard Version - (recommended computer specifications)

The recommended computer specifications for running Murchison Stage 2 (Standard) layout is as follows

	P4 2.4 CPU or equivalent
	1.0 Gb ram
	Nvidia GForce 4 video card or equivalent

MURCHISON STAGE 2 - High Detail Version - (recommended computer specifications)

The High Detail layout is an intensive layout and will require the following specs to run smoothly

	P4 3.0 CPU (or equivalent)
	1.5 Gb ram
	Nvidia Geforce 6600+ or equivalent

IMPORTANT TIPS FOR IMPROVING PERFORMANCE

MURCHISON STAGE 2 is an extensive layout and requires a reasonably powerful computer to run smoothly. However there are a number of things that can be done on slower computers to still allow the layout to run reasonably smoothly

TRAINZ TRS2004 TIPS

Set the Texture Quality to MEDIUM. This is set on the CONFIGURE panel on the TRAINZ start-up menu. This will reduce the quality of the ground texturing but, because Murchison makes extensive use of Cliff splines, the lower detail has minimal impact on the quality of the ground textures and can increase your frame rates by about 20%

Configure.JPG (72060 bytes)

It is recommended that you set your sliders to default with Ground Detail Level up one click (to provide a better std of distance texturing at minimal cost in frame rate) & Bad Weather fog to 1st click.

Settings.jpg (77285 bytes)

	When in DRIVER turn off all the controls display when not required by using the F5 key. This has a dramatic effect on framerates and can increase them considereably
	If exploring in SURVEYOR maker sure that Spline Points is turned off - "Alt O"
	When in DRIVER make sure that you wait for the red CACHING bar to complete before driving off

CAMERA MODE

When exploring the layout on the loco use CAMERA MODE. The cameras have been carefully placed in such positions as to reduce the field of polys being calculated and increase the frame rates. This is mainly noticeable in the High-Poly built up areas such as the towns

ENDITALL

When you have your Windows Program running there are a lot of additional programs running in the background. Most of these programs are unnecessary for running TRAINZ and use up valuable CPU processing power. By closing these unnecessary programs down you can increase the speed at which your layout loads and also increase the FRAME RATE in TRAINZ.

An excellent program that closes down all these programs quickly while still allowing you control over what programs are closed down is a program called ENDITALL

ENDITALL

TRAINZ TRS2006 TIPS

It is recommended that you set your sliders to default

	When in DRIVER turn off all the controls display when not required by using the F5 key.
	If exploring in SURVEYOR maker sure that Spline Points is turned off - "Alt O"
	When in DRIVER make sure that you wait for the red CACHING bar to complete before driving off

Turning the CACHING BAR ON

Murchison Stage 2 is a large route and some of the scenes can be slow loading. By default in TRS2006 the cache bar is turned off which can make it hard to know that the scene has fully loaded when first going into TRAINZ .

You can turn the caching bar on by adding the following line to your TRAINZOPTIONS.TXT file

-showcachebar

CAMERA MODE

ENDITALL

An excellent program that closes down all these programs quickly while still allowing you control over what programs are closed down is a program called ENDITALL

ENDITALL

INSTALLATION PROCEDURE

DOWNLOADED ZIP FILE

The download files are supplied as packed ZIP files. (You will require WINZIP or another unpacking program to open the ZIP files)

Installing MURCHISON Stage 2 - TRS2004 auto-installer

Step 1

You will need to make sure that you have at least 1Gb of HDD space free to install the Murchison Layout and all its freeware and payware content

Step 2

Ensure that you have downloaded and unzipped the following auto-install files

NATURE SERIES 1

NATURE SERIES 2

MURCHISON freeware content

Step 3

Open each of the three auto-install files and follow the instructions as directed.

