The Troy Industrial Track
clude any track in the space between the Poestenkill and Interstate Com- modities. As a result, this may be the only shelf layout that doesn’t include a prototypical switchback.
Structures
Interstate Commodities is comprised of three main structures. Furthest to the south is a concrete grain shed that would be an easy scratchbuilding proj- ect. The heavy buttresses and metal roof would add a fair amount of visual interest with minimal difficulty. The middle section of the property sports grain silos of a few different vintages. Here, some Walther’s metal grain silos would work well. On the north end of the property is a concrete grain eleva- tor with brick curtain walls and iron windows. It would be a tricky project in styrene that could be approximated with Design Preservation Models wall section No. 30175 pieces, but the brick buttresses would have to be filled and painted to look like concrete. A trackmobile and some grain-haul- ing tractor-trailers would help round out the Interstate scene. The corrugat- ed metal structure over the unloading equipment is a key feature in this plan, as it provides a view block for the end of the shortened track. The New York Central freight house currently occupied by K&C Trucking is a great opportunity to build one section and duplicate it many times as resin castings. Certainly, commercially avail-
able freight house kits could be dou- bled up to achieve the building’s enor- mous length, but they would not cap- ture the building’s unique proportions and arched-door loading bays. The lay- out plan calls for this building to be constructed as a narrow false-front, a fact easily disguised by blocking views with a large quantity of 50-foot trailers parked in every open space. The salt dealer’s gear sits at the lay-
out’s foreground and it would be worth paying attention to the conveyor, trucks, scale house, and winch. While few would want to model the salt pile itself, concentrating on the smaller de- tails here would help convince visitors that the whole layout enjoys such a level of attention. A chain link fence runs between the track where the salt is unloaded and the rest of the indus- tries. This detail helps define both time and place of the layout.
Scenery and rolling stock The most conspicuous scenic detail is
the Poestenkill Canal. The canal walls are built out of a mix of sheetpile and stone. The railroad crosses on a wide concrete arch bridge. One-hundred- fifty feet behind the railroad bridge is the stone-arch First Street Bridge. Small trees and weeds grow out of every crack, and fishermen often line the edge of the walls. The South Troy scene is terminated by an imposing five-story mill building that functions as urban scenery. Cinders dominate
A string of empty two-bay covered hoppers sits outside the salt unloading area. Behind the fence a large pile of salt can be seen
the wide spaces between tracks; how- ever, the tracks themselves sit atop a thin layer of newish-looking ballast in most areas. Any area not frequented by trains or trucks is home to surprisingly large trees and bushes. Lastly, a few lights on poles stand at odd intervals throughout the scene.
Grain often arrives in newer three- and four-bay covered hoppers that are unusually clean. Salt, on the other hand, arrives in older covered hoppers covered in rust and graffiti. K&C takes deliveries in 60-foot and longer box- cars, often from Southern, Union Pacif- ic, and Galveston Wharves. Currently, South Troy is served by CSXT GP40-2’s and CP GP38-2’s, both available by a couple of suppliers in HO scale, and N as well. These locomo- tives tend to show their age. Several years ago, Atlas offered a wide-vision caboose that is a dead-on match for the D&H caboose that calls Albany home. It just needs welded-over windows, some orange paint, and a Highball Graphics F-118 decal set.
Conclusion The South Troy Industrial Track is an opportunity to prototypically model Class 1 railroad operations in a small amount of space. Given a little more space, it could easily, and impressively, be modeled in O scale. It could also be a component of a larger layout, offering a quiet branch off of a busy, modern main without sacrificing much space.
towering above the hopper, and the conveyor and the car dump- ing pit are clearly visible on the other side of the battered gate.
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NOVEMBER 2012
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