Railway of the Month

In the current July 2008 issue of Continental Modeller, the Railway of the Month is:

GODINEZ, IOWA

American HO - made from leftovers
by Peter North

After my last layout (Rosa, Illinois, based on the Gulf, Mobile and Ohio - see CM October 2006), I really thought it was time for a break from trains. Space at home is always a problem and I could keep up my interest in American railroads through books, magazines, and the occasional exhibition visit. Although there is not an active group near where I live, I joined the NMRA which meant I could keep in touch with US-outline modelling. I took the opportunity to dispose of large quantities of stuff accumulated over the years via a sale table at last year's British region convention, which conveniently happened to be quite local. I could use the time to think about doing something completely different, etc, etc. But then I found that I missed not actually doing a bit of hands-on modelling for an hour or two each week and the space Rosa had occupied in the utility room was still there. Also I had not quite sold everything - I found a couple of Rock Island locomotives that had missed the clearance sale, some resin kits I had not made up, some small structure kits ... and I began thinking. It would be nice to have a small project to work on - there were even some unused bags of Woodlands Scenics ground cover - and to have something that might get invited to the odd exhibition.

At this point an e-mail arrived reminding me that I had promised a layout for the 2008 Nottingham Bulwell MRS show. So I began to plan. Nothing larger than 5' by 3'6" - in and out of the trusty Kangoo in one piece. Set in the mid-1950s. No hidden sidings board as such - why not a simple structure that followed the track contours with minimum support? In plywood so it would not be heavy, and an integral backscene and legs so that set-up was quick and easy.

A quick discussion with the owner of the sadly now closed model railway shop in Diss and the boards were delivered a month or so later. So what did I aim to put on them?

In terms of track, with the space available it was not going to be complicated and with the Rock Island for a prototype it was going to be relatively flat. For those not familiar with the railroad, the Rock spread west from Chicago to create a spider's web of branch lines over the prairies which, aside from harvest time, saw very thin traffic - some of the more remote routes were finally dismantled in the late 20th century with original rails still in place! After the Second World War it became quite clear that the Midwest had one railroad too many and it was the Rock Island that got squeezed out despite gallant attempts to keep going. This created an approach that has been described as standard gauge trains with narrow gauge atmosphere. Weedy and uneven track, under-maintained and over-worked, habitually dirty locomotives in colour schemes that did not match; if there was a corner to be cut, the Rock was around it promptly to save money and survive a bit longer. The struggle ended in 1980 but I have always been fascinated by the pictures of single units creaking along rackety track between forlorn prairie towns where everything needed a fresh coat of paint.

I looked at what I had in terms of track. Peco Setrack for the hidden sidings was not a problem and I had some spare lengths of Precision Scale and Micro Engineering plain track in three different sizes - codes 55, 70, and 83. Points added up to a curved Shinohara No.6 and a No.4 in code 70 plus a 45¼ diamond crossing. So I came up with a plan for a continuous run with a spur to a grain elevator that branched across the main track to the local farm store.

Track laying began and test runs shortly after. I quickly found I had got things badly wrong. Relying on my elderly eyes alone, I thought I had got the radius right. Wrong. To work in the crossing across the main track, the curves had become just too tight even for an F-7 proceeding at a crawl. There was no alternative but to take out the diamond, but rather than remove the spur track altogether I removed the switch and left the plain track in place, rusting back in the weeds and the concrete hard standing by the elevator office. This also explains the switch stand left isolated in the middle of a patch of undergrowth by the grade crossing.

So I was back to a simple spur to the elevator, but even that became complicated. In a careless moment I damaged the blades of the curved point beyond repair shortly before the layout was due to make its appearance at the Nottingham show. Some rapid work with a chisel through the scenery and underlay and some realignment enabled me to install a new Peco 83 Line No.5 point which has since performed flawlessly. This exercise explains the rather wavery and uncertain (in most directions, including up and down) path of the spur to the elevator.

On the main track, following my earlier disasters, I did make sure that the curves were not less than 15" radius and superelevated with some 80thou styrene strip glued underneath the outer rail.

For ballast I used Woodland Scenics fine grey in a 50/50 mix with earth 'soil' and burnt grass with a drop of Floquil dirt in the dilute white glue holding everything together.

Before laying track I try to give each tie (sleeper) a coat of a variety of greys - I keep patches of four or five different shades on a postcard - and also give the rail sides a coat of a grey/rust mixture. Acrylic paints are wonderful and cheap enough now to experiment with - and if it does not look right, you can wash them off and start again.

Given the bits I had, the spur is code 55 and the main track ranges from 55 up to 83.

As usual, I planned to use DCC for the layout - I had some loco and accessory decoders left over from Rosa plus a couple of Soundtraxx DSX sound generators, fortunately both for EMD first generation diesels. To work it all, I decided to use one of the new entry-level DCC systems and quickly chose the North Coast Engineering offering. Performance was equal to the more expensive systems I have used in the past and I liked the idea of not having to worry about a base station. Transformer included seemed good value too, but one tip: although the transformer has an automatic selection system that accepts either US or UK mains voltage, you need a UK shaver plug adaptor. These plugs are usually supplied with a 1-amp fuse which needs changing to 3-amp before using the NCE system.

