Rick, the FEF is on display at the Oakville yard for a while (or at least until I get the sound install done). David, the cars are BLMA, the blades and holders are Shapeways - Mark Watson's store (CG Nscale; also on Facebook). Would do a tutorial but am writing a magazine article on building the train...if they decline to publish (unlikely as I was asked to write it) I'll put it up here. And thanks, Syrous
Wow!!! I have spent a few hours going through this post(new to forum) . I have to say what a beautiful layout. I love the railfan approach with a simple clean track plan. After all thats the lure of N scale long trains with enormous scenery. I know its been said many times in replies, but i hope my layout will be half as amazing as yours jim. Not to mention an inspiration to keep a clean layout room. Lol I am a fan, and will keep checking back regularly Thanks Joe
Jim, I am also new to this board but have followed your work by lurking on Railwire. I have always admired your layout. I seen Mark Watson's blade train at the train show in Council Bluffs, Iowa last weekend. It was very impressive to watch. Would you consider posting a video of yours? Thanks, Paul
Hi Paul, thanks for the kind words. Only problem with video is the time it takes. I know I'm remiss and should add to my youtube channel - need to show that 108 car earthworm with DP, too... I'm finishing up an article right now, then let's see...
Ask and ye shall receive...[video=youtube;eFnxUNBv-N8]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eFnxUNBv-N8[/video]
Fantastic video, Jim. That is a great looking train, and very real, these days, for that area. When we drove through Tehachapi late last year, camping there, the landscape has changed dramatically, with all the wind turbines on the hills.
Please, Sir, may I have another? [video=youtube;1_uhzzmu8z8]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1_uhzzmu8z8[/video] This one at a ranch near Bealville.
Nice video and great job on your layout. BTW, what are those long white things in the video. I've never seen anything like that before. John
Thanks, John Those are wind turbine blades. The railroads take them from the manufacturer to a staging site - usually a siding or yard - where they are unloaded from the train and placed on trucks for the haul to their final destination. The blades are 140 feet long. They are fairly common on my prototype.
While not the best picture of them, this is at an RV park in Tehachapi (out next to the Tehachapi airport, about a mile from the tracks). You can see the turbines on the hills in the background. There are hundreds, if not thousands, on the hills around Tehachapi pass, and down into Mojave.
I see those massive wind turbine blades on semi trucks fairly often here in California. But I've never seen them on rail cars. How to they handle the curves on your layout? Do they articulate on those stands somehow? Lookin great Jim!
Yes they do, Noah. The blade holder is free to move between two .040 square pieces of styrene spaced about a quarter inch apart. Not prototypical, but then neither are our curves. I honestly don't know how they'd do on smaller radius curves - mine are 22/24 inch minimum. But there's plenty of room for the blade holder to move. I thought about putting a pin in the blade holder but then I'd have had to drill the deck to receive it. This way, if I ever wanted to return the flats to service I could simply pop off the .040 pieces and you're ready to go. Full details will (hopefully) appear in an article I've written at the request of N-Scale magazine's editor Walt Huston, I'd guess sometime this summer if they publish it. I've never seen a wind turbine in Virginia either, but it's probably just a matter of time. Northern Illinois and Indiana (and California, thanks Rick) have them all over the place. Got a couple more videos coming...
Man, this is a small world, I just replaced Walt as PNR President. His Aberdeen, Tacoma & Spanaway Forrest is an outstanding model railroad.
Really like the blade trains. Seen a large one at the train show in Council Bluffs, Iowa two weeks ago. It is a common sight seeing them travel the interstate thru Omaha, usually in convoys of three trucks with blades. Many times the base travels with them. Thats one thing I haven't seen modeled yet. Jim, that train looked right at home on your layout, beautiful.
The one at Council Bluffs is Mark Watson's. He's the developer of the Shapeways models, and others. Far as I know, his and mine are the only two around - or the only two that are getting exposure. I'd also like to see the base and top modeled as well. If it were properly engineered, one could use the parts to either haul or build. One of those things would certainly dominate any scene it was placed in. You'd likely not see it on a door layout...
