C&NW hand cart shed

Trains Magazine General Discussion
1

I’m looking for photos or drawings of a C&NW hand cart shed or similar other small section / MOW structure. I’m planning to build a backyard storage building in the spring and would like to build it, based on a structure similar to the C&NW hand cart sheds. If you happen to know where I might find such photos (online or books, etc.) I would greatly appreciate it.

Thanks much!

2

Talk to the CNW historical people and one of their old standard plan books.

3

Here’s the link:

http://www.cnwhs.org/

4

What you are looking for would be in the C&NW Historical Society’s “Standards” books of which there are two.

http://www.cnwhs.org/shopping/product_info.php?cPath=22&products_id=53

http://www.cnwhs.org/shopping/product_info.php?cPath=22&products_id=42

I will try to look at my copies tonight and see where the “speeder/handcar” shed drawings are located and amend this post. Keep in mind that the drawings are not the clean and easy to follow ones you are used to in modeling magazines but they do give basic dimensions.

The C&NW Historical Society brings those and other books to a variety of train shows so if you attend such a show that is a chance to look before you buy.

Dave Nelson

5

OK I checked my two volumes of C&NW “Standards” – copies of official drawings of everything from signs and rat traps to roadbed profiles, depots, and hand tools.

Volume II has drawings of a motor car or hand car “set off” — basically wood beams set at standard gauge that the car can be turned and set off on. I remember seeing one on the elevated right of way near my old home. If a crew had been caught on the elevated ROW it would have been nearly a mile in either direction to the nearest grade crossing so the set off was essential for safety purposes

More to the point while neither volume has a drawing of a handcar shed per se, Volume I has a drawing of a C&NW “tool house” which very much resembles the shed the local track gang kept their speeder in when I was a kid – with a planking leading up to the rails so it could be picked up off the track and rolled into its shed.

Dave Nelson

6

Thanks very much Dave - I really appreciate the info. The “Tool House” plan may work just fine, even if just as a basis for a loose interpretation. Sorry for the tardy reply - been traveling and haven’t been able to get online much. I’ve been thinking about buying these books, so now I have a really good excuse.

Thanks again,
Dan