First gear box is gears 1 2 3, gearbox 2 is low high and overdrive. For lighter loads you can set gearbox 2 to overdrive and just shift through 1 2 3 on gearbox 1, makes it super easy.
I suspect I'll be filing this one into the "never going to use that" category... Not so much because I think the gears are hard but because I'm 100% confident I'd get distracted for just long enough to blow the thing up every time I got to a slight hill.
In real life and in VR this train would be much easier to operate. My first job trucking I used to drive a 1964 Mac truck with a twin shifter that had a reversed overdrive kinda like this train does. Took a few weeks of practice but once I got the hang of it, I was good to go!
@@barrakuda17009 I can't wait to dust off my Index and jam gears for a few hours! Unfortunately I work 70 hours a week actually jamming gears so this'll be the first time I've played a game in forever. IRL American Truck Simulator is quite taxing, as it's now the NPC's that are the bad drivers 😅
also of note, this thing hill climbs a heck of a lot better than the DH3 and DE2 do to the manual gearing, where the others would get stuck, this thing WILL keep moving with a lot more than the others, just slowly
No, the DH4 compensates the lack of a low range (it's diesel hydraulic) with a very nice increase in overall power. It's strong enough to tow a 20 car train up most hills...
Problem is, yes the DM3 has better pulling power but thats it. Main issue with the DM3 is speed. On top of that it doesnt support MU, so as soon as you starting using multiple DH4/DE6's whatever advantage DM3 had, goes out of the window. DM3 also doesnt support remote, nor can you get around issue like you can in the DE6 by conneting a DE2/DH4 to it
On the basis Mavis is very similar in appearance to a BR class 04 DM3 locomotive, which is very similar to a class 03 that I've have the good fortune to work on and drive. I can confirm, they are a mechanical nightmare.
Gears as shown by Squirrel (A/B): 1/1 1/2 2/1 2/2 3/1 3/2 2/3 3/3 Shifters have 3^2 = 9 combinations in total, and here we can see one missing, and that's 1/3, which should also be possible. These combinations are basically ratios and we can work out the actual multipliers if these are indeed properly ordered. Here's one useful mnemonic to let you learn the order in which to shift. Imagine if Gearbox A had the following positions x1, x2, x4 and Gearbox B had x2, x3, x7 This is what happens 1: "1/1" 1x2 = 2 2: "1/2" 1x3 = 3 3: "2/1" 2x2 = 4 4: "2/2" 2x3 = 6 5: "1/3" 1x7 = 7 6: "3/1" 4x2 = 8 7: "3/2" 4x3 = 12 8: "2/3" 2x7 = 14 9: "3/3" 4x7 = 28 I don't claim I know the exact ratios, this is just a mnemonic I developed through trial & error.
Perhaps a bit easier is to think of the gearboxes like there is only B with positions 2, 3, 7 Shifting A is then basically a "doubling action" So you start with A on x1 B is at 2, shift to 3 And then instead of shifting B to 7, you double A Shift B back (4), then forward (6) (This shift is discouraged, Squirrel skips it) Then you shift B to 7 (move A back to x1) 7 Then you quadruple (A is twice forward) Shift B back to 2 (8), then forward (12) Then you shift B to 7 (move A back to x2) 14 Finally you push A forward (to quadruple) 28 I think this is a pretty decent mnemonic, and also contains an explanation why 1/3 is discouraged. When shifting from 1/3 to 3/1 you need to introduce an intermediate shift of either 3/3 or 1/1 before you can do 3/1. 1/1 is unsafe being a much lower gear ratio, and 3/3 is the max ratio and will slow you down, so when at 2/2 (double 3) you basically skip 1/3 and head immediately for 3/1 (quadruple 2).