Step 4

Start TRAINZ and under DRIVER and SURVEYOR you will find the layouts and Sessions

Murchison Stg 2 - Hi-Detail

Murchison Stg 2 - Standard

NOTE
Murchison Stage 2 is a large layout and on slower machines will take a while to load on he first time. However this will be faster on subsequent loads

Note that TRS2004 has some issues with SURVEYOR. If you go into the Murchison Layout in SURVEYOR and exit without saving it will take a very long time to exit. To avoid this problem it is best to move a tree or some unimportant object an inch or so and then "exit with a SAVE"

ROAD TRAFFIC

Included with the Murchison Downloads are Vintage road TRAFFIC files.

These traffic files will become the default traffic files until removed from the downloads directory

If you do not wish to have Vintage Traffic on your system you will need to go into the / Program / Files / Auran / TRS2004 / World / Dispatcher / Downloads directory and delete the following files.

KUID:47439:29000

KUID:47439:29001

KUID:47439:29007

KUID:47439:29009

KUID:47439:29014

KUID:47439:29015

KUID:47439:29016

KUID:47439:29018

KUID:47439:29019

KUID:47439:29021

KUID:47439:29023

KUID:47439:29027

KUID:47439:29029

KUID:47439:29045

KUID:47439:29090

KUID:47439:29125

KUID:47439:29131

Alternatively, if all your Murchison 2 files are stored in one directory, you could rename the Download directory to Download-Murchison (or something similar) and then move the entire directory out of the Dispatcher directory when you're not wanting to run Murchison

CHANGING ROAD TRAFFIC DIRECTION FROM LHD to RHD

Step 1

Go into the downloads directory

/ program files / auran / trs2004 / world / dispatcher / downloads

and look for the two kuid files for the route

kuid:47439:101111
kuid:47439:102222

step 3

Go into the config.txt files and look for the line

region "Australia"

and change it to

region "USA"

Step 4

Save the file and go back into TRAINZ

Installing MURCHISON Stage 2 - TRS2006

(TS2009 is similar)

The files for Murchison Stage 2 have now been installed in the MURCHISON STAGE 2 sub-directory in the TRS2006 directory

c: /Program Files / Auran / TRS2006 / Murchison Stage 2

(note that if you chose an alternate path during the installation this will no longer be the case)

	Start TRAINZ and select MANAGE CONTENT
	When the CMP (CONTENT MANAGER PLUS) window opens select the FILE pull down Menu

Then select the Import CONTENT option

cmp1b.JPG (155400 bytes)

Select the MURCHISON STAGE 2 sub-directory where the content files are stored.

cmp2b.jpg (133738 bytes)

	Click on the OK button and this will load all of the content into CMP
	Select View in Main List

CMP2-800.jpg (115327 bytes)

Right click to display menu and pick Select All

CMP3-800b.jpg (159756 bytes)

Right click again and go to Edit option and pick Commit from the sub-menu to allow the content to be used in TRS2006

CMP4-800b.jpg (162692 bytes)

To complete the MURCHISON STAGE 2 layout you will ALSO need to install BOTH NATURE SERIES 1 and NATURE SERIES 2.

Follow the install instructions given with each of these sets.

	You can now launch TRAINZ TRS2006
	Once you are in TRAINZ you will find the 2 Murchison layouts and their accompanying sessions.

Murchison 2-2006 Hi-detail

Murchison 2-2006 Standard

MURCHISON LAYOUT SPECIFICATIONS & MAPS

MURCHISON LAYOUT SPECIFICATIONS

	Released for TRS2004 SP2 (or higher) and TRS2006
	419 boards
	3 interactive sea ports with ferry links
	6 significant branch line

	SG interactive industries
	NG logging interactive industries
	NG mining interactive industries
	Interactive passenger stations

	190 km (120 miles) SG track
	55 km (34 miles) 36" NG track

	175 km (110 miles) helicopter aerial scenic route
	25 km (16 miles) scenic sea route
	10 km (6 miles) ore ship sea route
	30 km (18 miles) sea rail ferry route
	40 km (25 miles) river ferry
	main line mainly double track

THE RAIL ROUTES

rail_map.jpg (375900 bytes)

This map is included as a white-background PDF document with the download.

THE NG LOGGING ROUTE

logging.jpg (341339 bytes)

This map is included as a white-background PDF document with the download.

