The Port

The port section of our HO layout is one of the older sections.  It represents a portion of a much larger port facility, only depicting two piers.  The track in this section is all code 70 and will probably remain so, unless we start getting major shorting issues.   The one pier is a coal loading facility, shown in picture on right.  The other pier is a general merchandise pier for loading freighters.  

Both piers are loosely based on prototype practices.  Inspiration for the coal pier is from the New York Ontario and Western facility in Weehawken, NJ, the Norfolk and Western Piers in Virginia, and a facility in Brooklyn I believe originally operated by the navy.  Again, I said loosely based - this structure is obviously the Walther's Ore Dock Kit.   Sometimes Walther's comes out with pure crap, other times, like in this case, a pretty awesome model.   So much so that I had to figure a way to put it in my fictitious northeastern port.   The structure is built, painted, and partially weathered.  It also has rail.  I need to build a connecting line still, which will go through the backdrop to a staging yard and then from there on a long d

owngrade run to the main yard section of the layout which has yet to be built.   I also am going to mount a large sign, the Lackawanna logo looks good for  this on the end of the pier as was the prototype in New York harbor.  I am also going to add lighting to the pier and to add some detail to the backdrop.  You will notice the very intense blue - this might be changed to something more subtle.  At the time I was going for that Kodacrome blue 

that my older slides all have.  

The other pier is based on the "Long Pier" at

the Lackawanna facility in Hoboken, NJ.  It has two tracks and a port crane.  A lot of products from the steel mill will be loaded here onto ships - such as steel beams, rails, coil steel, slabs, and pig iron.   It will allow for a lot of on line freight movements.   At the land side of the facility will be a cement transfer facility (water to rail) that is based on a prototype on the Passaic River in Newark, and several other industries will be partially shown.  

You can also see the primitive form of a freighter.  I've formed the basic shape from foam and will be laminating most of the hull with .020 styrene sheets.   I also hope to fit in a coal barge and a tug.