I’ve come to realize that the vast majority of my photos are closeups and art shots. That makes it a little hard to see how things fit together. To that end I just filmed a short overview/pan side-to-side video of the East Rail layout. You can see it HERE. (Recorded in 1080HD)
Model Railroad Blog
East Rail’s Mobile Home Park
Mobile home parks are a common feature of South Florida’s landscape, particularly around the industrial parks. The above scene is a very close replica of that on my original East Rail layout. In my current iteration, the structures are from Inter-Action Hobbies. Their laser cut kits skew more to the craftsman end of the spectrum and are better models than what was available fifteen years ago.
East Rail March 4
Y320’s switcher approaches 37th Avenue as it works East Rail’s Big Hole lead. Tropical International is an auto parts warehouse (not rail served). I used photo laminates over a styrene core owing to the difficulty of capturing the logo had I used traditional construction methods.
Dialing Things Back
Tony Koester made some excellent points in his March Trains of Thought column. The piece dealt with one of the most important modeling topics, color management. He made a point that often gets skipped over and that’s the fact that we view things through atmosphere. As a result, saturation drops off with distance. In addition, sheen (aka degree of gloss) does as well. Since we view our models from a few feet away, we need to dial that atmospheric effect in manually.
I recently picked up the two tractors above from Truckstop Hobbies. They were decent but, like most vehicles models, had some toylike features that needed to be toned down. In real life these trucks would have a fairly glossy surface….when viewed up close. But….realism is enhanced if we take the gloss out to create a sense of distance. The windows were masked and I airbrushed on a few layers of Dullcote. The mirrors were removed and airbrushed flat black, a more common color for them. The wheels needed some major backstepping so these were given some layers of chalk weathering and an India Ink wash. A light ink wash was applied to the grills as well to bring out the detail. The end goal was to remove the look of a shiny toy and (hopefully) instill a higher degree of plausibility.
Charm City, Switching’s Promised Land
One of Tradepoint Atlantic’s switchers makes a transfer run between yards. The empty centerbeams were pulled from the massive Home Depot facility. Trains shuttle back and forth between yards all day. A new Starbucks is being built just out of view to the right.
Having the luxury of being able to watch prototype switching operations up close and personal adds an extra, and very fulfilling, dimension to the hobby for me. If switching is your thing, then Charm City, aka Baltimore, is the place for you . First, you have an unusual number of actors which include The Canton Railroad, Tradepoint Rail, CSX, NS, and even some interesting activity inside the gates of industries. Second, you have the texture the city’s fascinating backdrop. It’s a community that takes preservation and links to the past seriously. Finally, it lends itself to what I call “lawn chair rail fanning”. In most of the locations, a major street cuts across the yard throat. While this is a headache for the lines, it’s a boon for the photographer. You can literally sit in a lawn chair on the sidewalk with a hot cup of coffee in your hand, and just watch the action unfold. If anybody wants to take in the action and do some railfanning there, drop me a line and I’ll elaborate on set up locations, restaurants, etc. With one exception, all of the locations are in very safe, gentrified, neighborhoods. Curtis Bay is, how do I put this delicately, “a little rough around the edges”. If you go during business hours odds are that you “probably” won’t get offed.
Canton RR: Canton is a relatively small, but fascinating line. If you go to where the main crosses Holabird Ave. you’ll see the yard switchers doing their blocking. A few blocks to the north, the main crosses Boston Avenue for some additional viewing angles. There’s a Starbucks next to the main at Boston Ave.
Tradepoint: Tradepoint is the new kid on the block. A new, and massive industrial park, is being built on the site of the old Bethlehem Steel site. They have five or six switchers that are very active doing transfer runs between their three yards. Much is fenced off but if you know where to go, you can see plenty of action from public property. Email me for details.
Domino Sugar is a massive industry, with a fairly large rail network that is worked with a Trackmobile. The yard throat crosses Key Highway (which is actually a street, not a highway) so you can just watch trains there. There are some good coffee shops and brewpubs nearby.
Waste Management: Just south of Baltimore is a Waste Management facility with a decent sized yard that is heavily switched by an EMD switcher. If you park on the shoulder of Brockbridge Road you can watch the action as well as that on the adjacent CSX main.
Some resources to help with your adventure:
Tradepoint Rail corporate website.
Tradepoint Aerial (excellent 3D tutorial).
Two of Canton’s Knoxville switchers saw by one another as they work the yard. I tried to get them lined up side by side but they wouldn’t cooperate. The shot is easily captured standing on the sidewalk of Holabird Ave.
Waste Management’s switcher works the yard hard all day long. You can easily watch the action from the shoulder of Brockbridge Road in Annapolis Junction which is a stone’s throw from BWI airport.
The trackmobile crosses Key Highway as it works Domino Sugar’s facility.
Two remote units idle away (beautiful sounding too!) at CSX’s Curtis Bay coal facility.
I have a few chapters and designs based in Baltimore in my most recent track plan book.
The stars mark suggested photo locations.
The (easily accessible) location of Waste Management’s facility near BWI.