Redbanks Fertilizer
Here is the final product sitting on the layout. It should be noted that this Blair Line kit is a pretty basic and unlike my previous build I didn't make any changes with the exception of adding some stiffeners to the back side of the wall to prevent warping. The elevator and conveyor are built from laser cut parts and are probably a little crude for some modelers. This goes for the roofing too, it is nothing more than a photograph... But, the build from start to finish took less than two days which is consistent with my goal to have all the structures done by the end of the year and the layout finished (90%) by the end of February.
The Barr Packing Company (Redbanks)
To date, I haven't found a good picture of the Barr Packing Company in Redbanks so I decided to use the San Fernando Orange Association kit from Showcase Miniatures as a starting point. The original styrene mock-up for the Barr Packing Company is shown below.
After studying the available photos, I decided to make some changes, A lot of packing houses were a combination of eclectic sheds and warehouses built over a relatively long period of time. Here is a great example.
One of my favorites is located at Hillmeade, CA. on the Santa Fe. About 5 or 6 years ago, I built a model of the Hillmeade packing house in S-Scale. It is pretty obvious that several additions were made over the years. While I was tempted to build an HO version for the layout, there isn't enough time or room as it would require a total rebuild of the layout/track plan.
I started out by trying out several concepts on paper.
Once a couple of ideas are settled upon, they are redrawn to scale and cut out to get a better idea on how the actual model with look. All 3 versions are 26" wide. Note that the right hand side of the structure is the same since the plan is start out with the Showcase Miniatures San Fernando Packers Association kit. I eliminated the 1st version shown below because I think the roof line is to "busy".
The Showcase Miniatures kit.
Let's Get Started
I started with the Showcase Miniatures kit. First off, I was surprised to find that the material used for this kit is very thin (3 or 4 mm) what I believe to be tempered hardboard. Based upon a previous post by another modeler, I expected plywood. The hardboard is OK, but it is flimsy/brittle and requires stiffening. The instructions, if you want to call them that, don't mention a thing about stiffening nor does the kit provide any materials to do so. The single sheet of minimal instructions includes a parts identification sheet on one side and a isometric drawing on the other. Here is a link for a 3-part article on building the Showcase Miniatures kit.
http://modelingthesp.blogspot.com/2013/02/a-packing-shed-for-shumala-part-3.html
I used some 3/16" square Northeastern scale lumber for the stiffening (light strip wood) as shown below. Aleen's tacky glue was used to attach the scale lumber to the hardboard and clothespins were used to hold things in place until the glue set.
Here is the assembly ready for paint. Along with a LOT of stiffeners some other changes (light strip wood) were made to improve the appearance of the structure. These included replacing the corner trim, fascia, and pilaster bracing on the dock.
We had a big wind storm here in Western Washington so the power was out for a little over 3 days. Luckily we have a generator so life went on with some limitations and I did get a lot of modeling done. Here is the second half of Barr Packing ready for paint. A few changes in the design were made along the way to include the office on the far left. The tall section on the right has clapboard siding, the section on the left board & batten.
The Section Foreman's House
About 5 years ago, I built a series of SP structure including series of Coast Line depots and other line side structures. I gave away or sold all of them including a partially built section foreman's house built from a ALW Lines kit. The foreman's house, along with the forementioned Paso Robles depot recently found their way back to me. Unfortunately, somewhere along the line, the roof for the foreman's house was lost and had to be replaced. I'm no engineer, so the roof replacement was a measure, cut and fit operation. It took 4 or 5 tries before I could get a reasonably good result.
As always, your comments, suggestions & question are welcome
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