Coal operation


S

sarge

New Member
I'm planning to build a small 2x4 N scale layout.

Unfortunatly I didn't start the planning process until after some shopping on Ebay and now I have a number of coal cars.

Any suggestions on a relatively modern area layout that I can have some type of coal operation/destination that only takes up a small footprint on the small layout?

Thanks
 
How bout maybe a power plant that is served by coal. Have some modern 6 axle power deliver it. Use an older switcher from the transition days as the plants engine that moves the cars into the plant for unloading. MRR had a nice HO scale plant in the current issue. I am an n scaler, i will be using that idea for my layout!
 
I used to have a 2x4 N layout with a divider running from corner to corner at a diagonal.
One side it had a coal mine and the other had a coal plant and it had the old empties in, loads out thing on two tracks that ran thru the divider. It was a folded dogbone with two levels... wish I kept the pictures!
 
the easiest way is to us a devidor cut it in half, one side is a power plant the other side is a coal mine. loads one way emptys they other way, could also do a few small industries to add to the fun
 
I found this link that I found useful, it lists industries in different regions, the railways that serviced them and the era's they belonged. All includes what commodtities where used by that industry.

http://www.opsig.org/industrydb/

I think either a power plant or a coal flood loader will be the best bet for my layout.
 
I agree with the advice so far. It really does come down to the two industries, one supplying the other. Without cramming too much trackage into your layout space (a very common mistake!), try for a small yard/engine servicing facility, say a modest backshop with fuel supply, etc.

The idea for a well-executed layout is to give the viewer the overwhelming impression of looking from a distance toward a real landscape, with real rails, on which realistic trains are apparently generating revenue. Cramming every last inch with a turnout leading to more tracks with no real purpose is NOT what the prototypes are about. So plan your track configuration carefully. Allow for some small copses of woods, for some homesteads, a store, the coal mine, and the coal-fired power generation facility. For example, a coal-fired power plant will have a large output station with transformers and multiple transmission lines (leading off the edge of your layout), so plan to model that. It will be a challenge, but more importantly, it will make it all believable if you don't forego it in favour of yet more tracks.

-Crandell
 
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