Walthers HO ore dock for N?

[nkalanaga]

Making the chutes operable would probably be overkill, as I doubt that most modelers would be moving their ships regularly.  I would suggest making it possible to model the chutes either up or down, but having them fixed in one position should be fine.

And I agree that making it accurate would be better than trying to adjust the spacing to fit a particular ore car model.  Someone, someday, will make an accurate ore car, and when they do, folks will be a little upset if their docks don't fit it.

Other than that, I have no suggestions, as Montana didn't have any ore docks.  I'm not sure Montana ever had an iron ore mine...

[jpwisc]

As a point of clarification, ore is no longer mixed at the docks. They used to do that when they shipped raw ore, so the ore would be graded and mixed per the customers needs. In the late '50s and '60, the industry transitioned to shipping pellets, so raw taconite is refined at a plant into musket ball shaped pellets. QC in the plant can get the iron levels to a desired point, which simplifies dock operations.

[nkalanaga]

True, with taconite the ore docks are basically just a transfer facility, like any other ore, or sand and gravel.

Do you know when was the last year significant amounts of raw ore were shipped? 

[Missaberoad]

In Minnesota (gn dmir) the transition to taconite took place in the mid 1960's. The states tax structure prevented it from happening earlier.
Raw ore shipmimts declined significantly since then, although there is still the ocasional move...

Most of the ore docks have been replaced with a conveyor unlading syste.  Ththe dock is still used to load ships but bnsf uses a rotary dumper and while dmir unloads on the dock, the conveyor takes the taconite to a stockpile that is pulled from with another conveyor to load ships.

A side note... Erie mining and reserve mining started hauling taconite in the 1950s but they were both closed operations and given special exeptions to the tax law...

[nkalanaga]

Ryan:  Thank you.  I didn't realize the changeover had anything to do with tax codes.  I always thought it was purely market-driven.  Again, we learn something new every day!

[Missaberoad]

The change its self was brought on by a number of factors.

The supply of iron rich soft ore was beginning to become exhausted, leaving deposits that were either difficult or uneconomical
to mine. The demand from the two world wars and the 1950s made this problem much worse...
Add to that there were a number of iron ore operations starting up in other parts of the world (Australia, Brazil, Chili, Canada)
and it was becoming difficult for mines to compete...

Taconite was in abundance, but requires a very labor intensive operation to crush the hard ore to extract the iron. this leaves a
very fine iron dust. To ease shipping the dust is binded with Bentonite clay and baked to form pellets about the size of a marble...
Its an interesting process that deserves a better explanation 

The process to extract the iron from taconite was discovered around 1920. However the abundance of hi quality "soft" ore kept
it as more of a novelty until the 1950's.

When the demand for taconite processing facilities began in the late 1950s there was concern over the taxation on new mines and
facilities, the "Taconite amendment to the states constitution in 1963 pledged that the taxes would be frozen for a period of 25 years.
Development began after this date with the first plant opening in 1966.

One correction... I stated that Reserve Mining and Erie Mining were exempt from taxation. They were not, they simply decided to
go ahead in the current (1950's) tax situation...

This was the Situation in Minnesota... I'm not familiar with the transition in Michigan or Ontario but I do Know they occurred around the same period...

[pnolan48]

Fascinating history--thanks for writing about it!

[nkalanaga]

Ryan:  That's basically the way I heard the story, except for the tax parts.  We ran out of high-grade, easily mined ore, and had to make the switch.  Now, as convenient as taconite is for shipping and refining, I doubt that the steel companies would want to go back.

So the taconite pellets are made with Bentonite?  There is a Montana connection, then, as the original source of Bentonite was near Fort Benton, MT.  Now I believe it's mined in several areas.

[Missaberoad]

BN and CNW supplied alot of the bentonite in 3 bay covered hoppers... Would make an interesting shipment for a western layout

Also at some point they began adding limestone to the mix, its used as a Flux in the steel making process and traditionally was added at the mill...

Its delived to duluth by ship and hauled to the plants in difco cars or empty ore cars as a backhaul...

Definetly agree that the pellets provide quite the convenience/economy compared to ore...

[pnolan48]

In addition to plans, I've ordered the Walthers HO kit to provide me with some insight into the geometries. It will be interesting to see if an N scale kit is feasible using my techniques.

[Missaberoad]

It would make quite the project! If I remember correctly the Walthers kit has a steel superstructure... Another common possibility would be a concrete dock

[pnolan48]

Yes, it will be quite the project! I just scaled down the plans I have to N Scale--these things are huge! 

BTW, I do have a self unloader for my Lakers that I just haven't announced yet.

Oops, I'm getting the ore dock and hulett unloader threads confused--sorry!

[Missaberoad]

I think the shortest dock on lake superior was the CNR dock in Port Arthur, Ontario at 600ft. And even it got doubled in length in the 1950s...

Huge just begins to describe them

[keeper]

I have the plan of the LS&I ore dock and I'm planning to build only half the length of it which will be about 1,2m and that's without the trestle....

Thomas

[pnolan48]

A Fitzgerald-class laker is about 1.4 m, so I'm used to some length.