THE SEA AND RIVER ROUTES

sea_map.jpg (372327 bytes)

This map is included as a white-background PDF document with the download.

INCLUDED SESSIONS

There are 8 sessions included with Murchison Stage 2. At this stage they are mainly simple exploration sessions but some are designed for you to experiment with the interactive industries.

They are listed below in the suggested order that you attempt each one with the first ones being solely exploration sessions to give you and overview and a "feel" for the Murchison Stage 2 layout.

You will also find some helpful tutorial hints below.

SESSION 1

"HELICOPTER EXPLORATION"

An aerial exploration session to give an overview of the spectacular Murchison panorama from the air.

	Fly the Super Puma AS322 Helicopter (created by Vulcan)
	Route Set up as continuous loop
	175km (110 miles)
	Suggested speed 40mph (time to do full loop approx 2-1/2 hrs)

You will find the helicopter at the Wynton Flats airfield ready to go. The track is set up for some hair-raising flying with numerous excursions under bridges and through ravines. The default track will take you on a full circuit of the layout and bring you back to the airfield

This isn't designed as a jet race so take your time and explore.

Try the various CAB view cameras. In particular one of the cameras will allow you to ride out front and let you look around to see the helicopter framed in the spectacular Murchison scenery.

heli_wynton.jpg (48834 bytes)

SESSION 2

"LOCO EXPLORATION"

A railway exploration session to give an overview of the spectacular Murchison layout from track level.

	A consist made up of a C-41 steam engine (by Prowler) and 4 interactive passenger coaches adds a nostalgic flavour to the tour
	Set up to leave Port Ross and then enter a continuous loop via the Main Line and various branchline connections.

	This is a low speed rugged hill country layout - suggested speed 30mph in country / 20mpg through yards
	Time to do full circuit approx 2-1/2

loco_explore.jpg (63740 bytes)

SESSION 3

"SEA & FJORD CRUISE"

Cruise through the Fjord and out into the open sea for a tour around Murchison Island

	Cruise aboard a driveable version of the New Zealand steamship RANGATIRA
	After leaving the port at Picton you will enter a continuous loop (useful later for continual background running when running trains)
	Cab mode for a spectacular deck-level cruise
	25km (16m) - Time for full loop approx 1 hrs.

rangatira_cruise3.jpg (63342 bytes)

TUTORIAL

If you leave the port at Picton you will enter onto a continuous loop. To come back to the wharf will require switching signals that are disguised as marker buoys.

Exiting the Loop

rang-tut1.jpg (44323 bytes)

Fig 1a

When leaving the Port the Sea Coast 1 buoy is as shown to allow continuous looping

rang-tut3.jpg (37450 bytes)

Fig 1b

To re-berth at the Picton wharf switch the point at the Sea Coast 1 buoy as shown

rang-tut2.jpg (49390 bytes)

Fig 1c

The red buoy marks the end of the track so don't go to fast or you'll run aground

SESSION 4

"RIVER CRUISE"

Take a scenic trip aboard the Riverboat Steamer SEGWUN up the slow Clutha river.

	Leave the river port at Colyton and pass through the Burkes Creek river Lock
	Enter a continuous loop after leaving the lock for continuous background cruising (useful for continual background running when running trains)
	40km (25m) - Time for full loop approx 2 hrs.

segwun_colyon.jpg (55480 bytes)

TUTORIAL

Navigating the Lock

After leaving the river port of Colyton you'll run around the offshore island and head for the river lock.

seg-tut3.jpg (55250 bytes)

Fig 2a

Approach the lock with care. The Riverboat takes a while to stop so slow down well before and approach slowly.

seg-tut2.jpg (55030 bytes)

Fig 2b

The Lock works like a turntable.Pick on the red arrow and watch the animation.

seg-tut5.jpg (43746 bytes)

Fig 2c

When the lock door is closed the lock will fill with water and the ship will lift to the upper river level.

seg-tut4.jpg (50290 bytes)

