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 Posted - October 13 2015 : 1:47:58 PM
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Ranking right up there with more of my worst eBay purchases is this sand house. I probably saved $5 buying this already messed up sand house instead of an untouched kit. Though, I do find that once I get started on a repair, I usually feel a bit more freedom with a pre-built . . . I mean, hey, what can you mess up? The first picture is from the eBay posting. What I got in the mail was a bit different. It arrived with the sand tower broken in a few pieces; not attached to the roof as in the posting photo and the glue mess became very readily apparent. I let it set for a few weeks; kicking myself whenever I noticed it and at the same time how much I wanted a sand house and wasn't ready to commit a few weeks or more to building one from scratch. Voila! Instead, I have opted to spend a few weeks on this plastic tragedy . . .
One thing I did to start was to put a door opening into the sand bin. My ignorance, I guess, but I can't see how they would get the sand from the bin to the furnace with no opening in either the sand bin wall or to the drying room ? ? ?
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Posted - October 13 2015 : 1:52:04 PM
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Hi, Barry. I have often found myself wanting the Tyco Sand House. However, since I don't run steamers I figure the kit would have no real place on my layout... I'm sure you will get the kit restored. 
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Posted - October 13 2015 : 11:07:47 PM
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quote:I can't see how they would get the sand from the bin to the furnace with no opening in either the sand bin wall or to the drying room ? ? ?
Originally posted by Barry - October 13 2015 : 1:47:58 PM
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The previous owner put the end walls on wrong. The other end wall has a hole in the end that looks like a window opening. That should have been on the end toward the sand bin for shoveling sand from the bin into the building.
Under the smoke jack would be a pot-bellied stove with a funnel shaped screen around it. The wet sand is shoveled into that and then the sand dries and falls through the screen. The dry sand is blown up through a pipe into a metal bin on the tower from which it falls through a hose into the locomotive sand domes (or sand hatches in the case of a diesel).
Carpe Manana!
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Posted - October 13 2015 : 11:46:59 PM
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| Hey Don, thanks for the insight into the operation that goes on in a sand building. That was my bad (maybe) regarding the little "window" in the end of the building. That's where I put the door . . . and then used some of the door to fill in the window opening. However, it does seem like a bunch of work to shovel sand through that small opening; particularly if the sand bin is low and your tossin' shovel-fulls of sand over your head ? ? ? Thanks for the photo of your sand house Don. It's good to see how you got yours set up.
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Posted - October 14 2015 : 08:33:01 AM
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quote:However, it does seem like a bunch of work to shovel sand through that small opening; particularly if the sand bin is low and your tossin' shovel-fulls of sand over your head ? ? ?
Originally posted by Barry - October 13 2015 : 11:46:59 PM
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In that sense, a door might be a better solution. You treat your HO workers way better than I do. 
Carpe Manana!
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Posted - October 14 2015 : 3:05:18 PM
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Well Don, I have to respect your real world experience as opposed to my picture book experience . . . and there aren't that many good pictures I've seen, but I guess I've never really Googled "railroad sandhouse workers" to see what comes up for images. I've done a bit more on this. Kind of "sculpting" the sand tower of bits and pieces and JB Weld. We'll see how it looks when it's covered with paint. I did find a nice rusty staple the right diameter to serve as the sand (?air?) [straighten me out here Don] pipe.
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Posted - October 14 2015 : 3:05:51 PM
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| I thought that was a Polo kit? Then again allot of the Tyco ones were former Polo kits.
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Posted - October 14 2015 : 3:16:34 PM
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| In looking for photos or instructions for this thing, I saw very similar ones sold by AHM, Tyco and Pola. I did note very slight variations between a couple of them. I don't know which one this is. There's no company stamping in the parts I have. I suppose it could pass for a Tyco.
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Posted - October 14 2015 : 3:22:57 PM
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I did just Google that "railroad sand house workers" and while I didn't look long enough to see images of workers, I did find this image right up top . . . the sand house at Chama (a rather famous one because a couple of different companies based their models on this ;maybe even the Tyco one?). I dug this picture because it justified my doorway into the sand bin . . .
