The SBT is dead, long live the SBT. You can find my new layout here:
http://hobigblackfootrailway.blogspot.com/
Thanks for reading, we'll see you in the timber!
May 1, 2009
Apr 29, 2009
Apr 28, 2009
Simplicity
We've all heard that tis a gift to be simple. I think this layout will live up to that gift. And this more focused approach will hopefully help this layout end up closer to what I have in mind. But on the simplicity.
This railroad will have one purpose and that is to serve the sawmill. Loads in, empties out. The sawmill is much like the one I work on, a portable mill powered by portable power. Manpower is limited and our production must balance our operating costs. The product remains local after sale and it's a family run operation.
The idea of a sawmill based railroad came from a digital book I came across about how to build and operate a sawmill. I plan on perusing this book a bit more to learn how you plan to build a railroad to serve your mill and what the cost vs. benefit is.
-The railroad will be single track built on little to no ballast. This will be my first layout based around Code 83 as opposed to Code 100.
-There is no interchange with another railroad. I hope to make this railroad insular as defined by current FRA standards. The sawmill company will own all the land the railroad occupies.
-Minimum radius will be 18". I would like to go 15" but operating at those extremes limits my motive power and rolling stock options.
-Grades will minimized as much as possible to allow for ease of operation. There will be a single switchback en route to the upper camp. Lower landing will occupy this switchback.
-I want every piece of scenery, track, motive power and rolling stock to have a reason for it's inclusion on the layout.
The layout is to be L-shaped foam core on a wood grid base. Deck level will be optimized for operation and it will be conventionally powered with blocks for two locomotive operation.
This railroad will have one purpose and that is to serve the sawmill. Loads in, empties out. The sawmill is much like the one I work on, a portable mill powered by portable power. Manpower is limited and our production must balance our operating costs. The product remains local after sale and it's a family run operation.
The idea of a sawmill based railroad came from a digital book I came across about how to build and operate a sawmill. I plan on perusing this book a bit more to learn how you plan to build a railroad to serve your mill and what the cost vs. benefit is.
-The railroad will be single track built on little to no ballast. This will be my first layout based around Code 83 as opposed to Code 100.
-There is no interchange with another railroad. I hope to make this railroad insular as defined by current FRA standards. The sawmill company will own all the land the railroad occupies.
-Minimum radius will be 18". I would like to go 15" but operating at those extremes limits my motive power and rolling stock options.
-Grades will minimized as much as possible to allow for ease of operation. There will be a single switchback en route to the upper camp. Lower landing will occupy this switchback.
-I want every piece of scenery, track, motive power and rolling stock to have a reason for it's inclusion on the layout.
The layout is to be L-shaped foam core on a wood grid base. Deck level will be optimized for operation and it will be conventionally powered with blocks for two locomotive operation.
Slide Ass Jammer
We have one of these on the log train at our local historical museum. Cheap and easy to make and maintain they allowed lumberman to easily load and unload timber at the logging camp with no preparation required at the site. A wonderful fit for Salmon Bay Logging and Lumber. Here is a shot of the prototype in the far left corner.
And here are a few pictures of my attempt.
For my second scratchbuild it's not bad considering my first one was a dock. Looking at it now I can see the hundred flaws that this "resemblica" has and that annoys me slightly. But I am very proud of it and intend on pressing it into service. I think I may build another down the road closer to the real thing but for now SBL&L has a means to load the timber. All they need now is a layout.
And here are a few pictures of my attempt.
For my second scratchbuild it's not bad considering my first one was a dock. Looking at it now I can see the hundred flaws that this "resemblica" has and that annoys me slightly. But I am very proud of it and intend on pressing it into service. I think I may build another down the road closer to the real thing but for now SBL&L has a means to load the timber. All they need now is a layout.
Apr 27, 2009
Major News!
There have been some huge changes for the SBT. The layout as you've seen it is no more. Our landlord asked that it be dismantled. We have however secured a new location closer to home and will begin construction as soon as we can. This will also bring a few changes to the concept of what will continue to be, the Salmon Bay Terminal Railway.
The reality of the location is going to be changed drastically. The feel of the real Salmon Bay will be retained but the emphasis will change. Timber will once again be king and the coastal forest of Northwest Washington the setting. Mainline interchange traffic will no longer be the bread and butter and the railroad will be self contained, the mainline railroad running parallel at the end of track. The time period will still be variable depending on the mood of the operators but the transition period will be the default time setting.
So I will continue to keep you updated and keep your ears perked for the sound of whistles echoing in the deep forests and the sound of heavy logging locomotives as they go about their business.
