Wordless Wednesday No. 335

Orangeville, Ontario

The new power assigned to the Orangeville - Brampton Ry., April 26 2019 seen plugged in on the shop track near the station once used by the Credit Valley Explorer.

On my trip to the Ontario Narrow Gauge in Schomberg I stayed in Orangeville the evening before. It gave me a chance to see what is new by the tracks...George Dutka

The GO bus does drop offs and pickups at the replica station next to the stored engine.

The lines ex-CN caboose.

Once this CN caboose would have had batteries in here now they use generators.

Rust Bucket No. 3

I found this car in a string while visiting the Lawrence, Ma. area back on April 2, 2016. 

CN 1205 - An Athearn Model

An old friend returns for a visit to the WRD.

Years ago, maybe 1980's or early 1990's I constructed this model for my father-in-law. It recently made a trip back to my workbench and onto the WRD...George Dutka

An Athearn 1200 that has a Juneco SW 1200 detailing package added. The paint used was Scalecoat and the decals are Accucal. Kadee couplers and air hoses are also added.

Flex coil sideframes are also include in the package. The windshield wipers are not included. I don't recall were they came from. The Athearn exhaust stacks are cut off and new Juneco stacks added. I added ACI labels to the engine as seen in a photo I used back then.

F&C Horizontal Rib Hopper Models

My two newer additions to the WRD fleet are seen waiting to be picked up off the main once the creamery is switched.

My two car fleet of F&C horizontal rib hoppers that was added to the WRD manifest this past winter...no posts for a couple of day, heading to the lake...George Dutka

This NYS&W is kit number 5051.

Ready to go to work on the WRD. The Kadee trip pin has been removed. The cars both got a bit of PanPastel weathering followed by a thin overcoat of Floquil grimy black sprayed on. Both cars load and empty got a light dusting of coarse coal dust from PanPastel.

A very nice car built by Bob Bowes.

A Visit To Sarnia

A CN EB approaches Wanstead, Ont. on July 5, 2019. A small train of local Sarnia traffic headed to Mac Yard in Toronto.

On Friday I took a drive following the CN tracks to Sarnia to visit with Don Janes and check out how the tunnel derailment clean-up was going. I thought I might find the sidings full of trains, but not the case. The 40 plus car derailment in the tunnel has CN traffic rerouted several different ways. I did catch up with a CN EB at Wanstead on the way home with Sarnia local traffic in tow. Anyhow all the usual location to view the tunnel from walkways and roads are all blocked off with a lot of workers and security...so no chance for a photo.

Don has accomplished a lot on his layout since my last visit which I believe was in November. We spent some time talking about our next adventure and a clinic we are jointly doing this fall at Trainfest...George Dutka

I have a B&M plow exactly like this one that Don added additional details to. I took a few photos on his freezer with my phone for reference.

If you follow the videos on MR's site you will already know that the gang there are taking the Walthers State Line structure and converting it to something else. It is called the State Line Kitbash Challenge. Well Don has just built it also but no conversion. He has done a really nice job with it.

An overhead view of the Walthers kit.

Don ran some of his trains showing me his newer engine aquisitions. On this train is a very nicely weathered B&M 40' boxcar that Neil Schofield weathered for Don.

Approaching the home signal at Wantead, Ont. July 5, 2019.

CN EB stopped at the red signal Wanstead while conductor gets a 564 to pass a stop signal. There is a passing siding here. The Strathroy Sub. is single track.

St Lawrence and Atlantic Ry, - Boxcar

April 8, 2018 at Paris West, Ontario. A really faded blue and a ton of graffiti.

Back in the spring of 2018 Peter and I caught a CN westbound at Paris West doubling its train up. It just finished making a lift from the siding. The car right behind the engines is a good view of the roof and sides of a SLA boxcar...George Dutka

A better look down at the roof for those that like weathering. Lots of power on this train this day.

MEC Ball Signal and Pulpwood Car

Waumbeck Jct. ball signal and a MEC wood pulp car on the cover of a Trackside book.  Neat seeing this ball signal in later years. One can still view it at North Conway, NH.

I had recently covered or mentioned the MEC ball signal and MEC wood pulp cars in my posts. Here we have a view of both together on a books cover I really enjoy and recently picked up...George Dutka

London, Ont. - Reclamation Yard

The tower and car chopper at the Hale St. reclamation yard Feb. 4, 1985. Norm Davis photo. I never saw this machine in operation as most cars are cut up using cutting torches.

A group of photos taken by Norm Davis CN trainmaster during a period he was required to document all CN structures in his area. I aquired these photos through a friend Terry Nixon a retired conductor and friend who lives across the road from Norm. We have more views Peter and I took that will follow at some point...enjoy...George Dutka

As the steel was sold off a scale house was included in the facility. Note during 1985 many of the 40' woodchip cars had come in to be cut up.

The office and stores building. This is the roadway view were one would enter the facility.

This block building was the office at this end. Note the doors at that time are either CN orange or a light blue seen above.

Twin State Fruit Co. - New Signage Applied

I recently colour photocopied a corrected signage for Twin State. The structure also got a good cleaning. It had not been out of the WRJ scene in well over a decade.

