N&W Pocahontas Main, WV track plan O

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N&W Pocahontas Main, WV O scale track plan
  • Size: 13′ x 46 ′
  • Scale: O
  • Minimum Radius: 56″ 
  • Minimum Aisle Width: 36″
  • Designed by Dan Bourque

N&W Logo (Tuscan)The N&W’s Pocahontas Division Mainline was the heart of the N&W. The double-track main cut through the mountains of the West Virginia coal fields with branch lines of various sizes plying the hollers and feeding an endless string of coal hoppers to the main. As the N&W’s main east-west artery, the “Pokey” main also hosted numerous non-coal freights and the N&W’s hottest passenger trains. Add in dozens of tunnels and bridges, small mountain towns and some company towns, and you’ve got the makings of a great model railroad in … Read more →

BN Marias Pass, MT track plan HO

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BN Marias Pass - Lower HO scale track plan by Dan Bourque
  • Size: 18′ x 26′
  • Scale: HO
  • Minimum Radius: 28″ 
  • Minimum Aisle Width: 26″
  • Designed by Dan Bourque

This track plan is FAR from the Appalachians, but it captures an iconic piece of mountain railroading, the Burlington Northern’s route over the continental divide via the former Great Northern’s Marias Pass line across the Rockies near Glacier National Park, Montana. This route, the northernmost rail crossing of the continental divide in the US, is known for its snow sheds and incredible glacier-carved backdrops making it the perfect route for Amtrak’s “Empire Builder.”

The Layout

This track plan is designed to fit into a moderate-size basement complete with utility spaces and support poles. This is 50+ miles of railroad on the … Read more →

TC Coal Fields, TN track plan N

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TC Coal Fields, TN N-Scale Track Plan - Lower
  • Size: 14′ x 17′
  • Scale: N
  • Minimum Radius: 15″ (18″ on mainline)
  • Minimum Aisle Width: 30″
  • Designed by Dan Bourque

This is the first significant “Tennessee Central” content of any kind on Appalachian Railroad Modeling, but I doubt it will be the last. The aptly named Tennessee Central (TC for short) reached from southwestern Kentucky through Nashville to east Tennessee, and coal was one of the major commodities generated on the line. In the diesel era, the TC hauled short trains including lots of coal over lots of wooden trestles with a range of Alco locomotives in an attractive maroon and cream (later black and white) paint scheme–what’s not to love? This layout captures the heart of the … Read more →

WM Chaffee Branch, MD track plan HO

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WM Chaffee Branch, MD HO scale track plan
  • Size: 12′ x 16′ 
  • Scale: HO
  • Minimum Radius: 27″
  • Minimum Aisle Width: 30″
  • Designed by Dan Bourque

WM LogoThe Western Maryland’s Chaffee Branch was an insane piece of railroad with grades so steep it took the second largest shay locomotive ever built to operate the branch. The WM’s shay No 6 is both the biggest on the WM and the last built by Lima in 1945. Operationally it only lasted for 5 years as the steepest parts of the Chaffee Branch for which it was built ceased operation in 1950 when the mine at Vindex, MD closed. Thankfully, this … Read more →

Poor Man’s Model Railroad Digital Fast Clock

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A couple weeks ago, I added the “Poor Man’s Model Railroad Analog Fast Clock.” Since then, I’ve created a digital version in Microsoft PowerPoint for those interested. It’s ultimately simpler than the analog version because it’s all text, but it works in essentially the same manner. You can change the fast clock ratio by adjusting the transition time between slides (instructions included), and you customize the appearance as much as you like by changing the colors, size, fonts, etc. in the “Slide Master” templates. For the calendar version, you can easily … Read more →

Poor Man’s Model Railroad Analog Fast Clock

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Poor Man's Model Railroad Analog Fast Clock

Many who build a layout aspire to realistic operations with their trains. One of the staples for realistic operation is a “fast clock” that displays time at faster-than-real-life speed so that a “model day” takes less than 24 hours. The fast clock is usually expressed as a ratio where the first number indicates how much faster the clock will run compared to actual time. For example, 2:1 indicates a 24-hour model day will take 12 hours (30 actual minutes per modeled hour); 6:1 indicates a 24-hour day will take 4 hours (10 actual minutes per modeled hour). The ratio is usually driven by how compressed the layout is and how long it takes to do the work, but 6:1 is … Read more →

BNSF Kootenai River Sub, MT track plan HO

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BNSF Kootenai River Sub, MT HO scale track plan - Lower
  • Size: 18′ x 27′
  • Scale: HO
  • Minimum Visible Mainline Radius: 33″
  • Minimum Radius: 30″
  • Minimum Aisle Width: 30″
  • Designed by Dan Bourque

I’ve been working on several non-Appalachian track plans recently, and I thought I’d share one. The Burlington Northern Santa Fe runs through some beautiful territory, and the BNSF’s Kootenai River Sub on the border of Montana and Idaho has to be one of the most spectacular! Originally part of the Great Northern’s mainline across the northern US, this line picks up just west of what is probably the Great Northern’s most famous line across the continental divide via Marias Pass and Glacier National Park. Still one the nation’s major east-west routes and the route of Amtrak’s … Read more →

C&O E&BV Sub, KY track plan HO

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C&O E&BV Sub HO scale track plan by Dan Bourque
  • Size: 27′ x 30′
  • Scale: HO
  • Minimum Radius: 30″
  • Minimum Aisle Width: 30″
  • Designed by Dan Bourque

C&O LogoThe C&O was the king of coal hauling in the Appalachians, and some of the largest operations it served were in eastern Kentucky on the Big Sandy Subdivision. One of the coolest parts of the Big Sandy was the area geographically south of Martin, KY including the Long Fork Sub and Elkhorn & Beaver Valley (E&BV) which followed the left and right forks of Beaver Creek, respectively. The Long Fork Sub was densely packed with loaders of all shapes and sizes … Read more →

CRR Loops, NC track plan N

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CRR Loops, NC N-scale track plan - lower
  • Size: 12′ x 19 ′
  • Scale: N
  • Minimum Mainline Radius: 18″ 
  • Minimum Aisle Width: 30″
  • Designed by Dan Bourque

CRR LogoOne of the Clinchfield’s signature locations was its descent of the Blue Ridge between Altapass and Sevier, North Carolina, a section of the railroad known as “the loops.” Where neighbors took a more aggressive approach that led to operational headaches like the Southern’s 4+ percent grade at Saluda, the Clinchfield managed to wrap itself around the hills in a series of loops that kept the descent/climb at a very manageable 1.2 percent (compensated for curvature). This easy profile meant … Read more →

CSX RJC New River and Kanawha, WV track plan HO

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CSX New River, WV HO scale track plan - main
  • Size: 25′ x 47 ′
  • Scale: HO
  • Minimum Mainline Radius: 36″ 
  • Minimum Aisle Width: N/A
  • Designed by Dan Bourque

RJC LogoCSX LogoThe CSX runs through the heart of West Virginia coal country along the New River and Kanawha River plying the rails the C&O ran for a century before. Thurmond, WV, once a major yard and mine terminal, is now just a small junction between the CSX and the RJ Corman’s line to a flood loader near Pax, WV, but its classic depot still stands as a reminder of the C&O’s glory days. While most of the loaders … Read more →