The Little River Rail Road in Doc Tom's Back Yard

[Doctor G]

Lots of Rocks

Yes there are a lot of rocks on the layout. In the past 1.5 years I have moved and dry stacked 12 tons of limestone rip rap rock and placed these over an interior of about 4-5 tons of concrete block.

I elected to dry stack the rocks because I wanted to have drainage for the forest floor and trees that I would place on the mountains.

I have started covering the rocks with topsoil and mulch and have started to plant the forest that hopefully will become the Smoky Mountains through which the Little River RR will run.

I have been buying a lot of the $6.98 Dwarf Alberta Spruce and Dwarf English Boxwoods at the local Lowes to plant on the mountains.

Much like my old HO logging pike this outdoor logger soaks up a lot of trees.

Doc Tom and the Little River Rail Road in Tennessee

 

[Doctor G]

Moving Colonel Townsend's Cadillac

Moving Colonel Townsend’s Cadillac.

With the Autumnal weather changes coming to the Smoky Mountains, Colonel Townsend decided it was time to leave his summertime mountain retreat in Elkmont and head back to his valley home in his namesake town Townsend Tennessee. In addition to the usual personal and family possessions previously moved over his logging railroad the time had come to move his precious Cadillac. With all of about 1-2 miles of ruts in the Elkmont town limits most of the workingmen muttered about the vanity of hauling a Cadillac up in to the wilds of the woods in the first place.

However they were grateful to have jobs as the economic depression tightened its hold on the men who logged the forest and they did their best to please their boss.

So a special train was made up to carefully move the prized possession back to civilization. It made it without a scratch.

Tom Doc Tom and the Little River Rail Road in Tennessee

 

[Bill Nelson]

It is good to see the Caddy in the photos, Dad would love it. The Caddy, like a lot of stuff on Tom's layout, is from my Dad's collection. The Caddy spent most of it's time on my Dad's big rol;ltop deask, and only ocoasionally made it to the layout. After Dad passed awy it spent several years on my familyroom mantle, before making it's way to the Little River, where it belongs.




Bill Nelson

 

[Doctor G]

SMOKIN' Stacks in the Smokies

I am using the LGB 0-4-0 to kinda represent Little River Rail Road #1 pictured below.

LGB makes a very nice smoke unit and I thought I would give it a try. I never used the smoke effects in HO for fear of oiling and dirtying the track. Since I am using battery power for this representative of the Little River Rail Road in the Smoky Mountains of Tennessee I figured it wouldn't hurt to fire up the stack smoker on the little 0-4-0.

I really enjoyed the effect and since this was a first for me thought I would take some pictures in the sunlight of autumn.

So far the battery holds up pretty good while the smoke is flying out of the stack and overall I have enjoyed this effect.

Doc Tom and the Little River Rail Road in Tennessee

 

[Doctor G]

The Marietta and North Georgia rides the rails.

Mr Bill Nelson gave me this very nice Bachmann box car done up in our RR chum Mack Montgomery's Marietta and North Georgia livery. I always liked the paint job and the hand lettering. It was missing a door and grab rails and brake wheel when I acquired it from the always generous Mr Nelson. It also had the shiny black wheelsets from the manufacturer. After a few weeks in the Little River shops it was repaired and weathered.

Today was nice moody day to get some pictures of the box car in a train through the Little River gorge. Boss Crumb and his always energized kid (1920's ADD?) wanted to do some high line acrobatics for the camera.

Hope you enjoy. Thanks again Bill.
Tom

 

[Bill Nelson]

Good to see that car in use! That paint job was very satisfactory, It is fun to make use of the exaggerated grain detail on on some of these large scale cars.


I've seen that door somewhere, I don't know if it was up in the RR room, or down in the garage. neither of those places are places you would choose to look for anything at this time.


Bill Nelson

 

[Doctor G]

Ballast Car project.

Wood strip was "distressed" and weathered with an India ink wash to build an operating ballast car for the Little River Rail Road. I am using an old Bachmann flat car (plastic) as the "sub assembly" for this latest project.

The story behind the car is management is using a worn out logging flat from the early days of the rail road and the car spends most of its life moldering on a siding until those mountain storms wash out part of the line and then it becomes a very important part of operations

Next up will be applying all the bits of running gear from Ozark Miniatures and fiddling with the operating side dump door.


Tom

 

[Bill Nelson]

Looks good tom, It's nice to see you doing a great job with a craftsman stule project!


Bill

 

[Doctor G]

thanks

Looks good tom, It's nice to see you doing a great job with a craftsman stule project!


Bill

Thanks Bill. The "donor" for this project is the running gear, wheelsets and flat car base from your Dad's old GRAMPS tank car.

I am slowly but surely converting all these generous donations from you in to logging equipment. Thanks again.

My hands are sore today from all the razor saw and "knife work" I did this weekend to distress the wooden pieces. I have always liked the well worn look of hard working logging equipment.

Tom

 

[Doctor G]

They are going to need that ballast car!

It is raining cats and dogs in the mountains of Eastern Tennessee and the Little River is about to flood its banks causing major headaches for the road crews of the Little River Rail Road.

The moldering ballast gondola will be needed very soon and Boss Crump checks in to see how progress is coming along. The boys have been able to install one of the sides and some of the running gear.

