Mainline Coaling Tower

[Iron Goat]

I'm with Steve, I am glued to this project. Your coaling station is just the right size for the small layout that I am doing the benchwork for at present. I was looking for the copy of MR, but now understand it was in RM Craftsman magazine. Can you let me know what issue (month & year) it was in, please ?

Thanks... Bob

 

[Matthyro]

Bob The article was in the November 1990 issue of RMC

 

[Matthyro]

Did some cross bracing on the legs.

 

[Matthyro]

Now comes some fun stuff.
Adding platforms to the various levels.
Stairs to come next

 

[Iron Goat]

Robin,

It's looking good ! More, more........

Bob

 

[Matthyro]

I added stairs and railings
Next will be the coal chutes

 

[Iron Goat]

Robin.... What a great looking Coaling Tower ! I was trying to find photos/plans of one to build, but since I am building a small layout, I needed to find one that would match-up with a smaller engine service area. I had already ordered several (kit form) coal chutes from Tichy Train Group, item # 8003 at $3.00 per pack. They come complete with pulleys, handgrabs, etc.

Robin, can you please share your tower's dimensions ? Have you estimated the "scale" tonnage rating on your tower ? Everything I have seen prior to your model looked too large for my "elfin empire", and your's looks just right.

Thanks again for allowing us to "look over your shoulder" on this one....

Bob / IronGoat :thumb: :thumb: :thumb:

 

[Locobreath]

Matthryo: That's goin to be a beauty. Can't wait to see the finished model. Great job. :thumb: :thumb: :thumb:

 

[Wyomingite]

Robin thats a beautiful piece of work. Can't wait to see it finished. Cardboard to boot. Unbelievable.

Ron :thumb: :thumb: :thumb:

 

[jmarksbery]

That's looking great Robin. I have a question, could you show how you make those steps look so good in N-Scale. I have tried in my scratch building and they never look right. Your looks fantastic. Thanks, your friend, Jim :thumb: :thumb: :thumb:

 

[Drew1125]

Robin...all I can say is...simply...totally...completely...AMAZING!! :thumb:

 

[Arlaghan]

I can see why you call that the fun part! Very excellent work!

 

[Matthyro]

Bob, the tower is 78 feet tall . The actual coal container is 25 feet wide and 17 feet deep.
My model is 5 3/4 inches high,1 7/8ths inches wide and 1 1/4 inch deep.
No I haven't estimated coal tonnage but would be interested in knowing how to do so.
Jim, I cheat when I make stairs like this as the overall effect is what I am looking for and in N scale, you can get away with quite a lot. I agonized on how to make stairs properly but found it too frustrating. Now I just lay out two strips of cerealboard then glue cross pieces with a small gap between then as seen below.

 

[Matthyro]

I cut the strips in two widths, 1/16 inch and 1/32 inch. Now thw stairs are basically ladders but when glued in place with posts and handrails they take on the look of stairs, almost as if the eye is tricked into seeing stairs where they are expected.
This can be seen in this closer view

 

[jmarksbery]

ops: Thanks Robin, why didn't I think of that, they still look great. Keep it comin friend. :thumb: :thumb: :thumb: Jim

 

[Fred_M]

Wow, optical illusions. Yet another tool in his arsenal. Fred

 

[Clerk]

WOW Robin. Keep on scratching, er, scratch building in mean. Isn't this you second coaling tower? I think I remember you making one before.

 

[Matthyro]

Dick. I did make a large coaling facility to go with the roundhouse but needed one or two like this one to serve points along the way. Many railroads used to have a coaltower about every 50 miles to keep those large beasts fed.
Fred, all of us model rairoaders use an illusion to make our models look as close to the real thing as possible. We N gaugers have a benefit in that we can leave off details that can't be seen. Not as easy for the HO folk and certainly not for the larger scales but then details can be a little easier to do in those sizes.

 

[JBBVry]

that looks great. just made one alot like that out of wood took me 4 weeks with only a N scale set of blue prints to go from but yours looks great.

 

[jmarksbery]

Robin, once again thanks so much for the tip. I built a stairs lastnight on the back of a scratch built building that I was not going to model and they came out great. I am sure they will be better as I go along. You Da Man!! :thumb: :thumb: :thumb: :thumb: :thumb: Jim