@@milanstevic8424 yep that is exactly why 1/3 is discouraged, I used to drive an old 1964 Mack truck with a similar gearbox. The guy who trained me told me to never use 1/3 because you're going to need both hands on each shifter and none on the wheel if you want to do it fast without the clutch, otherwise you're breaking the gearbox, or your knuckles!
the shadows are too aggressive in this game (and many games). anything that isn't in direct sunlight is completely black and that's not how reality works
@@hugoslr some games like ARMA and squad have dynamic brightness changing based on whether you're in a dark interior or a bright exterior, but this still is a cheap imitation to what the eye is capable of. Ray tracing lighting may fix the issue though, you'd get much more realistic ambient light.
Actually for me the lights switches makes more sense as they are there - in default setting it has shunter (switcher) configuration, where you have white lights on both ends (it is more convenient as when shunting, the driver then doesn't need to change white/red on each end depending on if going forward or backward as during the shunting the directions is changed quite often) - not sure if this is as a rule in US but in Europe, white on each end is used for shunting from that reason. In contrary, it would be more confusing if for one side the switch would have white light in lower position and red in upper position and for the other side switch it would be opposite (white in uper position and red in lower position of the switch).
Not to mention that the light switches on DE2 and DM4 behave the same; when I flick the switches of the front and rear lights in the same direction, I have the same lights actuve on both ends. Which is absolutely logical in my opionion.
What's interesting, as they show the marks on the control desk that should be for dual control, having driven a BR class 03, the lack of dual control will be very disappointing, as it comes in handing for shunting duties for one of these.
@@lordsanityfree all the levers (except the train brake one) are copied and mirrored on the other side of the control table, so you can drive the engine from the left window/side instead of the right you can see that on the left side of the table that holds the controls there are slots for the duplicate levers
I recommend trying to stay in the higher gears as much as possible especially when going up hill. You want to have as much momentum to hopefully reach the top before the little guy loses power and you need to downshift. It definitely has way more muscle than the de2 however in terms of creeping its way along.
Oh i love that locomotive, even tho its propably much harder to use than the others, im propably gonna use it a lot because i love the challenge! Awesome Video, thanks for explaining, im really looking forward for Derail Valley Simulator!
@@crestfallensunbro6001 I think its still a lot of fun to drive it, because its challanging. The speed is low but its still enough to get the bonus time money.
Why I dont play the DE6 much and honestly use the DE2, 282 and DH4 more than anything. Much more engaging to drive and having to micromanage keeps things intresting. DE6 is just boring for me, makes everything just too easy and loses alot of the fun factor. DE6 would be fine if the map was bigger and/or with steeper grades to challenge it. In the games current state DE6 feels like a cheat code vs doing jobs with a DE2 or 282 etc.
I drove one a BR 03 for 4 years shunting in a Refinery it was a nightmare to drive lol had similar controls a 5 speed semi auto gears and was prone to stall happy shunting.
@@kederaji Maybe, maybe not, but most people don't use the front gear all that much. Perhaps it's different on a mountain bike / trails, but on normal bikes it stays most of its life on the middle one (or the big one, depending on the person and the bike).
Yes I noticed that too, which means that this train red lines where a normal car would sit at idle 😮 But then that is also why these things last for a 100 years.
@dlmunlimited they also have a lot of moving mass. We have a couple of gas compressors at another location, one with a Caterpillar 3608 engine and another with a Caterpillar 3612; they both run like 750 rpm at idle and 1000 rpm at working speed.
I went through the control guide in game and watched this video. I thought I was ready for this, but on my first outing, I completely destroyed the drivetrain. I had to tow it into the roundhouse and spend $40k on repairs. When I was driving, all the dials seemed to be in the good zones, guess I need more practice.
The tutorial broke when I first got into this loco and I just drove it how my heart dictated and noticed that with lower loads or light loco I can just start with both gears on 3 without choking it out. I like this loco more than I expected to. People compare it to Class 04 but I think it also has a lot of FAUR L30H in it. The paint scheme also looks like the ones used on these.
@@ianmillard1604I would like to see older Steam Trains from the 1920s to the 1950s. That are more for light freight operations instead of heavy ones. Maybe one from the UK.
