I recently purchased a Heljan Sand and Fuel Facility Kit. Its isn't too bad to build, but it left me wanting. So I hit google and found a few pictures of the Bailey Yard in North Platte, and used it as inspiration. I went to the LHS and picked up some styrene and got to brainstorming. Thankfully, the Heljan kit came with a ton of extra/spare parts due to the way it was molded. So it left me with a few goodies to add to the kit. I plan on constructing most of the "signature" structures from the Bailey Yard, but it will not be an exact match. I don't intend for it to be identical (I don't run UP stuff anyway) Here is my progress so far. The Heljan kit, pretty bare-bones and kind of unrealistic. Wooden dowel and styrene to replicate the main sand tower from the Bailey The start of the central tank from the bailey, this item will be painted black and placed atop a scratchbuilt tower... which makes me nervous. I'm most likely going to trim down the base a bit more, but want to leave a decent chunk of it to it won't be so hard to build. Then, an I-beam will be run across for support. Later down the line, I will be adding a tank (for diesel fuel) as well as a pump shack and some fuel piping. Any comments welcome. This will be a first attempt at scratchbuilding/kitbashing so they are welcome.
Well... what I have from tonight Center tower being assembled And putting it together... Still many details I'd like to try to accomplish, check back
I've added more details and I must say, this is taking some time for sure. I probably have about 9 hours total into this project. I guess that is a good thing because the patience is paying off... I'm still not done just yet but hopefully you enjoy the pictures. I know I am very impressed with the results thus far... I still have to add the stair cases to each catwalk, finish a vent pipe along the upper outlet pipe (between the large tower and the smaller black tower), any other small peice I decide to add, then finish off with dullcoat and weathering. Thanks for the comments!
How would you rate the quality of the platforms and railings from the original kit? I need to do a Petroleum loading dock set up fo rmy refinery, and I need long platforms to do it. I love the look of the TrainCat etched platforms, but price is important and if I can get a reasonable stand-in in plastic, so much the better.
Well to be honest, the plastic used to mold this kit was pretty flimsy. When I cut the walkways from the sprues it was wavy and had to be flexed straight. It really didn't start getting rigid until the rails were added. All in all they look pretty decent, although I'm sure etched metal would look sharper.
I'm impressed. It looks like way too much work for me. I do need some sort of engine servicing facility on my layouts though, so I'll keep looking.
Finished! I finished up some styrene work, sprayed it down with dullcoat, and weathered. I also had enough room to add a straight section to each side of the facility to accomodate the long catwalks. And its (tentative) location on my layout
This has turned out beautifully! I really like the work you did on this...really helps detail a loco service area! Great job! Bruce
