Lance attended one of my Annapolis all-day-Saturday layout design forumns. Little did I know at the time that he should have been the teacher, not the student. MR Author Bob Madson also attended one of the three I hosted - it might have been the same one Lance attended. At least I "hung" with the layout builders even if I never qualified to join them. Layout Builder is a title of respect. I, too, am loving this string.
Keith, Sherrel, and Rick Thanks. Like my petrology professor said, "It's always all about the rocks." I should have paid more attention to my studies. When conducting mapping projects, I tended to stray from the work at hand, when we were near something railroad related. My mapping partner, Mike Fuller, was a archeology student, and he tolerated my railroad dalliances. He enjoyed the history part, but turnabout was fair play, and I had to help survey "Indian sites" when we came across one. I did talk Mike into helping me run an altimeter and proton spin magnetometer survey along the Ash Grove-Phenix ROW from which I produced a profile of the railroad between those points. I hoped that the magnetometer would reveal some hidden railroad artifacts, but unfortunately none appeared. I told my professor that we were looking for mineralized faults....don't think that he bought that story. Rick, thanks for the invitation to run on your Northern Division. I get to the KC area frequently and would enjoy seeing your railroad. We'll be in Missouri during the last two weeks of December. It 's a busy time to be sure, but if your schedule allows, perhaps arrangements can be made. I haven't seen Karl Schoettlin for several years, and would be good to catch up with him.
Oooooo this is sounding promising. Jack's Stack is the best BBQ but Rosedale BBQ is in Friscoland and close to Boulevard Brewing. Let us know if you can join in the fun as we get closer to December.
Don't you guys dare touch any models with all that BBQ sauce on your hands. Makes for very unrealistic looking weathering! Ken
First of all: WOW! A lot of superb ideas. Thanks to all who have contributed, and I hope that we'll see more. Keith, you're spot on with your idea for modeling Marquette Cement. One could just about make this plant work for a variety of eras, especially for those who enjoy industrial switching (and it would be pretty easy to include some sort of main line "loop" or short visible section running into staging. By the way, how is the Cape Girardeau layout coming along? Karl, I've seen the Phenix article in the FEM and some other references to which you've referred but I think I've overlooked its potential as an LDE. And, before this summary I would have chuckled at the though of a geared steam locomotive in Frisco country...a superb synopsis as always. My next step: I'm tinkering around with a spreadsheet that would help the aspiring modeler assign a "score" of difficulty (or maybe I should consider "how costly in time/money resources). I'll keep pondering and post the draft here to get feedback (for those with a back-issue of the 2007 Model Railroad Planning, refer to Bernie Kempinski's "decision matrix" for prioritizing/weighing one's modeling druthers). I'd encourage all who've suggested ideas to either post them in a new thread or provide a write-up with plans/photos to Richard Napper for The Meteor. I might try the latter and see what comes of it. In time I may touch base with some of you individually for information/your blessings to compile and submit your ideas for the e-zine.
When I lived in Paris, TX in the 1990s, I built and operated an HO layout based on the Afton Sub's Miami Branch, including a kitbashed B. F. Goodrich tire plant as well as the Miami Coop and several other shippers. It was a glorified switching layout that fit into a 9 by 11-foot spare bedroom. Unfortunately I didn't take any pictures of this layout, so I can't share them. However, I can reproduce the trackplan if desired.
2. Tulsa Sun Oil Refinery. What a monster! This would be a switching layout based on any elements of the refinery that you liked. I could also include part of the Cherokee Yard along with the refinery. You would have to like tank cars but box cars would also be needed for packaged oil products. Might even mix in a little transfer service to the Tulsa Sapulpa Union and the Sand Springs for added flavor. This would be a great choice because there is an actual loop through the refinery that connects to the wye just west of Union Ave crossing and north of 17th street crossing. And at 17th street you have the connection with the MP. When the refinery was running at full capacity it was switched twice a day. Once in the morning and once in the evening. Special switches were constantly called for. Box cars were loaded at the lube facility and coke hoppers at the decocker (model that operation and you are a true master). Special equipment was brought in on flat cars for turnarounds. If you wan't a switching layout this would be a great place to start.
I agree on the Sun Oil Refinery. Does anyone on the website happen to have a track diagram of the facility?
Karl, I'm glad that there will be another Mizzou Tiger fan to represent us in the midst of all those Rock Chalkers. Rick's layout is well worth the journey. Add several of the other Frisco Folks from the area along with going for beans, and you have all the makings of a good time.
Howard's suggestion for Sun Oil struck a chord: the old Pittsburg Paint & Glass Co. glass plant in Crystal City MO (River Division -St. Louis Subdivision) was quite a large facility and would make for a good LDE for those desiring lots of industrial modeling. I think there may be drawings of it somewhere on the site; I'll look and see if I can find the link. Howard - don't think I'd realized you were in Daphne. We were pretty close by your neighborhood when we took the kids to Orange Beach this summer. Best Regards,
Wow! I am off here for a couple weeks and another great discussion has taken place. Maybe I should stay off here more often! My N scale Kansas City, Osceola and Southern basically consists of a series of Layout Design Elements of many of the towns on the Clinton Sub. I am building in 4’-6’-8’ sections in case I ever move. Bolivar, Clinton, Harrisonville and especially the Blue Valley Industrial Park and the KC West Bottoms would make decent switching layouts by themselves. I shared the Clinton LDE on this forum a few weeks ago. I am very enthusiastic when it comes to the Clinton Sub and I would be very happy to share my efforts with Richard and the group. Design is nearly complete, all done in CAD, so I could break the drawings down to LDE size and convert files to pdf to send to Richard. Paired with the real track plans that Karl has posted and the model plans might be kind of interesting. I sure would like to come up to operate on Rick’s layout too. Unfortunately my wife makes sure that I don’t have a spare moment from Thanksgiving to Christmas with all her family dinners and stuff. BBQ anywhere in the KC area sounds good. You guys ever try Hillsdale BBQ? Next to the tracks and the restaurant is built around a caboose. The food is good too. Dale Rush
Glad to hear that I am not the only one.... I threaten every year to leave town the last five weeks of the year( but the food is good).
Volume 3, No. 2 of the Meteor, features what I'm dubbing the Frisco "Layout Design Catalog"; the first catalog features Southeast Junction, with part I focusing on the location. Part II is under development, and that's where I would like to solicit your ideas for how to best model this signature Frisco location, using the following parameters: ->Space of approximately 200 Square Feet (or 10' x 20') ->A track plan (it doesn't have to be pretty; I can always tidy it up), ->A brief write-up. I'm happy to take your submissions and compile them into article form. A group has been formed where you can post both "pictures" (e.g. rough track plans) and descriptions of your ideas. You can access the group and join via the following link: http://www.frisco.org/vb/group.php?groupid=13 Ultimately, I hope to take the series and turn them into printable features so that aspiring modelers could print and 3-hole punch the SE Jct. feature and any others that follow it. Best Regards,
