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Wagon loading scene


Superrams

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Hi Guys

 

Hope you all had a great Christmas and a happy new year to you all !

 

On my layout, i have a smallish area approx 2ft x 6 ins which i want to use as a stone wagon loading area as i have a rake of 5 stone tipplers and i have just purchased Bachmann's 44-071 Wagon loading tower.

This is a building i have been eagerly waiting for release, and i'm pleased with it, but this is not prototypical on it's own as in , How does the stone get up into the tower for despatch into the wagons?

I have seen many quarry based layouts and they include long chutes etc where there will be a moving bed to tranport the stone up to the tower, but i haven't got much room to play with to do this, nor can i find anything in the vast ranges of buildings to compliment it.

I'm not a rivet counter by any means, and i want to utilise the tower, but i do like things to be prototypical and the tower on it's own i don't think is.

I must add,that i 'm not the best scratchbuilder you'll ever see, but i am willing to have a go at this if it is the only answer.

Thanks

John

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Hmm, yes, they seem to have forgotten that.

 

3 options

 

1) Big excavator - probably not sensible, because it would need to be very big to reach the top of the hopper, and it gets to the point that it would be easier to load the wagons direct with that.

2) Some sort of conveyor belt - into the top of the hopper.

3) A version on Redmire's 'tip it in from the back of a lorry' technique - see http://www.reallygoodtrains.co.uk/reallyredmire.html the stone lorries backed up the ramp seen in the second photo and tipped directly into the wagons.

 

Jon

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As you have a wagon loading tower, it would make sense to utilise this in your layout. I would go with no.2 of Jon's suggestion - a covered conveyor belt. You don't have to model the whole length though, it could continue 'off-scene'. Indeed, it could be used to disguise the hole in the backscene if you are going to use a fiddle yard. 

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Thanks guys for the suggestions. I think the covered conveyer has to be the option, the location of the loader does not go anywhere near " off scene " Simon .Good suggestion though for if it did.

Yes Jon, thought about a loading truck, but that would eliminate the need for the loader.

Has anyone scratch built a conveyer and if so how did you go about it please ?

 

Thanks

John

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John,

 

I have never made a conveyor but it shouldn't be too difficult. The first question is, where is your stone coming from? Does your layout include a quarry or is the stone being brought in by lorry? However it arrives at the loading building, you need a method of getting it on to the conveyor at (or just above) ground level; that could be a JCB or dump-truck if starting in a quarry or just tipped from the lorry if made low enough. From there you need a sloping conveyor at, perhaps, 45 degrees to the top of the building. As it is to be covered, it would be just a box section on view, made to match the Bachmann building. The only place the conveyor itself would be visible is at the point it is loaded and there you would need to make a short length of conveyor. I haven't seen one made for stone but it would need to look strong enough to take the weight and that would depend on the size of stone being conveyed. Is it to be stone already graded or is it straight from the quarry in varying sizes? If you are modelling a quarry, the ground level of the conveyor might be extendable to the point of excavation so there could be a longer piece on view. The level part of the conveyor itself would probably be a metal frame supporting rollers set at an angle to form a shallow V, along which is driven a heavy-duty, continuous belt. What you do to stop stop the stone rolling down hill on the rising section, I don't know - but you don't need to show that part! You need to think about the size of the conveyor relative to the building and the loading machinery.

 

Just a few thoughts to spark your own.

 

Harold.

 

EDIT. If I were making this I would use plastic sheet and plastic strip - eg Evergreen

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John, look around the net at some pictures then try a visit to B&Q. and go to the electrical conduit section (the plastic channels that hide cables). They come in small sizes and suitably sprayed with Halfords grey primer and a few plasticard supports here and there should make a passable conveyor!

 

Paul

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Only problem with B&Q will be the price, find your local electrical wholesaler and ask for EgaTrunk or similar. You don't need the type with an adhesive strip all down the back. Even cheaper, does your friendly local electrician have a few off-cuts? I guess that you don't need any more than 400mm and this stuff comes in 2000mm lengths.

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