So I’m wondering if anybody has seen a track plan for a small (like 2x8 or smaller) coal mine switching layout?
I’m thinking about doing one where I move out (in about 9 months) and I figured I could start working on the buildings, motive power, and rolling stock.
Thanks!
Something like this would be really cool if selectively compressed.
650 Ton Coaling Tower
I recall seeing several layouts (regular ones and modular ones) that utilized the 650 ton coaling tower by IHC as the tipple. I have a nice assembled and weathered one if you get interested in that idea.
Depending upon your era, the Frenda Mine from RMC December 1976 could be the centerpiece. Its a kitbash of a common Bachmann coaling tower and the common IHC/TYCO et al freght house. Basically chop off the top of the coaling tower and plop the freight house on top since they are exactly the same width.
A pic of it is on the cover of the issue, along with an article.
http://trc.trains.com/Train%20Magazine%20Index.aspx?view=ViewIssue&issueId=1528
I would think on a 2x8 or smaller, you’d want a mine to have a small footprint and be a vertical thing more than spread out. Maybe add a covered conveyor out front to serve two tracks instead of one.
When I was about 14, I did a similar bash using the same freight house and the TYCO et al coaling tower. I think the widths were almost exactly the same too. It would take less space, IMO, than the traditional Frenada Mine.
Chop off the top right at the horizontal member on the big bin.
Freight House
https://www.google.com/search?q=tyco+freight+house+images&tb
Look at this kitbash!
That’s a little bigger than what I’m going for.
I was thinking of using the Walthers Cornerstone, New River Mining, Diamond Coal Corp, Glacier Gravel, and Valley Growers Grain Elevator, to bash a tipple/plant and it’s workings.
Too big for your layout, IMO. Check out the Walthers Coal Flood Loader. Its more modern era. You could use some Pikestuff generic walls to bash it into a sort of modern Frenda Mine.
Or use it as is and pretend the main tipple is off of the layout, up the hill.
Again, I think you’d want something more vertical that leaves a small footprint on the layout.
I think you would find this operationally uninteresting. With arrangements like this, empties are gravity fed from storage, through the loader, then on down to the loads yard. The only switching is pushing empties back to storage and picking up loads from the loaded car yard.
Empties are delivered via a bypass track (they use a short section of main here) because a locomotive (especially steam) under the tipple would be a major fire hazard. This restriction, IMO, eliminates the option of ignoring gravity and pulling the hoppers through with a loco.
I would think you would want more than just a “loads out” industry if that’s all the layout has. You would have very limited variety of rolling stock, too.
My tannery takes in hides in old “hide service only” boxcars and ships leather goods by boxcar or truck. It also takes in fuel oil, acid from a chemical tanker and salt from a covered hopper.
The idea of the layout would be the mine being the primary switching industry. Then again that could become operationally boring.
Then why pick an industry that has virtually no switching as your “primary switching industry”?
Isn’t every industry a loads in empties out, or visa versa, thing?
If OP is looking for one industry to justify a variety of cars, I think a paper mill is the typical answer given.
Also, take a look at Tom Klimoski’s Georgia Northeastern. He has a very compact peninsula that supports a marble industry. Large chunks are loaded on flat cars and in gondolas, chips are loaded into open hoppers, and marble dust is loaded into pressureaide hoppers.
https://www.thomasklimoski.com
Kaolin can support bagged goods in boxcars, granules in short hoppers, and slurry in shorty tank cars. Short cars are good for small layouts.
A candy factory can support shorty corn syrup tank cars, short hoppers of sugar, and boxcars to ship out product.
An asphalt shingle factory can support shorty cement hoppers for sand granules, a few tank cars for asphalt, and boxcars for shipping out product. Maybe even short bulkhead flat cars, like the cars used for pulpwood.
I’ve seen some MR project layouts that have a mine as the primary industry.
What about a down sized version of this?
So, you want to downsize an 11 x 18 (w/R27" curves) to a 2 x 8…or smaller. Have you determined how tight the radii of your curves would need to be in order to accomplish that?
Doing the math you would go from 198 sq ft down to 16 sq ft (or smaller)…or, roughly 8% of the orignal layout pictured above. You’d almost definitely require R15" curves and nothing over R18". And what locomotives would you plan on using? Your buildings would - more than likley - need to be partial or facades rather than the entire structure because the footprint is too large.
All important things to contemplate for a project of this scale…or lack, thereof.
I would have to make concessions and omit details or go bigger than 2x8.
You’d be better off making a smaller plan bigger. A 2 x 8 plan is going to just be a back and forth layout with no looping curves. Which is fine.
Maybe try a paper mill? A mill with one or two tracks on the other end as “the rest of the world.”
Inbound would be pulpwood, and/or wood chips, kaolin clay, sulfuric acid, possibly cotton scrap if you’re doing high quality bond, chlorine.
Outbound would be not only paper but also tall oil.
And each inbound and outbound has to go to the proper spot.
I think you could put a lot of switching into 2x8 that way. Then again, I’m going to be putting at least three paper mills on my layout, so I’m biased.
That’s the thing I’m kinda biased towards a coal mine, perhaps I could do mine and some sort of lumber industry?
Steven - given your record of project ideas that ended up in smoke, I have to ask you how serious you are with wanting to build a switching layout? Or are you just stirring the pot again, like you did with a number of layout ideas or kitbashing projects that were doomed to fail from the beginning?
If you are seriously pursueing this project, which I doubt, then I´d suggest you collect information on switching layouts. There is plenty of that available online and there are a number of good books around to provide you with enough “ground” to develop a track plan, which you can present for discussion in this forum.
If you are not seriously considering to build a layout soon - well, in that case I strongly advise you to move on and not waste our time again!
I am planning to do a mine kit bash sometime soon but the layout won’t be for at least 9 months.