Fig 2d

Gates open and ime to head on up river

Exiting the Loop

seg-tut9.jpg (64693 bytes)

Fig 3a

After you have left the lock you'll come to Burkes Creek

The yellow track is the riverboat track which is invisible in Driver mode. Once you enter the loop you will remain there until changing the points which are 7m below water level.

seg-tut12.jpg (62891 bytes)

Fig 3b

If we remove the water we can see that the buoys mark the position of the points.

seg-tut10.jpg (35292 bytes)

Fig 3c

By going to Map mode we can see the levers and the direction they're pointing. the default direction is a shown to allow the boat to loop from Burkes Creek.

seg-tut11.jpg (35904 bytes)

Fig 3d

Switch the River Cruise 3 point and you will head back towards the lock and Colyton River Port

SESSION 5

"RAIL FERRIES"

A simple session setup for experimenting with loading & unload rail wagons onto the inter-port Rail Barges

	A River Ferry system created by Vulcan
	Two different ferry routes
	Its not as easy as it looks but, once mastered, its a lot of

ferry_pt-ross.jpg (51024 bytes)

TUTORIAL

The Turning Wye

ferry-tut9b.jpg (46586 bytes)

Fig 4a

The ferry tracks are set out as a simple wye with the points defaulted so that you can move backwards and forwards between ports without having to change the points

1: Came slowly into berth at A and load.

2: Reverse out so that you are clear of the point at B

3:Make sure you stop before you reach the red buoy marking the end of the track at C

4: Full steam ahead to the connecting port.

ferry-tut10.jpg (51731 bytes)

Fig 4b

Because the wagons are following the invisible track you will notice that the wagons will curve on the barge.

Not a lot we can do about it.

ferry-tut8A.jpg (44805 bytes)

Fig 4c

When you reverse away from the wharf look out for the signal buoy for the Wye

ferry-tut8B.jpg (37800 bytes)

Fig 4d

Make sure you're well clear of the buoy but don't go beyond the red buoy that marks the end of the track

Now full steam ahead. The points are defaulted to take you to the connecting port

Loading the Barge

ferry-tut0.jpg (52989 bytes)

Fig 5a

Select the loco you want to use and head towards the barge but slow down well in avance.

Remember the "/" key to set throttle to zero and the "A" key to stop suddenly

ferry-tut2.jpg (54356 bytes)

Fig 5b

Approach the end of the barge slowly and be ready to stop as soon as the barge moves indicating that your wagons have connected with it.. Pick the coupling tool and make sure that the red coupler indicates that the barge and wagon are coupled

ferry-tut3.jpg (54296 bytes)

Fig 5c

Use the coupling tool again and uncouple the loco from the wagons

ferry-tut3B.jpg (53425 bytes)

Fig 5d

Check that the driver icon shows that the loco is still selected and then back the loco onto the wharf

ferry-tut4.jpg (46081 bytes)

Fig 5e

Select the Tugpusher and reverse away from the wharf

SESSION 6

"SG ORE - MINE TO MILL"

In this session the Ore Hoppers and Ore Barges are set up to allow you to test your skill on Vulcans Iron Ore transfer system

	Collect the ore from the Rapanui mine and deliver to the Ore docks at Fletchers Bay.
	Load the interactive ore barges and ship the ore to Port Ross
	Unload at the Port Ross interactive unloading facility.
	Load more hoppers and deliver to the Pacific Steel Mill

iron_ore_dock.jpg (63436 bytes)

TUTORIAL

From the Mine to the Mill

ore-tut1.jpg (58019 bytes)

Fig 6a

As the hoppers pass under the interactive chutes at Rapanui they are filled with the red iron ore.

ore-tut2.jpg (65632 bytes)

Fig 6b

Pull the hoppers to the ore dock at Fletchers Bay and watch them unload as you move them slowly over the special unloading bays on the top of the dock

ore-tut3.jpg (61960 bytes)

Fig 6c

Pull the barges in under the ore docks so that they are lined up with the flashing lights. The barges will be filled with the iron ore when you stop.

