NKPHTS 2018 Indianapolis Convention Model Displays

To read about the NKPHTS 2018 Indianapolis Convention activities click on the below link.

Click Here --> NKPHTS 2018 Indianapolis Convention Highlights

NKPHTS 2018 Indianapolis Convention Model Displays

The best part about the modeling displays at NKPHTS conventions is that contests are a thing of the past. So there's no pressure, rivet counting or perfection needed, just a show and tell event.

I've tried to display all the info I could about each model including the modelers name, and any details known about the model. Unless noted all models are HO scale.

NKP 232 SW-9 by Mike Pfaff

NKP 345 SD-9 by Mike Pfaff

NKP 325 RSD-12 by Mike Pfaff

Atlas NKP Caboose 772 by Tim Adang

NKP Baggage 347 by Bud Brueggeman

NKP Baggage-RPO 358 by Tim Adang

NKP Boxcar 13498 with roof hatches and NKP 90525 3 bay covered hooper by Bud Brueggeman

 The next three N scale models are by a David B, I couldn't make out the last name sorry.

A unique N scale NKP Gas Turbine by David B.

N scale NKP Snow Plow by David B.

N scale NKP MoW Crane by David B.

Overland NKP Caboose 1207 by Mont Switzer

NJ International NKP Caboose 747 by Mont Switzer

Overland NKP Cabose 911 by Mont Switzer

Overland NKP Caboose 416 by Mont Switzer

NKP GP35 910 by Mont Switzer

NKP GP30 908 by Mont Switzer

NKP AS16 321 Alco rebuild by by Mont Switzer 

NKP AS16 323 EMD rebuild by Mont Switzer

NKP C420 578 by Mont Switzer

NKP SW8 109 and NW-2 18 by Mont Switzer

To read about the NKPHTS Indianapolis Convention activities click on the below link.

Click Here --> NKPHTS 2018 Indianapolis Convention Highlights

25 Years Later...

No, twenty five years later is not how long it's been since my last post but it has been almost a year since I posted anything of substance. Hang on for an explanation of the blog post title later. I do apologize for the lack of layout postings and I appreciate the concern that some of my regular readers had for my blog disappearance.

A lot has happened since last my last non-Wordless Wednesday post both good and sad. Last year in the fall I took a new position at an organization I had previously interned with while finishing up my degree. I could easily say it's my dream job and feel very fortunate to return to the public sector and where I first started the path to my new career.

After a few months of settling in at my new job, I had hoped to turn my attention back to the layout but a complete bathroom gut and remodel took priority. Even as I write the bathroom still commands my attention but I can finally see light at the end of that tunnel.

Yours truly putting down tile board

As for the sad, after a long illness we made the hard decision to let our cat WahWah find peace in late November. He was a very vocal companion that thankfully never showed interest in the layout as a playground and will be sorely missed after 17 years in our lives.

WahWah seen napping with a Fast Tracks template as a blanket.

Earlier this year my wife and I also faced the first loss of a parent together when her Father lost a long battle with brain cancer.  When growing up at some point you realize the possibility of loosing a parent but it always seem like something so very far away. It definitely puts a certain perception on life and where you are at in life it when it finally happens, whether it's you or to someone very close to you.

After this personal update now lets get back to trains. I found once you get removed from your hobby for a while it can be difficult to find where to dip your toe back in, especially if you're in the midst of building a layout. The best place I thought to start was to clean my workbench up.

This in turn spurred me to complete a few projects that had been lingering for a long time, such as the PRR hoppers I picked up for cheap on eBay awhile back. I also put together a large number of Accurail W&LE hoppers that had been piling up.

Accurail W&LE hoppers.

The "25 Years Later" name of this blog post comes from not my absence but the time it took me to complete an old Walther's kit.

While organizing my pile of "to build" kits when cleaning, I dug out a modern day Walthers tank car I bought as a teenage N&W/Norfolk Southern modeler. On inspection it looked like I had started construction but probably gave up frustrated with either the handrails or ladder based on the glue marks. Back then with a limited budget I didn't quite have the tools I do now, so with the right size drills to ream out better holes and some CA kicker I finished the build only 25 years later!

While it has no place in my NKP steam era collection, it will fit in nicely with Brendan's modern day equipment.

All good things in all good time

It's crazy to think of my teenage self unknowing beginning to build the car not for myself but for my future son!

