Non Rail Served Industries.

[Brakie]

This idea came up in one of the discussions and I thought we would look farther into this idea.

Should we include non rail served industries even on a ISL?

That's a mighty good question and one that should be considered.To my mind yes we should include non rail served industries as scenery and perhaps as a view block.Another way is to add a trailer drop lot which would suggest there are more industries beyond the modeled area.

What size should be industries be?

Another good question.I would recommend smaller industries like some of the Pikestuff buildings or DPM buildings.We could even have some weed covered track next to the dock-the switch has been removed since the company switch to trucks.

Guys all this does is adds scenery and brings believability to the layout.

As always it a choice a modeler's choice.
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Note* For those that may not know a trailer drop lot is used in drop and hook(aka grab and go) truck service.A contract trailer spotting service delivers the trailer to its final destination.

[faraway]

Sure, one of my largest/longest industry is not served by rail. The long white wall behind the fence is an industry without any rail. I would not have hesitated to make it 2" - 4" thick if I would have have more space.

[FCIN]

I'd say yes we should include non-rail served structures. Even pretty large ones. As you mentioned, it's more or less just scenery and can be very useful for view blocks, especially on an ISL. I actually think it would look much better on an industrial spur then to have just some open terrain type scenery.

These days especially, look along most any industrial spur or even along a main line, and you'll find plenty of large and small structures that are no longer served by rail or never were. There are plenty of examples that can be found in the area that Lance Mindheim models in Miami and all over the country. Take a look at this industrial branch in Marietta, GA. http://maps.google.com/?ie=UTF8&ll=33.97...7&t=k&z=18. As you enter the spur, there are large buildings on both sides of the track that don't appear to have ever been rail served. And they sit at different angles too.

If you have to stage your train on the "main part" of the layout, as my current plan requires, it's a great way to hide the fact that the train is already on the spur and that part of the layout is just a switching lead. I'd put a highway overpass at what would be the entrance to the spur too, just to the left of the structures, to imply that the the spur connects to the rest of the world.

[Londoner]

The example I would put forward is Warrensburg NY, served by the D & H. There is a shirt factory where the tracks end that most modelers would run a spur to, in reality it was not rail served.

Ken

[Brakie]

Reinhard,That's a very nice touch.

I really like your "box" buildings.

[MountainMan]

Non-rail served industries are like seasoning in cooking...the idea is to emphasize what is there, not overwhelm it with something different. After all, model RR layouts are about....railroads. 8-)

[Brakie]

Non-rail served industries are like seasoning in cooking...the idea is to emphasize what is there, not overwhelm it with something different. After all, model RR layouts are about....railroads. 8-)

Agreed..However with today's excellent semi truck models it would almost be a crime not to include truck served industries..

[Russ Bellinis]

District Ave in Vernon is what I want to model as part of my ISL. The prototype has a bunch of industrial business to business suppliers on the North side of the street. Behind those companies is the A & B yards of the LAJ, and the switching lead/run around tracks. 5 spurs come off that lead in the next mile or 2 and go between those stores and cross District Ave to go into rail served industries. I'm still thinking of how to model it on a bench 2 feet wide by 9 feet long. I'm planning to put the railroad fairly high, but I would still need to reach over any structures to uncouple cars, so that limits how high I can make the bench work. If I make the buildings on the North side too narrow, I lose some of the illusion, but too wide and there isn't room for the rail served industries that are the reason for the layout to exist.