Favorite Links of the Railroad
Photo from the New York Central Headlight Employee Newsletter, February 1940.
Webmaster: Richard A. Hock
Layout Construction Photos 2022
Safe coupling speed
Make a list!
Lists help the focus for what you buy and what you build.
Layout Construction Photo 2022
Your Layout... Your Rules
The Central District Interchange is an HO Scale, sectional model railroad based on a point-to-point switching operations scenario.
"Connecting Everywhere" is the slogan of the railroad. As an interchange, the railroad is a transfer or connection point for Class I railroads.
The inspiration for this model railroad is from the New York Central marine operations at the New York harbor where car floats ferried freight and merchandise into various parts of the city. Being an island peninsula, Manhattan was too expensive to reach going north to cross the Hudson River or building a bridge from New Jersey. Marine operations was the solution, and very successful during the height of railroad traffic into the city.
A car float acts as the point for arriving and departing railroad cars
to the point-to-point sectional layout.
This layout is a walk-around.
Idler or buffer cars consisting either flat cars or
gondola cars are used to switch the car float
rolling stock without the locomotive entering the gantry style float apron.
What is railroad switching? Switching is defined as:
- to turn from one railroad track to another or:
- to move railroad cars to different positions on the track within terminal, industrial or commercial areas served by rail.
Railroads generated revenue from picking up, shipping and delivering product, merchandise and produce by industry.
From the days of a horse drawn carriage to the mid nineteen sixties, railroads provided the bulk of mail, general and specialized merchandise handling and express delivery services. Railroads offered the best pricing to customers that could fill an entire rail car.
Those customers that had smaller shipments where then consolidated in rail cars with common destinations. This was known as Less-than-carload or LCL service. Railroads charged a higher rate for LCL. In spite of low tonnage, potential profit margin was high on LCL service.
Express service was monopolized by Railway Express Agency (REA). This type of service charged premium rates, about double as compared to LCL service. However, express service was faster since this merchandise traveled in the baggage cars of passenger trains.
The focus of the switching scenarios for this railroad are Less-than-carload and refrigerated product handling. Therefore, the rolling stock car focus for this layout is ice bunker refrigerator cars, overnight Less-than-a-carload (LCL) box cars, coal hoppers, bulk fuel tank cars and general merchandise box cars.
Product Handling - Efficiency - Speed & Safety!
How fast are you going? Scale speed can be deceiving. Rule for
the CDi operations - Use appropriate speed for the task. We will
leave excessive speed for the Lionel toy train layouts!
Most railroad operations will be conducted within yard limits. Switching operations are conducted a low speeds. This low speed is designed to enhance (slow down) operating sessions with added rail responsibilities of the train crew. Merchandise losses were due to switching procedures conducted at too high a rate of speed. Lost prevention programs in the 1950s and 1960s focused on yard safety procedures.
Practicality
Less is more! Bigger is not necessarily better unless you have unlimited space, pocketbook and just love consisted locomotives with 80+ car freight hauls. There is a beer train in the cabinet which is all of that! However, retirement means a simplification of life, requiring a down-sizing. As a sectional layout, it is engineered, designed and built to be handled alone. Plug and play is the term used to describe layout set-up.
Philosophy
Model railroading is a hobby! A hobby focuses on relaxation and creativity.
The best hobby advise ever given was to make a
list. Define what you like. Define what interests
you. Define what era equipment you like. Define
what aspects of the hobby you enjoy most.
Define your constraints. Then...
Compromise... Compromise... Compromise!
We all try to "Have our cake and eat it too" and
"Put 10 pounds of stuff in a 9 pound bag."
Making a list helps the focus. Even at that, there is a lot of stuff on this layout that is comprised of 12" wide sectional modules in a 10' x 8' area.
Mission Statement
The Central District Interchange (CDi) was created for the sole purpose of HO scale model railroading operations for the enjoyment, creativity and the advancement of hobby skills through collaboration and camaraderie.
THE VISION:
- Promotion and enjoyment of the hobby through excellence in modeling.
- Promotion and enjoyment of the hobby through railroad operating sessions.
- Promotion and enjoyment of the hobby through public shows, exhibitions and clinics of layout modules and models in part or whole.
4 mph!
Model Railroading
NYC Headlight, April 1952
HO Scale
What do you like most about the hobby?
Courtesy of Bill Meyer, ATSF Big Creek Subdivision
Highlighted Industries Served
- Brewery
- Cold Storage Transfer
- Pacemaker Warehouse
- Mobil Bulk Fuel Dealer