INTRODUCTION - Hi everybody, new member here. Before we begin, I’d like to mention this post could get a little bit lengthy. Thank you to everyone who can help in this endeavor.
I’m a young model railroader and also an industrial architecture enthusiast, and I’m looking for some tips on scratch building an accurate representation of a coal fired power plant, and also how to implement it into my layout where it makes sense. Currently my layout is nothing but an idea, which is great because I want to spend a lot of time figuring out how to implement certain industries, where to place them, what other industries they serve, etc etc. I don’t have a specific railroad in mind yet, or even a scale (I am thinking HO, though). I also don’t have an exact time period in mind. Ideas are appreciated.
I’m a huge fan when it comes to power plants, mainly because of the important role they used to play in our past and the beautiful architecture the old ones often boast. The power plant I create is going to be the centerpiece of my layout, as I want to have a very accurate recreation of a real power plant and how it operates with a railroad. Another reason for this is I want to show the importance these industries once held… it seems today many people pass power plants without batting an eye, and I really want that to change. I’ll probably have some other industries that serve it too, like coal mines or others alike.
THE POWER PLANT - The plant I plan on modeling is the former CEI (Cleveland Electric Company) Generating Station in Ashtabula, Ohio. Sadly, it’s been sitting vacant since 2015. This plant played an important role in the surrounding area, as it delivered power to more rural areas and dates all the way back to the late 1920’s. The plant also presents a terrific example of Art Deco industrial architecture, on both the exterior and interior.
If you’re planning on modelling the entire facility, I’d suggest taking lots of photos of the prototype, while it’s still around, and also a few measurements. You should then be able to scale the photos reasonably accurately.
You’re likely going to need a good supply of scratchbuilding materials, but you might also investigate some kits that are available: Walthers offered a mostly brick powerhouse, and while it’s certainly not the size of the one you’re hoping to model, there could be some useful parts in a kit (or several).
Were I building it, the first thing I’d buy would be a couple of 4’x8’ sheets of .060" styrene. Even if you don’t need it for the exterior walls, it’s great for representing concrete foundations, roofs, and interior partitions. It’s also thick enought to be used as bracing for walls and roofs, to prevent sagging or warping.
Walthers offers decent-looking panels of brick, about 4"x10", and with a little care, they could be assembled into much larger sections - mounting the assembly onto a suitably-sized sheet of .060" styrene would impart a lot of strength.
However, the brick sheets are rather brittle, and difficult to cut…I attempted to cut window opening in such a sheet, using a very sharp corner-punch, and it shattered the sheet. Another option would be brick paper, which could be applied to the sheet styrene using either contact cement or or MEK, applied with a 2" brush (or maybe even wider - your project will likely use as many full-size tools as it will modelling tools.
Both Tichy and the former Grandt Line offer a pretty decent selection of doors and windows. The extent of the detail you choose to add will determine how lo
I’m making the assumption that this is your first scratch build project, and in that case, it’s a biggie!!!
I’ve roughly guesstimated that the power plant building (s) on its own would have a 6 foot x 5 foot footprint in HO scale, so I’d be placing it on a peninsular on the future layout. This would be for operational and possibly more importantly the ability of being able to have an all round view of the plant. The drone footage shows that there is plenty of detail to show off on all sides.
Ok, so it’s a big project, but it can also be looked upon as Lots of small projects, perhaps a little easier to comprehend and not so mind blowing if you get stuck on a particular part, or method of building.
That said, personally, I wouldn’t sweat on your experience levels, if you haven’t got that much experience now, by the end you certainly will!![swg]
Welcome. I’m not a scratch builder so I’ll let them give you advice. In a “previous life” I was in industrial sales and one of our biggest customers was the Philadelphia Electric Company. I agree with you, the old brick buildings were architecturally beautiful. I had the opportunity to walk around a few of their facilities. Power companies can definately give you lots of options for both modeling and rail operations. Good luck.
There is a lot of real estate in there… You might want to try a section, like the one with the chimneys, and do a background picture for the rest, or do a cut-off of the building, and place them against the back of the scene.
I know some folks in our area are reproducing old buildings using 3D printers. That’s another option if you have access to that technology…
Cabobbled together, these buildings would go a long way to building up the campus of the OP’s power plant, and would make a very nice ‘centerpiece’ to his model railroad. But, the OP hasn’t yet answered my basic question: whether he’s building a model of the Ashtabula Power Plant, in which case these would be a nice representation, but not a faithful detailed model. (Note: OP is still new and under moderation, so a delay in response is reasonable. My plan is to wait for further correspondence before getting too far ahead.)
I’m very enthused to see where the OP wants to go with this.
Robert
NOTE: All images ‘borrowed’ from the CMR website. Not intended as an endorsement for those guys.
This thread is near and dear to my heart. I am a semi-retired mechanical field service engineer who has worked his entire life rebuilding steam turbine generators in power plants just like the one the OP wants to model. I have been slowly working at building my own version of a vintage power plant, although it has no particular prototype. I have a lot of photos I have taken at “vintage” power plants, most with the art deco exterior and, more impressively, the art deco interiors. At this point in the discussion, I don’t have a lot to offer, but I will be monitoring the discussion, and hopefully at some point I can make a useful contribution.
Sorry all, I’ve been responding on my phone but I guess they haven’t been going through.
I will be building the Ashtabula power plant, not one inspired by it. I think a bit of kitbashing is possible, mostly for the interior, but I think most of the exterior is gonna need to be completely scratch built. This is mostly because power plants are so different on the exterior.
I think I can use kits for the substation and other exterior buildings, like the pumphouse.
