Industry Component Ideas

msh

Member
I've been working on my layout design and I believe I'd like to put some kind of mining or similar industry in the below yellow circle, but know nothing about it. Can you guide me specifc to buildings, structures or other things that would be required to make it look okay? For the record... HO, diesel, 70's to present.

(already have had suggestions on the Walthers New River Mining Co.)
 

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Hi msh,

This diorama was made by Volmer, don't know if it was for shop display or what. It's more for gravel as it has a motor driven conveyor belt to the silo.
In any event, it will give you an idea of the type of stuctures on such sites. If you want dimensions I can always e-mail them to you. Hmmm... (thinks) .. I might just decide to draw up scale plans and post them anyway .. :) .

Errol
 

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Drew1125

Active Member
Hi msh!
There's a thread on page 6 of the Photography forum called "Pictures Of A Modern Coal Mine"...there are some photos there that might give you some ideas.
The Walthers mine, while a nice representation of a modern mine, has gotten to be like that hit song that gets played on the radio about once every 2 hrs...it was great the first time, but after a couple of hundred listens later, you don't ever want to hear it again!:rolleyes: :p
I went to a train show last week, where they had a large Ntrak layout set up...I counted no fewer than 7 (count 'em 7) Walthers coal mines on one layout!
 

msh

Member
Kettle: thanks for the guidance. Don't go to any extra trouble - it's not quite what I had in mind.

Charlie: The pics on that link are more to my liking - thank you.

but, you wouldn't be telling me if I bought that Walters kit I would be another sheep following crowd and showing no imagination, would you? Or that scratchbuilding a coal mine environment is the only acceptable way to do things in this case, since the availabilty of decent and/or unique kits is rather limited? :eek:

No. Of course not. I must be wrong. I can't believe you would say such things and I'm certain I just misunderstood. :p
 

Drew1125

Active Member
Sorry, msh...maybe I need to phrase it another way...
The Walthers coal mine is a great looking kit, & a very credible model of a modern coal mine. I'm sure this is precisely the reason you see so many of them on model RR's.
If I were in the position right now of needing a modern coal mine, I would probably use parts of the Walthers mine...I might also get some pieces from something like one of those Walthers Glacier Gravel kits, which has all those nice conveyers...I would look at as many photos as I could find, & determine what would fit in the space I had available, & then cobble something together from all those kit parts...
But that's just me, & my own little neurosies...:rolleyes:
If that Walthers coal mine is what's right for you, then you do exactly what you think is right for your RR, & don't let some idiot like me talk you out of it!:D ;) :rolleyes: :D
 

jon-monon

Active Member
Charlie, maybe those were those modern modular mines:D :D :D

MSH, I was wondering what other industries already live on the bonkyrail?

If I had that layout as it stands, and no industry to "tie into" elswhere on the layout, I would put a coal mine on the mountain side of the track and on the other side do one of:

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Intermodal transfer - most modern of these three, but my least favorite, just a personal pref. If this is what you like, I drive by one everytime I go to my parents. A large Sante Fe outfit. I would be happy to stop by and shoot a roll of film for you.

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Team track - should be an easy scratch build or buy this kit from walthers #933-3166. This brings rail service to anyone with a truck. You can read about it here.


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An REA Building - I'm not sure when these ceased to function, but it could be abandoned by REA and used as a team track. You can read about it here.

Maybe a combination of hte last two?
 

msh

Member
Charlie, I appreciate your deeper insight. And I most CERTAINLY do not think you an idiot or neurotic. Just better prepared to take on a more complicated installation. I do like the idea of combining parts though, and will look into that.

jon - the other industry on the western portion of the layout is dedicated to my son's love for the all american pickle. We have a pickle factory, a packaging facility and a distribution center. There will also be a smallish farm area to grow those all important cucumbers, a general store for supplies and a bar for the picklers to get pickled at the end of a hard day's work. Plus a number of homes for our plastic pickled people to live in.

I believe the mining or gravel operation will be to represent where the ballast and road materials came from, and will just be a nice, cool filler to the southeastern corner.

After all, with a name like BonkyRail Lines, how realistic can one expect this thing to be anyway?
 

Ralph

Remember...it's for fun!
Hey msh,
Take a look through Model Railroader's "Great Model Railroads 2003". The L&N layout has a two page spread of coal mine structures (some that can be modelled in small spaces) that look pretty cool.
Ralph
 

rockislandmike

Active Member
As an aside, if you do wanna do an intermodal yard, I've also got pics stored on a CD of the local one. It's a little smaller than average, I think, but would probably compress nicely. I'm building one myself, and have sketched out plans, so I'd be happy to pass those along too.
 

jon-monon

Active Member
So you need a glass factory, label factory, lid factory, and a dill drying storing grain elevator (assuming that's what they do with dill) :D :D :D As a joke car you could try to find a 1:1 plastic cucumber and haul it on a flat car :)
 
Heck why not have a dill car. Oscar Myer has his weenier mobil.:D I got passed by it on the freeway once, Looked like a teenage girl was driving. I heard that hotdog can fly, LOL.

t.
 

sumpter250

multiscale modelbuilder
msh,
From your diagram, looks like water to the east of the yellow ciricle, with two tracks going over it.
Put in vertical lift bridges (they don't have to actually operate), and extend the water around the two sidings, on a pier.
Fish cannery, inport export warehouse, direct ship to railcar transfer, or.....instead of pier, ferry slip, and carferry transfer point.
Pete
 

msh

Member
oooohhhhh - sumpter250.....
that's a cooooool idea and quite original.

My only concern is that the lift bridges need to be slightly curved - the inner is a 24.5" curve and the outer is a 27.5" curve, both made with flex.
 

grumbeast

Member
These are all great idea's and I may well adopt some for my
layout too. I didn't want to start a new thread, but had a
suggestion (and any help with supporting industries would help)

I've decided to build "The people's patriotic tractor factory No.4"
the finished tractors being Red of course :).

I'm not familiar with the automotive industry but imagine it would
recieve parts in boxcars, how would rubber be delivered and
what else would be required.

I envisioned the tractors being shipped on flatcars.

didn't mean to co-op the discussion but thought it relevent here

Cheers

Graham
 

sumpter250

multiscale modelbuilder
My only concern is that the lift bridges need to be slightly curved - the inner is a 24.5" curve and the outer is a 27.5" curve, both made with flex.
msh,
The bridges would only have to be long enough to permit the widest "ship" through, and could be straight decks to carry the curve. A lift bridge wouldn't have a curved deck. If the track is already set high enough above the water, you could do the same, curve on a straight deck, with through truss, or theough girder bridges.
The lifts I did were Atlas through truss bridges, and Atlas pier girders for the lift towers.
how would rubber be delivered and
what else would be required.
Graham,
If you are planning on bringing in rubber, and making your own tires, that would be a whole separate plant. More likely your tarctor factory would subcontract out for the tires. They would be flat car loads, or box car loads.
Your factory would probably do the foundry work for the frames,
import the engines and transmissions, and tires, and doo the assembly on site. The finished tractors would go out on flats.
Pete
 
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