I hope to share some of the other little things I've accomplished model railroading-wise over the past year. Thanks for hanging in there.

Wordless Wednesday #101

Here are a couple of the models I displayed at the 2016 NKPHTS Convention in Bellevue this past October. These are simply Accurail kits with PanPastel weathering and Dollar Tree black sand coal loads.

Wordless Wednesday #98

NKP model display by Chris and Brendan Ellis at the 2016 NKPHTS Convention in Bellevue, OH. NKP Airslide Hopper and TOFC models by Mont Switzer.

"A Date Which Will Live In Infamy"

Please pardon the following side trip from model railroading :)

Ever since visiting the WWII Battleship USS Alabama in Mobile during our family summer vacation, Brendan has gone Battleship crazy. Any kind of WWII ship crazy would be closer to the truth.

During our trip to the NKPHTS Buffalo Convention by chance we discovered their Naval Museum containing three WWII ships, the Cleveland class cruiser USS Little Rock, Fletcher class destroyer USS The Sullivans and a submarine the USS Croaker. This only fueled the fire.

Piles of books from the library followed, and soon he was telling me and my wife all about Pacific naval battles at all times of the day.

Then he discovered there were models you could buy!

I can remember building a few models as a kid like the HMS Ark Royal, so I knew this phase for Brendan would be fun and a good tool for teaching him more about model building.

When he learned about the events at Pearl Harbor he wanted to honor that by building a model of the fated USS Arizona. I found a kit on eBay for real cheap but then I got too busy to do anything for most of November.

Revell USS Arizona, test fit of major parts before painting, December 7th 2015

Finally with my busy period at work nearly over and my internship for school completed we dug into the kit last week. Knowing that he'll probably lightly "play" with the model I won't put a ton of time and detailing effort into it, plus the tooling is over 50 years old and it really shows trying to put this thing together.

We didn't finish it by Pearl Harbor Day but that's OK, not hurrying to finish a model is a good lesson to learn.

Train Show Hopper Jackpot

I knew when I decided to model the coal hauling part of the NKP's Wheeling District, I would need a substantial amount of hoppers to achieve that goal.  My estimate for modeling the flow of empties and loads in and out of the Adena and AC&NA branches is about 250 to 300 hoppers for an operating session.

After attending a train show this past Sunday in Dalton, Ohio, I am finally at the low end of that goal thanks to this stunning find.

Twenty two Athearn 2 bay offset hoppers, all with unique numbers and Kadee compatible plastic couplers!  The vendor had much more good stuff beyond these NKP hoppers and it took a lot of financial restraint to leave that table with only those cars.

In my W&LE hopper post, I said I was looking to shift to standardizing on Atlas 2 bay offset hoppers.  Well... I couldn't pass up these Athearns, especially at the nice bulk price deal I was offered.
They will help balance the ratio of my NKP lettered 2 bay and 3 bay offset type hoppers. I had way too many of the 3 bay offset type since the Stewart model in NKP 6 packs has typically been the easiest to find and purchase.

The renumber job on my hopper jackpot was done nicely with decals (saving me a ton of time) and sealed with dullcote, which means they are ready for weathering.  All but 3 of the cars have the small "NYC&StL W&LE lessor" lettering which is often left off and is an important detail to me. The reweight date is a past my 1953-55 time frame but that can be fixed later with decals.  I typically use Kadee #158 whisker couplers, but the included copycat couplers at least have the metal knuckle springs which will do for now.  All my hoppers are slowly being upgraded to metal wheels for their better rolling qualities and cleanliness compared to plastic wheels.  Doing this however is an expensive undertaking, for example this whole lot would almost consume $70 worth of Intermountain metal wheels.  These hoppers only make that line waiting for metal wheels longer, but all in good time.

With these cars I can finally lower the level on my hopper acquisition radar!

Load Making Workshop

A couple of Sundays ago fellow Nickel Plate Road modeler John Albaneeze invited Brendan and I over for a group work session building loads for our hoppers and gondolas. We were also joined by Tim Moran and Jerry Jordak who's Penn Central layout I got to operate on with Tim earlier this year.

I brought along a bunch of plastic hopper load inserts by Accurail (I really recommend them) that needed finishing, a bottle of Scenic Express mine run coal, the Dollar Tree black decorative sand I also use as coal and few other supplies not knowing what to expect. I've been to John's house a few times and he's always been the ultimate host, so I should've known he'd be well prepared for us.