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Posted - October 14 2015 : 3:46:05 PM
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well diesels still use sand for traction
course now its computer controlled
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Posted - October 14 2015 : 9:45:10 PM
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One can't help but notice the similarity between the Chama sand house and the model kit, so I bet the one inspired the other. The Chama sand bin is propped up with round posts and the model uses square ones, but I think that's just for ease of getting the parts out of the mold. For mine, I made my own bin to the dimensions I wanted and copied off of the Chama design, using round pilings.
C&TS no longer uses the sand house. They get bagged sand and dump it in the sand domes by hand, but years ago, I saw a crew member drying sand using the stove. At the time the pneumatic system for lifting the sand into the tower already didn't work.
I think the pipe leading up the tower carries sand in a jet of air, so it is both a sand pipe and an air pipe with sand being the point of the thing.
Carpe Manana!
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Posted - October 15 2015 : 8:31:49 PM
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A bit more "sculpting" today (that's what it feels like smearing JB Weld around with a toothpick; trying to make it look like a piece of wood . . Ha!). Had this old shell casing that seemed about the right size for the sand tower tank; plugged the end and gobbed it up with JB Weld. "We'll see . . . "
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Posted - October 16 2015 : 12:38:42 PM
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Added a sign and filled in the molding depressions on the inside of the plastic sand yard wall. I think after sanding and scratching up a bit and paint, it will look a bit less like a plastic wall. Also getting ready to place some of those rods that are stretched across the yard walls. I'm thinking they might have been used to support tarps to try and keep the sand clean and a bit more dry? Do you know Don?
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Posted - October 18 2015 : 7:59:46 PM
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Not sure whether I'm going to like this bullet for a sand hopper or not, but I'm continuing to pursue it for the time. Got the excess JB Weld off the interior yard wall and scuffed it up with rough sand paper. The sand tower is pretty much complete; save figuring a believable mounting method for the hopper. 
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Posted - October 18 2015 : 8:44:34 PM
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quote:Also getting ready to place some of those rods that are stretched across the yard walls. I'm thinking they might have been used to support tarps to try and keep the sand clean and a bit more dry? Do you know Don?
Originally posted by Barry - October 16 2015 : 12:38:42 PM
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I think they are tie rods to keep the walls from sagging outward. With all those tons of sand pushing out on the walls, they would tip outward over the years. I doubt that they covered the wet sand, since it was going to be dried, anyway.
quote:Not sure whether I'm going to like this bullet for a sand hopper or not, but I'm continuing to pursue it for the time.
Originally posted by Barry - October 18 2015 : 7:59:46 PM
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I think you'll know after it's painted. Some awfully cobbled up looking things can look great once the appearance is unified with a coat of paint.
Carpe Manana!
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Posted - October 19 2015 : 6:45:13 PM
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Playin' around with some things. The rusty staple that was going to be my sand pipe wouldn't tolerate bending; thus the brass wire. Guess I'm gonna go with the bullet for the time.
  
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Posted - October 20 2015 : 2:30:51 PM
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This pre-built didn't come with any doors. I've had the opportunity in the past couple weeks to visit a circa 1900 sand house that was used by a local railroad (Colorado Midland) and now sits as a garage a couple doors down from my son-in-law. I got to meet the owner and some history and a look inside a few days back. One remarkable thing I noted was the way the interior was built real tight with horizontal boards (still pretty tight to this day; after a 100 years); outside was vertical board and batten. So, that's the deal with these crude models of mine.
I'm not sure what that little guy is up to . . . maybe just standing there to help me get a sense of scale
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Posted - October 20 2015 : 3:24:08 PM
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I think you're ending up with something a lot nicer than the kit, as designed.
As usual, your tinkering approach is bearing good fruit.
Carpe Manana!
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Posted - October 20 2015 : 9:23:08 PM
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| Well Don, as I've been workin' on this, I've referenced the photo of your tinkering a time or two to see how you did somethin' or other.
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Posted - October 21 2015 : 11:36:09 AM
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I'm hoping a spray of dull coat will ultimately bring this all together. Always an experiment, hey? I'm thinking the sand tower needs some ladders and grab irons so those little people can get up top a bit more safely, and easily.