This guy feels like that one cool school teacher that a lot of us have had where the subject is interesting just because he's teaching it, i have ADHD and i dont think i could sit through videos on how to actually play this game if this guy wasnt teaching me. Thank you squirrel for allowing me to stay on my tracks instead of ending up on mars.
That is pretty hands on and love more work to learn but after learning that is like driving a stick shift cat or truck. 4-5-7-8-10-13-15-18 speed trans. So lot of learning but you will get it moving and down.
Usted es el primero que me ha declarado correctamente la caja de cambios de ésta locomotora - ¡muchas gracias por eso! You are the first one who declared me correctly the funcion of the gear box of this locomotive, many thanks for that!
I love shunters, the 03, 04.. This is heaven for me, an 03ish thing with a split gearbox. i can see it delighting ETS2 players to cross that road/rail divide
If anyone has a problem remembering shifting patterns, it's easier when you think about the left lever (gearbox A) as gears 1-3 and right lever (gearbox B) as low-high-overdrive sort of like in a truck. Remember when going down a gear in gearbox A and up a gear in gearbox B (3-HIGH to 2-OVERDRIVE) to upshift gearbox B first or you will overrev the engine like in 13:05
Somehow that's my favorite locomotive of the mid game. It can pull a lot at low gears, which is obvious from wheelslip from standstill on lowest gear on dry rails and no load! Yes, there are faster locos for hauling, but the DM3 is the ol' reliable. My second favorite would be the S060 probably because of how powerful and fascinating steam is. And I didn't yet try the S282, although it looks interesting.
@@manitoba-op4jx Some of the bigger ones I've seen operate around 200-750 RPM. But this is reserved for huuuuge diesel engines like the generator at my old college or the train in this video.
The largest engine in the world, the Wärtsilä-Sulzer RTA96-C, a 2,300 ton,14 cylinder, two-stroke turbocharged diesel engine, produces 80 megawatts of energy and operates between 15-102 RPM. That is a very slow rotational speed, taking from 1.7 to 4 seconds to complete one full rotation. Compare that to an automotive engine which takes a 1/5th to a 1/10th of a second to rotate at idle (300-600 rpm)
I imagine the gears like a bycicle transimision system, where you have 2 "gearboxes": one on the wheel side and one near the pedals, it makes much more sense like that.
Honestly this is my favorite little loco. I was gutted when i found out it is only a 100t increase to the de2. Considering it’s on par size wise to the diesel hydraulic at 800t. But then again it has 4 sets of motors over the 3. Still a great shunter and a recommended upgrade to the de2 asap for shunting or small halls
So given how complex this is I don’t see why anyone would ever use it over the DE2, nor why you wouldn’t just save a little longer and go straight to the DH4 unless you’re doing it just for the challenge/personal enjoyment, especially as it seems to haul less than the DE2. I guess maybe it’s good for shunting since you wouldn’t be going long distances.
I could see it being good for shunting with the ability to creep, especially at night if the DE2 remote runs out of battery! If the capacity is higher and operating costs are lower than the DE2 then I could see the DM3 being attractive for yard work, similar to the SH282 vs the DE6 for long, heavy hauls.
the automatic brake on the dm3 and the steam locomotives in derail valley actually have *four positions* You have "release" "lap" "service" and "emergency". "release" means You are connecting the main reservoir to brake pipe to release the air brakes on the entire train which can help You charge the train as well as letting the train move now You have "lap". "lap" holds whatever pressure You've got on the brake pipe so as You take a reduction on the automatic brake and You set the automatic brake into lap it will hold that reduction and it won't change anything and "service" service Means taking a reduction on the automatic brake whether You want to slow down or stop the train and You have "Emergency" now emergency rather than slowly take a reduction completely cause the air in the brake pipe to go to 0 psi which causes the brake cylinders to lock the brake shoes onto the wheels as tight as possible
besides the horrible interface on other train sims, these games really need to include "operation manuals" for each model. i think like a ebook with some fake (or if it a real train, real) manuals of the start up and shut down procedures and the gear box and such. i think that would be a nice touch.