The reality of the location is going to be changed drastically. The feel of the real Salmon Bay will be retained but the emphasis will change. Timber will once again be king and the coastal forest of Northwest Washington the setting. Mainline interchange traffic will no longer be the bread and butter and the railroad will be self contained, the mainline railroad running parallel at the end of track. The time period will still be variable depending on the mood of the operators but the transition period will be the default time setting.
So I will continue to keep you updated and keep your ears perked for the sound of whistles echoing in the deep forests and the sound of heavy logging locomotives as they go about their business.
Oct 26, 2008
On DCC and Sound
Detailing very close as to why the SBT is remaining DCC and sound free. It almost was once. Should be noted not ALL the points are correct for my case, but pretty darn close!
http://1-160.blogspot.com/2007/10/dcc-is-not-for-me.html
http://1-160.blogspot.com/2007/10/sound-off.html
http://1-160.blogspot.com/2007/10/dcc-is-not-for-me.html
http://1-160.blogspot.com/2007/10/sound-off.html
Oct 21, 2008
Modern day on the SBT
Note: I seem to think in stories when I work on the layout. Here are my latest thoughts.
Morning still comes early in Salmon Bay. Fishing boats head out towards the locks and cars begin the morning commute. The paperboy still rides his bicycle though and even the milkman can still be seen. And amazingly enough, the trains still run. Past the main road and down a small embankment another day begins on the Salmon Bay Terminal as it has for over 100 years. In the East Ballard Yard the sound of steam giants being coaxed into life has been replaced by the sound of General Electric diesels snorting to life. Thanks to the locomotive equivalent of a block heater, the engine's can be shut down for the night. A lone hostler busies himself with the job of getting power for the day awakened, has hostlers have been doing for generations. The sound of an air horn shatters the air as the East Ballard Local, a grandiose name for a BNSF Geep pulling a single boxcar, rumbles into the yard. The crew trades jokes with the hostler, the car is cut off and the locomotive returns to other duties. This is the only traffic this morning. A far cry from the past, where five railroads vied for a spot to park their cars. But business is still going, which is more then can be said for some of the other railroads that used to use this interchange. Minutes after the local departs the day's road crew arrives in the pre-dawn fog, stamping and rubbing their hands together. Quickly the plan of the day is discussed, special orders are read, and the crew take their places, brakeman on the rear step, hogger and conductor in the relative warmth of the engine cab. The train foreman jumps into his Dodge Ram and heads for the lower crossing to flag for the train, no automated crossing signals here. At least none that work.
No longer a saddle tank switcher or a geared former logging engine, the power today is the most powerful locomotive to ever grace the rails on the Salmon Bay Terminal, The Eighty-five Hundred. Number 8500 is a 4000hp GE Dash-840B, a real road locomotive. And currently the roads only motive power. It's massive weight required the rebuilding of some of the older track, but it handles the 4% grade of Dirks Hill with ease. Bought for a song from GE Leasing, the engine still wears it's old paint scheme, now faded and weathered but there are plans afoot to get it into SBT green. A lantern signal from the back end, three shorts on the horn, and the day begins.
Backing down the yard lead to couple to the boxcar, the brakeman jumps off to see the joint is made properly. Soon the the engine begins down Dirks Hill long hood first, dynamic brakes whining softly. It's slow going on the tight curves and steep grade but with flanges and brakes squealing the train makes it to the bottom in one piece.
Pulling even with the cement plant, the switch is lined to the main and the train heads into Salmon Bay, the bell muted by the fog.
The track is overgrown with weeds, the rails rusty from disuse. There are some new ties though, replaced last spring. Not like the old days at all. On average nine carloads a week enter the the industrial area served by the SBT and four leave. The waterfront served is but a shadow of it's former self, just the railroad that still serves it. The Cement plant is thankfully still in operation but their product is mainly hauled direct by cement trucks anymore, but they'll send out the odd hopper car as the market dictates. The scrap yard is more antiques dealership now and the cannery is closed. Ships no longer dock to off load the catch of the day, or take passengers and cargo. The intermodal yard is still in operation, the giant crane standing watch, but the shorter containers it's designed for are being phased out and it's days are numbered. Only Seitz & Son Mechanical has any real business and they get what they put into it. Large machines of every shape and size are shipped via the BNSF and Union Pacific across the country to Salmon bay where they are tuned and repaired. Flatcars and boxcars are always in the Seitz spur, sometimes stacked into the old scrapyard and lumber yard leads.
