Hello All,
My first thought is how much room do you have?
Thank you for the photos.
It appears that you have creatively filled a small space.
My 4'x8' freelance pike is a coal branch loop set in the late '70's to mid '80's. It is a walk around, table-top pike with wireless DCC control.
Yes, the main drags in and out of the facility are coal hoppers.
But, like any industry, there are many other necessities that are required to keep the plant in running order.
In the center of my pike there is enough room to include a wye, a historic spiral trestle (helix), several sidings and an elevated loading siding (served by a 3% grade and the spiral trestle), along with various service and maintenance facilities for the mine, modern diesels and the power plant, and the Olde Tyme steam excursion train (converted to burn oil- -ironic at a coal mine).
•Flatcars- -To carry large machinery that is needed to keep the plant operating.These loads can be anything from uncovered items, covered items, loads of piping and vehicles.Some of these could be depressed center flats that carry some of the oversized loads; spools of conveyor belt material, transformers, ventilation fans, etc.
•Boxcars- -Use to haul smaller pieces of machinery along with other miscellaneous freight.
•Combine Car or Doodle Bug- -On my pike, because of the remote location of the mine, the workers need a way to get to and from the facility. There are no roads into the complex so all the staff; from the miners to the power plant operators and all other workers have to commute by train.
•Gondola Cars- -These might make an appearance from time to time to haul scrap or old machinery.
•Schnable- -Even this Goliath could make an occasional visit with it's retort load for the distilllation columns.
•A "Critter" or other small switching locomotive- -I personally love these little giants! In an industry where cars need to be moved once spotted many industries own these. Great for switching maneuvers in tight spaces.
With a few exceptions: logging cars, auto carriers, coil cars, stock cars, coal hoppers, I can't really think of any rolling stock that wouldn't our couldn't be justified for an industry like this.
Hope this helps.
"Uhh...I didn’t know it was 'impossible' I just made it work...sorry"
Mine is packed into a small area 2 foot wide. Two ethanol loading racks. A storage track and a grain unloading track. The walthers duel unloading kit is used there. The site can handle an 8 car ethanol train. Plus buffers. 10 cars if two covered hoppers are on it. Mostly the covered hoppers come in on a seperate run
A pessimist sees a dark tunnel
An optimist sees the light at the end of the tunnel
A realist sees a frieght train
An engineer sees three idiots standing on the tracks stairing blankly in space
Jim,
The corn is usually trucked in. The plants are put in the heart of corn production areas.
The output of the plant is ethanol shipped in large 33,000 gallon tank cars, and DDG(distillers dried grain) shipped in large 4 bay covered hoppers. The DDG may also be trucked out to local feed lots.
Inbound rail shipments may be a tank car of gasoline to dilute the near 200 proof ethanol so they do not need a fed tax stamp for brewing 'shine'.
Jim
Modeling BNSF and Milwaukee Road in SW Wisconsin
Bigjim7. Any tips much appreciated. Thanks
Once the ethanol is extracted, the grain co-product that is left is called distillers grain. It's used in animal food. I'm not sure how it's hauled away. It would have to be dried to be haul away in hoppers, if it's for local use, it can be hauled "wet" in trucks, but it doesn't have a long "shelf life" before it starts to mold.
Dried, it's conveyed into 40' shipping containers, and sent overseas. It's use is for animal food.
The CN has a facility at their intermodal yard in Chippewa Falls, WI. where they load it for export.
Mike.
My You Tube
I lack tips on building your plant, but I do like what you’ve done so far! I love the idea of expanding across an entrance to reach a single, small industry! You’re really getting full use of you space.
I have a friend who needed staging, so he built a lift out that went though the doorway to a small shelf in the hallway outside the layout room. Just getting the most out of ones space!
Thanks for sharing!
Regards, Isaac
I model my railroad and you model yours! I model my way and you model yours!
Finally have a place for my Walters Ethanol plant. Have a lift out bridge to get to it. Will take a few months at least to do. Some early pics. Thanks