WM Stony River Branch, WV track plan HO

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WM Stony River Branch, WV HO scale track plan
  • Size: 11′ x 14′
  • Scale: HO
  • Minimum Radius: 24″ 
  • Minimum Aisle Width: 24″
  • Designed by Dan Bourque

WM LogoThe challenge:  design a prototype-based HO scale layout with mainline operations, branch line operations, helper operations, a yard, an engine facility, four loaders and a power plant. . . and fit it into an 11′ x 12′ bedroom with a closet. Sound impossible? Not if you want to model the Western Maryland’s Stony Fork Branch! The Stony Fork Branch was a twisting, 17-mile branch that connected the Mount Storm Power Plant with the WM mainline at Bayard, West Virginia in 1963. In that … Read more →

KCNW Kelly’s Creek & Northwestern, WV track plan N

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Kelley's Creek and Northwestern, WV N scale track plan
  • Size: 11′ x 12′
  • Scale: HO
  • Minimum Radius: 15″ 
  • Minimum Aisle Width: 27″
  • Designed by Dan Bourque

The Kelly’s Creek & Northwestern was a coal-hauling short line that ran several miles into the mountains from the Kanawha River and a connection with the New York Central at Cedar Grove, West Virginia. Like the nearby Winifrede Railroad on the C&O side of the river, the KC&NW served primarily to shuttle cars from the coal tipples to a barge loader on the Kanawha River.

The Layout

This track plan represents the KC&NW circa 1970 when a trio of small but more modern loaders was supplying the coal. The single-deck layout is compressed but still features the key scenes of the railroad … Read more →

UP, SP, D&RGW North Fork Sub, CO track plan HO

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UP SP DRGW North Fork Sub, CO HO scale track plan - lower deck
  • Size: 27′ x 38′
  • Scale: HO
  • Minimum Radius: 30″ 
  • Minimum Aisle Width: 30″
  • Designed by Dan Bourque

This track plan is decidedly “non-Appalachian,” but I’ve decided to include it because it offers an interesting glimpse into coal-hauling operations of western US railroads, in this case the Denver & Rio Grande Western and later the Southern Pacific and Union Pacific. The D&RGW mainline between Denver, Colorado and Salt Lake City, Utah ran through Grand Junction, Colorado on the western slope of the Rocky Mountains. The D&RGW built a line south from Grand Junction into the fertile lands of the Gunnison River Valley and extended that line up the North Fork of the Gunnison River to serve the rich bituminous coal … Read more →

BRIM Brimstone Railroad, TN track plan HO

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BRIM Brimstone, TN HO Scale Track Plan by Dan Bourque
  • Size: 13′ x 18′
  • Scale: HO
  • Minimum Radius: 24″ 
  • Minimum Aisle Width: 27″
  • Designed by Dan Bourque

The Brimstone Railroad was a quaint little coal hauler in northeastern Tennessee that connected with the Southern Railway’s CNO&TP line at New River, TN. What made the Brimstone unique was its motive power, a pair of three-truck shays that ran the 12-mile line into the 1960s, long after the Southern had dieselized. The Brimstone majored in coal and minored in lumber up until the early ’60s when Ritter Lumber shut down its operation in New River. In 1966, the Southern purchased the Brimstone and ran sporadic mine runs for the next few decades. The tracks were finally pulled up in 2015.

The … Read more →

Moving Train Order Signals on the C&O at Man, WV

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by Jonathan Spurlock

C&O LogoMy dad was an operator on the C&O at Man, WV, and I can still relive the first time I ever saw him hand up orders to the crew of a moving train. I will always think of him as one of the bravest men I ever knew. You can read more about this in my first article, Passing Train Orders on the C&O at Man, WV.  One of the last things he did before handing up the orders was to change the train order (T.O.) signal for the appropriate track, something I’ll explain here … Read more →

SOU St. Charles Branch, VA track plan HO

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SOU St Charles Branch, VA track plan HO
    • Size: 12′ x 16′
    • Scale: HO
    • Minimum Radius: 24″ 
    • Minimum Aisle Width: 30″
    • Designed by Dan Bourque

Southern LogoThe St. Charles Branch was the Southern Railway’s primary coal branch in Virginia until the acquisition of the Interstate Railroad in 1960. The St. Charles Branch ran from the Southern’s yard at Appalachia, VA for several miles until joining with the L&N at Pocket, VA and heading up Straight Creek to the small yard and wye at St. Charles and several tipples that lined branches north of town. Like many of the Southern’s coal branches in the corner of VA/TN/KY, the line was shared … Read more →

Passing Train Orders on the C&O at Man, WV

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C&O GP7 5865 at Man, WV

by Jonathan Spurlock

C&O LogoMy late father is one of my heroes. Now, I’m sure many boys – and girls – might say this about their dads but there was one time where I don’t think I was ever more proud of my dad!

He had been hired by the C&O in the fall of 1969 and started as an “operator” in one of the “cabins” on the line not too far from our house. Sure, it took a time or two for his 11-year-old son (me) to finally catch a little of what he was talking about, but … Read more →

Winners of ARRM’s 100th Track Plan Contest

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Did you catch all the winners of Appalachian Railroad Modeling’s 100th Track Plan Contest? We had some great entries and three winners. Each of the winning track plans was fun and challenging in it’s own way. Thanks to all who entered, and I hope you continue to send in your track plan ideas!

L&N EK Coal Fields, KY HO scale track planFirst Place – Donald Dunn for his idea of the L&N’s Eastern Kentucky Coal Fields … Read more →

L&N Eastern Kentucky Coal Fields, KY track plan HO

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L&N EK Coal Fields, KY HO scale track plan

ARRM’s 100th track plan and first place winner for the 100th Track Plan Contest is Donald Dunn.

Donald’s idea is to model the L&N’s Eastern Kentucky (EK) Sub coal fields including Hazard, Dent, the Carrs Fork Branch, Leatherwood Branch and Rockhouse Creek Branch in the 1970s. Donald grew up in this area and later worked for the CSX out of Hazard–he’s always wanted to model this area. I loved the challenge of fitting a lot of branch lines and tipples into this space.

  • Size: 25′ x 25′
  • Scale: HO
  • Minimum Radius: 29″ mainline, 27″ branch line
  • Minimum Aisle Width: 30″
  • Designed … Read more →

B&LE Conneaut Branch, OH track plan N

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ARRM’s 99th track plan and second place winner for the 100th Track Plan Contest is Jason Petty.

Jason’s idea was to model the B&LE’s Conneaut Branch in a bedroom. Local to this area, Jason likes that this piece of railroad has docks, yards, helpers, and big trains of coal and ore. I love that this gave me a chance to design a layout for unloading end of coal operations at a major port, something I hadn’t done before.

  • Size: 10′ x 15′
  • Scale: N
  • Minimum Radius: 15″ (except as otherwise noted)
  • Minimum Aisle Width: 30″
  • Designed by Dan Bourque

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