I do think there is a tendency to labour the 'difficulties' of DCC. At the Nottingham show I had several anxious enquiries about the necessity for multiple feeds to the track and types of wire to be used. Over the years I have tried to remember three simple rules: read the instructions carefully, use wire that matches the output of the system you are using, and check the method of reverting to factory defaults so you can start again if you do get into trouble.

On feeds (this is probably Rock Island thinking) much of the work will be done anyway if points are wired with a live frog. Converting an existing layout to DCC is no effort at all, aside from fitting loco decoders. Points can continue to be worked by a separate analogue system and re-routing existing wiring to accessory decoders is much less of a task than installing either control system from scratch.

For loco sound, given the size of Godinez and for simplicity's sake once again the decoders are 'shore based' and drive a speaker under the table, which until recently has been the best way to achieve a nice bass rumble. I linked the two boards with mono phono plugs and sockets - useful if you catch the wire by accident as they pull out without harm.

Notwithstanding the small size of the layout, I wanted to be able to put on a reasonable performance at an exhibition. The best way I have found to do this is through sound, replicating real life operations and wherever possible making things along the track work. This means, for example, using the locomotive whistle and bell correctly - such as three long calls on the horn before backing up the spur and bell on during the manoeuvre.

Heading east from the depot at Godinez the main track enters CTC territory and I had a Tomar single head signal but lacked the decoder to drive it. I then recalled a similar location I had seen in South Carolina. Here if the signal was not lit, the train stopped; permission to proceed was a clear white light. I drilled out the Tomar LED, put in a white replacement and by using a diode to block one output I was able to make it work by using a decoder designed to operate Tortoise switch machines which I had handy.

In addition, for me part of the ritual of watching the train go by is the insistent clang of the gong and the flashing lights at grade crossings. A clumsy movement decapitated the ready-made crossbuck I had available which meant I had to make up a Detail Associates kit that which I had vowed never to touch - it looked far too difficult - but I was surprised how easily it went and the result in the end looked more authentic because the design could be varied.

I do have to admit my efforts so far to motorise the train order signal at the depot have not been successful - during the Nottingham show I resorted to a sly tweak of the semaphore arms when no-one was watching!

The Peco point made installation of a rotating switch stand very straightforward and for the first time ever I managed to get the full 90¼ rotation required without installing a separate motor.

I also decided to have a smashboard at the depot. I am still not quite sure where these were used, but I had seen several photographs of brakemen descending from trains to open the gate before proceeding. I had a switch stand rotation mechanism left over that cried out to be used and the gate was very simple to make. Like the Rock, I used a bent piece of pipe and a vertical wooden post held together loosely with nickel-silver wire hinges. Hole punched styrene provided two red discs to mount on the gate with superglue.

Rolling stock
Stock is limited to two locomotives, two cabooses, and less than a dozen freight cars.

No.435 is a General Motors GP-7, the (increasingly arthritic) backbone of the Rock Island locomotive fleet, which seemed to include at least one of everything built in the 1940s and 1950s, including GMs disastrous 'Aero Train' - but it was cheap. The first batch of Geeps, including 435, did not carry the distinctive white 'wings' at each end of the car body and before they could be applied the livery changed to a less expensive maroon with pinstripes.

No.118 is an F-7 cab unit - not ideal for branch line work and switching but commercial logic meant that if that was what you had and you could not afford anything else, it was used.

Both engines have been distressed and weathered and kitted out with decoders and the electronic flywheel device from Lenz, which helps on the rough track.

Cabooses are both Overland brass models which I had forgotten to take to my clear-out sale; one is a 1942 war emergency box car conversion that were still in use when the Rock folded.

Freight cars are a mixture of some resin and plastic kits I had not built plus a couple of ready-made items from Tichy, Intermountain, Ertl, and others and a rather flashy NYC box car from Trix. The latter has run very well after replacing the rather clumsy Talgo-type coupler arrangement with Kadee™ No.58s to match the rest of the stock.

It is worth mentioning that freight trains in the 1950s were pretty drab looking. Lots of older outside braced cars were still running, the Korean conflict had interrupted maintenance work and recovery from the effort of the Second World War, and paint technology had yet to produce the bright, stable colours we take for granted today. So weathering seems a must. With ready-made cars I begin with some lights strokes with sandpaper to take the shine off the lettering. I then mask off the car body and spray a weathered black on any appropriate black surface - I actually use an acrylic car spray, Rover 'Hurricane Grey'. I then highlight areas likely to show wear, such as door runners, the coupler area, and the brake gear, with acrylic Indian ink diluted in isopropyl alcohol - I always do this on a table in the garden to avoid fumes. Rustall provides additional highlights, and when I am satisfied I apply control coats of Floquil 'Grime and Dirt'. I finish off with chalk mark decals and a couple of coats of Dullcote. I use similar methods on kits but begin with a primer coat of Humbrol 'Light Grey' spray which helps particularly in distressing wooden sided cars and also seems to turn something that looks like an untidy collection of brass, resin, plastic and other bits almost magically into a model that might look acceptable in the end.

