Westmoreland - Siloan Scenic Buffer
June 14, 2023
About two feet separate the south end of Westmoreland, to the left in this picture, and Siloan. I decided a tree covered hill designed to blend in with the back drop should work. I must admit I was a bit apprehensive about the appearance of the "bare" hill.
But the the end result actually turned out just about the way I envisioned it.. I would have liked to have had the room to add a few trees to the near side of the tracks but the bench work is only14" wide here and the aisle here is only about 30" wide. I still need to add ballast.
June 16, 2023
Southern GP38 #2743 shoving a couple of covered hoppers past the newly forested right-of-way between Westmoreland and Siloan with loaded grain cars for Jenkin's Feed. The old tunnel portal that lead to the helix was located just behind the Farmland covered hopper.
Layover Spur, Team Track & Grain Bins
June 19, 2023
Progress has slowed a bit around Siloan for a couple of reasons. Most notable is the fact work is also being done simultaneously on the upper level (Sn3) in preparation for a narrow gauge get together in July. In addition, the car cards and waybills are also being updated.
I like to move structures around, leaving them in location for a couple of days, and then change things around again until a final arrangement is decided upon. The original plan was to have the large grain bins back in the corner where the small bin is temporarily located. It will be replaced by a group of small vertical tanks for storing fertilizer. The red building is a temporary "place holder" for the Blair line Farm Supply kit, in the cue, sitting on my work desk.
Time was also found to paint the fascia and install a new car card storage box. The boxes are made specifically for each location. In this case (Siloan) it has 3 car card slots; from left to right, one for on spots, one for off spots, and one for out bounds. The boxes are made from styrene. The card shown is a out bound car headed for the Illinois Central (orange) at Madisonville. The orange banner across the top of the waybill allows the operator to quickly identify where a car is headed. The on/off switch is for locomotive/caboose track. The railroad is also set up with a computer program to manage car forwarding but I still prefer the car cards for my own one man casual operating sessions that can range from a few minutes to maybe an hour or more.
Car Cards & Waybills
June 20, 2023
Among other projects, is the job of replacing the old car cards and waybills to reflect the elimination of the upper level. I make my own car cards and waybills using a Excel spreadsheet. Here is a sample. 65lb paper is used on a HP all in one printer. The individual car card and waybills are then cut to size with a straight edge and X-acto knife. I used to print the waybills on both sides but now I just print up two single sided four destination waybills for each car.
With
the elimination of the upper level, operations had to change.
Cars bound for Chattanooga are now left on the siding at Westmoreland
just before the end of the day (operating session). Theoretically, an overnight turn from Chattanooga will pick up the out bound cars and drop off the in bound cars for the next day (operating session). I guess this would be considered "visible" staging.
The layout is set up to operate with 8-10 people using 2 man crews, a yardmaster and a dispatcher (optional). Each job has a set of instructions along with the associated track diagram(s). Here are the instructions and diagrams for the South Local. Track diagrams show each industry and capacity. Generally, each town or industry has room for off spots.
Blair Line "Farmers Fertilizer Supply"
June 24, 2023
I am disappointed with this kit. This relatively recent kit, while inexpensive, is not up to current laser cut wood standards. First off, the provided roofing material is a peel and stick photograph. In my opinion, since we view our models mostly from above, just about anything that provided some relief would be a major improvement. I have ordered American Model Builders 3-tab shingles at a cost of $18.00 to replace the photograph(s). Next up, the peel and stick corner trim is not wide enough to cover the alignment tabs in the siding material and overlap the adjoining corner trim board for a nice clean corner. I replaced one of the corner boards with some 6" scale lumber to get a better looking corner. If I had it to do over again, I'd use milled wood or styrene "L" stock for the corner trim. And finally, the elevator is made from laser cut wood components and in my mind is a bit crude; wood, without a lot of work, does a poor job a representing metal. I will probably replace the kit provided elevator with a cut down (height) version made by Rix or Walthers; another $23.00. I should have bought the elevator and shingles and scratch built the rest using Tichy and/or Grandt Line doors and windows. I think the end result would have been better.
Here Here is a photo of my Fertilizer Supply waiting for the replacement shingles, signs and other small details.
Up next is this new kit for handling liquid fertilizers from Walthers. It will be painted to match the Blair Line kit and finish off the structures required for Siloan.
As always, your comments, suggestions and questions are welcome.
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