Running trains is more fun if it seems to "matter" to somebody. And I like to have fun as quickly as possible in between spurts of construction. I recently completed one such spurt of construction on my (4' x 8') N scale layout, increasing the number of spur tracks from 8 to about 20. So here are a few pictures of quick and dirty things I came up with to make it more fun to operate now, while I wait for the time later to build more "meaningful" models and scenery around those new spur tracks.
The piece of cardboard above is simply cut, folded and taped to represent a future model of the Bethlehem Steel (now Nucor) in West Seattle. Instead of three random tracks in a yard, I now have a track for inbound scrap, a second one for outbound product (rebar, in this case), and the outside track for various additives and waste materials from this busy Electric Arc Furnace. (I know, the boxcars should be gons - I'm working with JMRI ops to get that fixed...).
I haven't finished assembling these tank kits I started in the '70's, but hey, stick two tracks next to a couple of tanks and you have a major oil terminal. These loaded tank cars need to be shipped out!
In theory this nice sloped hillside should be covered with trees, but I love the look of the Atlas 40' log bunks so much, and didn't have room for a proper log camp. Then I thought of the term "visible staging", and realized the hillside would work. Sure, it messes with the scenic integrity of the whole layout, but on the other hand, now I have a place for those beautiful log loads to come from. And it looks good nestled next to the trestle like that. Plus, the sawmill that needs the logs (which there also isn't room for)(see the weird-looking building behind the tank farm in the photos prior) is only 2 feet away, so I can easily re-stage the loads after every run.
Who doesn't like to see construction equipment being shipped on heavy-duty flatcars? I'm calling this track "construction contractor" until I come up with a better name, but doesn't it just seem begging for the delivery of another shipment of construction equipment so they can get on with the job? (social distancing requirements notwithstanding...). I'm not sure what all that stuff is, but it looks like it means some serious business. It would be good to put up an office and some chain-link fence, but for now we can definitely switch some cars in there!
This 50 year old engine house is obviously no place for these C44-9W's, but hey, it looks better than having them stand out in the rain! Plus, I also have a weak spot for short coal hoppers, and the smokestack on the engine house is clearly for coal-burning of some kind - for the blacksmith shop if nothing else. Note the effectiveness of parking a few cars next to it, also. The stegosaurus has wandered here from John Allen's layout, and, along with the blacksmith shop, is one of the few remaining coal-consuming dinosaurs left in the global economy.
This track with the station next to it comes out of the "Burlington yard" north of Everett, WA, and becomes the "Concrete Branch" up to the "logging camp" staging track on the hillside I showed a few pictures back. This is also a classic old N scale "freight station" kit, labeled "Adams Heights". If you've ever driven through the real Burlington, WA, on Interstate 5, you've no doubt noticed the house built out on stilts above the freeway. I thought, "why not prop up this station on stilts, and call it an intermediate town on the Concrete Branch, say "Sedro-Woolley", or "Hamilton"? Why not? Then it could receive (or ship) carloads of something and complicate the work of getting those log cars out of staging further up the line. This is an operational no-brainer!
Finally, and what started all this, was the pulp and paper mill in Everett. It will be a while before I build the real model, but in the meantime, how to make it look like it needs to be switched? Here are a couple of things I've done so far:
Pulpwood is needed for making pulp, so here I just parked my inventory of pulpwood loads next to the track, and it looks like a pile of pulpwood all right. I need to find a piece of unloading equipment and this scene will work for years.
I'm not sure which building kit this came from, but doesn't it look like a guard shack with the car parked next to it like that? I know, I need to paint and ballast the track and put road in for the car, but still you get the idea right away. The Micro-Trains tank load in the background works to show that that back track is where all the chemical additives are unloaded for the paper and pulp mill. (The ground throw on the right looks ridiculously out of scale, but that's a subject for another time. Hopefully your eye is more drawn to the guard shack and the auto.)
Finally, here's an overview shot of the paper and pulp mill. I added a short spur in the center to serve as both an engine pocket and a clean-out track. Whenever a switchlist calls for pick-ups or set-outs in the mill, I use the plant switcher to pull or spot from the mill tracks, and have the passing trains use the lead track in front to "interchange" cars with the plant, as you can see is being done here with the CN boxcar. This way the locals don't get bogged down with plant switching work, and the plant switcher can keep things organized.
I'm not sure where the baby on top of the pulp building came from originally. I may have had it since my own childhood. But it occurred to me that Scott Paper Co. in Everett used to have commercials about how soft their toilet paper was, featuring a cute baby, so I placed it there as a reminder about why we need pulp and paper mills, and always will....
No comments:
Post a Comment