The pick-up and drop off of cars takes the better part of two hours, and as they make the final switching moves the fog lifts. As the two boxcars of machinery make their way past "Pier 65", a local name for he rundown fishing wharf, the engineer gives a noisy salute to a boy and his dog trying to get something fishy out of Salmon Bay. Soon the slightly labored sound of four thousand horses can be heard as the train winds up the short, steep grade. The cars are set out for "Uncle Pete", the engine tied up. Paperwork complete the crew heads for beans at Ma's Family Restaurant. Rumor has it a cement shipment will need to be taken out this afternoon and the Salmon Bay Terminal stand ready to get the job done. Just as they always have.
Morning still comes early in Salmon Bay. Fishing boats head out towards the locks and cars begin the morning commute. The paperboy still rides his bicycle though and even the milkman can still be seen. And amazingly enough, the trains still run. Past the main road and down a small embankment another day begins on the Salmon Bay Terminal as it has for over 100 years. In the East Ballard Yard the sound of steam giants being coaxed into life has been replaced by the sound of General Electric diesels snorting to life. Thanks to the locomotive equivalent of a block heater, the engine's can be shut down for the night. A lone hostler busies himself with the job of getting power for the day awakened, has hostlers have been doing for generations. The sound of an air horn shatters the air as the East Ballard Local, a grandiose name for a BNSF Geep pulling a single boxcar, rumbles into the yard. The crew trades jokes with the hostler, the car is cut off and the locomotive returns to other duties. This is the only traffic this morning. A far cry from the past, where five railroads vied for a spot to park their cars. But business is still going, which is more then can be said for some of the other railroads that used to use this interchange. Minutes after the local departs the day's road crew arrives in the pre-dawn fog, stamping and rubbing their hands together. Quickly the plan of the day is discussed, special orders are read, and the crew take their places, brakeman on the rear step, hogger and conductor in the relative warmth of the engine cab. The train foreman jumps into his Dodge Ram and heads for the lower crossing to flag for the train, no automated crossing signals here. At least none that work.
No longer a saddle tank switcher or a geared former logging engine, the power today is the most powerful locomotive to ever grace the rails on the Salmon Bay Terminal, The Eighty-five Hundred. Number 8500 is a 4000hp GE Dash-840B, a real road locomotive. And currently the roads only motive power. It's massive weight required the rebuilding of some of the older track, but it handles the 4% grade of Dirks Hill with ease. Bought for a song from GE Leasing, the engine still wears it's old paint scheme, now faded and weathered but there are plans afoot to get it into SBT green. A lantern signal from the back end, three shorts on the horn, and the day begins.
Backing down the yard lead to couple to the boxcar, the brakeman jumps off to see the joint is made properly. Soon the the engine begins down Dirks Hill long hood first, dynamic brakes whining softly. It's slow going on the tight curves and steep grade but with flanges and brakes squealing the train makes it to the bottom in one piece.
Pulling even with the cement plant, the switch is lined to the main and the train heads into Salmon Bay, the bell muted by the fog.
The track is overgrown with weeds, the rails rusty from disuse. There are some new ties though, replaced last spring. Not like the old days at all. On average nine carloads a week enter the the industrial area served by the SBT and four leave. The waterfront served is but a shadow of it's former self, just the railroad that still serves it. The Cement plant is thankfully still in operation but their product is mainly hauled direct by cement trucks anymore, but they'll send out the odd hopper car as the market dictates. The scrap yard is more antiques dealership now and the cannery is closed. Ships no longer dock to off load the catch of the day, or take passengers and cargo. The intermodal yard is still in operation, the giant crane standing watch, but the shorter containers it's designed for are being phased out and it's days are numbered. Only Seitz & Son Mechanical has any real business and they get what they put into it. Large machines of every shape and size are shipped via the BNSF and Union Pacific across the country to Salmon bay where they are tuned and repaired. Flatcars and boxcars are always in the Seitz spur, sometimes stacked into the old scrapyard and lumber yard leads.
The pick-up and drop off of cars takes the better part of two hours, and as they make the final switching moves the fog lifts. As the two boxcars of machinery make their way past "Pier 65", a local name for he rundown fishing wharf, the engineer gives a noisy salute to a boy and his dog trying to get something fishy out of Salmon Bay. Soon the slightly labored sound of four thousand horses can be heard as the train winds up the short, steep grade. The cars are set out for "Uncle Pete", the engine tied up. Paperwork complete the crew heads for beans at Ma's Family Restaurant. Rumor has it a cement shipment will need to be taken out this afternoon and the Salmon Bay Terminal stand ready to get the job done. Just as they always have.
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