An Industry You Could Model

I have had long time interest in the Wabash railroad. In studying photos in the book Wabash In Color II, particularly photos taken around Delray tower, I noted that a spur ran south off the West Detroit Branch track crossing the joint trackage and paralleling the Michigan Central's mainline as it enters the city of Detroit. No mention of this spur was made in the book and I was curious as to where it went.

I had access to some Sanborn maps of the area and they suggested that this track was a connection to the MC and also served, via what appeared to be joint MC track, an industry identified as the Michigan Carbon Works. A quick look at the complex indicated that it was a fertilizer factory. This didn't sound particularly interesting until I took a closer look at the individual buildings which comprised the factory complex.

More later, David

Will It Work

Here are some photos of what I will call the prototype model. It is composed of 25 sections and is about six feet in length. The purpose was two fold, first to provide a really interesting model for a western mountain scene on the NAPM club layout, and second to proof out that the parts could actually be assembled into a model. It has worked out as planned and the next step is to build up the pilot model and document the construction steps.

The first photo shows the side with open ventilation doors.

The next photo shows the sides with closed ventilation doors.

The last photo shows the end view.

Four side variations will be possible in the kit. The model can be built without any side sheathing allowing a full view of the interior. It can be constructed with the ventilation doors closed or open. A final alternative is to modify the open doors to create a completely sheathed wall.

My plan for the kit is to provide enough parts to construct a 10 panel shed, a scale 200 feet. Each panel will consist of exterior sheathing closed door, back of open door, outside frame, support footings, center frame, support footings, rear retaining wall, roof supports, and roof section. Additional parts will be provided to allow construction of two 100 foot sheds if the modeler chooses.

So long for now, David