Note how the barges settle into the water under the weight of the ore ... good work Ian.

Now reverse out around the defaulted Wye points and then head for the unloading dock at Port Ross

ore-tut4.jpg (40943 bytes)

Fig 6d

At Port Ross pull the barges slowly over the underwater conveyors and watch them unload

ore-tut5.jpg (41058 bytes)

Fig 6e

Don't forget to keep an eye out for the red buoy marking the end of the track.

ore-tut6.jpg (44325 bytes)

Fig 6f

Now slowly pull the waiting hoppers under the loading dock to fill them with the iron ore.

Once filled head off for the Pacific Iron Mill just across the river.

ore-tut7.jpg (50220 bytes)

Fig 6g

At the Pacific Steel Mill the points are defaulted to take you into the Ore unloading are where the hoppers will discharge their cargo.

SESSION 7

"NG LOGGING & MINING"

A simple session to explore the heartland of Murchison Logging & Mining with a little activity

	Pull the waiting empty load of logging bogies to the Pardoe Bush Mill & exchange for the loaded consist on arrival
	Bring back the loaded consist and unload at the Murchison Dry Sort yard

Mine1-500.JPG (78961 bytes)

You'll also find a Climax and hoppers setup at the Nasby mines for experimenting with the interactive mines

	Collect the ore from the top mine
	Deliver to the drive-through interactive ore house at Nasby
	Collect ore from the other mines
	Be careful and read the signs as one of them is a coal mine for supplying coal to the mine coal sheds.

SESSION 8

"WAGON & INDUSTRY BASE SETUP"

Murchison Stage 2 is crammed full of interactive industries.

This interactive session serves as a base example of the types of interactive wagons available, installed on your computer, that will function with the interactive industries included with the Murchison layout.

There are three consists placed on the layout for you to experiment with

A passenger consist with interactive passenger coaches. Head out from the Rapanui Station and drop-off and pick-up passengers from the inter-active stations as you go.

rapanui-passenger.jpg (66847 bytes) pt_ross_loco.jpg (54987 bytes)

	A loco is placed in the Yard at Port Ross. Experiment with the wagons and their associated inter-active industries at the various locations as you move around the layout.
	An ore barge is waiting at the Fletchers Bar ore dock. Load it up and head back to the mill at Port Ross.
	You can also use this base layout to quickly place wagons and locos and then save as your own session. (If you use this as a base for your own sessions make sure to assign driver to your added locos drivers in the "Edit Session" pul-down menu in Surveyor)

MURCHISON INTERACTIVE INDUSTRIES

Standard Gauge

(All the maps shown on this page are included with your download)

ind_map.jpg (528283 bytes)

This map is included as a white-background PDF document with the download.

industies_legend.jpg (199621 bytes)

This document is included as a white-background PDF document with the download.

industies1.jpg (304946 bytes)

This document is included as a white-background PDF document with the download.

industies2.jpg (304728 bytes)

This document is included as a white-background PDF document with the download.

MURCHISON INTERACTIVE INDUSTRIES

Narrow Gauge Logging

(All the maps shown on this page are included with your download)

logging.jpg (341339 bytes)

This document is included as a white-background PDF document with the download.

A More Comprehensive list of the NG Logging industries will be added at a later stage

Using M-LOG (interactive logging) facilities

The following is a brief description only

	If you have difficulties or are still unsure then please first try searching the TRAINZ forum by entering "m-log" into the search field
	If you are unable to find an answer there then please try posting a specific questions on the forum
	If you are still having difficulty then please contact TRAINZONE

M-LOG INTERACTIVE INDUSTRY OPERATION

M-Log interactive logging operation was developed by Rich Blake (AKA Slugsmasher)

While Murchison Logging supports the M-Log interactive operation it is up to individual users to experiment and read TRAINZ documentation to fully understand their use and operation.

M-LOG ROLLING STOCK

Included in the TRS2004 and TRS2006 downloads above are a number of M-Log wagons created by Rich Blake.

