Operating Grain Terminal

An interesting set-up, Paul. Plenty of work to be done to keep the terminal filled with cars. I reckon you could keep an operator fairly busy during a session just working that area. Well conceived!

Gary.

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Gary A. Rose
The Unofficial TC&W page
TrainBoard Moderator and Member No.377
N to the Nth degree!

 

I agree with Gats. It looks like a good opertion Paul. Maybe some day I will get to that point. For now have to be satified with getting the benchwork done on the CEE Line.

[This message has been edited by leghome (edited 06 January 2001).]

 

You are off to a good start. I model a part of the Santa Fe in HO that is in the heart of the wheat storage and harvesting in Oklahoma (Go Sooners). If you haven't been there, you can't imagine the elevators and terminals. My layout is a three deck, with grain facilities on all decks. If you want to take a look go to www.toto.net/rmmmr/

Bob Miller

 

Paul,I like your terminal track plan. The first Nscale layout I built had for it's very first building a scratchbuilt grain elevator. I hadn't even thought of putting one on the new layout till seeing this post. The weird part is I own allmost 200 grain cars.Thanks for the inspiration buddy.

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Catt!#118 -
A freelancer to the very end

 

Paul
That looks great. Wish I had to space for something like that

Bob
I took a look at your pix on you web site and all I can say is "WOW"

Dick

 

Paul, glad you like it. The big terminal yard at Enid on my railroad works much like your description of your operation. The real 10th street yard looks much like that, only mine is compressed (a little, hah) and single ended.
You asked about the elevators. I have kitbashed most of them using components from the Walthers grain elevators, pcv pipe, and sheet sytrene for the taller headhouses on the elevators.

I have a little over 300 grain cars (ATSF) at last count, plus a pot full of FLIX which is Farmland and a bunch of misc. roads.

Again, your concepts are very good. Some day, when I am totally crazy and have nothing to do will try to load a track plan, deck by deck, to my website so you can see how closely I am doing what you are. Good job, Good luck!!!!

Bob Miller

 

Colonel,
I might "steal" some of your track plan as that is roughly what I am after for my layout. From Captain Rick Nicholson

 

I wanted to pass on to the Colonel and others on this post some interesting operating info I found out a few years ago when I wrote some articles about bringing in the grain. I worked for Dow Jones News Service at the time.

First of all, at most large grain terminals, those elevators can load a car in about seven or eight minutes. It's not uncommon for a large terminal elevator (like those in Enid or Salina, Ks.) to have a switcher (elevator owned, often) solely devoted to loading and unloading.

At smaller elevators, those on the branchlines, it can take up to 45 minutes or an hour to load a car. Often cars are moved using a car puller, front-end loader or simply by gravity.

A typical branch-line elevator has capacity for a 10-car cut, and it's common for the siding to be built on a slope (so the cars can be moved by gravity.)

Finally, remember that elevators want to turn the cars as quickly as possible so that they don't accumulate demmurage charges, which usually go into effect after 24 hours.

Colonel, and everyone else: I hope this info might be helpful as you plan your operations.

As you can tell, I didn't waste the chance to do a little extra reporting when I was researching this article for work.


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Clifton
Chief Cook and Bottle Washer of the LaZ & E RR, (known locally as the Lazee Boy Lines)

 

Hey Clifton,
What is the scoop on unloading them. Where I am in Vancouver is mile zero for the grain to be exported by ship to points beyound North America. How long to unload? etc.

 

Colonel:

Solid job. I think the gang has helped you out with good info. Here is a slight twist. I drive home every night past an ADM combination flour mill and elevator system in Kansas City, Missouri. It operates the same as what you have been told. The only thing I would add is that the work associated with
off loading slows down on weekends but that they share the space with an intermodal facility that "never" shuts down and also an
operation that collects auto racks to go to a
local car assembly plant.

The other thing you might consider is the operatoin owned by a railroad or is it one of the large agrilcultural interests. If it is the latter, they will have the road names
representing where the harvest is currently going on. CP will not be in the yard in large numbers unless there is a harvest on in its region. Most of the roads have to carefully control their grain cars because they are in short supply.

Hope this helps.

Tigerman

 

Off Topic Slightly:

<BLOCKQUOTE>quote:</font><HR>Originally posted by friscobob:
Nice layout!!!!
I've been in Enid a few times, the first while a student of Oklahoma State, the latest a few years ago. All those large grain elevators impressed me. Personally, I like the era with all the Frisco, Santa and Rock Island power, but Farmrail is a good substitute.
How much space does your version of Enid take?

<marquee> GO POKES!!! </marquee>
(couldn't resist...)

<HR></BLOCKQUOTE>

I do have to give the Cowpokes some credit. They were the only team that really gave me a scare of beating the OU SOONERS.

But seriously, I grew up in Edmond, OK (just north of Oklahoma City)(1974-1990) and I remember seeing big long trains blowing through town at 45 mph all the time. Sante Fe if I remember correctly pulling autoracks, grain hoppers, box cars. I always tried to count the number of cars being pulled, but I would always loose count after about 40 or so.

Bry


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Smile!
It makes people wonder what you are up to.
Bry's Photopoint.com Album

 

Bob Miller, you and Colonel sure make me homesick! I was born and raised at Wichita, Kansas, at one time, the wheat milling center of the U.S.!! Your operation outline is very close to prototype. My dad and uncle Lawrence used to watch them shunt cars around at the Pillsbury Mill. Uncle Lawrence lived up on Arkansas across the street from the inter-urban line, and close to the tracks to the mill yard north end. There were no diesels back then, but a lot of steamers. Some of the long trains (100 to 180 cars) would pull in which stopped the 4-12-2's right across from Uncle's back yard. Aunt Minnie used to have coffee and cinnamon rolls made, and my cousins and I would take them over to the engine crews, and get a ride down to the mill in the engine cab, then dad would come get us in the car. Those were the days! They broke some of the trains into strings of 20 because the silos were like long arms and each silo could unload or load a car. It looked like snow when they loaded all 20 cars on all 6 legs at the same time! At my grandfather's farm in Aline, Oklahoma, they lined boxcars with heavy paper, then dumped the wheat in bulk. There were boards across the door almost to the top. Some air space was left. The flour cars were the same way, but they had dividers in them to keep the flour from shifting. Bulk flour will flow just like water, and can burst the end out of the car. Both wheat seed and flour is sucked out of the cars by big pipes as big around as barrels. When loading a car with wheat seed, those pipes get hot, so they wear gloves. I remember dad driving along side the wheat trains on our way back home from El Reno, Oklahoma, and we would sing songs in time to the side rods on the steam engines, about 40 to 45 MPH under full load.
"Here's to Daddy Claxton, may his name for ever stand..." "The Wreck of the 97"... OH well, those days are gone now.

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Watash #982

[This message has been edited by watash (edited 13 January 2001).]