River and lake railroad ferries in H0?

steinjr

New Member
This link might help your research for tugs and barges:
http://index.mrmag.com/tm.exe?opt=S&sort=A&output=3&cmdtext="BARGE"

It lists magazines, dates, and article titles. Hope it helps.

I would recommend adding "car float" as a search term. That's what the flat deck barges with tracks on top pushed by tow boats usually were called.

A couple of nice pictures of a Walthers car float being assembled and a prototype photo of a CNJ (Central of New Jersey) car float with a small diesel switcher and a couple of cars on: http://www.bronx-terminal.com/?p=1608. Walthers is reissuing their car float, apron and tow boat in feb 2009.

But I think Ralph's solution - start with a piece of woodwith a couple of tracks on top, nicely painted, detailed and weathered is the best solution for most of us. That is one good looking car float, Ralph!

Smile,
Stein
 

tetters

Rail Spiking Fool!
I would recommend adding "car float" as a search term. That's what the flat deck barges with tracks on top pushed by tow boats usually were called.

A couple of nice pictures of a Walthers car float being assembled and a prototype photo of a CNJ (Central of New Jersey) car float with a small diesel switcher and a couple of cars on: http://www.bronx-terminal.com/?p=1608. Walthers is reissuing their car float, apron and tow boat in feb 2009.

But I think Ralph's solution - start with a piece of woodwith a couple of tracks on top, nicely painted, detailed and weathered is the best solution for most of us. That is one good looking car float, Ralph!

Smile,
Stein

Actually. If you really want the float. Place your order now. I ordered mine a couple of weeks ago, and my account with Walther's says its already been shipped. So...perhaps you can get yours before the Feb 09 release date.

Don't know how long that will last though now that I've opened my big mouth and told all you guys! sign1
 

sumpter250

multiscale modelbuilder
that ferry looks very similar to the ferries that operate to and from Shelter Island, N.Y. . Those, however, are smaller and do not handle rail traffic. With the single track, that would be a good choice for your car ferry.
 

Bill Nelson

Well-Known Member
Wlathers used to have a railroad barge, tug boat and barge loating apron . I haven't seen these currently, but Walther's tends to run these things in batches.


There is a book on scratchbuilding with styrene that documents building an SN3 car ferry.


I have seen an article that documented a railroad where a barge dock was used for interchange. The author had modeled several barges, and had them mounted on rolling tables, just high enough to Dock at the apron. He could start a operating session with a loaded barge at the apron, pull those cars off for delivery, load others on the barge, and roll it off, and replace it with another one.


This would be a very useful method for doing interchange on a small layout, as it would take up a lot less space than an adequate staging yard would .

It could be done with some very small railroads. There was a small iron ore RR in Tennessee that was built in two sections with barge traffic in between, with the mines on one end, with one locomotive, and the furnaces and the interchange on the other, also with one locomotive.

I have a riverboat on my current RR, space is really tight on that end of the layout, so there is no room, but a rail barge would have been a very cool addition.



Bill Nelson
 
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