After having dabbled in Gn15 scale, HO scale, and took a look at n scale, I've decided finally what my next Micro Layout project will be.
G scale track, 45mm is big, and most wouldn't think a micro layout could be built from such a scale. However, a 2X6 area, which is still small for G scale, provides enough room for a decent switching layout. So my new project will be a 3ft gauge Fn3 scale layout featuring Colorado mining operations.
Rapid City, SD is really a unique town to model. Literally next to the Black Hills, Rapid is both hilly, tree filled, and yet has a downtown district. The district is also old town, and the train still runs through it! Also, CP, DM&E, UP, and BNSF can be seen on the tracks in Rapid City. Tracks still head East, South, and Northwest out of the town. Below are some photos for inspiration:
We'll start at the south end of town. There is a small Classification yard which his under Canadian Pacific through the DM&E (Dakota Minnesota and Eastern). From here, the line continues North, crossing underneath State Highway 79. The line will also curve West and continues past the South Dakota School of Mines and Technology and into Downtown Rapid City. This mainline heads south past a cement factory and continues onto the towns of Hermosa, Fairburn, Buffalo Gap, Oral, Smithwick, Oelrichs, South Dakota/Nebraska state line and Chadron/Crawford, NE.
Several streets cross the tracks in Downtown, I tried to get shots looking both East and West. Above we are looking west from East Blvd. McKie Ford is on the right, with the Rapid City Fire department on the left. Below we are looking at a telephoto shot down the tracks from east Blvd. In hte distance you can see a grain elevator and a track crew thawing turnouts.
Looking Eastward from East Blvd. we see the mainline turn south, with and industrial spur to an unknown industry. At the bottom left you can catch the yard lead headed to the left.
Following the yard lead from the photo above, we meet a four track yard. The yard as two short tracks extending one block which holds about 10 50' cars on the shortest track. two longer tracks used to be part of a main line, but now are used as overflow tracks for the various industries. Also, the buildings surrounding these tracks seem to be at some point serviced by rail, but are now served by truck.
Again looking West, this time from 1st street, the mainline diverges into two branches. The left one continues through downtown and eventually reaches the towns of Black Hawk and Sturgis. This line continues in an arch around the north end of the Black Hills. The other line will actually reverse direction in a tight diameter, 140 degree turn. While doing this, the line will also gain elevation and cross Rapid Creek. The main will continue through North Rapid and head East near I-90.
Looking back East toward East Blvd.
Looking East from Second street we can see the two mainlines meeting.
Looking West from 2nd Street, we can see that a tire shop has taken residence between the mainlines. In the distance one can see Dakota Mill and Grain, one of the largest facilities in town, and on the Left we see the same white grain Elevator from previous photos.
From this point, the line will cross Omaha Street and then cross Rapid Creek on a cement beam bridge. The line then continues upgrade going past the tiny residential community of North Rapid.
I would never take this shot if I even thought that a train would come, but on a Tuesday morning after a late winter storm, the track crews have to clear the line before operations can resume. Here we are looking East from 3rd street, using the large Ford dealership flag as reference.
Looking West from 3rd Street, we see a siding which allows a train to pass the grain elevator without being stopped by the cuts of cars parked on the side track. The White elevator ahead is serviced by a spur, but the siding is used for exchanging loaded for empty.
Across the tracks from where 4th street ends, we look north and are faced by Dakota Mill and Grain. This elevator complex is impressive and will get photographed in the future.
From the same spot, we again look East down the track.
As we walk along the side road trucks use to fill up at warehouses, we come to the white grain elevator to find that it is Aby's Feed and Seed. There used to be a track which is snow covered which runs next to the building. Some track is still in place, but the turnouts are long gone.
We now look at the Dakota Mill and Grain and can make out several tracks leading to the complex.
We now look down the switch lead for the Dakota Mill and Grain at 5th street.
In the photo, underneath the grain elevator between the puddle and the shadow, there is a faint line in the snow which is where the track is for Aby's Feed and Seed.
From 5th Street I climbed up onto a three story parking garage. From the top, we can see that there is three spurs which go to Dakota Mill and Grain. The left spur breaks into two tracks which run on either side of the large, white elevator. The right spur continues underneath the structure on the far right. This spur must serve the Mill section of Dakota Mill and Grain.
