AC&Y - The Akron Service District (N)

[Steve H AC&Y]

I went to the earth slices library (Post #50) for sections (shown on the floor) to fill out the Mogadore Valley Industrial District extension. I was surprised to discover I only needed to remove 1" to get the proper fit between the stud wall. A good omen perhaps?

[Steve H AC&Y]

Since I finished the SHPX tank cars I've been dabbling in whatever strikes my fancy. The old sections have been resurfaced, part of one of the earth slices requisitioned for the end of the line and all were hoisted into place. It's 9 feet from the near fascia to the back end of the turn. Four feet across and four more to return to the end. I'm studying the Mogadore Valley track charts to see what will fit and still allow some breathing room. It will likely be a long iterative process, as design problems usually are. But that's OK. It's a hobby right? 😄

[Paul S.]

Absolutely it's an iterative process! 😃

[Steve H AC&Y]

For the sake of continuity in this topic - the Goodyear Akron synthetic rubber plant mock-up.

[Steve H AC&Y]

Thanks Steven.

Natural latex is tapped from rubber trees. Synthetic latex is created by processing chemicals - styrene and butadiene in this case. For use in tire production both are dried and further processed into something a high shear mixer can turn into sheets of rubber. Crumb or crepe (each appear just like they sound) are common finished forms. My understanding is that some product processes can use the liquid latex directly - gloves for instance.

[JerryZ]

Congrats on getting this scene mentioned in "Model Railroader".

[Steve H AC&Y]

Thanks Jerry. Other than the picture, I didn't have much to do with it.

[Steve H AC&Y]

General Tire progress continues. All the brickwork is complete and windows / doors installed. I think the dock will be the next task.

[Allen]

Outstanding Steve!

[Steve H AC&Y]

Thanks Allen. It has been fun getting back to building structures.

[Steve H AC&Y]

After a flurry of activity, progress has slowed over the last couple of weeks. Here is the current state of affairs.

If you're attending the Chicagoland RPM this coming weekend, I'm giving a presentation about building this structure, concentrating on the darker red brick sections. 9:00 Friday AM and 1:00 Saturday PM. Stop by and say hello.

Steve Holzheimer

[Paul S.]

Hope the clinic goes well, Steve!

[JerryZ]

Will be there. Curious on what you have been up to in an "X-Y" world.

[Paul S.]

Congratulations, Steve!

I just received my 2025 issue of Model Railroad Planning, and one of the features has your byline underneath it. Well done!

This is another great issue of MRP, a nice balance of large (even behemoth) and small layouts, all offering numerous planning tips and lessons.

I agree with you, Steve; the era of large basement layouts is beginning to dim.

[JerryZ]

I am so looking forward to getting my copy of MRP. It is the finest annual magazine out there.

[Steve H AC&Y]

I've not seen MRP 2025 yet. I hope you found my article entertaining if nothing else. Taking a light-hearted view of our hobby is a good thing IMO.

The General Tire Original Plant build is more or less complete. Here's the view you see as you round the corner to begin the Spur 4 job.


Just beyond the old Admin Building is the carbon black bulk unloading system. This was a fun build. A bit of imagineering was needed as I have no idea what the General Tire rail car interface looked like. I used a photo I found of the Goodyear Plant #1 installation as a guide.

The last shot shows the roof top details. Crowded but not too much so.


Flushing out the details for the plant addition (the original structure I built) is next. It should go quicker now that I've got some reps under my belt.

[Steve H AC&Y]

Thanks Allen. The second photo really captures the essence of what I was after. The closer you get to eye level the more massive the structure appears - Just like the real thing. I'm 6'-1", which puts the parapet wall near eye level. Shorter operators should get the full impact of a LARGE building.

[denny99]

Great job! Really beautiful industrial scene, the structures are true craftsmanship. Nice trackwork as well.

[Steve H AC&Y]

Thanks denny99. I don't consider myself to much of a track installer. The brown spray paint does a good job of evening out the rough spots.

[Steve H AC&Y]

So, of COURSE I'm not done. 😁 Details and general fix up of the 1941 addition, which was the first part of the General Tire build some 5 years ago. Compare this photo with the one above and it's clear what was added. I still need a flag pole and flag implying a slight breeze (not a full gale) is blowing, shrubberies in the troughs on either side of the main entrance and weathering of the entire complex.

And then there's this jewel box of a guard house, part of the mid 40's addition. Some people just don't know when to quit.

[Paul S.]

It's tremendous, Steve. One of the most impressive model railroad structures I've seen in 50 years of model railroading.

[Steve H AC&Y]

Thank you very much Paul. Quite a compliment coming from someone like you, who has seen a side of the MRRing world we normal hobbyists don't. Certainly there have been more finely detailed structures with better craftmanship over the years but at 48" long by 7" high in N scale, it would be unusual to see the 96" x 14" devoted to a HO version. We can do it in N scale though. But as I like to say "Just because we can doesn't necessarily mean we should." I'm happy with the result. Now the challenge is not to screw it up with poor weathering technique.