There were tables to work on and a table full of supplies, containers full of different grades of sand, real coal, metal shavings, rust and all the glue and paint we might need. There was even a table with donuts and coffee which helped pass the time waiting for everyone to arrive. Once Tim and Jerry arrived we got to work. Tim brought several grades of Smith & Sons coal and gravel and added it along with my coal to the communal material supplies.

Here's a view of my set up on the work table I shared with John.

Coating the Accurail loads with real coal assembly line style.

While I dug into coating the tops of the Accurail loads with different sizes of coal, John showed Brendan how to craft a sand load for a gondola using a core of insulating foam.

John explaining the fine art of turning foam into a load base.

I believe Tim came up with the trick we all started using of mixing a bit of Mod Podge glue with a color of acrylic paint similar to the load material we were using. This was helpful for concealing the color of the foam and adhesion of the load material. Even though Mod Podge dries clear, I used the glue and back paint mix to better hide any spots I might miss with coal on the plastic loads. Making my coal loads was a simple process of painting the load top with the glue/paint mix and then pouring the coal on top. After about a half hour I shook the loose coal off for reuse and set the load aside for further drying. Pretty simple stuff.

After Brendan built two sand loads, his attention wandered to the connecting room where John's Carrollton Branch layout resides.  Brendan and I had the opportunity to run one of the local trains in a operating session there a couple of months ago, so Brenadan was hungry for some more switching fun on John's layout.

Brendan on a step ladder works Canton Yard while Tim inspects John's recent additions to the Carrollton Branch.

After a while we broke for a great lunch of sloppy joe's then continued our load building work. I had more loads than I realized piling up around me, but Tim came to the rescue and helped stack the driest loads to make room for more as I worked. Jerry made a whole bunch of gravel loads for his cement plant and some loads that may work for a coke train.

While we might have been working on our own load projects, we all had a great time working together and talkin' trains.

Once Brendan and I returned home and I unpacked my new loads to spread out to dry completely. It was only then did I realize I had completed 42 new loads for my coal hoppers and gondolas!

42 new car loads!

Gondola loads of rusty metal, scrap steel, sand and coal.

I believe John said the rust flakes came off his old Ford Mustang. Where ever they came from they'll look pretty good as a load headed to the steel mills at Mingo Junction.

Pony pieces in my Walthers W&LE gondola.

Thanks again to John for having Brendan and I over. We look forward to any future activities!

Wordless Wednesday #44

NKP #383 0-6-0, HO scale Proto 2000 model by Tim Adang, at the NKPHTS 2015 Buffalo Convention

Wordless Wednesday #43

W&LE 2 Bay Offset Hopper #64253, O scale model by David Vaughn at the NKPHTS 2015 Buffalo Convention

Wordless Wednesday #41

Left to Right, Accurail, Atlas and Athearn W&LE Offset Hoppers.

Nickel Plate Road Modeler's Notebook

A few days ago my first published article, "Choices: Wheeling & Lake Erie Offset Hoppers in HO Scale", was released in the September issue of the Nickel Plate Road Modeler's Notebook! It’s pretty much a slightly expanded version of my blog post on the same subject with more data, prototype photos and new pictures of the hopper models. The improved model photos were taken on my new scenery test module, which was one of the driving reasons for building it.

The September and other issues are available here but only members of the NKPHTS can access that page and download the PDF file from the website. There's hope that will change in the future to match the practices of other Historical Societies making their modeling publications available for free online. 

I won't deny it's quite a thrill to see your name on an article you wrote in a publication, be it online or in print. The Modeler's Notebook Editor Ray Breyer is always looking for more content for the Notebook. So if you have any NKP or W&LE related modeling that you want to write about, drop him a line at modeler@nkphts.org

If you haven't done so lately or at all, check out the Modeler's Corner at the NKPHTS.org website for the latest NKP model releases, a tiny preview of the Modeler's Notebook for non-members and the very informative All-Time, All-Scale NKP Models List.

Thanks again to Ray for contacting me about making my blog post into an article for the magazine and for all the work that he and others have done with the Modeler's Notebook. 

HO Scale W&LE Hoppers

A recent discussion on the Nickel Plate Road Modelers Yahoo Group, lead me to compare and contrast my small collection of W&LE hoppers to their prototype counterparts.