You can place these wagons on the track at the appropriate desired positions in TRAINZ SURVEYOR module.

Then, by right-clicking with the mouse on the individual wagons, you will be presented with choices of load types and whether the wagon is starting out loaded (to be unloaded at the Sorting Yard, Log dump or wharf) or starting out unloaded (ready to be loaded at the loading ramps, sorting yard or lumber yard)

SETTING UP THE M-LOG INDUSTRIES

If you are installing Murchison M-Logging TRS2004 then included in the Asset 8 & 9 downloads above are the various M-log industries

If you are installing Murchison M-Logging TRS2006 then the various M-log industries are already installed

- A pond Log Dump - (model by Rich Blake - AKA SLUGSMASHER)

- Log skids (capable of being set up with multiple logs BUT only one log length at a time) - (model by Rich Blake - AKA SLUGSMASHER)

- A dry sorting yard for unloading multiple log sizes and then reloading for transport to the mill or at the Main-line junction (model by Rich Blake - AKA SLUGSMASHER)

- An animated steam driven "Decker log loader" for loading multiple log sizes - (model by Pierre Parissucy - AKA pierreparis)

By right-clicking with the mouse on these various models in the TRAINZ SURVEYOR module you can set the sizes and quantities of logs to load/unload

SETTING UP THE BASIC INDUSTRIES

Murchison also uses other basic interactive industries for loading and unloading lumber and M-logs

Unloading the M-logs at the Pardoe Mill

At the Pardoe Mill you will find a section of track at the Mill unloading skid (the length of industry track is defined with a red Arrow at each end in the SURVEYOR module).

By right clicking on this track section you can adjust what size and quantity the mill will receive.

(in the "Murchison Base Setup" profile this has already been defined for you)

Cut Lumber

Also at both mills, on the Lumber-out side, you will find lengths of track (defined with a red Arrow at each end). These track areas define the cut lumber loading quantities

Also at the MURCHISON wharf, just before the wharf starts, you will find lengths of track (defined with a red Arrow at each end). These track areas define the cut lumber unloading quantities

By right clicking on this track section you can adjust what items/quantities will load/unload

(in the "Murchison Base Setup" profile this has already been defined for you)

USING THE M-LOG INDUSTRIES in the TRAINZ DRIVER MODULE

By stopping your loaded/unloaded wagons at the various industry positions TRAINZ will automatically load/unload the content that it is set up to load/unload

If a wagon does not unload or unload as expected then the most likely cause is that you have not set that wagon or industry up to handle the specific log/lumber type desired (these MUST be set up in the Surveyor module)

USING THE LOG DECKER (Both SG & NG)

The M-Log LOG DECKER model was created by Pierre Parissucy who has written his own full operating instructions. Please read the following link

Log decker

Animated Turnouts

Murchison Stage 2 makes extensive use of animated turnouts using a concept of operation that was developed by TRAINZONE and uses Mike10's animated turnouts which no longer functioned under TRS2004.

The concept is simply to use turnouts as stationary assets and overlay invisible track. The animated points movement uses a modification of the standard lever technique where the lever is seen as the moving points.

Because static objects reflect light differently to splines it proved impossible to match the points light reflection accurately to the a-joining track and, while at some viewing angles it is a perfect match, at others it can look noticeably different.

I have found no way around this light reflection problem and, while I could have not used them at all, I decided that they where a better choice than simply joining the track in the default TRAINZ manner.

If you wish to use these animated turnouts on your layout you will find a full set of downloads and a tutorial on the TRAINZONE Animated Turnouts page

FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

How can I increase my frame rate to make Murchison smoother

Firstly if you are using the "High Detail" version try out the "standard" route. While the standard route lacks a lot of the detail it is still a very enjoyable route and the amount of detail that you'll miss seeing is quite minimal compared with the speed increase that you will receive

Next make sure that you have "Shadows" turned off. These are nice but not necessary and can be a frame-rate knocker

Check that your sliders are not set too high. My recommendation for slower machines is to use the Preference default slider settings with ALL sliders set to default

(TRS2004 only) Another major help for increasing the frame rates is to set the TEXTURE QUALITY under Advanced Options to MEDIUM. This will reduce the quality of the ground texturing but, because Murchison makes extensive use of Cliff splines, the lower detail has minimal impact on the quality of the ground textures and may well be worth it to increase your frame rates by about 20%

When in DRIVER turn off all the controls display when not required by using the F5 key. This can have a dramatic effect on framerates and can increase them considereably (particularly in TRS2004)

Will the MURCHISON LOGGING portion be updated?