Scenery
To create the rising ground at the west end of the layout I used builder's insulation paper supported by polyfoam. Once in place everything got a couple of coats of undiluted white glue. The result is a firm but light shell, ready for painting with a base coat of a cheap buff- coloured acrylic. The foundation and supports for the dirt road up to the overpass were cut from sheet styrene. Open country was then built up with the usual suspects from Woodland Scenics, plus trees and bushes from Silflor. I did not bother too much with tree trunks; trees do not grow that high on the prairie.

The paved road is re-arranged airfield runway panels from Verlinden. I had decided Godinez was at the end of a surfaced road - hence the 'pavement ends' sign by the general store.

To make everything solid for travel to exhibitions, I use lots of white glue to hold down grass tufts and other foliage. For the Silflor tufts I set out about a dozen blobs of glue at a time and then with tweezers (if they are handy) and fingers (if not) it is surprising how much ground can be covered in half-an-hour. Even then it is easy to miss an area - I noticed that the ground around the farm store foundations was bare when I saw the photographs in preparing this article!

Structures
Prairie towns were created from as little as possible to serve largely farming needs and to provide basic comforts in a climate that ranged from sweltering summers to bleak winters. Some prospered but many did not and simply hung on, with buildings dating from the late 19th and early 20th centuries patched and extended but not replaced that often. Godinez is one of those places.

The major buildings, apart from the depot, are from AMB, Blair Line, or Grandt. Both the general and farm stores were extended using Evergreen styrene, Grandt windows and various castings. In real life such extensions rarely match the original materials. The produce office was a simple styrene shack to which I added Campbell corrugated iron sheets and an extra loading door. I put quite a lot of effort into the lighting conduits and exterior lamps - florist's wire is cheaper than brass and helpfully comes in several sizes in both black and a green that is a snap for the shade used for road sign poles.

I use broadly the same finishing techniques for structures that I use for rolling stock - grey base coat, different shades of white for each structure, and then sandpaper distressing before washes of acrylic inks, Rustall, and good old Floquil 'Dirt' before the last coats of flat varnish.

It is always worth looking at that box of left-over bits when doing prairie building details. If you live on the margins in somewhere remote you tend to use what is to hand. So I was pleased to note that the spare set of Athearn Genesis F-unit etched brass grilles I found fitted several sizes of window and door castings to simulate screen doors and security bars. Left-overs from a Tichy Trains kit provided a strip of neat rectangular grey castings which looked very like telephone junction boxes. (Ready made stock is nice but you do not get these extras, or the achievement of building!)

One rolling stock kit provided a structure. As the Rock's real estate fell steadily into disrepair, old box cars made useful depot replacements, once a couple of holes were cut out for a door and a barred window. One end was partitioned off to form a rudimentary office for occasional use and to house the mechanism for the train order signals and a phone. With four barge boards and a slanted tarpaper roof added, the result was secure and cheap. To make the example at Godinez I filled the holes in a box car body with Squadron Green putty, sanded smooth, and cut window and door holes. The rest of the conversion used spare kit parts or styrene sheet with a masking tape roof surface and patches. In real life, I suspect these structures would have been pretty uncomfortable places in winter or summer, but were probably used only for a few hours a week. Chimney, waybill box, and other small details came from the bits box.

The other elements of buildings are the signs, phone poles, and power lines that form part of the visual fabric. Adding these details fills out a scene, and several companies produce road and advertising sign sets and decals. But remember, putting a sign up does not necessarily mean one was taken down. A layout set in the mid-1950s can incorporate fading signs put up 40 years earlier, or a later sign often placed over the remains of an earlier posting. The prairies just are not European tidy. This applies to overhead wires for phones and power too. To create some impression of the jumble of connections, transformers, and poles accurately is a task made easier by using latex thread rather than nylon line and it is much more forgiving when, inevitably it catches the hand. The Walthers set of power poles includes a very useful leaflet that gives a basic explanation of real power supply which helps a lot. I use Atlas and Rix telephone poles as well - the Atlas set helpfully includes some with bracket arms. Trimmed back, with a Campbell shade added, and some wire detail, these make useful country street lamps. Varying things a bit adds realism; one sign on a wooden, another on a steel, pole is very easy to do and the way things happen in real life.

Conclusion
Thanks as ever to trusty suppliers such as the Mighty Penguin (LSWR Models), Mac's Models, and Chris at Digitrains.

I suspect I will keep adding bits and pieces to Godinez for a while. The town needs a few more vehicles (or the remains of cars up at the 777) and really should have a post office.
I have enjoyed what I think will be my last run at portraying the prairies, but I think I can now take that break from building for a while - I have used up all the odds and ends I had left! Something completely different might be a good idea next.

Godinez will be on display at the Ardenrail all-American show on Saturday 28th June at Arden School, Knowle, Solihull, West Midlands, B93 0PT. Full details can be found in last month's Exhibition Diary.