PRR/Conrail Juniata Division Engineering Report

[Dave Vollmer]

I've decided to start a thread covering a yard extension I'm adding to my layout.  It's another hollow core door with the same folding table legs as my existing layout, constructed with the same 2" foam top and 1/8" Masonite fascia.  I started construction last month.  I'm basing it on some of my favorite features of the massive Enola Yard across the river from Harrisburg, PA, but it's more of an impression than an actual LDE (for obvious reasons).  The door is 24" wide compared to the 36" main layout.  Track is Atlas code 55 with a pair of Fast Tracks turnouts thrown in.  Roadbed is Woodland Scenics, and the ground throws (with frog-powering contacts) come from Caboose.  You've seen some of these in other threads, but I'm putting them all together in one.

By the way, the first pictures here were taken with my iPhone due to an unfortunate incident with my nice camera.  I apologize up front for the poor lightning and the poor resolution.  Future installments will have better photos.

[Dave Vollmer]

The highway bridge kinda reminds me of Belle Vista Drive and I81 which cross the northern end of Enola:











The bridge is just propped in place.  It will be weathered and reinstalled after the track is all laid and ballasted.  



Much more to come!

[sirenwerks]

Looking great Dave!

[Philip H]

Yeah, I agree - looks great.  Any chance you will give us a parts list at some point of the structures and details you are using?

[asciibaron]

looks good! do you intend to put a mirror up at the far end to make the yard seem larger? any way to turn a loco?

[Dave Vollmer]

Hmmm....  Mirror...  Not sure. I actually like the bridge straddling the yard as it does rather than at one end of the layout as a trick to hide the mirror.

I may have to play a bit with the bridge to see how it looks at the end with a mirror.

The yard office is a Walthers modulars bash:



The bridge is a pair of Rix early overpasses, and the diesel shop is 1 and 3/4 Walthers car shops.  And everyone should recognize the tried and true Atlas switch tower as a stand-in for DAY tower.  That's a Walthers water tank which isn't too far off from a standard PRR steel water tower.

No way to turn a loco.  That's not great, but a turntable is such a hog (especially one that could turn an M1 with 210F75 tender).

[asciibaron]

cool use of the car shops - i intend to use the same thing for my engine shop... instead of seven stalls, i'll just have 3.  the headquarters building is very close to what you have used.  funny how railroads structures have a sameness about them.

[Dave Vollmer]

Very cool!

I'm going to build a flat gravel roof with ventilators instead of the goofy sawtooth roofs that come with the Walthers kit.

[James Costello]

Hmmm....  Mirror...  Not sure. I actually like the bridge straddling the yard as it does rather than at one end of the layout as a trick to hide the mirror.

I like the bridge straddling the yard too Dave - amazing how often you see it happen.

[Chris333]

I'm sure it will turn out just as great as the "other door". It reminds me of Altoona, but I'm not a PRR guy so what do I know.

[asciibaron]

I'm sure it will turn out just as great as the "other door". It reminds me of Altoona, but I'm not a PRR guy so what do I know.

the bridge over the yard is more Altoona then Enola to me.  not sure what bridge goes over Enola like that.

[Bob Bufkin]

Rt 81 goes over Enole just like that.  Of course, it wasn't there in PRR days.

[davefoxx]

Rt 81 goes over Enole just like that.  Of course, it wasn't there in PRR days.

Well, if that's the case, Dr. Dave might want to avoid permanently affixing the highway bridge to the layout, so that he could remove it when modeling the PRR era and set it in place during his CR era.

Just a thought,
DFF

[Dave Vollmer]

There was a bridge over the north end of the yard in PRR days too, carrying River Road where it turns into Belle Vista Dr just north of I-81.  Not over the main classification tracks but mainly over the yard throat. 

But again, this is more "impressionistic" than an actual depiction.  There are elements of Altoona tossed in too.

[davefoxx]

There was a bridge over the north end of the yard in PRR days too, carrying River Road where it turns into Belle Vista Dr just north of I-81.  Not over the main classification tracks but mainly over the yard throat.  

But again, this is more "impressionistic" than an actual depiction.  There are elements of Altoona tossed in too.

You mean like this?  This is the north throat at Enola that I shot back at the CRHS Rail-B-Q in the spring of 2009.  Okay, okay, that's actually I-81 and I'm standing on the Belle Vista Drive bridge, but you should get the idea.



And this is what the throat looks like as it approaches the Belle Vista Drive bridge:



DFF