Thoughts on a former Pennsy yard office?

[Ed Kapuscinski]

I wasn't going to say anything because it wasn't central to what you're asking, but...if there was a turntable present at some point, it would be safe to assume that the location had all of the other facilities to service locomotives, like fuel, sand, water, and lubricants.
It doesn't make sense to me that the pit was removed, filled in, and all other facilities removed as well, necessitating fuel be delivered in small trucks beside the locomotive.
As far as the building is concerned, have you looked at any of the Rix options, knowing full well they aren't brick, but a good option, nonetheless.

Thanks Bryan, that is a good point. However, my thought is more that as the terminal was downgraded, the infrastructure for that stuff was all removed. The only reason the fuel trucks would show up would be if one or two local units need a top off in a pinch. It's important to keep in mind that one of the largest diesel terminals on the east coast is only 30 miles away, so the pit tracks are really just somewhere to keep local power between runs or for visiting stuff to park while their outbound trains are assembled.

I've thought about the Rix stuff, and have also been thinking about including some of those too.

[peteski]

If still considering bricks, how about kitbashing the building from the probably-unintentional modular kits like the Model Power (Pola) GE building and other buildings in that series. The bricks are oversize but to me they still look acceptable.  The windows are smaller than the ones in Walthers modulars.  Then there are the DPM modular walls with even smaller windows.

[Hornwrecker]

The PRR Buttonwood Yard had a filled in turntable pit and the engine service moved to a track where the two story wood yard office stood (ex-passenger station?).

http://www.gingerb.com/CNJ%20PRR%20Buttonwood%20Yard%20Offices%20JUL%207,%201967.jpg

Scroll down a bit for the rest of photos for this truly impressive engine facility: http://www.gingerb.com/cnj_hudson_to_wilkes-barre.htm

[randgust]

During the PC and Conrail era, to say that our town (Warren) was railroad bare-bones is an understatement.    There had been a turntable and an enginehouse, those went out before WWII.  After the passenger station was closed in 1967, the only remaining railroad structure in the entire town was the yard office - that's what I sent you photos of, and that housed the freight agent, the few track guys, and whatever else was left.

Power was rotated out of Erie and Renovo, and we had neither fueling nor sand.   Locomotives were left idling (remember that?).   During PC and early Conrail we originated four regular crew calls - a daily Warren-Corry (PC) or Warren-Erie (CR) train, and 3-day/week Warren-Johnsonburg train, a Warren-Struthers (PA) refinery daily switch run with a transfer caboose, and a Warren-Frewsburg once-a-week nightmare over the ex NYC Valley Branch that was lucky if it made it out and back in four days with all the outlawing.    That one died with Conrail.  But we never even saw a fuel truck, or a bag of sand, and the 'inspection pit' was a joke full of weeds and frogs.   So you'd see 4-6 locomotives around all the time on layover, idling, out in the open.    Creating the ALY in 1985 meant a railroad headquarters, and today there's a whole B&P maintenance facility here, an decent sized enginehouse even expanded from ALY, a rebuilt and expanded yard, etc.  No weeds and no swamp.   The old yard office is still there in back, purpose unknown.

Way too many modelers don't get the 'bare bones' nature of PC into Conrail.   If you could rip it up to sell it or tear it down not to pay taxes, you did.  And if you did keep it, you sure didn't mow it, paint it, fix it, or intend to keep it much longer until you sold it.  And it sure looked it.

One of the reasons I never modeled 'local' to my area is that it was just too painful to watch.   After I saw ATSF run, it seemed to me like all real railroads started at Chicago.   That's changed today, but it's how I ended up with a whole lot of local PC/CR/ALY/B&P history preserved and none of it modeled.

[Ed Kapuscinski]

EXACTLY Randy, exactly.

And it sounds like Warren is almost exactly like what my version of York would be like.

[tom mann]

so when I think yard office I think low slung, partially sway backed wooden structures.  It's a down south thing.  If you want brick, why not the old Walthers office kit:



Besides showing up on ebay all the time (!) it was reissued as its own thing a couple of years ago - some sort of small industry as I recall.

I would tend to agree with using the Walthers kit.

[Ed Kapuscinski]

No Walthers kits.

[Dave V]

No Walthers kits.

...unless they're Walthers modulars?   

DPM is your other easy source of brick...  None of their straight-up kits will get you where you want to go, but their modulars might.

[randgust]

This looks like the Warren little brother, minus the truck bay area.  Same basic design though.

http://thecrhs.org/Images/CR-8970-at-McKees-Rocks-PA-yard-office

[peteski]

This looks like the Warren little brother, minus the truck bay area.  Same basic design though.

http://thecrhs.org/Images/CR-8970-at-McKees-Rocks-PA-yard-office

I think that DPM modulars would be ideal to model this structure.

[squirrelhunter]

I think Ed's treatment of the ex- turnbtable/roundhouse area is spot on. Going from coal fired steam to diesels means the water tower and coaling dock go. Only out west on oil burning roads might the fuel oil tanks have been re purposed for diesel storage.

Lots of smaller terminals in Texas, like Glidden, Smithville, Waco and Hearne lost their servicing facilities, save for a wye or for the SP at a few locations, a turntable. I think SP had turntables in use at Waco, Tyler and Hearne until the UP merger. UP of course foolishly tore them all out ASAP, forcing them to tie up the mains in all those places to wye power.

Have you considered a metal sided/temporary/portable as the new yard offcie. Maybe CR tore down the old one because it was condemned and put a little construction site/prefab replacement out there to take over? Like maybe a Rix based kitbash?

[sirenwerks]

This looks like the Warren little brother, minus the truck bay area.  Same basic design though.

But that's not a true Pennsy structure or, well, very Pittsburghy.  How about the MTL military HQ? Perhaps replace the end double ped doors with a loading door, and add single ped doors elsewhere?

[Ed Kapuscinski]

Ooh, that's a good building. I should find one, even if I don't use it for this.

I really want to go brick here, but that does have "the look".  Hmmm.

[chicken45]

Ooh, that's a good building. I should find one, even if I don't use it for this.

I really want to go brick here, but that does have "the look".  Hmmm.

What makes you want to go brick over wood?

[Ed Kapuscinski]

It just "feels" more Pennsy. PRR invested in infrastructure and made stuff to last.

Also, if it were a wood structure, I feel like I'd probably see it replaced with a more modern steel one. That's not exactly the effect I'm going for. I want the facility to have a sense of history to it.

I'm contemplating doing a two story square structure, and then extending it with a metal sided extension (maybe from when the mechanical stuff moved into it from the torn down roundhouse).