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While working on my layout expansion, what was going to be a gravel quarry ended up being turned into a scrap yard. It took quite a while to come up with some sort of machinery t load the scrap into gondolas. After a long search, I found this crane on evilbay.
There is only one thing that could cause problems. A rubber tired vehicle in a scrap yard could present problems. A search began for some sort of tracked vehicle the the tracks could be used to convert the crane. After a lot of searching, I found this excavator on ebay for $9 plus shipping. Not a big investment.
It's a nice looking piece of machinery, but way too modern for the transition era, but the tracks are just what was needed. After a meeting, a bit of bashing took place.
The resulting crane ended up working out and looks a lot better for working in a scrap yard. With a bit of weathering it should be a good looking addition.
Nice going ... I like to see scrap yards on a MRR. They are a true part of a railroad.
Before weathering your crane .. Expose some panels, maybe an open door, and "beat it up" a little to add realism.
With your talent, I am sure that you can do it properly!
I've been looking for a crane for a scrap yard on my modular unit for years. The closest thing I could find was a "dragline" that looked really great but it was $119. Yipes. This is a perfect solution. Any idea what brand the wheeled crane is? I need to build 2 or 3.
I had looked at these when they first hit the market, but was looking for something that would be a bit smaller and be able to service two tracks. Came across the two units, liking that the crane had and electromagnet which would be a bit more common in a scrap yard. I figured that I would have to cobble something together for the magnet head, but the crane came with one.
Since the original photo was posted, I came across some scrap pile castings. The scene will need the surface brought up to grade where the dump truck is, and a small building and scale will be scratchbuilt where the truck is. Moving ahead slowly because I just have too many other things going on.
Looks real good Greg. That will be a nice customer for the railroad. I think I'm going to have to break down and order a new Walthers catalog. I used to have a dealership with them years back and it was great for keeping up with the new products. Mine is about 15 years out of date.
I pretty well have most all of the locomotives and rolling stock I need, but now that I have the last town on the layout to detail, I need a new catalog so the detail parts can be ordered. I was thinking about a chain link fence for the scrap yard, but where it is located a fence could present a problem, plus growing up in the transition era, I can remember scrap yards without fences. Fred Sanford wasn't around yet.
