I should probably post more wide angle/overall shots of the layout.
An overall of the entire layout as it stands today. Only two structures left to build.
The left side of the layout with the just completed Tropical International structure in place.
The right side with the recently finished cryo reefer spotted at the logistics warehouse.
Tropical International was a large auto parts distribution warehouse next to SALCO. Although it wasn’t rail served, clearly at some point in the past a previous tenant did receive cars. A current check on the business shows that it’s now a Pep Boys distribution center.
The model is a combination of traditional styrene methods with photo wallpaper laminates used for the panels, windows, and doors.
I toyed with the idea of using traditional methods throughout but the need for capturing the logo accurately put me back to using photos. The security bars are from Tichy.
Here’s a few shots of the prototype facing directly to the west from 35th Avenue.
As far I know, the only source of my beloved Cryo Reefers is the decades old Walthers model. Although it’s been discontinued, you can still find some kits on ebay. The one I picked up was clearly many decades old. The model came from the old era before the “find standards” freight car production boom we are blessed with today. Remember the old days? Cast on grab irons. Super thick stirrups. Thick, brilliant paint. I wanted to salvage the model without spending a lifetime doing so. Murphy’s law of model railroading reads that if you go too deep into a redemption project like this, a week after you’re done, Rapido or Athearn will come out with a mind blowing, fine standards version.
Shaving off grab irons was an option that was DOA for me. Same for replacing the door. Not happenin’. My strategy was to focus on a few simple, high bang for the buck, upgrades and then focus on weathering. I replaced the foot stirrups and brake wheel with aftermarket parts, added air hoses, good couplers and left it at that.
For weathering I started with a very dilute overspray of white to tone things down. That was followed by a light oil wash, some chalk weathering, and highlighting the panel lines with a pencil.
Here’s what the factory stock version looks like. My version was so old it came with horn hook couplers and plastic wheels and trucks.
My latest book, Shortlines You Can Model, Vol. 1 is now available for purchase via Amazon.
Imagine a shortline set in a tropical city where English is the secondary language, and trackside voodoo rituals are commonplace. Palm trees, oppressive humidity, a narrow ship-clogged canal, and one-story pastel-colored structures with peeling paint and murals complete the scene.
Now, take that background image and overlay an arrow-straight, mile-long, spur worked by an aging SW8 in peeling mint green paint running down an often flooded right-of-way to serve a handful of industries clinging to the banks of the river.
Welcome to The Swamp Rat, Miami’s short-lived and largely forgotten, shortline.
This richly photographed and engaging backstory serves as a plausible fiction theme for the freelance shortline modeler. The journey starts with the backstory. It then moves on to the design and construction strategies needed to bring it to life.
Photo of the SALCO structure mounted on the layout. I’ve found that working the scenery in around a building’s base takes almost as much time as making the structure itself. Photo was taken with an iPhone 6 and stacked with Helicon Focus. Photoshopped sky.