for a car repair shop would i only need a flat car with a wheel load to put next to the car repair shop?
That would work. I’d do it anyway, because if you want to do more detail in a scene it always helps to have a little inspiration.
Other things you can add. A parts house and wood shop were sometimes separate from the car shop, but at bigger shops only. There will be a clear level stretch of track to work on something more than a rolling repair. Old time car jacks were sometime like those big screw jacks they use under houses. A hoist comes in handy and can also be used to correct shifted loads. I’m sure others have suggestions, too.
What era?
Today they place the wheels on a concrete pad so a forklift can get to them.
Its faster and safer.
Did you know the majority of railroad wheels today arrives by truck?
If it is a small operation they might just have a couple short pieces of rail next to the shop with a few sets of wheels ready to install.
Have fun,
Richard
… and boxcars of parts like brake valves, brake shoes, grab irons, bolts and welding equipment.
… and gons of sheet steel, steel rod, angle irons, pressed steel car ends, brake pipe, draft gear, couplers, knuckles.
… and flats of wood boards (era dependent)
… and gons of scrap metal being shipped outbound and wheel flats with the old wheels being returned to the wheel shop for truing.
Car repair areas need not be on railroad property. I recall the Union Tank Car Company’s repair area was located on a spur within oil refinery property, 1970s thru 2006. The spur had a concrete pad with an A-frame hoist, heavy duty forklift, large lockable tool boxes and jacks. The wheel sets would arrive by semi-truck and be stored on the pad. The repair crew would arrive in a large work truck that contained a compressor, welding equip. and other tools.
regards, Peter
modern era.
Mark.
A very useful photo, thanks Mark.
Mike
All of those would be in the stores yard or inside the shop storage area and not still loaded on freight cars…
Remember car shops was and remains a smooth operation where everything is stored for easy access by the carmen using a forklift or overhead crane…
So taking the Walthers Union Crane and Shovel building with an Overhead Crane (inside and out) and a couple of flat pads outside for truck and wheel storage would be an acceptable facility?
Absolutely…That would be a small car shop but,a very worthy model.
These was common since they made running repairs.
What’s that?
These shops would replace damage doors,fix leaking brake lines,leaking air tanks,bent or broken stirrups,bad couplers,wheels trucks etc but,would not rebuild or paint cars.
A example.
A covered hopper arrives with a small hole in the 3rd panel…The shop would weld a small steel plate over that hole as a temporary fixed until the car was cycled though the heavy repair car shop.At this time the car would receive a rebuild including a new side panel.
There’s a lot of great ideas here! I have been to a BIG Car Shop (PRR’s Hollidaysburg PA) that was bigger than you can imagine https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i0pSWMYy0hI&list=UU0O08KTSKprpNN39X0zIuXw
…and some not so big i.e. a one car capacity siding.
On the model railroad you will probably fall somewhere in between. I will provide some photos of my facility, definitely a “work-in-progress” but I took some grab shots tonight just to give you some ideas.
Personally, I would re-think the idea of having a building like Union Crane since it becomes just another building on your layout and you would have to detail the interior where much of the work would go unnoticed in order to make it distinctive as a car shop. Here in blustery NE Ohio, the car shops (and RIP tracks) I’m familiar with were all open-air affairs with several sheds, sometimes boxcars with the trucks removed, and maybe an office/crew building.
I would like to bash-together a pair of the 50 ton Whiting car jacks someday.
Again, just some thrown together details. I plan on continuing this area when the weather forces me back into the basement!
As I recall the covered overhead crane is from Walthers Vulcan Manufacturing kit.
Oh, and one more th
For the type of repair shop I am talking about I would use the Union Crane shop as the main shop.These shops did repairs like I mention.
A open air RIP shop did minor repairs and could have a cover like your model.
As far as interior detailing I would use a 2-3 train set cars,add a concrete floor,some work figures and call it done since the eyes would focus on the cars and figures-the main subjects-while peering through the windows-that’s what I call “Hollywood” modeling better known as props.