The Minster Branch – Update 2

Dave Campbell has shared another update on his new layout project, the Minster branch of the Nickel Plate Road. Here he is with the details.

Construction of the 2 x 4 foot modules described last time has proceeded smoothly and the reuse of materials from the previous layout is working well. The lead image shows one of the modules under construction.

Before you comment about using heavy 2×4 lumber for the joists, remember I’m reusing what I have on hand. All of the modules are now built and installed. Also, the shelves above the layout act as lids and are installed. These lids support the layout lighting and provide anchoring points for dust covers.

Since the first update I made a design change and decided to install a layer of one-inch foam on the wood modules and then the two layers of ceiling tile. All the foam is installed along with most of the first layer of tile.

One of the things I liked about my previous layout was the effect achieved by lighting just the railroad and not the room. Using the lid to mount light fixtures and then framing it with the upper and lower fascia will enable me to achieve that same effect. I have a LOT of LED fixtures from my old layout so I’ll certainly have plenty to provide the level of lighting I want. 

Another feature I liked about my previous layout was the narrow shelf width for the space between towns on the railroad. This reduces the amount of scenery that doesn’t support operations. To achieve the same end on my new layout, I’ll adjust the depth of the shelf by bringing the backdrop toward the front of the modules as required.

The branch begins with staging, seen above, representing the South Lima Yard. The roll-out section is left over from the last layout. It wasn’t big enough by itself so I added a fold down extension, shown here in the up position.

Here’s the east wall which will be home to East Saint Marys. A lift-out or roll-out will fill the space across the doorway where I’m standing to take the photo.

Here’s the north wall, which will be South Saint Marys and the start of the branch. A short section of rural running will take the branch around the corner.

The wood uprights visible in this photo will support the backdrop around the corner.

The west wall will be home to New Bremen.

Then there’s another short rural section running around the corner.

Finally, the central peninsula will be the home of Minster. It begins with the track coming around the corner from New Bremen. I’ve got about 13 feet of space available here for Minster’s industries.

Operations

As the heavy construction winds down it’s time to take a closer look at the operational potential of the Minster Branch.

This branch had a great mix of rail-served industries in my 1928 era, including two coal dealers, a furniture factory, a box board factory, a foundry, two manufacturers of industrial equipment, two elevators, a cigar factory, two canneries (tomatoes and corn), a couple of oil dealers, and a brewery, which produced malt beverages and near-beer in 1928. I expect to have to make some choices about the businesses to include as I doubt I’ll have room for them all.

Here’s a schematic of Saint Marys showing the sidings and industrial spurs.

New Bremen

The end of the branch at Minster.

The schematics reveal that almost all the industrial sidings on the branch were facing point for the trip out and trailing point for the return. I’m not sure how common that might have been on a short branch like this but it certainly is very suggestive as to how operations on the branch would have proceeded.

The schematics also place most of the industries on the aisle-side of the layout, which presents challenges in locating the track and buildings. While it’s possible to flip some of the sidings to the backdrop side, I’d like to avoid that as much as possible.

The Minster Branch was served by a local, operating daily except Sunday, placed on the Timetable as Train # 55 Lima to Minster (westward), and train # 56 Minster to Lima (eastward).  No. 55 was carded out of South Lima at 8:00 AM, taking the Y and entering the branch at Saint Marys at 8:35. On the return trip, No. 56 was due to leave Saint Marys heading for Lima at 2:30 PM, providing almost six hours for the crew to work the branch, including going to beans somewhere along the line. In the event business on a particular day didn’t require that time, the Dispatcher always had the option of annulling No. 56 and running the train back to Lima as an extra.

I’m happy with my progress on the Minster Branch so far but the hot weather is limiting the amount of time I can spend in the garage. But with a little luck I plan to finish installing the ceiling tile, paint and install the backdrop, install the upper and lower fascia, and make the dust covers. Then I can button everything up and wait for the cool weather to return.

---

Thank you, Dave Campbell, for sharing another installment on your new layout progress. I’m looking forward to the next report!

Thank you for visiting my blog. You can share a comment in the section below. Follow the instructions so your comment can be posted. All comments are reviewed and approved before they appear. Please share the blog link with other model railroaders. To subscribe to this blog, add your email address to the function at the bottom of the right column on the main page.