In my modeling time frame of 1953-54, I always assumed there would be some W&LE equipment that had yet to be repainted with new Nickel Plate Road lettering. A recent look at data contained in the January 1954 Official Railway Equipment Register, confirmed that plenty of Wheeling lettered freight cars still roamed the rails in two different classes of open top hoppers.

Finding Wheeling painted models to show this mix of old W&LE and newly lettered NKP hoppers hasn't been easy.

The Wheeling & Lake Erie name is very uncommon for any model releases in any scale, and in addition decals for freight cars are also hard to find (edit: there is a old Campbell Road dry transfer sheet, Set WT-31 for the WLE type hopper lettering and a W&LE Boxcar Decal set from Wabash Custom Decals). Luckily there have been some choices lately in ready-to-run HO scale models that make adding some W&LE flavor to your hopper roster easier.

I'll cover the two classes of W&LE hopper that populated the NKP car roster, and the HO scale models that represent them. All of these models are lettered for the W&LE, but with the exception of two, they are special limited runs and are no longer available.

I won't get too nit-picky covering these models unless warranted. I don't really get into super detailing freight cars or get too bothered by a missing inch here or there dimensionally. I need a fleet of 200-300 hard working hoppers to model the coal hauling part of the Nickel Plate. If it comes with brake piping fine, but adding that stuff or worrying about a missing row of rivets isn't on my to do list.

The Prototype

W&LE #61000-64399 Steel 2-Bay 50 Ton Offset-Side Hopper 

The prototype W&LE #61000-64399 were all steel 2-bay 50 ton offset hopper cars, built between 1936 and 1947 in various lots by Bethlehem Steel, Pullman, Ralston, American Car & Foundry and even the W&LE's own Ironville shops. These 3,400 hoppers would make up almost 40% of the NKP's hopper roster in my time period, and in Jan 1954, 565 still had W&LE lettering.

The 2-Bay Models

Athearn 34' 2-bay 50 Ton Offset Hopper

This is the Athearn 34' 2-bay 50 Ton Offset Hopper model. The Athearn hopper is showing its age now with newer and better looking versions produced by other manufacturers. It's still a good model and cheap, great for trying to build a very large fleet of nondescript hoppers.

I found this model on eBay and it's Athearn box was labeled as a NMRA Cleveland Division 1 special run, from when I have no idea. The lettering is a little rough but this is a good example to show the different lettering styles the W&LE used.

The photo of the prototype car W&LE #61147 above, shows the "as delivered" lettering style which was stretched out using an ampersand and abbreviation periods after each letter. At some time before the NKP lease of the Wheeling in December of 1949, the periods and ampersand were dropped in favor of a more simplified "W L E". I don't know when this changed, but I'm sure noted W&LE historian John B. Corns might. I'd love to see proof of the older lettering on a hopper appearing in the 1950's, that would save some decal work to change the older hoppers.

Atlas 34' 2-bay 50 Ton Offset Hopper

The Atlas 34' 2-bay 50 Ton Offset Hopper was announced in Feburary 2012 and released sometime in 2013. This was the first time Atlas offered these in W&LE lettering. They came with the "as delivered" 1930's lettering and in two different numbers,  #61071 and #61147.
The Atlas model offer a closer look to the prototype with crisper detail and comes with a plain coal load, Kadee compatible couplers and a real plus, metal wheels. The Atlas also matches the lettering style the best, but just a touch thick.

I have four of these and hope to get a few more as they are nicer looking than the Athearn and easier to find for now. I'd like to update the lettering to the 1940's standard on these hoppers.

Intermountain 34' 2-Bay 50 Ton Offset Hopper

Intermountain 34' 2-Bay 50 Ton Offset Hopper. WOW look at that overexposed detail!

As the song goes, if I had a million dollars, I'd buy a whole fleet of the these hoppers! The Intermountain 34' 2-Bay 50 Ton Offset Hopper is the cat's meow of the small offset hopper models we've looked at so far. All the nit-picky details, rib notch spacing at the top, rivets and more, look just like the prototype photo. Even the inside looks awesome. The only flaw I could think to point out is the lack of a trust plate in the upper left corner, but now that's getting picky. Did I mention it comes with metal wheels and Kadee #158 scale whisker couplers? These are available in that 1930's lettering and 6 different numbers; #61147, 61164, 61235, 61259, 61370, 61428.

