Modern Era Layout

[alcoRS1]

Seeing my layout will have to be dismantled I am moving against a wall in the garage, where I will have 2 14ft x 2ft Layouts. I decided that I want to run some modern day locos (eyeing the Atlas Genset), my Wheeling lake Erie GP35 has no place to run.

 

so I decided to do a small layout, standalone. 12ft x 2ft, will have 3 industries, Scrap yard, packing company, and an ethanol terminus.

 

 

 

will hopefully have the wood work and tracks laid by mid september, hell, I might even have it done next week if I dedicate one day to clearing the garage up.

[alcoRS1]

some more information about the layout, There will be no more than one loco running at a time on the layout, and it will be DCC, will share the DCC system with the other 2 layouts. The layout could be based and view as most places in the USA, will fit in perfect for California, portland, Ohio. I like this because this allows me to own one of those Pacific harbor Line, genset, as well as the UP.

[dave1905]

I would have chosen a scrap yard, beer distributor and chemical distributor. A wider variety of cars and way more typical. You could ship boxcars, insulated boxcars and reefers to a beer distributor. A chemical distributor could recieve a variety of tank cars, boxcars and even covered hoppers. Those industries would be be very common and could be anywhere.

 

Meat packing plants are rare as hen's teeth in the modern era. Most of them are poultry plants and located in rural or near rural areas. Ethanol shippers are also mostly in rural areas. Ethanol is normally used as a gasoline additive so an ethanol terminal would be more of a refinery.

 

Your layout, but I think other industries would give you more opportunities.

[alcoRS1]

I would have chosen a scrap yard, beer distributor and chemical distributor. A wider variety of cars and way more typical. You could ship boxcars, insulated boxcars and reefers to a beer distributor. A chemical distributor could recieve a variety of tank cars, boxcars and even covered hoppers. Those industries would be be very common and could be anywhere.

 

Meat packing plants are rare as hen's teeth in the modern era. Most of them are poultry plants and located in rural or near rural areas. Ethanol shippers are also mostly in rural areas. Ethanol is normally used as a gasoline additive so an ethanol terminal would be more of a refinery.

 

Your layout, but I think other industries would give you more opportunities.

 

I thought that was the case with ethanol, I see that in our area there is ethanol terminal, does not get those hugh amount of tank cars, but I see 4 - 6 on mixed freight all the time, I also see the same amount heading north towards seattle. It will works as an E85 distributor. The reason why I am doing ethanol is I have 18 ethanol tank cars, so there is no cost for it.

 

 

 

see section 2

 

Ethanol Blending

 

 

 

picture

 

 

the packing company is not meat, this company Northwest Packing Co receives 4 box cars all the time.

[CraigZ]

Modern poultry and meat packing plants are essentially 100% truck/lorry based. The largest pork processing plant in the United States is about 90 minutes from here and it's not even on a rail line...FWIW.

[dave1905]

the packing company is not meat, this company Northwest Packing Co receives 4 box cars all the time.

Oops. Sorry for the misunderstanding. If you are doing fruit packing you could slip in a reefer or two. I would still do a chemical distributor that recieved alchol and other chemicals and then repackaged it, then ship it out in boxcars.

[alcoRS1]

I new design, I want to have the ability of bring jobs into a small yard, and then the loco drops off, picks up empties and leaves, these can be GP15-1 or Genset locos, then a small yard loco, HH660, MP15 will deliver and pickup from the loco industries

 

 

[alcoRS1]

I just justified purchase of a gold Atlas HH660 the RELCO with sound, also I can get a UP GP15-1(with sound) and make it a dirty, tagged UPY #652, and at last a 2 x Genset UPY 2707 and UPY 2709. Now to convince the wife I need these

[shortliner]

I guess you are going to have to AWFULLY nice to SWMBO!

[alcoRS1]

 

because I love tank cars I will be making my model layout based on this

 

E85 Terminus

Chemical Terminus

Fuel Diesel Terminus

Cement

Team Track / plastics / bulk download, as in truck pulls in download directly from covered hopper.

Mountain Soda Company will be a soda company, box cars with packaging in, and sodas out, and corn syrup tank cars on outside track.

 

will be serviced by UPY MP15AC and hopefully UPY 3GS21 Gensets (when atlas gets around to releasing them or I become rich and purchase the overland ones ($725 - $800 each), could also make it Pacific Harbor Lines.

 

This layout is the upper level of my self layout, below on one side is my SP&S industrial, and the other side is my UK layout (TBD, what and where).

