Small Rail-Served Stone/Aggregate Industry

[stokesda]

While doing some online research for my own layout, I stumbled upon this company in Northern VA:

Cedar Mountain Stone Corp
Wesbite: http://www.cedarmtnstone.com/product_transportation.php

The company mines their own rock from the nearby quarry, then they load it into rail cars on a double-ended siding served by NS. Here is a Bing Maps view of the siding area:

http://binged.it/11xplo5

This would be a great candidate for a small, single-spur industry along the front edge of the layout. All you'd need is the track, and a front end loader to load the rock into the rail cars, and maybe a pile or two of rock staged near the spur. The line of trees on the other side of the tracks might be a nice option to act as a scenery divider or to disguise an entrance into staging off the main line running parallel to the spur. Rail cars used would include specially-made aggregate hoppers, old beat up second-hand coal hoppers, or gondolas for rip rap and larger rocks.

[Brakie]

All you'd need is the track, and a front end loader to load the rock into the rail cars, and maybe a pile or two of rock staged near the spur.
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That's how I would do it..A piece or two of flex track,representativeve piles of stone,the endloader and you'r good to go.

[Mike Kieran]

The Milford-Bennington Railroad is like that. The train gets pushed up to the quarry caboose first, loaded with front end loaders, and the goes to the cement plant engine first since thee are no runarounds. a cheap front edge of the layout industry. A front end loader and some spilled gravel.

[Mr Fixit]

No one has mentioned the Trackmobile?

At first I was puzzled as to why they had a trackmobile when there is a nice big front end loader available to move the hopper cars along as they are filled.

Here is my theory; If the trackmobile was not there then someone would have to walk along the hoppers to set and release the some of the hand brakes multiple times during the loading process. Dangerous and time consuming. Far better to have the trackmobile coupled up and providing the motive power and braking, plus the operator is in the cab safely clear of the front end loader. In this case time and motion and health and safety both win by using the trackmobile or some other small locomotive. The trackmobile could even be set up for remote control so that the operator of the loader can control it from his cab when he needs it to move the cut of hoppers along during loading.

As an example the railroad I follow, the Effingham Rail Road, uses its SW1200, EFRR 2716 remotely during aggregate unloading operations at its client Mid-Illinois Concrete, so having the trackmobile set up for remote operations is an option in this day and age.

It gives us modellers the chance to legitimately use a trackmobile, small locomotive or critter in an easily modelled scene.

Mark

[MountainMan]

"Fake It till you Make It, then Fake It some More"

"Arise, go forth and fake it!"

[Mike Kieran]

I have 2 table top track plans for a gravel/aggregate railroad. I'm taking some cues from the Branford Steam Railroad and The Millford & Bennington.



And with a Pikestuff Small Engine House.

[shortliner]

Mike - noticed that your second plan would serve as a real shortline 3.5 miles long - The Ballard Terminal RR <!-- m --><a class="postlink" href="http://www.dickwightman.com/railroad/modelrailroad/btrr/rideonbtrr.html">http://www.dickwightman.com/railroad/mo ... nbtrr.html</a><!-- m -->
with a couple of minor changes - adding a dummy BNSF interchange at the left,and another spur to a fish cannery - might need road access adding to link with the main street - buildings become shops and cafes - The runround (actually in Bright Street) would be simulated by using the oval. Please excuse ny messing with your plan!

   

[shortliner]

Further thought suggests that changing out the curve leading to trhe interchange, for a Peco Setrack small radius, right hand curved turnout, and continuing the spur off that towards the top of the layout, would also let you have the small aggregate faciity that exists on the Ballard Terminal, mentioned in the link quoted in the previous post

    Once again a little more messing with your plan - sorry!

[Mike Kieran]

Jack, you didn't mess up my plan! I was thinking of adding an extra spur.

Or we could run it like this:



The train would run from the engine house to the interchange, pick up the inbound cars, switch them, and shove them back to the interchange. The track at the end of the loop would be the drill lead into the ready mix plant. I changed the fish plant to a ready mix and put a distributor on the upper right hand corner for a variety of cars types.

[shortliner]

Certainly could - I was reminded of the real Ballard Terminal RR and was trying to fit in the actual industries that they switch, but yours would work well for a minimum space shortline too.

[Mike Kieran]

My thoughts on the gravel railroad were to start the day at the engine house, connect onto the train of empty hoppers sitting on the main line and run the train engine first up to the gravel company spur (you can even run laps for added mileage). You would then uncouple from the train, throw the gravel spur switch, couple onto the loaded gravel train, run it out onto the main line, throw the gravel spur switch again, and couple onto the train of empties. You would uncouple the caboose from the empties, pull the train clear of the gravel spur switch, throw the switch, push the empties onto the spur, pull the train of loaded hoppers clear of the spur, couple onto the caboose and shove the train to the pier caboose first.

When you reach the pier, you would push the train onto the spur next to the pier. You would then uncouple the train from the caboose, pull the loaded hoppers back, throw the switch for the pier and shove the train until they couple onto the empties sitting on the pier. You would then pull the entire train back until you clear the switch, throw the switch, shove the empties until they couple onto the caboose, and uncouple the loaded hoppers from the empties. You would pull the loaded hoppers clear of the pier switch, throw the switch, shove the loads onto the pier, uncouple the engine from the train, pull the engine clear of the switch, throw the switch, and start the process all over again.

It should be noted that the gravel pier is enclosed to keep down the dust from the gravel. The Branford Steam Railroad enclosed their pier because local residents were complaining of the dust blowing onto their expensive waterfront homes.

The barges that are loaded hold between 800 and 1200 tons of gravel, depending on the size of the gravel. I've seen up to 12 barges sitting around the harbor at Juniper Point on Google Maps for the Branford Steam Railroad. Look up Tilcon Road, Branford, CT on Google Maps.

The gravel company can consist of anything from Walther's Glacier Gravel Company to Faller Gravel Silos to a front end loader filling up the hopper cars.

I didn't put any runarounds on the layout for several reasons. Railroads try to do without extra track if they can, the lack of a runaround gives the layout a cleaner appearance without attaching a too short runaround, and I like cabooses. Empties are shoved back to the gravel pit caboose first like on the Milford and Bennington RR.

The gravel company could be switched for another industry such as a coal mine or a sand mine, or even a GERN mine.

I also didn't put in an interchange because The railroad just shuttles trains between the gravel pit and the pier.

Any number of engines can be used from 0-4-0Ts to GP-38s, depending on the era you're modelling.

I also wanted to note that the road running through the layout is 3 inches higher than the track. add in that the buildings are adding to the height of the layout and you end up with a scene divider to break the layout into 2 distinct areas.

[Mike Kieran]

I'll also put in some designs for your amusement.

A 60x42 inch layout where the gravel is loaded on the main line with front end loaders. On this layout, the locomotive is parked on the main line when off duty:



The same layout with an engine house:

[Mr Fixit]

You know with a gravel delivery operation and a warehouse, all we need is a donut factory, plus a whole grain mill and we have the makings of the Effingham Rail Road.

Mark

[Mike Kieran]

And cop cars surrounding the doughnut factory.