Hi everyone!
I have to admit that even though I’ve always had an interest in narrow gauge railroading, I’ve never done any actual modeling in a narrow gauge, outside of a failed attempt to build an HOn3 layout, where I discovered that hand laying turnouts was definitely not my forte’!
But anyway, since lately I have had an eye on something in On30, & now that Shamus has asked me to moderate a narrow gauge forum, I thought I’d talk a little bit about some ideas I have for an On30 layout.
What I’m visualizing, is sort of a narrow gauge predecessor to a RR like my current N scale layout, the Poor Fork RR & Mining Co., done in On30.
I had in mind a narrow gauge short line in an Appalachian-type setting, sometime between say, 1880, & 1910. This could be a RR that started out as a timber hauler in the late 19th century, but, as the market played out, the RR had to go into other ventures to stay viable. The hauling of people & freight, to & from remote areas in the mountains, would have provided such a viable concern.
Some of the features I’d like to have on such a layout would be -
*A junction, or interchange with a standard gauge RR, a gateway, as it were, to the outside world. This could be represented simply as a depot served by two sets of tracks, or something a little more complex, possibly involving an interchange with dual gauge trackage. Such a locale could also feature a small tow, with a siding or two, &/or some simple engine facilities.
*I would also like to include something to represent some type of timber operations, either current, or abandoned, possibly a sawmill, etc…
*I would like to have at least one nice sized trestle scene.
*I would like to have, as an online industry, some type of mine, or quarry operations.
*I would like to have another small town, this one possibly having grown up from a logging camp, & now serving as a terminus for the narrow gauge line.
I would like to try & accomplish this in stages. Each feature mentioned above would be a separate “stage”, or scene, & could be built in a modular type fashion, with each scene being a self-contained working module, & could be made to be operational before another was built.
I don’t know if I’ll ever get around to doing anything like this, but it’s just something that’s been floating around in my head for a while.
I have to admit that even though I’ve always had an interest in narrow gauge railroading, I’ve never done any actual modeling in a narrow gauge, outside of a failed attempt to build an HOn3 layout, where I discovered that hand laying turnouts was definitely not my forte’!
But anyway, since lately I have had an eye on something in On30, & now that Shamus has asked me to moderate a narrow gauge forum, I thought I’d talk a little bit about some ideas I have for an On30 layout.
What I’m visualizing, is sort of a narrow gauge predecessor to a RR like my current N scale layout, the Poor Fork RR & Mining Co., done in On30.
I had in mind a narrow gauge short line in an Appalachian-type setting, sometime between say, 1880, & 1910. This could be a RR that started out as a timber hauler in the late 19th century, but, as the market played out, the RR had to go into other ventures to stay viable. The hauling of people & freight, to & from remote areas in the mountains, would have provided such a viable concern.
Some of the features I’d like to have on such a layout would be -
*A junction, or interchange with a standard gauge RR, a gateway, as it were, to the outside world. This could be represented simply as a depot served by two sets of tracks, or something a little more complex, possibly involving an interchange with dual gauge trackage. Such a locale could also feature a small tow, with a siding or two, &/or some simple engine facilities.
*I would also like to include something to represent some type of timber operations, either current, or abandoned, possibly a sawmill, etc…
*I would like to have at least one nice sized trestle scene.
*I would like to have, as an online industry, some type of mine, or quarry operations.
*I would like to have another small town, this one possibly having grown up from a logging camp, & now serving as a terminus for the narrow gauge line.
I would like to try & accomplish this in stages. Each feature mentioned above would be a separate “stage”, or scene, & could be built in a modular type fashion, with each scene being a self-contained working module, & could be made to be operational before another was built.
I don’t know if I’ll ever get around to doing anything like this, but it’s just something that’s been floating around in my head for a while.
) will actually be a working modern time narrowgauge railroad with a standard gauge connection(guess with what railroad).
