Heljan model

I'll start out with one of my favorites, the Heljan model.
https://www.hattons.co.uk/11688/heljan_89001_container_crane_terminal_with_operating_crane_oo_ho_gauge_dc_ac_dcc_operation_/stockdetail.aspx

This is an expensive one, and it appears as though it is ONLY available as a fully operational model. I find it almost surprising that neither Heljan has offered a non-operating model, or perhaps some other manufacturer??

It does appear as though they have copied a real existing crane, but I find it to be so wide as to be limited to pretty large container handling scenes. It spans so many tracks. I like the idea that it services a track (or two ?) outside of its inner span.

I would like to have a crane that spans only 2 or 3 tracks, with the capability to service one track outside its inner span. My container facility will possible be just barely wide enough to support this size crane.

Faller offers a container

Faller offers a container bridge crane: https://www.faller.de/gb/en/Products/Track-gauges/H0-selection/Trade-business-industry/Industry/Container-bridge-crane-sid4566.html Price: 349.99 Euro. The kit contains about 900 parts.

A control kit is advertised for November 2019: https://www.faller.de/gb/en/Products/Track-gauges/H0-selection/Trade-business-industry/Industry/pid.14.17.89/agid.1127.1202.1231/atid.24057/ecm.at/Drive-kit-for-container-bridge-crane.html Price: 299.99 Euro
Regard, Volker

I'm not sure that it is not a fooby.

It may be a European prototype.  On the terminals that I worked at in the L.A. & Long Beach harbors, the only rails on the terminal were right along the dock for the cranes that unloaded /loaded the ships.  The exception being ITS that had rail service on the edge of the terminal.  The cranes that worked the ships were referred to as "hammer heads" because from certain angles the shape resembled a hammer.  

The container stacks in the yard were handled by Transtainers.  I'm not sure if that was a brand name or just a description of the type of crane.  The transtainers were similar to the Heljan model, but had big rubber tires instead of steel wheels on rails, and the tires were turned by electric motors so that the crane could move fore & aft or sideways to move from one container row to another one.  They also had no part of the crane sticking out to the side.  The transtainer straddled five stacks four high with a truck lane in place of a sixth stack.  They could pick up a container and clear a stack of four.  At least one stack was left three high, so that a container could be moved off of a stack, and set on the empty spot to get to a container that was below it.  If there was more than one container needing to be moved to get to the one needed, the operator would move the extra one to the stack farthest from the truck lane to make that stack 5 high.  If the operator needed to get to the bottom container in one of the first 2 rows next to the truck lane, he would stack back rows 5 high working forward until he got to the bottom container he needed.  If he ran out of room to stack containers on a full row, he would take the extra container(s) and move them to an adjacent row forward or back of the row he was working. 

We also used side handlers & top handlers.  The side handlers were for empty containers only.  A top handler would be used to move loaded containers if a transtainer was not called in.

The Mijack style that is available in model form was used more in rail yards to transfer containers or trailers to/from well cars to to chassis or from chassis to well cars.  They straddled one rail car and two trailers making them 3 lanes wide.

Crane

Dimensional Modeling Concepts.

They have early and late 70's versions, assembled or kit.  3D printed.

There was an interview with Mike Brusky, the creator, on a recent Ken Patterson "What's Neat" (the one at Spring Creek Hobbies show in Deshler, NE).

Heljan crane

I saw one of those cranes in operation recently. Let's just say that running it is apparently a skill acquired over much time. I was also told that a second one was purchased to provide spare parts for the first. 

DMC (Dimensional Modeling Concepts) makes an absolutely gorgeous Drott (what became MiJack) crane in HO scale:  https://dmcrrproducts.com/shop/page/4/  - as you can see, it isn't inexpensive. But beautiful, oh yes. 

Walthers has a much simpler MiJack style crane. Neither is set up for "outside the inner span" capability. 

I just did a Google search on Transtainer.

Apparently it is a brand name for a company making intermodal cranes.

I'm posting a link to pictures of their products.  The pic in the upper left corner of the page is similar to the Heljan model Brian posted.  I think it is from a facility in Spain.  I never saw a transtainer anything like that in L.A. or Long Beach harbors.

It looks like the cranes have gotten much bigger since I worked in the harbor prior to 1988.  It appears that the new ones can stack 6 wide and 4 or 5 high and still lift over the stack.  Notice that most have large rubber tires rather than running on rails.

https://www.bing.com/images/search?q=transtainer&id=20902A5A545211E2DC347F3B53208F20CDF69918&FORM=IQFRBA

The Faller crane is naturally

The Faller crane is naturally a European prototype. There are similar cranes at the TraPac terminal in LA: https://s29755.pcdn.co/wp-content/uploads/2019/05/cropped-DJI_0173.jpg

European container cranes can be made in China, or Kone Cranes or Liebherr or .... I think most of them you can find in the USA too.
Regards, Volker

Walther's crane

The Heljan crane is not a very typical design at most ports I've seen in the Western half of the U.S. It does not look large enough to handle a modern container ship, which handle literally thousands of containers at once. Smaller container ships are self loading - they have cranes on board. Even older container ships are fairly huge and can swallow many trains of containers at once.