That gear sequence will certainly take some getting used to! Haha. Would be better if they modelled the damage as locking-up the driving wheels if shifting down too far, as there shouldn't be that much friction at speed to halt the locomotive so quickly? Still, looks very fun indeed
the gears should be arranged in a way that you can get to a valid gear most of the time with a single switch of one of the levers. your sequence is more intuitive in theory, but makes the driver much more likely to money shift
I wonder what the optimal RPM is. Engines are usually more efficient at low RPMs and high load. The problem is that in the circumstances of low RPM/high Load you get lots of heat and stress.
I run my between 600 and 800 and I only repair the engine from time to time. Definitely avoid staying in low (sub 200) and high (over 1000) RPM for prolonged periods of time, as well as shifting gears with throttle/engine brake engaged. These 2 things are brutal to the engine. If you avoid these, you'll be golden.
This is obviously based on the British Rail Class 03. It's not the same, there are a few differences. However, I wonder why they made the throttle lever work inversely. It's supposed to be pushed forward for more throttle. The other thing is that the British Rail Class 03 does not have a double gear box, but I like this one in the game actually better. Once you have figured it out, it is very rewarding.
it is a bit strange. the order is 11, 12, 21, 22, and then 32, 23 and 33 would be easier that last part were 23, 32, 33, because right stick seemed to be less change. you go 1 small up or 1 big up minus 1 small down, that is more logic. it has a strange order at finish. will be a mechanical thing. maybe making two gears big on the same level is harder than alternating it. two big are huge space, and 2 small very few, while big + small and small+ big changes would be more equilibrated
Thank you much, that was a very nice explanation of the gearbox. Seems to me it's more like a tractor than a locomotive, with the left lever setting the range and the right lever the gears within the range. I do NOT understand why 2-3 is higher than 3-1, though. It's like the gearbox is the product of a deranged mind.
i love the engines in derail valley, you get engines like this, and while the railway takes place in north america it has engines that have a european influence getting this strange hybrid that is pulled off in a perfect way
Waaaaait... They have modeled a super-intricate lighting system for the DM3, but still haven't done anything about the fan button in the DE2? 🤔 Looking forward to Simulator a lot but this feels like a weird priority 😅
I think the cabin fan in DE2 is now working properly. What Squirrel meant by that is that the fan doesn't do anything for the actual driving. But what can it do realistically? It's a cabin comfort feature.
Short consists as well, but you're mostly right. It's fun as hell. According to other comments, this thing climbs well albeit slowly. You can see it in the video as well. So it's a heavy shunter and a mule. But not a long run freight hauler.
it idles at (if i'm reading the gage correctly) 250 RPM not, 2,500 it's a x10 RPM not x100 or x1000 like in a car. that redline is 1000 RPM on that gauge, it's a very slow engine it seems
That creep feature is more like a manual than an automatic car as the diesel mechanical loco works like a manual car, and we can just assume that both gearbox levers on their initial position can be treated as gear "1"
@@theraildynasty_ Depends on the engine and how fast you release the clutch. Otherwise the engine will stall. The fact you can put the reverser forward with brakes applied and the engine doesnt stall is more like an automatic transmission.
Hey Squirrel, that's a great guide, the DM3's gears in particular really irritated me and I rode more by ear. One question that brought me here.... is it more worth spending the money on a DM3 or rather the double traction for the DE2. I know at the end of the day you have the licences for all the locos anyway, but just when you are working your way up you are faced with the decision of what is more profitable per run.
Well, no wonder I've been using the engine wrong. I just need to know the right gears. So by using this sequence, I can shift the gears accordingly: Gear 1: A1-B1 Gear 2: A1-B2 Gear 3: A2-B1 Gear 4: A2-B2 Gear 5: A3-B1 Gear 6: A3-B2 Gear 7: A2-B3 Gear 8: A3-B3 Before I watched this, this is how I thought the gearbox goes: Gear N: A1-B1 Gear 1: A2-B1 Gear 2: A3-B1 Gear 3: A3-B2 Gear 4: A3-B3 But now that I know differently, I think I can drive this diesel no problem. I love train driving in VR, so I think the DM3 will be alot more fun for me now. But what I'm really excited for is the tank engine, I love steam, and having a shunter steam loco will be so much fun.