It is our plans that the third and final stage of MURCHISON will include updating the logging section of MURCHISON. This will include updating the terrain with the NATURE SERIES 2 cliff splines. It will also include updating the industries and models as well as fully treeing the layout for a more realistic logging feel.

Is MURCHISON a prototypical route?

While the TERRAIN is DEM based on actual terrain around the MURCHISON township in New Zealand it has been significantly modified to allow the creation of a SG & NG layout that gives the general feel of the New Zealand countryside and rail scene.

The MURCHISON logging sea-shore line is loosely based on the PIHA logging tramway in Northland, New Zealand

Should I be getting a "missing Content" error when I enter SURVEYOR? Does it really matter?

Murchison has been carefully and thoroughly checked to give an error free installation provided that you follow the installation procedure carefully. Don't settle for any "missing content" errors.

It looks like its all there. Does it matter if I simply select "delete missing content" and get on with running the layout?

If you are getting a "missing content" error it indicated that you have .. missing content. If you don't rectify the problem first you may find later that certain industries are either missing or wont work correctly. It is worth taking the time to find the problem first.

(TRS2004 only) How do I know if I have missed downloading some content?

The best program for checking on missing content is TRAINZ OBJECTZ. This will highlight what content and dependencies are missing.

For a completed list of all the unzipped content which you have downloaded check the CONTENT lists included with the download

(TRS2004 only) How do I change the Vintage Traffic back to the default traffic

Go to the INSTALLATION PROCEDURE and check the instructions given there

TROUBLESHOOTING

(TRS2004 only) When I quit Surveyor it takes an extremely long time to exit. Why is this and how can I improve it.?

TRS2004 SURVEYOR has an issue with exiting a map that has had no changes made to it. This can be extremely slow. One way of speeding this up significantly is to make a minor change (like moving a tree or a car an inch) and then exiting Surveyor with a SAVE.

You will still have the layouts .cdp file so you can restore the original if you ever want to.

The MURCHISON layout seems to have lots of stutters. What is causing them and how can I fix them.?

Layout stutters in DRIVER are generally caused when the computer pauses to load content for the map from your hard drive. Sometimes this can be caused by a slow HDD and other times because the content uses large graphics files that take a noticeable while to load.

The best way to fix this problem is

- install more memory to give better file caching

- increase the speed of your HDD so that the information is accessed faster.

Also check the TRAINZ SETTINGS section for recommended settings for slower machines

Should I be getting a "missing Content" error when I enter SURVEYOR. Does it really matter?

Murchison has been carefully and thoroughly checked to give an error free installation provided that you follow the installation procedure carefully. Don't settle for any "missing content" errors.

It looks like its all there. Does it matter if I simply select "delete missing content" and get on with running the layout.

If you are getting a "missing content" error it indicated that you have .. missing content. If you don't rectify the problem first you may find later that certain industries are either missing or wont work correctly. It is worth taking the time to find the problem first.

Some of the Industries appear to not be set up.

In the included sessions the industries have been setup. However, in some cases, these settings are only saved with the session. If you start a new session by using the basic map you will need to setup the industries again.

The best approach is to use the existing "Wagon & Ind base setup" session as a base for your new sessions.

The number of wagons on the layout can have a dramatic affect on the frame rate in general so you may want to go around the layout and delete the wagons that you are not going to be using

When I go into Driver on my saved sessions the new locos that I added aren't showing up with their drivers?

Go back into the session and on the Pull-down menu select Edit Session and Driver Setup and add a driver for your new locos.

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