The large opening will be the operating door for the ballast dump.

The well worn but serviceable look I am trying to achieve is best captured in this prototype photo.

So I am weathering and distressing all the wood components and everything metal is covered with a rust patina.

I hope y'all like the pictures.

Tom

 

[Doctor G]

Dump Doors really work!!

Construction continues on the operating ballast car for the Little River RR.

With the arrival of miniature hinges with their infinitesimally small mounting nails from Micro-Mark the boys were ready to see if their side dump concept would in fact really work.

Boss Grump was very satisfied with the action of the hinged dump doors.

Overall the boys are ready to order some ballast, get the wheelsets and couplers done and get this puppy out on the line soon.

Note the internal truss rod that has been placed to handle the lateral stresses hauling tons of rock will create.

Tom Doc Tom and the Little River Rail Road in Tennessee

 

[Doctor G]

It didn't explode

Well, the weather has been so nice here in Tennessee I just had to get this new car out on the line and see first off if it really would hold ballast.

I loaded in about 1-2 pounds of Lowes Large Scale Rail Road ballast and the car's sides did not explode!!

The hinges and side pockets held and there was no change in the sides.

The "ballast" was returned to the garden bucket and I enjoyed the additional weathering the stone dust imparted to the interior of the gon.

Thanks for looking.

Tom Doc Tom and the Little River Rail Road in Tennessee

 

[Doctor G]

The Gon Gets its Wheels.

I was able to scrounge around in the junk parts box and find some couplers that fit the Bachmann trucks I salvaged for this build. After some painting and weathering the wheel sets and couplers were installed.

I was quite pleased when everything lined up and the gondola coupled on to the 1:20.3 Bachmann thirty foot flats that I use for hauling logs.

It is getting close to the time to put this car to work and earn back the $18.62 spent on parts for this project.

Doc Tom and the Little River Rail Road in Tennessee

 

[Doctor G]

The Gon goes to work.

The shop crew completed the build of the ballast car. Their final job was to letter it for Little River Rail Road MOW car #01.

When the paint was dried it was time to take the car and a load of rock up in to the Smoky Mountains and start working for the railroad.

High atop Lumber Hill the train eased in to a section of track that needed shoring up with some of that good limestone ballast.

Under the watchful eye of Boss Crumb the side door was carefully opened and the ballast placed on the tracks by the crew.

The train was backed and the load carefully emptied to fill in all the missing rock work.

As the sun was setting in the mountains the work was done and the gondola was buttoned up. The crew marveled at the ease at which the track had been ballasted with their very own ballast car.

Doc Tom and the Little River Rail Road in Tennessee

 

[Doctor G]

Winter House Move

The Little River Rail Road takes its logging "set out houses" (skid shacks) down to the shops for the winter. There damaged wood is replaced and the shacks given a fresh coat of the Thompsons treatment. Time does come to move the houses back out on the line for the upcoming spring logging season.

The trusty AH&D loader is moved in to place .

The comfy little shacks are put in place at the Tremont Landing.

The welcome mat to the shacks is still coming and spring time in the Smokies is just around the corner. We can only hope.

Tom


Doc Tom and the Little River RR guys in East Tennessee.

 

[Doctor G]

More work on the steel bridge over the Little River.

More work on the steel bridge over the Little River.

With cold weather in Tennessee I went back to the shed with the trusty kerosene heater to work some more on the steel bridge over the Little River.

I completed the two side pieces of the first 40 foot span (1:20.3 scale ) of the bridge. These were carefully aligned and attached.

Like the prototype picture the side pieces were secured using angle iron. Cross braces are to follow.

Please forgive the grainy pictures. My wife has the digital camera and these pictures were made using an iPad in low light.

Thanks for looking.

Dr Tom


Doc Tom and the Little River RR guys in East Tennessee.

 

[Bill Nelson]

Good to see you making some progress, the weather has sure been uncooperative recently I have been waiting for a nice day to stock my front porch back up with firewood and I haven't had a nice day in three weeks, the woodpile is way too small, so I'll be working in the nasty weather if it isn't nice tomorrow and monday.

 

[Doctor G]

Weather

Good to see you making some progress, the weather has sure been uncooperative recently I have been waiting for a nice day to stock my front porch back up with firewood and I haven't had a nice day in three weeks, the woodpile is way too small, so I'll be working in the nasty weather if it isn't nice tomorrow and monday.

Tennessee certainly has some bizarre weather.
Tom

 

[Doctor G]

More Bridge Building

I got back outside in a chilly shed to cut and glue the interior cross members.
They are made from .25" styrene strip and cut in this jig to give 45 degree angled ends at various lengths. I used this on the angle iron pieces as well.

The interior braces are placed and glued.

To me this

is beginning to look like this.

And hopefully like this before too long.

Thanks for looking.

Doc Tom


Doc Tom and the Little River RR guys in East Tennessee.

 

[Doctor G]

Looking like steel.

Span number 1 is now painted in primer. It is looking more like a steel bridge and the shiny plastic is gone. The white spots are sun rays through the blinds....not defects in the paint or measles.

Tom


Doc Tom and the Little River RR guys in East Tennessee.