Modelgenic shortlines

[davefoxx]

"It also interchanged with other interesting NC short lines, such as the High Point, Thomasville, and Denton RR, as well as the Aberdeen, Carolina & Western Ry."

The HPT&D is owned by the WSS and has been since June 1960.

If anyone might be interested there is a group at Yahoo! Groups that deals with all aspects of both roads...
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/WSSRWY-HPTDRR/

Rumor has it that the HPT&D may have been merged into the WSS this summer.

DFF

[jnevis]

I've also been tempted by the Sacramento Northern's switching operations in Chico, CA.  There were quite a few small, very modelable  customers and again, motive power could be covered by a few 44-tonners, maybe he occasional F7s or GP7/9s rolling on.  On the plus side, all your motive power will look great in the Zephyr scheme, but on the downside, your operations have to occur in the dark, though that may be a boon to those who love doing lighting project.

Finally, the California Northern is very cool for a modern shortline, as is the Richmond Pacific.  Unfortunately for modelers of the CNFR, you're limited to an SD40, GP15s in the wrong phase and SD9s for motive power, as there are no Gensets or SW1500s available in N scale.

SN or Tidewater Southern's interchanges would be busy and have plenty of variety.

I keep looking at Cal Northern's interchange in Tracy and Davis but keep coming back to Central California Traction.  CCT handles interchange traffic with BNSF, UP, and Stockton Terminal & Eastern plus handle all of the traffic at the Port of Stockton.  Lots of variety, from grains and materials to/from the Port, or wine, sugar, lumber, and plastics to/from Lodi.  A couple yards and lots of street running make the scenery interesting.  The roster is made up of mostly SW1500s but there is a GP7u, and GP18.  ST&E has an MP15, SW1200 and an S1, S-4 to change it up.  Besides a fire engine red Geep is pretty cool.

[sirenwerks]

A trio of the forthcoming Lehigh Valley VO-1000s from Atlas would suffice for the motive power, but it also hosted a lovely tourist train using a retired 2-8-0 (Copper Range #29) for many years.
Some eye candy of a rock train hauling (native copper bearing rock) to the stamp mill in Freda.
 

Dave,

Not bashing it at all, it looks like a cool possibility (not waffling from the CGW, just thinking about a small layout for now), but hose hoppers don't look like something off the shelf. Is that my eyes playing tricks on me again? Are they standard fare for the CR?

[Dave Schneider]

Dave,

Not bashing it at all, it looks like a cool possibility (not waffling from the CGW, just thinking about a small layout for now), but hose hoppers don't look like something off the shelf. Is that my eyes playing tricks on me again? Are they standard fare for the CR?

Bryan,

Yes these are the standard rock hoppers. They could be nicely represented by just chopping the top off a standard Microtrains hopper where at the point where the slope sheet meets the ends. Here is a slightly better shot showing these cars. Later in their life they added the side extensions as the quality of the ore decreased. The Keweenaw (Peninsula) copper mines were unusual in that they taped native (elemental) copper deposits rather than copper oxides or sulfides as is more prevalent. Native copper is quite heavy, thus the modest proportions of these rock cars. The Keweenaw was the site of one of the first metal mining booms in the US, beginning in the 1840s and resulted in the production of about 11 billion pounds of refined copper. These were shaft mines, the deepest of which the Quincy Mine was more than 10000 ft deep. I lived in the Quincy Mine captains house with a flock of other grad students while attending Michigan Tech.



One more shot of the modelgenic Copper Range roundhouse. The Quincy #2 shaft rockhouse can be seen on the horizon above and to the right of the telephone pole.


Best wishes, Dave

[wazzou]

I think if someone were to model a modern shortline, admittedly on the West Coast, I'd have to go with the Puget Sound & Pacific.  It's a Rail America property with the same branding of paint scheme as the California Northern because they were both at one time owned by the Park Sierra Railgroup.  The property is former NP/BN/BNSF.  It has BNSF run through grainers with modern BNSF power out of Centralia, WA.  It's got a healthy UP interchange also.  There is talk at the Port of Aberdeen of a coal export facility in addition to the current grain export and Sierra Pacific sawmill business.