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Posted - October 21 2015 : 1:39:20 PM
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Neat! I got one in a junk lot that is all in pieces, this will really help in seeing how it's supposed to go together.
-Peter
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Posted - October 21 2015 : 3:15:31 PM
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| Hey Peter, you can also find some pieces of instructions and images in the postings on eBay and Google images.
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Posted - October 21 2015 : 10:41:20 PM
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quote:I'm thinking the sand tower needs some ladders and grab irons so those little people can get up top a bit more safely, and easily.
Originally posted by Barry - October 21 2015 : 11:36:09 AM
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I notice you have enough ladder stock to go all the way up the tower. Mine only has a ladder to the bottom walkway, but ladders to the higher walkway would facilitate maintenance and the platform on top suggests a ladder to it, too.
Now, you've got me thinking too, and that's dangerous! 
Ladders add a nicely intricate appearance of detail for not a whole lot of work or expense. 
Carpe Manana!
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Posted - October 22 2015 : 06:30:20 AM
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That's some really good restoration work!!
My biggest question - what caliber shell?? That turned out brilliant!
Carmine - CEO, Engineer, and Chief Bottle Washer
Pacific Belt RR, in HO Scale, Since 1975! 
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Posted - October 22 2015 : 1:25:53 PM
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Thanks for the kind words. Carmine, I thought it might be a .38 (never measured it), but it is a rim fire. I had to do some digging for plumbing work this past summer and found a few of those. I'm still not sure what I think of it. I think the lip at the top seems a bit big, but the depression from the rim fire made a great spot to run the sand pipe in. Since I began this, I learned that the local (use to be) railroad used sand towers that were enclosed and had a metal spout instead of this hose operation. Alas, there will be a way for those little guys to get sand to the locomotive. [Now I've been thinking what wills be the manner that sand gets unloaded into the sand yard . . . bucket loader from a gondola? Conveyor? ? ? ]
Playin' with things some more; how to carve the sand pile(s) . . . maybe depends on how it was dumped in there.
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Posted - October 22 2015 : 2:26:48 PM
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quote:Now I've been thinking what wills be the manner that sand gets unloaded into the sand yard . . . bucket loader from a gondola?
Originally posted by Barry - October 22 2015 : 1:25:53 PM
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The one in Chama had a track next to it that was at the level of the top of the wall. If the sand came in drop bottom gondolas, they could have just dropped the side toward the sand yard and used shovels to move the sand across the car to the dropped side and to move it into the hole from the ground along the tracks. From normal gondolas or even box cars, they could have shoveled the sand into the hole.
It would be feasible to have a track run close to the sand yard at the ground level and spot a gondola of sand there. The sand could be shoveled over the side of the gondola into the enclosed sand yard.
A whole lot was done with shovels and elbow grease in the "good old days." I once saw a picture of a man loading dune sand into a box car with a shovel and wheel barrow.
On my layout, I envision the sand coming in either in gondolas or box cars and shoveled into place. I have a conveyer off the end where sand from a box car could be dropped out the side door and elevated into the sand yard, but that would still leave a lot of hand work to move it toward the building.
Carpe Manana!
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Posted - October 22 2015 : 9:10:37 PM
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| That is amazing about the amount of handwork Don, and also the fact that they used boxcars for shipping coal and sand and ore and what the heck. I guess I need to try and round up a photo of a box car being used for something like that to see how they loaded and unloaded. Could be a fascinating scene with guys shoveling sand out of a box car.
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Posted - October 22 2015 : 10:37:09 PM
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Took a quickie look and found one photo. These guys are suppose to be unloading coke.
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Posted - October 22 2015 : 10:57:02 PM
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Going to have to rethink my current traffic pattern and yards to integrate this sand house, but it's kind of fun settin' up and see what happens. Need to round up some sand yet.
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Posted - October 22 2015 : 11:36:14 PM
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In my sand house scene, I use some fine, white beach sand. To scale, it's huge but to the eye it looks like sand rather than rock. That's fairly easy to scrounge here in Illinois. I'm not far from Lake Michigan, and not far from the St. Peter's silica sandstone formation. In your case, I'm not sure how available fine sand is in the front range.