Looking West, we can see that past 6th street, the line goes back to one mainline. This line will continue through a pass and into the west District of Rapid City. From Google Maps, it appears as though there is a large industry, possible cement plant in that section which may need more exploring.
In this photo, hidden, are a pair of ex-Milwaukee Road buildings. Milwaukee Road used to own a lot of track age within Rapid City.
The depot is now a Mexican Restraunt, while the Freight house below is now a bar and grill with Irish and red neck themes.
So there you have Downtown Rapid City. I hope you enjoyed, and possibly will think of modeling this great little City in the middle of nowhere.
This hobby, like anything, changes with time. Fashions go in and out of style, same with music, movies, plays, art, cars, airplanes, and even trains! So how does one keep up with the times? Many start out the hobby with something basic, but modern. From there, a modeler can either stick with tradition, innovation, or take the best of both; whatever suits that person's needs. Unless whoever is reading this just came out of a coma, most of us have likely heard about some or all of the trends that I'm about to list. But it's still good to go over our latest fabs.
Curves. This may not be new, but it is something that has been used a lot these last few years. The traditional layout was a sheet of plywood with corners. Though popular, adding curves to the bench work has become just as common. Since track and scenery flows and never has 90 degree angles, it makes sense to have everything else flow as well, and the bench work does just that. This softens the bench work's profile and also allows for wider isles at choke points and narrower isles where not many people need to pass.
Valance Lighting. This is also not new, but much more common now than ever. Valance lighting follows the bench work fascia and evenly illuminates the layout. The front is also highlighted, allowing the trains to be seen better by viewers. This also has the added bonus of framing the layout so that pipes, wires, and emergency lights can be hidden from view, yet still be useful. Think of this as bench work for the ceiling.
DCC. Still not new, but a definite trend. Digital command control is like model trains 2.0. DCC is able to control lights, sounds, speed, direction, and many other features of trains giving the modeler and extreme advantage for modeling. Most systems are not cheap, but are worth the price in almost every situation. The only thing DCC can't do is improve the experiences of one modeler running one engine. In that case, traditional DC power is still king.
Portable bench work. With the nation's economy in the dumps lately, many people have had the displeasure of moving in order to find work. In the event that a modeler moves so often that he or she can't complete a display before needing to move; the modeler may find the term 'portable layout' a comforting phrase. Layouts that are able to travel must be light, compact, and use of space must be good. But, if a modeler can do all that, they will have a display that can go just about anywhere. Modular, sectional, collapsible, in in a console, many model railroads in recent times have been built for the road.
After months of stalling, I've finally been able to produce all four Colorado Tourist Railroad videos from my trip last Summer. Below are the videos and a quick summary of the routes:
1. Pikes Peak Cog Railroad
Pike's Peak is one of the tallest mountains in the region, and also has a tourist line which goes straight to the top. The Video says it all, but the site has historical information: cograilway.com.
2. The Royal Gorge Route
The Royal Gorge is a great excursion, which winds through the Royal Gorge, a steep canyon created by the Arkansas River. The train heads west from Canon City, and heads up the canyon all the way to the top. There, a passing siding provides a place to stop and let Union Pacific Trains pass before returning down the canyon in reverse. The Gorge's Site is here: royalgorgeroute.com.
3. The Leadville Colorado and Southern
On top of the Rockies, there also runs a railway that began operating on Memorial Day, 1988. This is the Leadville Colorado and Southern (LC&S). The route starts from Leadville, Colorado; ad heads northeast to Climax. Scenes include the Great Dividing Range, Mount Massive, Mount Elbert, and Mount Zion. Also there are spectacular views of the upper Arkansas Valley. Here is the website: leadville-train.com
4. Georgetown Loop Railroad
The Georgetown Loop Railroad is a great excursion for those seeking a quick afternoon ride, or an extensive tour. The Route runs from Georgetown up the canyon to Silver Plume. In between is a stop at Lebanon Mine, which is open for tours. Also seen is an 87 ton ALCO switcher, a 45 tonner by GE, and West Side Lumber Company's Shay #9. All three are of the (now rare) 3ft gauge instead of standard gauge.
So there you have it, four spectacular Colorado railways still in operation. I hope that next time I can get pictures of other great railways: Cripple Creek, Durango and Silverton, Cubers and Toltec, Denver Trolley, and many others!