[sirenwerks]

Bryan (wazzou) mentioned the coal export facility and it got me thinking about the intermodal facility that never appeared at Humboldt Bay, which got me thinking no one's mentioned the Northwestern Pacific yet, in any of its manifestations, serving the Emerald Triangle. Steam era NWP offered small locos, third rail action on the south end as well as car float service, and just drop dead beautiful California's Northcoast scenery and Victorian decked-out towns that would make a laser cutter wet his pants as it stretched up the coast, and a number of lifting and twirling bridges. Oh, and there was plenty of logging going on too, and the California Western at Willits and Arcata & Mad River at the top (the latter neing a notable modelable shortline in its own rite). The NWP remained interesting through SP - running a 44 tonner at the car float, orange and black Baldwins and EMD switchers, and Cadillacs in bloody nose - and into modern times with the Daylight-inspired Geeps of the Eureka Southern and the return of the Black Widow scheme and its original name. And it's being resurrected again, at least the southern end.

Bryan B.

[Pomperaugrr]

I have to put in a plug for the Housatonic Railroad, here in CT and MA, especially since I am modeling it. 

The Housatonic Railroad Company (HRRC) is a regional short line that operates in the western part of Connecticut along the Berkshire Line (50.0 miles), and to Derby/Shelton via its Maybrook Line (33.5 miles) and in western Massachusetts. The CT Department of Transportation owns the northern 36.4 miles of the Berkshire Line between Boardmans Bridge in New Milford and the Massachusetts State line. HRRC owns the southern 13.6 miles of the Berkshire Line between Boardmans Bridge and Danbury, as well as the Maybrook Line. They interchange with CSX in Pittsfield, Massachusetts, and have the potential to interchange with the CSX and the Canadian Pacific Railway in Beacon, New York. The HRRC also interchanges with the P&W in Danbury and could potentially interchange with PanAm Southern/Norfolk Southern in Derby.

HRRC operates trains between Pittsfield and Canaan on Monday through Friday, and between Canaan and New Milford on Sunday through Thursday. They operate a local switching train on Monday through Friday, as needed. There is a switching yard in Danbury, a yard in New Milford and an engine maintenance facility in Canaan.

They handle approximately 6,000 railcars a year of commodities that include lumber, limestone, pulp, paper, and waste. This is the equivalent of approximately 24,000 truckloads. In addition to serving several large industrial customers and smaller shippers, Housatonic also moves a considerable volume of the traffic through its bulk transfer facility located at the intersection of I-84 and Route 25 in Newtown. The Newtown facility has the capacity to load/unload cars within its lumber terminal and on its bulk track with total capacity of approximately 30 car spots as well as additional capacity for car staging.


Eric

[delamaize]

so I didn't make it though the whole thread, but I will add my 2 cents.

Personally, Small logging lines are probally the one of the best modelgenic "shortlines," especally for scratchbuilders. if you model the west coast or north east logging operations, you have scenery, and insane ROW. most equipment is unique, but still close enough to use manufactured products, like the Atlas Shay, and MT logging equipment, add kits like Rangust's Class A climax kits and you have a pretty good start. The potential is there to model from the late 1800s to modern era. for instance some companys and mills still run their own equipment and lines. The one issue would be, unlike a true "shortline," most logging lines are captive, where their equipment don't interchange, but their will be the point where the wood has to leave the mill, witch could be your connection to the outside world, Most logging lines did have a physcial interchange, for supplies to come in and out, but their equipment would not leave their line.

Simpson Lumber in the PNW would make a awesome short like layout, with HUGE scenery, and the potential for tons of operations, with an interchange with major class 1 railroads.

[JDouglasFisher]

Don't know much about this railroad, but what about VRS Vermont Railway?

Just a thought. Don't they own 1 of 2 GP60's?

J

[Bsklarski]

Wow the VRS. That is a can of worms of a shortline. They no longer have the 60s. They where not geared well for the long steep grades on the GMRC division. They also got rid of the SD90s. Those where a little too much for some of the tight curves and 90 pound rail near Bellows Falls. This also had the effect that they could not top off the fuel tanks because it was overweight for the rail too. There are several geographically separated subdivsions. Once nice one that comes to mind is the Montpeiler branch, with the granite operations. Also the WACR branch with the tourist trains. Since we are talking "shortlines" might as well add the New England Central (my employer). We run everything from 150 car trains to 80 car ethonal trains to autoracks and double stacks. I personally think we are more of a regional.

Another one is the Mass Central RR out of Palmer Ma. Nice little RR, a GP7, GP9 and a NW5. Its about 30 miles, and see a large range of cars. On the South end,  it interchanges with us and CSX.