The part about skipping gears got me thinking. Going with 1-1 2-1 3-1 3-2 3-3 would make operation much simpler as you only move 1 lever each time and you only skip 1 gear at most.
I usually just walk both B and then A up one at a time and have never had issues. And then reverse order with down shifting. Apparently meaning im skipping gears 3, 5, and 6. But i also typically using it just for shunting. I can't seem to get anywhere fast with it to make time bonus... maybe it's because of my skipping gears all the time.
8:00 why is any of this confusing? you have exactly the same configuration on the flick dials in other locos, here's it's just exploded into three separate switches. type switch: with flick dials you go to the left or to the right, here you just select one or the other. switches: with flick dials you go 0, 1, 2 steps in any one direction, here you just make a combination. essentially there are 2^3 = 8 states in total and this is probably true for both input mechanisms. flick dials -> -3, -2, -1, 0, 1, 2, 3, 4 (where positives indicate a white light; so 3 red states, 4 white states and off). switches -> 0/0/0, 0/0/1, 0/1/0, 0/1/1, 1/0/0, 1/0/1, 1/1/0, 1/1/1 (exactly 8 combinations matching the above). finally, in other locos you have two flick dials, front and rear, here you have two columns, front and rear.
Got the game couple days ago, my first train sim. I'm surprised how involved this is. It's fun though. Just got into the DM3 and it's something else than the starter locomotive. Trying to do 3 missions at once now with this ugly baby. Your videos arer helping a lot. Btw, is there any way to find out if there are already waggons on the target drop off point ?
That gearbox sequence makes the Spicer dual stick seem like a basic 10-speed. 😮 Truck transmissions have nothing on this beast 😝 Thanks for all your informative videos think I’m going to give Derail Valley a go!
typical fluid coupllings are designed either with the knowledge that the operator knows how to operate it and doesnt normally need to constantly change its mode from coupled to uncoupled (and the automatic portion of the transmission usually handles the upshift and downshift as need be, as well as pushing it into neutral) its there to ALLOW slip, which prevents flat out mechanical coupling, which can have CATASTROPHIC results so im wondering whether or not the simulation is actually realistic, because it seems to act too quickly for a fluid coupling, as fluid needs to "come up to speed" in order for both ends to be at the same speed also, iirc, its the vacuum, and not compression with diesel engines that is used to cause the braking force, which is why its so loud, because its a popping sound as they are released when the valve finally opens
@@jamesgraham4586It is also why I asked for a video on the steam engines in the first place. Not only is there another one, but the controls to them are also updated to be more realistic as well.
Squirrel only can do what the devs want him to, since hes beta tester with permission. the 0-6-0 im sure will be great, as will the new 2-8-2 revamp. all in good time.. i assure you they havent taken steam out :)
In real life and in VR it will be much easier, I used to drive a 1964 Mac truck with a twin shifter that had a reversed overdrive just like this train does. Took a few weeks of practice but once I got the hang of it I was good to go
I thought the same, so I drawn the gears on a sticky note and put it on my screen when playing. After 3 hauls or so, I was already shifting automatically. You're basically combining the knowledge from driving a car (how transmission works) and a bicycle with front and rear gears. You can basically customize your gear ratio by shifting in combinations of transmission A and B. Career-wise, considering its cost and the fact that it does not need any previous licenses and does not increase your copay by a penny, the game leaves you all the tools to learn to drive it without paying much at all. Also, it pulls. Oh it pulls like crazy. Definitely give it a shot, even if on a separate save slot, try it.
Yup, I'm probably never using a DM3, considering both DE2 MU and DH4 are better options with no ability to blow up the engine because of a wrong gear combination. The game already requires a lot of attention and looking around the cabin to use the levers to add the tedious task to use two more deadly levers.