Broadoak

A selection of pictures showing RI #947 an EMD SW1500 switcher wearing the bankruptcy blue livery she wore in the later part of the 1970's. She is seen arriving with two RI empty covered hoppers to be loaded at the Western Grain Co elevator at Colonel's Crossing.
In the foreground is the premises of KAP lumber, who manage much of the forestry in the area.
In the background is the depot and a water tower. The latter belongs to a local preservation society who run the occasional train. Although I have never seen a steam loco on the layout.

Peter M
 

I have found a better picture to show the ore cars being worked through the loader and the two F7 road switchers waiting on the team track.
When exhibiting I liked using the two F units but my other helpers did not, they always ran conventional road switchers like an SP SD45 or an SP SD7 Cadillac.
The blue box Athearn Cadillac growled from new and it still does some twenty odd years and many hours of trouble free running later.

Peter M

A Boston & Maine geep is setting back with a cut of pulpwood flat cars in the siding next to the Midas Cement facility in Benson east yard.
The model is another of Andy's who always brings some locomotives from eastern road for a run, as at this time he didn't have a layout at home.

A farmer's truck being loaded with cut lumber for use on his own farm.

Peter M

 

The Rockville Building Supply Company make roof trusses, window frames and other general architectural wood work using locally sourced lumber. The finished products are shipped out in excess height box cars for the roof trusses and ordinary box or flat cars for the rest.
This is the bog standard Atlas kit with added details and figures.

A Rock Island SW1500 #942, one of ten, in the livery it carried when first purchased from EMD is seen switching an ATSF covered hopper in the back siding at Colonel's Crossing.
These locomotives had the optional Flexicoil trucks and due to their high tractive effort made then useful as transfer power and ultimately as slug control units.

A dark blue pick up truck takes a chance and nips across the grade Crossing while a switching move is in progress.

It would seem you get idiots on models as well as in real life.

Peter M
 

A couple of shots showing TVRR #8 a chop nosed geep she too is an Athearn blue box that I have chopped the nose on, added a GE cab, removed the dynamic brake blister and added a Paducah type yoke. She is seen working in the yard at Colonel's Crossing and then rolling over Colonel's Creek.

These pictures were taken against the original back scene which Colonel's Crossing had when it was exhibited before I re-painted it to look like forest covered hills it has now.

Some years later we see TVRR #8 working in the yard with a load of empty pulpwood flat cars. She is now running on GE trucks which are not so popular with the crews as the original Blomberg ones.

Peter M

An SP SW1500 hustles a short train of covered hoppers out of Benson on its way to Colonel's Crossing.

Later that same day we see two views of the immaculate SP SW1500 during a break for beans outside the Farmer's Co-op elevator at Colonel's Crossing.
The stake truck belongs to a local farmer who is collecting some fertiliser and seeds.

The flat concrete area is grey board (used by printers for making pads) several layers glued down and painted with a light grey emulsion. Magnolia is the base colour with a little black and a touch of green mixed in. When dry it was given several very thin washes of grey to vary the colour. Cracks in the concrete were added with a fine black marker.

Peter M

Another important industry served by the railroad is lumber,  here we see a CF7 in AD&N livery rolling over the grade crossing and the small creek at Colonel's Crossing with a cut of box cars.

A RI chop nosed geep seen at the same location as the photo above coming in to Colonel's crossing to collect a cut of pulpwood flat cars. The back scene is supposed to represent the rolling hills covered in lush forests found in south west Arkansas. I painted it using artist's acrylics in tubes, they give a more dense colour not dissimilar to oil paints.

Peter M

No Dan this is the real Bill Gates, he of Alameda Fame. I don't know the other one, something to do with computers I think.

Seriously poor Bill had a stroke some years ago so I don't think he models anymore. He was a very talented guy.

Peter M

A RI SW1500 #947 with a grain extra has just passed the minimal locomotive servicing facilities at CC and is seen next to the KAP yard.
Car repairs are carried out here for other railroads so this provides some extra traffic and tractors etc. are repaired at KAP's yard.

In reality this locomotive was a slug mother and worked at Armourdale Kansas.

An I&W chop nosed GP7 standing over the inspection pit. It is a blue box Athearn that I modified myself loosely based on a D&I Railroad locomotive.
It is fitted with dynamic brakes which are not need on the I&W but are useful if the locomotive is hired out to another road that does need them.
In the background an SP GP60 can be seen with a train of pulpwood flatcars.

A TVRR GE 60 ton switcher standing over the inspection pit. This model was made by doing a cut and shut job on two Bachmann 44tonners by my old friend Bill Gates some years ago.
She is used mainly for MOW jobs on a Sunday morning.

Peter M

 

A Pennsy gondola loaded with agricultural limestone spotted on the team track. The car is waiting to be unloaded into a farmer's truck, then it will then be spread on his land to improve the soil quality.
The bucket on the loader needs changing from the pulp handling grab it is fitted with now. The rock face hides a very tight curve in the tunnel, which can he accessed by removing a panel.

Peter M

As bauxite ore was the main source of traffic it makes sense to start with a few pictures of this operation.

An I&W EMD SW1000 switcher working a cut of ore cars through the loading facility. The empty cars are brought in by an SP or RI road switcher, they spot the cars in the loop and park the road switcher next to the depot and go to a local diner for a break. An I&W switcher collects the cars from the loop and works them through the ore loader. When full they are pushed back into the loop to be picked up by the road switcher who then departs for the interchange with either the SP or RI.

A pair of SP F7's coupling up to a cut of full ore cars in the loop at Colonel's Crossing prior to departing to the interchange.