Unfortunately these retail for $38.95, not real economical for building part of a hopper fleet with these bad boys. But if you only need a few, then you can't go wrong investing in these. Every now and then you can snag one (and only one for me) for $25 on eBay like I did.

Accurail 2-bay 50 Ton Offset-Side Hopper, shown as Undecorated

Also worth mentioning is a future release from Accurail of their 7700 Series Offset Side Twin Hopper. Who knows when it will get made, or what lettering style will be used, but at least its on the schedule and will get released someday. These cars would be also be an economical option to build a fleet with and Accurail makes it easy by offering decal renumber sheets matched to the particular roadname.

I always felt like the Accurail twin hopper seemed a little petite standing next to any of the other three mentioned above. One day I'll have to take a scale ruler to one and compare it to the NKP Freight Diagram sheets and see.

The Prototype

 W&LE #78000-80999 Steel 3-Bay 70 Ton Offset-Side Hopper

The prototype W&LE #78000-80999 were all steel 3-bay 70 ton offset side hopper cars, built between 1947 and 1948 in three lots by Pressed Steel, Greenville and  Ralston. The 3,000 hoppers added after the W&LE lease would make up almost 35% of the NKP's hopper roster in my time period. By Jan 1954, 1,037 still had W&LE lettering.


 The 3-Bay Models

MDC Roundhouse 3-Bay 70 Ton Offset-Side Hopper

The old Model Die Casting 3-Bay offset hopper has been around forever. I have no idea what real life example this hopper was based on, if one really existed at all. The ends of each side where the angled offset bulge is supposed to begin, is completely wrong among other things. The more accurate Stewart/Bowser and Accurail cars has rendered this MDC hopper version obsolete. Athearn now owns the MDC/Roundhouse line, is still occasionally making this car for sale. Most recently it was announced as a future release in NKP lettering as this ex-W&LE class of hopper.

I hate to be so critical of a car model, but this one needs to be retired just like the old Athearn wide body diesel engines. So why do I have it? I believe I got it on eBay at the same time as the weathered W&LE Athearn 2-bay hopper above. I think I threw a lowball first bid on it for the novelty of it being lettered W&LE,  thinking I would probably get outbid at the last second anyways, oops...

While this car doesn't show up in the NKPHTS's All-Time NKP Model List. I found one on eBay with an original box. Apparently this was a Roundhouse release, as kit #7784 with my models W&LE number of 78958. 

The weathering job hides it's ugly lines decently enough, so I'll keep it as an example to show why it shouldn't be in your W&LE/NKP hopper fleet when there are way better looking alternatives.

Stewart/Bowser 3-Bay 70 Ton Offset-Side Hopper

This is the Stewart (now Bowser) 3-Bay 70 Ton Offset-Side Hopper. These are really nice models, easy and quick to assemble and can be found cheaply enough to use for building a large hopper fleet.
Unlike the MDC car, the offset hopper sides are just like the prototype and the rest of the basic details match up as well. Of the three cars this has the best rivet detail.

I found two of these in W&LE lettering at a train show in Cleveland and quickly snatched them up. Only later I noticed the data lettering is the wrong font, but they came with Kadees, metal wheels and coal loads so I couldn't pass them up at $10 each. The Athearn box they came in said Greenway Products, and a Google search found a old message from 2001 on the NKP Yahoo Group mentioning they had these for sale back then.

I have about 40 of the Stewart/Bowser in various road names (mostly NKP) and they make a great base to any NKP era hopper fleet.

Accurail 3-Bay 70 Ton Offset-Side Hopper

The Accurail 3-Bay 70 Ton Offset-Side Hopper is very similar to the Stewart/Bowser model. Both match the prototype well, but the Accurail has finer details, better looking brake gear and thinner grab irons and stirrups. The assembly of your first one can be a bit tricky to fit together, especially the fitting of the bolster assembly into the ends of the car. But like most difficult things, after doing a few I can now build one in about 20 minutes.

The NMRA Cincinnati Division 7 offered these W&LE Accurail offset 70 ton 3-bay hoppers back in 2007. These were lettered as delivered in the 1940's lettering and available in four numbers; 78952, 79240, 79897 and 80829. Now they are long sold out, but I found a few of these on eBay awhile back. The Cincinnati Division 7 always has good car projects to offer modelers. Lately they have featured cars from Tony Koester's Allegheny Midland and Allen McClelland's Virginian & Ohio.