Twin State Fruit Co. finally got a proper sign which is not seen on an angle. The only view I had when I built the structure, I took a long time ago but was at an angle. I never though of taking a photo straight on back then for use on a building. It is a neat sign that I could have just used decals or dry transfers to emulate. The weathering seen on it by the 1990's looks great and I really wanted to use it on the building. By the time I got back to take another photograph of the sign the building was gone. Recently Jim Sloan's squared the sign up for me and here it is in use...thanks Jim...George Dutka

Twin State Fruit Co. is back in place with a squared up sign.

Wordless Wednesday No. 334

Rust Bucket No. 2

Check out these rusty old covered hoppers, April 6 2019.

Some view from Brantford of three covered hoppers, one looking good and two a bit worse for wear...George Dutka

Close up view taken over the fence in CN Brantford yard.

This car which is in better shape than the others is out front of the Brantford VIA station.

How's that for a lettering job.

Layout Room

Brian's new island style layout bench work. He will have a really nice long run on each side of the backdrop.

In this years issue of Model Railroad Planning Tony Koester penned 7 More Things Not To Do when it comes to ones layout. Peter and I visited Brian Smith's new home this spring and were asked for our take...how should Brain's layout plan come to realization. Brian noted he thought he was breaking all Tony's rules but I don't think so.

Number 4 which talks about preparing a working space for ones layout. This is always a tough call I think. Many layout owners do have a nice finished basement to begin with but this is not always the case. Many basement are unfinished. Brian's layout will be in an unfinished basement and the area the White River Division is located in is actually found in a partly finished basement. The walls have some drywall with cove corners.

Brian is in an older home. I think working around what is there will work great and he will have a chance to actually finish the layout. Brian is staying away from the outer walls building the layout in the middle area of the room with room for operators to walk around the outside of the layout, similar to what Credit Valley Hobby Shop has done. I am looking forward to see how this all will unfold...George Dutka

This is the main section of the layout. There will be another section added to the far end making the layout L shaped.

Snapshot - June 2019

November 3, 2018 an eastbound PanAm freight heads out onto the bridge having departed Mechanicsville. On a very overcast day the sun came out for a few seconds and only on the engines as they headed out onto the bridge.

This months snapshot was from the November trip Don Janes and I made to Albany, NY for the Model Railroad Expo. On the Saturday which was raining during the morning we spent most of the day railfanning and exploring the area. Our last stop of the day was Mechanicsville, NY. We arrived as a PanAm train EB was departed town. We highballed over to the large bridge at Stillwater catching the train with a couple of seconds of sun as it entered onto the bridge. That was the kind of sun we saw all day once the rain departed. We got lucky a couple of times with a minute or two here and there...George Dutka

Summer Update 2019

CN 1205 on the WRD. This engine is an Athearn model with a Juneco RS switcher details package included. Paint, decals and a few extra parts round this engine out. It was built back in the 1980's.

I have been at the lake on and off so posts are thinner than usual. I do have a lot of material on hand and more coming once I get to scanning my NERPM finds...so check back through the summer, I am sure you will find something you like...George Dutka

Kind of an interesting view of a tire depot back in 1937. This could make a nice scene to model. I like how they pile the tires out front.

CV Richford job near Richford, Vt. during May 1976. A nice collection of rolling stock from that era found on the train that day...1970's modeler's take note. Ken Patton photo.

Alouette - Montreal

No date or data.

The Alouette leaving Windsor station in Montreal for Boston. This photo I have had for years in my collection that I thought would be interesting to view even without much of a description or date...enjoy...George Dutka

RPO on the WRD

This car was made from a Rivarossi model.

This is another John Blatherwick model I purchased from his estate. I really enjoy having a few pieces of John's modeling in my collection. Once again it was built back in the early 1980's when not a lot of options where available for us New England modelers...captions tell the story...George Dutka

The RPO car arrived on my workbench a number of years ago. The roof got a fresh coat of Floquil Grimy Black. John had painted the sides and applied decals.

All the handrails are shaved off and wire replacements added. Not an exact model but a good stand-in from the 1980's era modeling. There are craftsman kits available for this model style and I have one to build someday.

The MEC - A George Melvin Clinic

A lot of produce moved over the MEC back in the day as seen on this map.

George Melvin's clinic was full of wonderful photos, details and very useful information at this years NERPM. I wish I could remember them all. One comment did stick in my mind, MEC 50' boxcars originally built with silver doors which are aluminum did not stand up corroding to the point they had to be replaced. The new doors added are painted green. Now I need to check my photos and maybe change a couple of my models...George Dutka

The Aroostock Ry. being owned by CPR, their grain traffic moved in CP cars via the MEC not BAR. The traffic moved over the border into Canada before returning into the USA and MEC. The structure in the background is really neat looking from what one can see of it.

 

MEC 55500- 55551 are converted from cars built in 1939. Note the yellow stripe along the top edge.

The MEC during this era painted every 4th car yellow. Painting of cars occurred every 5 years.

Woodchip unloading Oakland, Maine 1965. Most of these cars never left the MEC traveling back and forth from loading to unloading facilities, many traveled only 5 miles. The converted hoppers in the distance I believe are lettered Portland Terminal.

A top view of outside braced cars. If one was to model one of these this view shows were the braces are. Note doors on one side only. Cars are in pulpwood service.