Autoracks, and similar beasties (New bugfix pack June 4th 2017)

[Gumboots]

Ok, they work. Have tested them all. They trundle down tracks, go around corners, leap tall buildings in a single bound, and don't glow in the dark.

Five eras, starting in 1900 as usual. Will work with any existing scenario IF, this is the important bit, you start a new game.

They won't work with saved games due to the file edits involved. Don't try to use them with saved games. You won't like it.

Getting them working is the usual drill. Back up any default files you think need backing up, then just copy the files from the zip to the relevant folders.

Note that these are not absolutely perfect in every detail, since they are a test pack for my new cargo scale. However they are good enough, IMO, for me to use them happily for about a year before I'd get annoyed enough to improve them.

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Edit: Beta 1 zip removed. Bugfix pack added - xAutorack_Revamp_RC1.zip

This bugfix gets rid of the use of the # special character in file naming, because my testing showed that use of special characters can cause RT3 to do really weird things. Weird things like inventing extra bogies that aren't coded anywhere. Yes, really.

All files have been renamed so they use a lowercase x instead of #. This is just to keep them conveniently grouped in the game folders. No existing cargo cars or locomotives have file names starting with x, so I'm using it for my custom packs.

Even if you haven't noticed any bugs with the old pack, I still recommend that you change it for the new one just in case.

NOTE: It is important that you remove all the old #Automobiles files from your EngineTypes folder when installing this bugfix pack. Just copying in the new xAutomobiles files is not sufficient. The old files need to be removed.

[Wolverine@MSU]

Very COOL!!! Keep up the good work

[Gumboots]

Glad you like them. I'm rather happy with them myself.

If anyone is interested in the prototypes for these models, the A era is a standard 40' wood boxcar of the period.

The B era is modelled on a 50' pre-WW2 auto boxcar. You can find a diagram of it on this page: http://research.nprha.org/NP%20Box%20Ca ... Items.aspx (scroll down to Box Cars Auto 6000.jpg and click on that).

The C era model is the one described on this page: CN's Double Deck Auto Transporters. A diagram is available here: Rolling Stock 730000-730024.

A good article on the history of shipping automobiles by rail can be found here: The Evolution of Automobile Traffic.

[Cash on Wheels]

You could add a F era with the automax after the year 20##. Those would look very nice & long!

[Gumboots]

Not going to. IIRC those things are over 140 feet long. That's just too much. The 40 foot articulated well cars are around 110 feet to scale, and they're really pushing it for acceptable behaviour in the game. If you want that problem increased by 30%, feel free to do it yourself.

[Gumboots]

Bumping this. I've got rid of the old zip and uploaded a bugfix zip. It's available in the first post of the thread. Go get it. You know you want to.

[RulerofRails]

Shh ... I think there's a slight bug in the pk4 for the latest version. I get an error of #AutomobilesA_Profile.imb not found. Maybe this wasn't renamed correctly before the repack?

Otherwise, all looks nice as always and seems to be working (using the old pk4 for at least the profiles, didn't unpack it myself).

[Gumboots]

What do you mean "using the old pk4 for at least the profiles"? Do you mean you are trying to run the new .car and .cty files with the old PK4? Or the other way around? Because that won't work.

The only place #AutomobilesA_Profile.imb was called was in the old #AutomobilesA.car file. That file shouldn't exist any more. Even if it does exist, it shouldn't be active because it shouldn't be called by the Automobiles.cty file any more. If it is being called, and it certainly seems to be, then I suggest checking that:

1/ you replaced the old .cty with the new version, and
2/ that you replaced the old .car files with the new ones.

The zip I uploaded contains the exact same files that I tested live on my own installation. I just unpacked the lot and checked them again, and nowhere do any of them call #AutomobilesA_Profile.imb.

[RulerofRails]

Apologies for wasting your time. I copied in all the new files, but forgot to remove the old ones (car, cgo, cct) from the EngineTypes folder. Don't really have an excuse, this is in my test install with many #... names still in use. For example #Atestcar, #Boxcar_Heavy, #Passengers, #Mail, #Troops. Didn't have a sort by name. I caught the Caboose ones, but not these. The game obviously doesn't like having them there (even though they aren't called by the cty) without having icons. I couldn't load any maps. All working now. Carry on.

[Gumboots]

That's worth knowing. I had assumed they would have been ignored if the .cty didn't call them, but OTOH some files in EngineTypes (like caboose and dining car files) don't have a .cty yet are still obviously active, so there ya go. I'll add a note to the OP about removing old files.