Modern trackside Industry?


P

PartsMan

New N gauge guy
Are there any businesses that still use this type of set up anymore?
I bought it to be my main yard office but am thinking about makeing it some kind of distributer. Boxcars in and trucks out.
 
Sportsman's Guide, has rail access on one side of their building, but I don't think they use it for anything in. Most of what they get is trucks for both in and out. And there is a LOT of them.

The line is owned by Union Pacific, and it does look maintained and I saw some MOW stuff sitting on it a couple months ago. They are putting a new building next to it on the other side of the track, so maybe the line will be used again.
 
It kinda looks like a smaller post office or shipping company. That way stuff comes in and out both by trucks/trains. Add a loading dock and it could receive flat cars too like a John Deere dealer or something. I like to keep some factories able to accept different types of loads so allot of different cars can go there. A team track is good for this, lumber, tankers, box cars, flats etc. can all be dropped off on it and stuff is removed by fork lifts to trucks, tank cars to tanker trucks. When placing a factory its good to have a to and from location. that way loads come from "A" and are dropped at "B" and visa verse.
You said modern, all the cars are in the 50's...LOL
I really like the looks of it though!!
 
Trucula said:
You said modern, all the cars are in the 50's...LOL
I really like the looks of it though!!
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Sorry, I should have mentioned. That's Walthers picture not mine.
I just stated putting mine togather.

I'll be sticking to trains I have seen in my lifetime. 1980s to present.

I really want somewhere to take my trains but most modern train freight is multiple bulk cars. My little layout doesn't have room for a huge factory.
 
I would think that the majority of todays box car rail service is in bulk shipments? we live in a "i need it tomorrow" world
For an example..as a kid in the late 80s I was working for an uncle that had a warehouse serviced by truck and rail. He would get loads of wine from CA by rail and then the Trucks would pick up to deliver out localy. he also had a contract with paper companys. Trains would bring in the paper rolls and trucks delivered the rolls to local printers. towards the end of him owning the warehouse 90% of the freight was being deliverd and picked up by trucks.
 
I would think that any type of Distributor or a receiving/shipping area for an industry could have a setup like that. The older age of the building design wouldn't matter on a modern layout.
 
Sure, that would work fine for any era. You need a loading dock on the siding side of the warehouse, as Bob said, but, other than that, there are still lots of businesses that receive a carload or two a week of things in bulk that are distributed out by trucks. Some examples would be canned goods, newsprint, some building materials, like prehung doors and window frames. BTW, that Walthers picture shows a really bad way to do an industrial spur. There are very few that have the same ballast color and profile as the main line. You'd normally see a lot more grass and dirt and lot less bright white ballast.
 
PartsMan said:
I really want somewhere to take my trains but most modern train freight is multiple bulk cars. My little layout doesn't have room for a huge factory.
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Not all factories have to be huge. A brand called Pikestuff, by Rix, has excellent warehouse and office models. Just remember to detail and weather them. Great West Models also has a lot of 80's style warehouses and businesses as well as modular kits so you can build them to whatever size you need.
 
Partsman- How modern do you want?
With limited space for a manufacturing facility, you need to look at repackagers, distributors and conversion processors.

A few suggestions:
Computer/television recycler
Bulk paint repackager to 1 gal. or 5 gal. cans
Specialty bakery of cookies, potato chips or pretzels, snack foods.
Extruded styrofoam sheets or tileboard manufacturer.
Wind-power turbine and blade assembly plant.
Model train kits and accessories plant
Billboard/outdoor advertising sign constructor/printer
Spa/hot tub dealer
Look at the small companies with service trucks in your area for more ideas.
Mikey
 
80s to current. My main locomotive is a GP40-2.

Repackager sounds good. They would be shipping in and out rail and truck.

I may modify the engine shed I bought and use it for my industry. It's bigger than I wanted. About 4 times the size of the shed. Pic below.
 
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Just an idea that I remembered just now.

To give your warehouses a purpose, you have to fill it with something. I got a couple great ideas on industries from How It's Made from the Discovery Channel. Obviously you would have to compress it some, but they could be interesting.
 
