3051 ... Coal flood loaderWalthers - [W 3051]
Walthers
H0
The energy crunch of the early 70s and the move toward improved air
quality
left coal-fired power plants and other industries in need of
clean-burning,
low sulfur coal. Vast deposits were available in the western US, but
getting coal to customers was a big logistical problem. Several ideas
were
suggested, but in the end, railroads became the primary means of
transport.
Coal
soon represented a considerable part of the traffic on many lines. As
a cost-cutting measure, some large power companies adopted the just in
time
approach to buying coal. This means trains had to deliver on time, as
only
a small stockpile was maintained, and in essence, the unit trains
became a
rolling conveyor belt.
In
order to meet these tough schedules, a new generation of cars and
motive
power were introduced, and the methods of loading coal on the trains
also
changed.
One
of the new structures, still in use today, was the flood loader. Served
by a network of conveyors, these large buildings are essentially
storage
bins, which load entire trains on the move. After coal has been washed,
crushed to size and graded, it's delivered from these facilities to the
flood loader, which can be quite some distance away.
In
operation, a unit train enters the loader at walking speed, about 4
mph. Loading begins when the first car rolls under the chute, a job
handled by
detectors and computers. In a matter of minutes the car is filled to
capacity and loading begins on the next. Some loaders also use their
computers to briefly stop the flow between cars, producing a down hill
slope to the load. Others run continuously, and a wheel loader is used
to
reclaim the spilled coal. As the last car clears, the loader stops
automatically and begins refilling for the next train. Now fully
loaded,
the unit train passes over a weigh-in-motion scale, to verify the
actual
amount of coal being shipped to the customer.
Seen
in both eastern and western coalfields, this modern structure is a
great way to add variety to coal operations on your line. Since the
actual
mine and processing operations are often miles away, this small
building
and conveyor can be placed trackside, to imply the presence of a bigger
mine operation located off your layout.
The
finished model works very well with the New River Mining Company,
(933-3017) which can represent an older type of loader or mine
buildings.
Today's
unit trains are a mix of large hoppers and gondolas, like Walthers
Bethgon(R)/ Coal Porter(R) (932-5300 series), Trinity RD-4 hoppers
(932-7800 series) and Bethlehem 3-Bay Hoppers (932-4900 series), all
of which are offered in 6-Packs with different car numbers to model
unit
trains in minutes!
Coal
loads add the finishing touch and one-piece loads (each molded in
black resin with realistic texture) are available for the Bethgon in a
2-Pack (#933-1038) or 6-Pack (#933-1039), while #933--1074 fits Trinity
RD-4 hoppers.