This summer, I toured on four spectacular Colorado Railroads, The Pikes Peak Cog Railway, The Royal Gorge Route, The Georgetown Loop Railroad, and finally the Leadville Colorado and Southern (LC&S). The latest video features the LC&S. The tourist line opened on Memorial day, 1988. All locomotives, rail cars, cabooses, buildings, and track between Climax and Leadville were bought for $10 at auction by Stephanie and Kenneth Olsen. Only the depot and 0-8-0 steam engine #641 were bought from the city to complete the line. The line operates primarily in summer as the snow gets very deep in the mountains, and they lack a plow. They do, however, run in the fall so people can enjoy the spectacular scenery that central Colorado offers. Anyways, sit back and enjoy some great photography (and mediocre cinematography).
Below are the other two videos that I made, both Royal Gorge and the Pikes Peak Cog Railroad:
When trying to actually model a particular place, it is often times hard to locate, research, visit, record, document, and finally model a selected scene for your railroad. So below I am offering my system of locating a prototype to model. you can do as I listed, or you can blaze your own trail or follow another person's example. This method simply works for me, so I put it forth in hopes that it helps someone who reads this article. Remember though, the point is to have fun, not to dwell on accuracy:
I first read, think, and process the idea for a prototype in my head. Of course, I may not know the names of places, or any specific scenes off the top of my head, but I don't really worry about that until later. During research usually yields some features that enhance operations. Sometimes I decide to pursue a specific scene and look for other interesting features around the scene selected. A map of he area would be helpful as well. Let me use and example: I like the Midwest for railways, so I'll simply go with the one closest and most familiar to me, the SOO Line. I also want long trains, as well as locals, so I need a spot with lent of small towns, major industries, and should be located on or near a main line. The Paynesville Subdivision in Minnesota, running from Glenwood, MN southeast to Minneapolis. So now I go on to research the subject in the next step.
After getting a rough idea about what I want out of a railroad, I the move on to actually researching. This part of the research process is more of probe to see for sure what I want is included in the prototype area. I make out a list of what I want on the railroad. I try to look for about 80% of the things I want, if the number of features is limited greatly, and my checklist. I often use the tool, Google Maps, to follow the line from point A to Point B and try to identify industries. I can also snoop around the industries with the use of the street view. In the example, I followed the line looking for all the points I want to model. Bridges, industries, and towns are some of the things I pay attention to. At most grade crossings, I go to street view on Google Maps to check out the terrain and look for the quality of the track, plus I look at how the buildings line up with the tracks.
At this point, I can now tell if the prototype is up to my standards. So now I make a file of the towns I want to model and I research. I also try to find online sources of the line's history, or the railroad's history. This allows me to estimate what kind of motive power was used, what types of cars and structures saw service. How busy the line was, or when it was active. In the example, I found that the motive power was fairly up to date with the rest of the area since this was a main line. Cars were lagging a little bit as the Soo Line was conservative with their purchases, buying cars where needed, but going with the policy- "if it aint broke, don't fix it." The line also saw a steady stream of traffic with both locals and through trains headed both directions all day, every day.
As I research the towns, I begin to make points on what I can realistically model. This is where the old "givens and druthers" by Armstrong comes in handy. Since I am operations oriented, I want more industries and less empty space. However, I also understand the need to have a decent amount of space between towns to convey the idea of distance and set the tone for rural Minnesota. In the example I would finalize what I can use, and narrow down my towns to only what I can have, despite what I might want. Thankfully things like scenic compression, helix's, and scenery dividers give me more bang for the buck space-wise. I might even try to do a serious track plan for my space.
At this point, my background research has come to a close. If possible, I then travel to the sites I want to model to take pictures and video. Having a blog like this to store notes and pictures can also prove to be a good tool for keeping everything organized. After taking pictures, I can now start modeling knowing that what I have is accurate, realistic, and bound to be fun to run.
Of course, this is just one way to find out about prototypes, and there are endless methods for this topic. However, this is simply what I use. I like it because most of it involves the Iternet and not the car. Some people strive to know the history of a prototype, others try to replicate what they saw or remember but this system that I use gives me the chance to know the history of the line, and to know what is on the prototype in the past and present, from point A to point B. To me personally, knowing what I can about what I model gives the models more life, and more representation than a simple display. How you feel about this topic and what you wish to know and see are completely up to you, and there is no wrong way of doing it. The point really is to sit down and operate your trains! Prototypical or not.
