L&HR construction pending...

[asciibaron]

just wanted to put the plan up one more time and get some final input...

i'm considering a re-design to make use of the Atlas curved turnouts.  that might enable me to get 3 tracks of staging if i reduce the yard to 3 tracks...

any comments?  Bernie?

[davefoxx]

Steve,

The one thing that I really like about your plan is that you have kept it simple and not overloaded the plan with a spaghetti bowl of track.  Have you seen the track plan on the A-Board that is "F-shaped"?  The designer, on one hand, has done a nice job of squeezing a lot in to that layout, but scenically, it's limiting and too much for my tastes.  Your plan, conversely, will allow for scenic realism and a feeling of actually getting out of town and going somewhere.

Unfortunately, I'm not familiar with the intricacies of the L&HR to help you with the final details of a track plan for operation.  Was the L&HR a smaller road or a Class 1 racetrack?  Is this layout designed to operate just one or two trains?  If so, I think your plan is fine, and the passing siding near the yard will allow the locomotive to runaround and switch its own train.  If you plan to run more trains, I would consider adding an escape to one of the yard tracks (making it an arrival/departure track rather than the passing siding) and allow the mainline to remain clear.

Just some thoughts,
Dave

[wm3798]

I like.  It is, as Dave points out, very simple, but with a good operating scheme, it can be very entertaining.  Definitely more space appropriate than the PRR through Ohio.

What are you going to start with?

Lee

[3rdrail]

Dave, the L&HR was a 90 mile long "short line" that connected the New Haven Railroad with the PRR, LV, CNJ, and RDG. Here's a photo of it's last steam engines:



Hardly typical short line power, eh!  A great railroad to model for those who like running trains.

[asciibaron]

the L&HR was a major link in the Alphabet Route and was a small class I railroad.  they had 74 miles of mainline running at 45mph.  they ran 4 trains through, 2 in each direction, daily.  then there was the local turn and yard job in Warwick.  they had several large on-line industries - the Limecrest limestone mill and the zinc mine.  other line side industries were Gamma Chemical - makers of chemical weapons!, several lumber yards, Singer Sewing machines, an asphalt company, and a pine mill that made furniture.  

they had 13 RS-3's and 9 Alco C420's on the roster in 1967.  the bulk of the business was bridge traffic followed by a daily zinc ore train that was handed to the CNJ at Allentown.

here is a classic image of the L&HR - the Great Meadows station.  notice the order board and station track.  i really want to include this scene.

[asciibaron]

What are you going to start with?

the benchwork

[asciibaron]

A great railroad to model for those who like running trains.

and a great one for those who like locals that work a mine branch.  the next house will have a proper space for a nice L&HR layout - i really want to  include staging from Allentown and Maybrook and get get the mine branch to be a long and lonely run.

[davefoxx]

All right, then we need to add an interchange to reflect the "bridge route" that the L&HR is.  That could even be one of the yard tracks, which won't affect your track plan too much.

By the way, did the road see any foreign power as a result of run-throughs on the Alphabet Route?  If so, what a great way to "mix it up" when you tire of seeing the same old motive power over and over.

Dave

[asciibaron]

By the way, did the road see any foreign power as a result of run-throughs on the Alphabet Route?  If so, what a great way to "mix it up" when you tire of seeing the same old motive power over and over.

now you're seeing the fun of this line...

CNJ power made it on the line - the L&HR trackage rights on the CNJ from Phillipsburg to Allentown meant every 10th trip was done with CNJ crews and/or CNJ power.  when the C420's were delivered in 64, they leased several former RF&P F units from Precision to fill in the shortage caused by a derailment.  some RS-3's were traded in as part of the C420 deal and when 2 of them were damaged in shipment, they had to lease power...

the PRR used trackage rights and sent through trains over the line in the late 60's.  the occasional NH unit ventured down the line as well.  the B&O and WM sent coal to Bridgeport via the L&HR, plus there were the Reading unit coal trains with Reading power and cabins.

on top of that, there was a steam excursion on the line as few times.

plenty of stuff to keep it interesting

[Dump The Air]

My biggest question is, wheres the staging? A road like the L&H, which I also model lends itself to needing staging, considering all the bridge traffic they moved, especially since the road was a vital link for both Alphabet Route (AO trains originating in Allentown and there westward OA counterparts) traffic and the Central States Dispatch (HO-6) trains from the RDG (switched and reblocked and repowered with L&HR crews at Allentown) via Allentown.

The locals on the L&H we're called "Grabs".

Gamma Chemicals name changed to Ashland Chemical sometime in 66', are you modeling 67?

Most of the interchange on the L&HR (accually, all of it) happened either in Phllipsburg at Hudson Yard with the PRR and LV, in Allentown with the CNJ (CNJ interchanged in Hudson Yard after 1972) or in Maybrook with the New Haven.

[up1950s]

It is always safer , derailment wise , to have the normal running route go through the straight portion of a turnout . There looks to be one to the left of Franklin , and the second one below Harris Pine Mill , and the one to the right of the station track that are used as the main but utilize the tangent portion of the turnout . All 3 could be redesigned a touch to put the main on the straight portion of the turnout without too much trouble , and no major changes to the plan .

[asciibaron]

if i could fit some staging in there, i would do it - if you can figure it out, i'd love to see it.  with such a small space, i'm mainly interested in the branch to the Sterling Hill zinc mine and the Lime Crest operation. 

you are right Gamma changed it's name but i couldn't think of the new name when i did the plan. from the EPA superfund site details:

"The Southland Corporation site is located on Alphano Road, 277 acres in Great Meadows, Independence Township, Warren County, New Jersey. Gamma Chemical Company owned and operated the facility from 1950 to 1966, followed by Ashland Chemical Company from 1966 to 1978, and Southland Corporation from 1979 to 1988.

The facility produced and processed speciality organic chemicals, and manufactured chemical intermediates for dyestuffs, pharmaceuticals, and industrial products. All operations at the facility ceased in 1988. From 1988 to present, 7-Eleven, Inc. (formerly the Southland Corporation) has continued to maintain ownership and conduct remedial activities at the site. All industrial structures were demolished and removed from the site."

staging is needed no matter what, but you work with what you got, right?

[asciibaron]

here is a concept for some staging, taken from Bernie's book, but it would be very tight staging...



the distance between levels would be about 4 inches for the grades to work out in the 3% range...

[wm3798]

I'd keep the clearance to a minimum of six so you can get your big old paw in there for those times when things go badly...  Or at the very least, build your industries over the yard area on removable panels.

Otherwise looks very functional and ops friendly for those thru trains you'll be running.

Lee

[Dump The Air]

That was the style of staging I was going to suggest, the grades could prove a problem, the L&H wasn't totally flat, but it wasn't the Black Fork either, although many of the road trains averaged 3 units.

If your willing to do it, double end Warwick yard and make it a staging yard and put the layouts main focus on Franklin (train order office FJ), which was an open block station during 2nd trick I believe, not only would you have the local that switches the zinc mine and the other industries you could write orders and clearances for all your road trains as they pass through.

I don't know well enough of this end of the L&HR as I should, I model Hudson Yard and it's interchanges. If you don't have it, I suggest picking up a copy of the issue of Flags, Diamonds And Statues that covers the LHR in 59'. It's a fine article, there is the Boyd/Antz book and the recently released Paul Miller book which I have not purchased yet.