I like your pictures of the engine at the sand tower with the guy working around the sand dome. John Allen began his model railroading hobby as a way to create and photograph vignettes that way.
Also, that shot of the coke coming in a box car was fascinating. It was interesting to see the way the door was boarded to hold the coke and the huge scoopful of coke and the great big wheelbarrow for moving it. Coke, as I've seen it, is not very dense so you can handle big volumes of it in a reasonable weight.
Carpe Manana!
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Posted - October 23 2015 : 11:21:37 AM
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| Yeah Don. That seems so inefficient to laboriously fill the box car with something like coal and sand and then have to work around a boarded up doorway in a confined area. If you were working with someone else, you'd really have to develop a rhythm to get the job done without getting into a fight over an accidental shovel swat in the head.
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Posted - October 23 2015 : 9:23:39 PM
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Had some masonry sand and filtered it down some . . . Elmer's glue to that piece of spongy packing foam . . .
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Posted - October 23 2015 : 11:11:56 PM
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The masonry sand looks good. I like the tower with the ladder added, too.
Carpe Manana!
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Posted - October 24 2015 : 2:56:51 PM
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A spray of dull coat and "temporary (year or two?)" placement. Guess I'm done messin' with this for now. People should live so long as to be able to finish a model train.
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Posted - October 25 2015 : 11:13:57 PM
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That's a nice looking overall scene. I like the way the sand tower and water tower frame the engine and the coal bucket loader. It looks like a busy, railroady place.
Carpe Manana!
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Posted - October 26 2015 : 12:45:37 PM
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| Thanks Don. If I thought this was going to be a permanent placement, it would be fun to do a little landscaping and get those structures to blend in a bit better. I also look at the water tower and the freight building and see things that could make them a bit more believable. One thing at a time, hey? I'm wanting to replace my layout board though. This ones made of several pieces that are not aligned well and so the track needs shims in several places. Not that that is terrible, but I'm wanting to start fresh and maybe change the size . . . surprisingly even go smaller. I ultimately would like to have a layout that could be squeezed down the rather tiny stairway without having to cut in half. Unless I somehow magically find a big empty room in our house. We'll see how that works out.
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Posted - October 26 2015 : 11:46:15 PM
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| That is one really fine looking sandhouse. Great job there.
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Posted - January 01 2016 : 2:31:42 PM
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| An impressive effort.
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Posted - January 01 2016 : 3:07:54 PM
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That sand house looks simply excellent, Barry. Amazing what some paint, scraps, and effort can do for a cheap kit that was badly built when you got it! Regarding methods of getting sand into the house and then to the engine, according to what I've read some sand houses used enclosed conveyors, but then that might not fit your chosen period.
As for your layout... would one that could fold in half rather than needing to be taken apart work?
Feedback-hungry attention w****
Edited by - ZeldaTheSwordsman on January 01 2016 3:08:19 PM
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Posted - January 01 2016 : 10:58:45 PM
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| That folding business is interesting Zelda. I might have to think about that one a spell. Part of it is a real narrow stairway with a turn in it leading to the room. Somethin' to carry in and out needs to be maybe even a bit less than 48 X 48, and not to thick if it's that big, so . . . I'm kinda rethinkin' the whole thing.
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Posted - January 02 2016 : 12:31:37 AM
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| I really like Barry's Sand House. Always liked the kit but never bought it due to I don't run steamers... Great Job, Barry!
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Posted - January 02 2016 : 09:27:16 AM
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quote:Somethin' to carry in and out needs to be maybe even a bit less than 48 X 48, and not to thick if it's that big, so . . . I'm kinda rethinkin' the whole thing.
Originally posted by Barry - January 01 2016 : 10:58:45 PM
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Barry - I don't know if it can be translated to your concept, but I would consider 2" extruded foam insulation board. I went with it on my last layout and wouldn't use anything else now. It is super lightweight yet very rigid and strong. It can also be carved to form rivers, mountains, etc.
http://tycodepot.com/
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Posted - January 03 2016 : 1:29:54 PM
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| Nicely reconstructed Barry. I especially like the contours of the sand pile. Spot on.
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