Bronx Union Golden spike

[JorgeC]

Hello Everybody,

The new Bronx Union layout is now in operation. The Golden Spike was driven today at 1700hrs. The layout was inspired by the East & R. Egg Cement Co. Ltd. layout featured in Carl Arendt's Micro and Small Layouts webpage Small Layout Scrapbook
and Small Layout Scrapbook and in the pages of the April 2007 issue of Rilway Modeller. The East & R. Egg Cement layout is a 14in by 5in British narrow gauge layout, so I enlarged it to 8 feet by 18 inches so I can accommodate American Rolling stock. The era will be late 60's to mid 70's, so I can use battered New York Central and Penn Central hopper cars. The cement palnt will be kitbashed using the new Walthers Valley Cement Works and an ADM grain elevator kit that I have laying around. I will be scratchbuilding the boiler house that will be in the left hand corner. I'm going to try to have some kind of lighting effect that simulates the boiler flame, smoke too:twisted:. We still live in the same building, just on the other side and in a studio apartment, this is why the layout came together so quick. I have posted an overhead view of the layout that shows the trackplan. Let me know what you guys think.

Have fun,
Jorge

 

[eburchell]

It's a very compact switching layout that will bring you hours of enjoyment. The only thing I noticed is you have all double ended spurs, but no runaround track. If you added a crossover just before the storage silos then your industrial switching will flow alot better.

 

[Ralph]

Jorge! You work fast! I like it. I see eburchell's point if you're planning to switch the boiler house. Otherwise a switcher could pull cars off the float and set out and pick up cars from all spurs except for that without track plan modifations. NYC and PC hoppers? Love it!
Ralph

 

[eburchell]

Not only would a runaround help you switch the boiler house track, but the spurs above and below it could also have the option to have industries on them too, increasing your switching opportunities. Just an idea.

 

[JorgeC]

Thank you for the kind words! I actually laid the track to the boiler house like that on purpose. I want to model a method of switching that I have only read about and seen pics of it being done in the U.K. In the U.K. its called chain shunting. The switcher will pull the coal cars off the float and shove them onto the track next to the silo track. The switcher will then cut off back onto the crossover from the float and line the switch into the boiler house track. The conductor will then hook up a chain to the knuckle on the side of the car that faces the boiler house. The switcher will then pull the cars into the clear on the boiler house track. Once the cars are in the clear on the boiler house track, the conductor will remove the chain and the switcher will run back onto the track next to the silo track and then hitch up to the coal cars and finish shoving them into their proper spot. Once the cars are mty, the same procedure is followed except, that the cars are pulled into the silo track with the chain in order to get the engine on the right side of the cars to push them back onto the carfloat. I have posted a pic of a British switcher engine doing some chain shunting. I'm going to try to post a video of me doing some chain shunting. Ralph I've been on vacation for a week, with one more week to go and I'm loving it! My girlfriend thinks:cry:wall1 that I'm nuts. Two weeks away from the real railroad and I want to spend it working on the model. Women think we're nuts.

Have Fun,
Jorge

 

[JorgeC]

I have uploaded the video. Here it is. I hope it works.

ImageShack - Hosting :: twinkie134fa8.flv

 

[JorgeC]

Hello Everybody,

I got alittle more work done on the layout today. I added a couple of Caboose Industries ground throws to the switches. I like a solid connection, so I cut and bent a small piece of brass wire and drilled a small hole into the end of the ground throw. I then hooked the other end of the wire to the little hole in the middle of the throwbar in the switch. I'm going to paint the small weight on the ground throw, red on one side and green on the other to show which way the switch is lined.

The Bronx Union CMO love's ALCO'S and GE's but he can't pass up a great deal when he see's one. That great deal was the purchase of the Bronx Union's first EMD, a Model 40. he most be nut's, but say's it's perfect for the tight Empire State Cement facility.

I have posted a pic of the string with loops at the end that I use for chain switching. I'm going to get a small piece of chain this weekend.
I also plan to purchase some NYC hoppers this weekend. I will have more pics then.

Enjoy,
Jorge

 

[JorgeC]

Here are the pics.