PartsMan said:
80s to current. My main locomotive is a GP40-2.

I may modify the engine shed I bought and use it for my industry. It's bigger than I wanted. About 4 times the size of the shed. Pic below.
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Partsman- it sounds as if you need to proceed to a "kitbash" and modify the engine shed with a razor saw and sheet plastic. Cut the shed down to the size you need. Change doors and windows around as needed. Fill in the old the doors/windows with left over wall material.
Measure three times and cut once! I sometimes measure 5 times to get the second piece cut correctly.:D
Take your time and don't shortcut steps to do things correctly. You have to bandage fewer fingers that way, too.:p
Mikey
 
Razor Saw? I have a garage full of saws but not that one.
I had thought about cutting it down. It doesn't have any doors or windows cut in it yet. Just marked on the inside.
 
UP2CSX said:
BTW, that Walthers picture shows a really bad way to do an industrial spur. There are very few that have the same ballast color and profile as the main line. You'd normally see a lot more grass and dirt and lot less bright white ballast.
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Jim, I have to disagree. The local line near me uses the same ballast color as the main line! by the photo http://maps.live.com/default.aspx?v...&scene=28705133&phx=0&phy=0&phscl=1&encType=1 you can see the old ballast near the Plastics plant(First industry off the main line) then the rest of the spur beyond US41 is the new part. the ballast is new and fresh and Is the same color as the ballast as the main line! The next industry is a Motor Lifter manufacture(Johnson hylift lifters) and the last one is Cox lumber! If your Industries have been there for a long while Weather them but the new industry line is doable! Some spurs on the line near me are a mess http://maps.live.com/default.aspx?v...&scene=28808577&phx=0&phy=0&phscl=1&encType=1 but others are clean and weed free! Follow the line to the north and you will see what i mean:)
 
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Chris, I agree in concept but look at the warehouse style building and office in the Walthers picture. Do either of those look modern to you, in contrast to the relatively recent industial park construction shown on your aerial maps? I rather doubt a brand new spur would be added to a complex with such old buildings but the spur would have been in place for a long time. This is what makes the spur look out of place in that picture. Once a spur is in place, especially for a small customer, that's about all the maintenance it gets, so I'd expect to see the spur to be mostly overgrown with very little ballast left in place, certainly not the bright white ballast spread way beyond the track. Of course, I'd also expect to see a truck road on the other side rather than grass but I guess catalog pictures only get so much work. :)
 
UP2CSX said:
Chris, I agree in concept but look at the warehouse style building and office in the Walthers picture. Do either of those look modern to you, in contrast to the relatively recent industial park construction shown on your aerial maps? I rather doubt a brand new spur would be added to a complex with such old buildings but the spur would have been in place for a long time. This is what makes the spur look out of place in that picture. Once a spur is in place, especially for a small customer, that's about all the maintenance it gets, so I'd expect to see the spur to be mostly overgrown with very little ballast left in place, certainly not the bright white ballast spread way beyond the track. Of course, I'd also expect to see a truck road on the other side rather than grass but I guess catalog pictures only get so much work. :)
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Look one the aerial photo, on the other side of us41(West) there is a huge ware house. that ware house use to have tracks to it now the tracks were torn up many years ago and now the dock is for loading trucks(BTW: it's dirt not aspalt!)! that ware house was built in the early 70's! Now if the business decide to have rail service again the track and ballast would be done over matching the rest of the spur. So in short we really don't know what the modeler had rolling around in his mind at the time of the creation of his scene! if his industry had rail traffic then stoped it, then track was pulled up like the ware house by me! then a new owner of the ware house wanted rail service and the track was relayed then fresh ballast would be used! so new ballast on a spur next to an old industry can happen:):) BTW the new owner might even have the building pressure washed and painted too! Ever buy a used house? first thing wives have us do is paint a it and change the color of it!LOL:D:rolleyes: the model was also clean and bright with very little weathering;) sudjesting freshly built or remodeled? Either way, the scene seem good to me.:) I really can't fult it either......ain't my layout:D
Life is ever changing and some times clean and fresh and some time's old and dirty too! SOME our models should reflect that too!JMO
 
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