Accurail's webpage for their 7500 Series 70-Ton Offset-Side Triple Hopper doesn't list the W&LE as a possible future release, probably because of the Cinci Division 7 release. Accurail did have a past release of the NKP lettered version of this hopper.


Conclusion

Adding HO scale W&LE hoppers to a 1940's-1950's car roster has many paths.

Option One for quickly including some W&LE hoppers in a NKP hopper fleet would be to just to buy the Atlas or Intermountain 2-bay models, not worry about how long certain lettering styles lasted and call it a day. If those are too pricey or become difficult to find, then waiting till Accurail releases their 2-bay becomes a back up plan.

Option Two, which I'm using for now to boost the W&LE presence in my roster is the above option plus scouring online sites and train shows for the special runs.

Option Three is decaling your own hoppers with;

1. The old Campbell Road dry transfer decals, if your comfortable using that type of decal.
2.  Repurposing the Wabash Custom Decals W&LE Boxcar set (I don't know is the lettering size is correct for hoppers).
3.  Making or your own decals on an ALPS printer or have a custom decal printer make them for you.

Aside from a lucky train show score, decals are the only was to get 3-bay W&LE hoppers right now.

If I had to standardize on one 2-bay and 3-bay model for a large fleet, I would probably just have Accurail make me a custom run of everything I would hope to need. This would be the way to go if you were modeling the W&LE in the late 1940's.

My plan for now is to standardize on just the Atlas 2-bays with Accurail and Stewart/Bowser for the 3-bay hoppers.

New Products of Interest

In today's world of model railroading with limited runs and time sensitive pre-ordering, it can be easy to miss out on items made for your favorite railroad. I know I've done my fair share of trying to hunt down a old release that I missed out on.

So every now and then I'll bring to attention a new release that may hold interest to HO Scale Nickel Plate Road modelers or that which may be included in my layout.

As a disclaimer, nobody so far is paying me for this, although they are welcome to! :P


Walthers has announced a few new items in HO Scale that are of interest to Nickel Plate Road modelers as well as Appalachian railroad modelers.

Walthers Fallen Flags Passenger Series

For the NKP passenger modeler we have new runs of the Pullman-Standard 10-6 Sleeper and 52 Seat Coaches, and completely new in NKP paint, a 70' ACF Baggage car and a P-S 5 Bedroom-Lounge car representing a very loose version of the "City of Chicago" and "City of Cleveland".

NKP Pullman-Standard 52 Seat Coach

NKP Pullman-Standard 10-6 Sleeper

NKP ACF 70' Baggage

NKP Pullman-Standard 5 Bedroom-Lounge

Also finally a long awaited re-release of the old Proto 2000 ALCO PA-1 in the NKP's beautiful Bluebird paint. Now part of their Walthers Mainline brand, these can be ordered with a Soundtraxx sound DCC decoder or as a DC/DCC ready version.

NKP ALCO PA-1

I've always read that the original Proto 2000 PA-1's were a challenge adapting to DCC operation due to their motors pulling way more amps than what was typical for a HO scale engine. I never did a DCC conversion on mine, but the Bluebirds I still have could pull the paint off a wall, so I'm not surprised at this difficulty.

Yes I still have NKP Bluebirds, even though I'm modeling the 1950's Wheeling district where there were no passenger trains on the timetable. I just couldn't bear to sell off all my passenger equipment when I changed focus from modeling Bellevue or Cleveland's E. 55th St. yard areas.

However, I did find evidence of 1950's NKP passenger action in the Adena area in the form of a special business trip to Hanna Coal Co.'s new Georgetown Preparation Plant, so I'm glad I did hang on to some of my passenger equipment.


As for Appalachian modelers, Walthers has a new Truck Dump model in their Cornerstone Series.

Walthers Cornerstone Truck Dump

Walthers Cornerstone Truck Dump

Many of the coal mines in the Wheeling District were actually truck dumps and not your traditional mine tipple where the coal comes from a nearby drift or shaft mine. In the areas surrounding Adena and Dillonvale, these truck dumps tended to support nearby stripping operations, where the coal was trucked a short distance to the truck dump and loaded into rail cars.

I know I can definitely use this kit as a starting point for a few of the mines I'll be representing on the Adena layout. As for the passenger cars it's tempting to get one of the P-S 5 Bedroom-Lounge cars as the "City of Cleveland" even though it's miss in terms of prototype accuracy.