[BillyJoeBob]

Steve -- Great building! The facility is most excellent and from what I’ve seen of your modeling I’m sure your weathering will be great.

A belated personal tip: When I build a structure, to simplify things, I paint/weather any items to be attached (window frames) to a sub-assembly (a wall section) prior to their attachment. And I weather the sub-assemblies before final assembly.

If the weathering for a wall is to be heavy, I do the weathering before installing the weathered window and/or door frames. Then touch-up any painting/weathering as needed at the assembly seams after assembly.

When painting/weathering I try to do it in the lighting conditions on the layout.

BJB

[Steve H AC&Y]

Thanks BJB. Good tip too. The weathering consists primarily of an application of more, or less, black. I'm thinking airbrush application with a light touch. That's the plan anyway.

[Steve H AC&Y]

Got my baby dirty today. It's funny but unless you look at the photos side-by-side, you might not notice the weathering. I suppose that's a good thing. Everything blends together when viewing it in person though. Frankly I'm glad this task is complete and done so without out incident.

[Allen]

I've said it before Steve and I'll say it again.
That simply put, is one outstanding model complex. Going through what I think would be needed to construct that, although I've followed along with it, it just boggles my mind thinking of all the steps needed to complete it. How many years have you been working on it now?

Looking at it now and comparing it with some earlier pics upthread, the weathering is very subtle, which I think is correct for your time frame. The loading docks look very nice, the random missing windows and the area surrounding the lift for the carbon black looks fantastic.

As good as it looks now, I can't wait till you start getting some ballast and ground cover installed around it. Good job.

[BillyJoeBob]

Nice Steve - I especially like dock. It is large enough to to have a lot of details and the weathering is great! The track design is good 'cause there are two tracks serving the one corner of the dock. If I sent you a box of HO scale building kits, could you, oh, I don't know build them for me? Be much gratitude...😉 BJB

[Steve H AC&Y]

Thank BJB. But if you sent me a box of HO scale kits I'd sell them on the black market. 8-) After the HO scale B&O Akron Jct engine facilities build for a local layout owner I decided not to do that again. Did that decision stick? NOOOO. I picked up a couple other projects for friends, but that's IT! Besides, I have a lot of my own structures to build. ;-)

[Paul S.]

Always a little less than too much is better with weathering, Steve. (My two botched Geep 38 shells are Exhibit A.) And yours came out well.

I can't say it any better than Allen did. That is probably the finest structures I've seen modeled in N scale.

[Steve H AC&Y]

Allen, Paul - Thanks so much for your kind words. Coming from top notch modelers, in N scale no less, means a lot to me.

I went into the look back machine to figure out how long each build took. I started the 1941 addition in Oct 2019 and "finished" it and the Old Admin by March 2020. 6 months. The Original Plant build started July 2024. 8 months. Not every spare moment was spent working on the models of course (I wish) but when I had blocks of time available, I got on it. I'll admit that when I wasn't working on it I was thinking about what was necessary for the next step. Just the way I'm wired I guess.

So, how does a complex project like this come together? Same way you eat an elephant - one bite at a time - So the saying goes. However, I've never actually eaten an elephant. 😁

[Allen]

"Allen, Paul - Thanks so much for your kind words. Coming from top notch modelers, in N scale no less, means a lot to me."
Thank you for the kind words Steve, but I've been standing on the shoulders of better modelers than I, and I'm still learning.

Even though it wasn't a full time project (what is?) it's been five years in making.
Guess they're right, you can't rush perfection.

[Paul S.]

Allen said: "Thank you for the kind words Steve, but I've been standing on the shoulders of better modelers than I, and I'm still learning."

Ditto for me.

[denny99]

Steve H AC&Y your models are absolutely stunning! The weathering is subtle, yet still noticeable if you look closer. Especially at the bottom of the structures. You did a fantastic job, and I am looking forward to the next steps.

[Steve H AC&Y]

Thank you very much. As Paul pointed out - better a bit less than a bit too much. You can wash away the weathering and start over on a plastic shell. Not so easily done on a paper model.

[BillyJoeBob]

Steve -- Guess I’ll need to keep using my big cardboard boxes a while longer.


This is Big Box Boutique, an urban restoration project that is turning a 1940s concrete warehouse into areas for smaller industrial suppliers and warehousers. The building gets a lot of different types of freight cars, some LCL.



Another big box (and some smaller ones) building. This was a REA and passenger depot package handling building. Now it houses various small industries like the Calabasas Wood Works shop. They make bushel, peck and crabbing baskets using veneers shaved from planks the company cuts from paler sheet stock. Every few weeks, they receive a small (LCL) shipment of material. Those little boxes form a possible skyline for down town Monroe.

It's ok Steve, don’t worry, I’ll get buy…I guess.😩sniff…🤷👍

BJB