[Adrian Wintle]

One thing that makes a nice, but complicated, model to go with tank cars is a centre gantry serving two tracks, like this http://www.bing.com/maps/?v=2&cp=r8v4y28c8xcv&scene=28274066&lvl=1&sty=b

 

Adrian

[alcoRS1]

One thing that makes a nice, but complicated, model to go with tank cars is a centre gantry serving two tracks, like this http://www.bing.com/...066&lvl=1&sty=b

 

Adrian

 

Walthers make a gantry kit, been thinking about that.

[Adrian Wintle]

Walthers make a gantry kit, been thinking about that.

 

These guys http://www.traincat2.com/ make tank car loading platform kits. I've never dealt with them, but I have consiidered their kits.

 

Adrian

[alcoRS1]

These guys http://www.traincat2.com/ make tank car loading platform kits. I've never dealt with them, but I have consiidered their kits.

 

Adrian

 

some very nice kits on that sight, looking at the loading platform he has, it easy to scratch build one, His prices are great, for brass, they are not that expensive.

[alcoRS1]

Here I am sitting here in front off the camp fire, on the family camping trip, but I just ordered the 2 UPY Genset switchers. Now I feel camping trip is successful.

[alcoRS1]

I started on my up level, I purchased the wood today, it does not take long to assemble, but I want to finish one loco at least before I start that level. I am doing this in phases, so phase 2 which is the upper level, phase 3 is the standalone lower level, and stage 4 is the standalone upper level that connects to this level.

 

I have an Athearn MP15AC DCC with sound (the bad MRC sound board version), I air brushed the UP colors tonight, though the gray seems a lot dark than I like, but I guess after weathering it will lighten up. tomorrow I will apply the decals. I want to install ditch lights but instruction for the MRC sound board is limited, just might run the ditch lights off the main lights, might not bother until I replace the sound board. Yesterday I ordered all the parts I am missing from athearn, I expect them to arrive in 3 weeks.

[alcoRS1]

 

My Mp15AC is starting to take shape, nearly all the decals are on, still need to soften and add just some.

[alcoRS1]

I been looking at the yard on the bottom part of my layout, and I think I do not need a yard, just a simple run around track, will have to think about it, unless, other than the E85 which receives deliveries and pick ups directly, the other would require an in and out track plus run around, this allows mixed local to arrive, grab one industry cars at a time, switch them with the industry, drop the out cars of in the out track, go back and switch the next industry. Also been thinking, a double engine could use these extra rails, while the engines are not in use, then the next shift will come on and pickup the light locos, this will justify me purchasing 2 SD70, one ACE or M-2, the other an SD70M

[shortliner]

You certainly work quickly, Warren - that looks good

[alcoRS1]

I put together the staging area, tomorrow I will finish the rest of the first stage.

 

[Glorious NSE]

Ref the Traincat stuff, we used them for a C&O style signal mast (2300101) on RS Tower, the kit is very good but the thickness of brass used in the kit we thought was surprisingly thin, so be careful if the reason you are choosing the brass kit is for greater durability over a plastic one.

 

I think we have a beautiful looking signal that has a finer look than a plastic model but i'm not sure it's a lot different in terms of strength.

 

Layout's looking good and i'm liking the development of the plan.

[alcoRS1]

 

completed first part of the second level, end of month I will build the other side of the shelf. I laid the track down, a slight change to the original design. The scenic area starts after the triple switch. I like only have 2 industries in 8 ft, I trying to get a more real feel, and avoid the pack to much into the layout space. will review the other side of the layout, to see a way to make more scenic space, I have some ideas based on a short line here in town.

 

my MP15AC is nearly complete, just need to add the side railings and paint a couple of items. I decided not to replace the MRC factory decoder, instead I modified the CVs to make it run and sound a little better. I thought the money saved could go to fixing up my GP38-2 into a UP GP38-2 with DCC Soundtraxx sound.

[alcoRS1]

 

sell this UP MP15AC is complete, other than a light weathering, and maybe some graffiti I don't think I will be changing must else.

[alcoRS1]

I have redesigned my layout, this will be better, a little more spaced out, and realistic looking.

 

 

I had to add the run around, seeing I will not have a yard, this is so I can have a bit more action on switching.

[Adrian Wintle]

That is a nice representation of a relatively current simple track plan. The only thing I see that doesn't look 'right' is the lower left. If the two sidings are serving the same industry there would almost certainly be only one switch from the main line, with the split occurring after that. This means that the railroad only has to be concerned about the one switch, while the other is likely the responsibility of the owner of the industry.

 

Adrian