Grain Unloading on a budget


I could see this place from the interstate, where I used to live, and they would occasionally see a three bay covered hopper spotted by it. It looked like just a regular warehouse, though it did have a couple silos by the track. On the occasions when the track was empty, I didn't see an unloading pit.

How did they unload the cars?

Well, I went and looked one day.

I thought it was pretty interesting.

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A pan under the discharge chute.

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A non collapsible vacuum hose toward the building.

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And a grain blower. The blower takes a suction through the hose from the pan, and shoots it into a separater, and falls into the blue drums. The silos were unused, perhaps from a different time. The extra hoses could be handy for an errantly spotted car, or possibly if two cars were delivered at the same time.

I was able to track down some information on the blower itself:Walinga Incorporated. The base model is designed to be mounted on a farm tractor, and driven by the power take off. If you study the last photo, you might can make out something contrapted to power the blower.

I doubt anything like this is available RTR, but with a few miscellaneous bits, you could scratch build one. Then you can turn a simple siding into a productive industry. Conceivably, you could also place one near your team track/bulk transloading area, and have it discharge to trucks for off line delivery. This plant makes tortillas, though you could also have it for delivery for any other type of bakery or even a farm for livestock feed.

James
 
Another nice compact industry for us to model. Do you find all of these great sites in your area or do you do a lot of traveling?
 
A team track near here uses something similar but unloads directly into large covered grain dump trailers for a local egg farm. There is no onsite storage, barrels or other items, just a mechanism (probably similar to what you show here altho I've never seen it that close), a loaded hopper and a couple of empty 18 wheelers. It evidently fills the 18 wheelers' trailers fairly quickly as I see them arrive empty and leave full within my lunch hour for the pair.
 
It's not really budget minded, it's more of a portability standpoint

Isn't portability a function of budget? Everything always goes back to money.

Another nice compact industry for us to model. Do you find all of these great sites in your area or do you do a lot of traveling?

I used to live in Georgia, and had a bit of free time. I now live in Kentucky, and tend to be busier. I frequent a nearby Railroad Museum, and since they let me go all over the property, I get my fix on trains without trespassing or otherwise being places I shouldn't be, such as downtown Atlanta.

It evidently fills the 18 wheelers' trailers fairly quickly as I see them arrive empty and leave full within my lunch hour for the pair.

I bet it can hustle when you let it. I can imagine them having trouble swapping the blue storage barrels without making a mess.

James
 



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