Has any one out there modeled a derailment. I’ve see one on a layout at a train show, but Other than that it is a rare thing. Derailments can take up alot of space(some times not if you plan one right) So my question is, has any one modeled a derailment? I would also like read your opinion on modeling derailments.
What about just a single car? Our club has a wrecked hopper off to the side on one of our layouts. It is beaten up pretty badly simulating one that has been there for quite some time. If you were to do this, there would be no trucks or wheels, as they would have been retrieved either for use on another car or scrap metal. I will try to find a picture of this scene and post it.
I’ve played around with derailment scenes that I actually cleaned up with operating cranes while still in my youth. I had been to the scene of 2 big derailments both in my little hometown of Henning, TN, Pop. 600. I’d take the wheels & trucks out from under the cars & scatter them out, then lift them onto flats & haul them off. A derailment scene with a shoofly track around it would be pretty cool. I’ve used an article on the forum of denting & banging up gondolas with a hot soldering iron that should work on any other cars involved in the derailment. Tweet.
We have some wrecked, splintered, and crushed wooden rolling stock at the bottom of a tall timber trestle on our club layout.
During semi-annual open houses, one club member sets up a train wreck scene complete with burned engines and rolling stock, and wreck crews cleaning up some of the derailment with cranes, and repairing track. Trains have to be diverted around the area by going through an industrial area on a run-through siding. Visitors always enjoy that scene.
I have a video about the Southern Pacific that shows a minor derailment within a yard involving a gondola with one end off of the track because an axle broke. That would be easy to stage by removing a wheelset and cutting an old plastic axle into two pieces.
Guys,Actually derailments are throughly cleaned up.The cars are either haul away or cut up on the spot.Now look around a old derailment site and you might find some truck springs,coupler faces, traces of spillage from covered hoppers,gouged land,twisted rail,tie plates and similar signs but,no busted up freight cars left to rust.
The best way to model a derailment is like that SP gon cacole mentions.
Usually when I model a derailment it’s unintentional! [:o)]
I will second Larry’s remarks. Usually, the only thing left after a derailment are some piles of dirt and maybe some scrap metal.
During the cleanup is a different story. And really a static display cannot capture the artistry with which Hulcher cleans up a wreck. Or even the car guys using blocks and wedges.
Nick
Spoil all of our fun…
[8D]
I was thinking the same thing 
Usually, most derailment sites are pretty clean after everything’s removed. Occasionally though, some junk will be left behind. This includes damaged equipment…which might sit alongside the tracks until it can be safely cut up and/or moved. Sometimes, though, damaged cars are put onto flatcars for their trip to the shops. I remember being outside the W&LE’s shops in 2002, and seeing a cylindrical hopper on its side–apparently, it had been brought in, and hadn’t been dealt with yet.
In 1995, there was a derailment in Brownsville, PA…several hoppers ended up on their sides, dumping tons of coal everywhere. The derailment happened a few days before a friend and I went down there to look–she’d heard about it, and knowing my interest in trains…led me down there. The cars sat there a few days until they could be moved.
The best idea if ya want beat up cars sitting around is have a rip track or a scrap dealier on your layout. A rip track at your Car shop would have parts galor to be found. Kevin
Yehp!!!
I seem to be missing something here. I’ve never had to model a derailment in my life!!!
Something over 50 years ago, Model Railroader mag had a photo article about some chap who modeled derailments as dioramas - just happened, no cleanup yet. IIRC, he featured wooden box cars with pushed-in ends and spread, splintered sides, locos on their sides (with all the brake and equalizer rigging that almost nobody modeled back then,) all sitting on prototypically mangled rails and gouged-up ties and roadbed. The results were impressive, even in black and white - but nothing I’ve ever been tempted to model myself.
Chuck (modeling Central Japan in September, 1964)
Thats a really good idea. Hmmm train wreck,now I know what to do with those tyco freight cars. Hulcher would have to be notified,cause most roads don’t have the big hooks anymore. I know that NS still has them in serve.
Pretty good idea though,might have to look into this later.
Patrick
The one I saw at the train show had a Bent out gondola, a boxcar cut up, a ACF grain Car on a flat on the sideing, and a Box car getting cut up. He also had a knocked over wigway crossing and scatter railroad car parts every where, and a WC truck that was there for the clean up. That was modeled afer a actual wreck. I don’t have any pics, but maybe next time I got I could get some. I don’t have any room on my layout, but maybe in the future I could model one half way cleaned up.
We had a dozen coal cars derail and tip over near my home in Cleveland. They cleaned it all up in about 3 days. Everything except the coal. They pushed that up into piles and left it on the side of the tracks. All the people in the neighborhood talked about converting their furnaces to coal. I went back 20 years later and it was still all sitting there.
I remember that! It was titled 'Train Wreck" and was in a Craftsman circa 1965; the author/photographer was a Carl Ciati or something of that nature - he was a pretty prolific author in that era. It was an interesting feature with the Big Hook on the scene and stretchers being carried away; but the volume of negative mail received also made it just a little bit controversial.
Don’t need to model no stinkin derailments. Got enough already.[8D]
I’ve posted this elsewhere on the forum, but anyway; is this good enough for you?
Train crew escaped with minor injuries, engineer said something about a brake failure of some kind.
I have 30+ pics of the cleanup, you can go to the photobucket folder to see the rest. Right clicking a photo should get you the web address (I think).
Brad
The problem with modeling derailments is that a lot of the stuff that’s out of scale, like coupler boxes and 2-56 truck screws, which wasn’t visable in the normal operation are very visable when cars are turned over.