11-07-2011, 06:21 PM
That's a great photo of that interesting little trans-load shed. Similar type facilities can be found around the country, used for unloading various commodities and something worth considering adding to a layout. Small industry footprint, but with lots of rail activity. Good candidate for a team/trans-load track. Sort of have that same idea for my own layout.
My mention of the phosphate hoppers was probably a bad choice, just something that I know you see in Florida. They are not covered hoppers, but rather open hoppers (usually two bay) and are used for shipping out phosphate from various mining locations in the state.
The bakery (if used for its intended purpose) could receive either Airslide covered hoppers or pressure differential type covered hoppers (or both) of various types of flour. Been thinking about possibly having one of my industries representing a small bakery as a destination for my Airslide covered hoppers, rather than a chocolate or confection plant. Interesting, simple structure to use as a prototype can be found here: http://www.the-gauge.net/forum/viewtopic...=24&t=4788
It could also represent a plastics facility as per your original idea and would then receive pellet type covered hoppers, like those you see in the photos. Keep in mind that these pellet cars are usually 62 feet long. You could even have pellets being unloaded at both the plant and the trans-load. Perhaps one structure would be where covered hoppers are unloaded and the other where tank cars of some chemical are received.
If you're wanting to go strictly with a Florida location and CSX, then we'll have to look around on Google/Bing and see if there are some other interesting branch lines or locations that would work for you. There are some that are on the Pinsly lines (Florida Central, Florida Midland, Florida Northern) that would be interesting to use as the basis for a switching layout, but of course not CSX in the present era.
For whatever it's worth, I think you've done an outstanding job with your version of the Palmetto Spur and I personally would stay with that. Just a thought here, but have you considered making the two larger industries on your layout removable so that you could change them out to represent other industries from time to time? For instance, the warehouse might be replaced with a plastics facility and the food processor some other industry from time to time just so you could use different freight equipment on the layout.
Thanks for the tip about AnyRail. Guess I need to spend more time finding the hidden settings in that program, although I'm really spending way too much time on the computer when I should be working on the layout!
My mention of the phosphate hoppers was probably a bad choice, just something that I know you see in Florida. They are not covered hoppers, but rather open hoppers (usually two bay) and are used for shipping out phosphate from various mining locations in the state.
The bakery (if used for its intended purpose) could receive either Airslide covered hoppers or pressure differential type covered hoppers (or both) of various types of flour. Been thinking about possibly having one of my industries representing a small bakery as a destination for my Airslide covered hoppers, rather than a chocolate or confection plant. Interesting, simple structure to use as a prototype can be found here: http://www.the-gauge.net/forum/viewtopic...=24&t=4788
It could also represent a plastics facility as per your original idea and would then receive pellet type covered hoppers, like those you see in the photos. Keep in mind that these pellet cars are usually 62 feet long. You could even have pellets being unloaded at both the plant and the trans-load. Perhaps one structure would be where covered hoppers are unloaded and the other where tank cars of some chemical are received.
If you're wanting to go strictly with a Florida location and CSX, then we'll have to look around on Google/Bing and see if there are some other interesting branch lines or locations that would work for you. There are some that are on the Pinsly lines (Florida Central, Florida Midland, Florida Northern) that would be interesting to use as the basis for a switching layout, but of course not CSX in the present era.
For whatever it's worth, I think you've done an outstanding job with your version of the Palmetto Spur and I personally would stay with that. Just a thought here, but have you considered making the two larger industries on your layout removable so that you could change them out to represent other industries from time to time? For instance, the warehouse might be replaced with a plastics facility and the food processor some other industry from time to time just so you could use different freight equipment on the layout.
Thanks for the tip about AnyRail. Guess I need to spend more time finding the hidden settings in that program, although I'm really spending way too much time on the computer when I should be working on the layout!
kamerad47 Wrote:There is 1 problem with all of these layouts including mine !! No one makes a palastics trailer to transload too???Couldn't agree more! I keep expecting to pick up an issue of MR or RMC and see that Athearn or someone has FINALLY produced models of these trailers. They'd sell out in nothing flat! Haven't really checked much, but perhaps there are some nice looking diecast models of these available somewhere in O, HO and N scale. Will have to look around some.
Ed
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