MODELING A RAILROAD IN S SCALE
What follows is a synopsis of SHABBONA RR that I wrote for Railroad
Model Craftsman's "Observations" column in 1980. It was, as might be
expected, rejected. I have condensed it, as indicated by dotted lines,
and edited it for clarity and to eliminate redundancies.
Some things have changed since 1980. For instance, the emulated
prototype is now the Rock Island's old K&D secondary line between
Eldon and Keokuk, IA. Also, the locomotive and rolling stock rosters
have "fleshed out" as new(er) and more products have become available,
and my overly optimistic goals of modeling perfection have mellowed in
the face of age, expedience and common sense.
______________________
---------
The premise of Shabbona Railroad was that of a Class I railroad
secondary route extending from Minneapolis through Oskaloosa, Iowa,,
to Peoria, Illinois. If this sounds more than vaguely like the
Minneapolis & St. Louis between these points, it should. Discussions
with an ex-M&StL employee convinced me that the portion from Monmouth,
Illinois, to Peoria offered excellent modeling possibilities to be
altered and expanded to fit my needs. It had two or three freight
trains a day, plus a local and a mine run or two to service coal mines
at Farmington and Table Grove. At one time, it offered passenger
service, winding down to a gas-electric motor car at the last.
Monmouth was a crew change point. Peoria was a terminal for local and
mine run crews, but a turn-around point for regular freight crews, who
went back to Monmouth before going off duty.
By working in an era around 1955 to 1957, I have a greater selection
of items to choose from, including an S scale 1956 Ford Crown
Victoria. Minor, I suppose, to those accustomed to the land of HO
plenty, but important to me, where anything that will hasten progress
is considered carefully. The 1950's era seems to be a more interesting
period, anyway, if only because many of the locomotives and trains of
the period no longer exist. From another point of view, the forty and
fifty foot freight cars of that time operate much more reliably on a
model railroad than the sixty to eighty footers of today.
Shabbona RR is an Alco-oriented line, with a smattering of EMD. Two
Alco S-4's, #27 and #28, along with an EMD SW-1, #22, handle switching
chores on the modeled portion. The S-4's also see frequent use on
locals and mine runs, and occasional use in freight service. The SW-1,
acquired as a bargain (I won it at the "S" Fest in 1978 at MIlwaukee),
spends most of its time in the yard, with occasional local serviced
when an S-4 or RS-1 is not available.
Two Alco RS-1's are assigned to the District, and their duties
parallel those of the S-4's, except they are preferred in freight
service when available. They carry road numbers 30 and 33, and #30 is
equipped with a steam generator for passenger service. An Alco FA/FB-2
set handles the one scheduled freight train a day over the District
each way (all other freights are run as extras), which, at the times
we see them, are units FA #50B and FB #52A. Both units are powered to
permit hostling, an important feature in operating plans. Two PA-1's,
operating singly, handle passenger service. They carry #'s 11 and 12.
A PB-1 (#13A) is "stored serviceable" (dummy unit), reflecting greater
passenger expectations when it was purchased, but now serving as a
back-up for the PA-1's.
Shabbona is not a large railroad, so all engines of a given type,
regardless of heritage, are numbered in the same series. Thus, the
switch engine numbers give evidence that there is a mix of nine Alco
and EMD units combined on the whole railroad (#'s 20 thru 28) and
possibly ten, if one considers that therecould be a #29 out there
somewhere. The RS-1 nuimbers tell us that of the locomotives in the
roadswitcher class, those that have steam carry even numbers. Odd
numbers, such as #33 do not, and that of the twenty numbers set aside
for roadswitchers, not all the even numbers do, either,
The Alco freight units began as three unit A-B-A sets numbered 50,
51, etc. Individual units of each set are "L" (A), "A" (B), and "B"
(A). The "L" does not appear on units so designated. #'s 50B and 52A
denote that these units are shuffled as required. The passenger units
use the same numbering sequence, except with no designated "B" units,
since they were acquired as single or two-unit sets. The only two-unit
set we know of for sure, though, is #'s 13L and 13A. One other
locomotive, a pudgy little 2-6-0 steamer, the last of the Shabbona
steam roster, is called to duty as business upturns require. When
used, it brings the more rabid Medalist and Speed Graphic-toting
railfans of the day out of the woodwork.
-------------
Shabbona is a railroad in its golden age, with subtle hints of
misfortune in the never-modeled future. Red and yellow splotches here
and there among the green of the trees and other vegetation indicate
that both the year and the railroad are in the warm, hazy days of an
Indian Summer existence. Shabbona is at the precipice of a fight to
the end against highways and declining revenues, although no one
realizes it yet. Morale is high, operations are bustling, the weather
is perfect, and the general feeling is that it could go on forever.
-----------
THE END
Yahoo! Groups Links
<*> To visit your group on the web, go to:
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/S-Scale/
<*> Your email settings:
Individual Email | Traditional
<*> To change settings online go to:
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/S-Scale/join
(Yahoo! ID required)
<*> To change settings via email:
mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]
mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]
<*> To unsubscribe from this group, send an email to:
[EMAIL PROTECTED]
<*> Your use of Yahoo! Groups is subject to:
http://docs.yahoo.com/info/terms/