The rock face behind the ore loader served to hide a two road fiddle yard on the original layout. The cars were loaded from behind with loads made from real iron ore glued to a plasticard base using a special tool made for the job. Canvas drapes hanging down ensured the viewer couldn't see how it was done. We usually showed youngsters how it was done but not their mums and dads.

I added a small freelance powdery material loader made from scrap in the spares box to give another reason for spotting a covered hopper on this track. It also serves as a team track and pulp wood is loaded here directly from trucks.
In the background an SW7 end cab switcher is working cars through the ore loader.

Peter M

Thank you Simon,

I have always had a soft spot for photographs of a model but not having a locomotive in the picture.

There will be a few more as  photographically we wander round south west Arkansas.

Peter M

Thanks Daniel, I have tried to make the industries believable just like a real railroad. It makes operating more interesting, I think using a simple card system for both cars and their destinations also helps.
 

Peter M

When I first retired Colonel's Crossing following a house move I built a small L shaped switching layout called Benson. Unfortunately I did not take any still photos of the layout.
A change of job allowed another move to a bigger house and
this meant I had room to combine the two into one terminus to terminus layout.
To allow for the doorway CC had to be shortened and the hidden siding disguised behind a rock face that hid a tight curve.

The following photographs show what the layout looked like before Colonel's Crossing was finally dismantled a few years ago.

The whole point of any layout is to provide transport for the various industries served by the railroad.
The main industry on CC was bauxite which required frequent trains of short ore cars these were handled by the SP and the RI. The other industries served were agriculture and lumber.

Thus allowing plenty of switching with loads in and out.

Track plan showing the various industries served by the fictional I&W and TVRR.

Peter m
Benson was much the same with a flour mill being the biggest user of the railroad. There was also grain elevators, feed merchants and the local farm cooperative. There was a cement silo that served local builders and a team track that allowed pulpwood loading direct from trucks.

My old buddy Andy Knott came up a few weeks ago and brought with him his latest acquisitions. He took a few photos of them working in the yard at Benson.
They are all DC Atlas models.

Peter M

Up until now all the photographs I have taken were done using my wife's compact, unfortunately it cried enough and had to be replaced.

These are a few pictures using my new camera, just trying out its capabilities really. I'm very pleased with it so far given its modest cost, it was on offer at half price.

The photos show an EMD SW1500 wearing Missouri Pacific livery which it carried for a short while when the UP took over Missouri Pacific. The loco is seen pushing cars around Benson West yard one morning.

A St Louis South Western, better known as the Cotton Belt GP60 is seen lurking in the yard at Benson. These powerful four axle road switchers were used mainly on high speed piggy back trailer service trains.

The brakeman is seen getting train orders from the yardmaster's grounded caboose.

Peter M

 

Thank you Daniel I'm glad you are enjoying the saga. Due to being diagnosed with PMR my hands are not as dexterous as they used to be so I do much more operating nowadays. It is good fun and I really enjoy it, the secret is to have a purpose with all the structures and industries on the layout.

I am nearly at the end of this sequence but then I shall go back some fifteen years to how Benson and its connection to my old exhibition layout Colonel's Crossing came about.

Peter M

Volvo pulpwood loader working in the east yard.

View of the two track fiddle yard which just looks like part of the yard.

I’m rather pleased with this arrangement as it works well but is unobtrusive. The smaller original Benson was L shaped and had a fiddle yard hidden behind a scenic break. It looked fine but was not very practical for making up trains.

Peter M
 

At the stage these photographs were taken the buildings at this end of the layout were only temporarily positioned because I was still checking the operating possibilities.

Arkansas Feed Co, a picture taken on a Sunday morning with no activity at all.

A D&H Alco# 404 on a track of the fiddle yard next to the pulp wood loading track. Andy favours eastern roads hence the visitors at Benson.

D&H Alco #5023 on the pulp wood loading track, the man on the front porch seems to rolling a cigarette.

Peter M

The RS27 Andy bought second hand and already had some rather poor weathering done to it. I have tried to improve with a few thin washes and a little work with a dry brush. Like all his models it is all singing and dancing, with lights and sounds.

An un-retouched picture of the GBW Alco RS27 rolling over the grade crossing in Benson west yard.

Another view of the GBW Alco showing the other side of the loco.

316 in the east yard by the weigh bridge office.

Peter M

My old buddy and long time helper at exhibitions Andy Knott came up to fix my ailing computer, as usual he brought a few locomotives with him for me to weather while he worked on the PC.

We found a photo of the GBW Alco RS-27 loco and used this as a rough guide.

Andy took some photos of it running on Benson.
Having photographed the loco he retouched the picture adding telephone wires and smoke that most Alcos seem to produce on starting to move.

Peter M
 

After the U-Boats departure the I&W Alco S2 uncouples from the empty hoppers in the Redwing siding and runs to the main loop head shunt to pick up the two cars spotted there. These are then re-spotted in their original places so that the loading of them can continue. She then parks the loco by the west yard yardmaster’s caboose and waits for her next job.

Peter M

IC # 5004 makes its way to the fiddle yard and picks up the three cars standing there. She pulls them back into the loop and runs round the cars. She then couples onto the front of the train and having completed a satisfactory brake test sets off for the RI main line and ultimately the gulf port of Galveston.

 Ivery much regret these photos no longer exist.

Peter M

The little Alco switcher then runs back into the yard and couples onto the empty hoppers that the IC U-boat brought in. She pulls the cars into the main loop and runs around the cars, having coupled up she manoeuvres the cars into the Redwing siding and spots them there ready for loading with grain. The switcher then waits in the siding while the U-Boat makes up her outbound train of grain filled hoppers.

Peter M
 

The black end cab switcher # 105 then couples onto the rear of the three loaded hoppers in the Redwing Milling siding. The cars are pulled out of the siding and pushed to the fiddle yard where they are uncoupled and left.

Peter M