The Walthers Mi-Jack crane is a typical size for most rail facilities. It straddles 1 track and two vehicle lanes if I recall  correctly. One crane pad (for the rubber crane wheels) is located between two loading tracks, and the other is outside the vehicle lane. Two vehicle lanes give you enough container to load one double-stack platform. The model fairly inexpensive. Link below. The prototype is flexible and can be driven around the facility, although not while carrying a container (it would break up the concrete.)

https://www.walthers.com/mi-jack-translift-r-intermodal-crane-kit-7-3-8-x-3-3-4-quot-18-7-x-9-5cm

There are no commercial models of the newer, high volume Mi Jack cranes like at CSX's North Baltimore Ohio facility. These are massive cranes that can reach across sixs tracks to mix between rail cars as well as ground and reload rubber tired container, and stack containers in storage areas. They have a high degree of automation and are amazing to watch. BNSF has newer rail mounted straddle cranes at it's updated facilities such as Kansas City, Memphis and Joliet. Union Pacific is still using the smaller straddle cranes.

Bob
Omaha

BNSF cranes in Memphis

Like this video I happened across?....

Imagination Incorrect

I guess my imagination was just incorrect. I was imagining that a container BUSY port of LA would look something like the image that Volker posted,
https://s29755.pcdn.co/wp-content/uploads/2019/05/cropped-DJI_0173.jpg

....not just a bunch of rubber tired smaller units like the Walther's MI-Jacks. But it does appear I am wrong, a lot of container facilities in the US utilize some form of very movable rubber tire cranes.

 

I have several of these models in 'used/somewhat disrepair condition'. And mine do not have what appears to be an external operators console on that upper deck. They only have an operators cab below the engine mounted above. I wondered HOW could the operator get a decent view of his work from that location?

Thats one of the reasons I went looking for alternatives to put in my scene. Another gentleman suggested,..

Sure wish that MI Jack was upgraded, ....a lofter operators cab as in minutes 0:17 and 0:25 of this video?

...and of course finer detail on the steps and railings that we have nowadays.

Verses this ?...oops, missed photo reference

The Mijacks look big, but the Transtainers in the harbor are at

least 4-5 times as big.  the Mijack can only lift a container off a chassis, and put it in a well car or stack it 2 high in the well car.  It can only straddle two lanes and the rails.

The Transtainer can lift a container over a 4 high stack and straddle 6 lanes + a truck lane.  The rubber tires allow the Transtainer to go anywhere it is needed in the terminal.  Sometimes when working a ship we would have two Transtainers in the same row working both ends with one stacking loads that came off the ship and the other unstacking containers loaded to go on the ship.  Once one stack in a hold was empty, the crane operator could load a container into the empty slot, and then take a load out of the slot next door and put it on the same "bomb cart" to go back to the yard.  A "bomb cart" was a specially designed chassis built by the mechanics at the terminal.  It was constructed entirely of 1 inch plate with "wings" coming off both sides of all four corners so that the crane operator did not need to do much more than aim the container at the bomb cart and the container would self align.

If the Transtainer was on rails, it would be restricted to the specific lane it was mounted to, and could not move to other rows.  The terminal I worked at was a small one, but we had 4 or 6 Transtainers and probably 8-10 rows of container stacks.  If the Transtainers had been on rails, we would have needed at least one for each row which would mean twice as many.  Since the price of a Transtainer was about $250,000.00 in the 1980's they are probably over a million now.  

...

If you look closely, you'll see that on the Mi-Jack the operator's shack in some cases moves up and down.

The question is, what Brian

The question is, what Brian wants to represent. Ship to shore? There are no commercial cranes available, I think. Working (stacking) containers in the container yard you have the described Transtainers. If he wants to show the transloading to rail he could use the Heljan or Faller cranes.

In ports with ship to shore cranes small container vesels with onboard loading will usually use the onshore STS crane. They are much faster than the onboard loading gear.
Here some information on Liebherr STS cranes: https://www.liebherr.com/shared/media/maritime-cranes/downloads-and-brochures/brochures/lcc/liebherr-sts-cranes-technical-description.pdf
/> Regards, Volker

Container cranes

Hi,

well, there are different kinds of container cranes... And I guess they are quite similar, where ever one goes, given the containers are quite similar

Of course there are local varieties, such as the ones I've seen with extra arms to pick up trailers from the bottom, but in general?

Anyway, I've wanted to build a very small container offload facility for quite a while... So I looked at building a "big" container bridge. In N scale (which is somewhat smaller than HO When I figured out how many motors and Servos I needed, I concluded that I would have to mount a four-story high-rise on top of my crane. No good.

Rather than giving up, I looked other ways. Now I'm building a crane with a fixed base, rotating around its axle with a two-part jib. I can control all functions via strings from below the board and mount the servos out of sight. Now that I've bought a small 3D printer I'm actually quite close to having my prototype operational. It doesn't really look like the real thing but I am quite sure it will fit the situation on my personal layout quite well. Better in fact than the real thing - a prototypically correct crane would look oversized.

Brian, look at a number of photos and at your layout. If you find a model that you think would fit, go for it. You might find a model that you can cut down or blow up to fit your layout. If you don't find one now, well, there's enough on your layout to let the topic simmer for a while.

As for how a terminal works, I keep learning things... Only thing I ever did see was them driving around the yard in reach stackers, with a container hooked, at breakneck speed...

Have fun!

I have 4 tracks on my intermodal scene with 2 Mi-Jacks

I had some lights added to them as well...

4 stack high

Thats pretty neat Neal M.  ...at least 2 tracks per loading crane.

Question. Did you ever question your use of the 4 high stack in the back there,..particularly consider the height capability of the loading cranes?? I'm looking at that question now as I think need a four high, two wide stack, to clear my 'tunnel' for my hidden track running along the back wall.

I just noticed that it appears you do NOT have lifting cradle affair on those loading cranes either?....might not clear double stacks loaded onto rail cars??

Have you got some other photos of your yard?

Brian, The answer to your question...

Brian, I live in NJ and near some of the intermodal yards by the port, they pile them much higher than 4. The yard is not finished detail wise as I am still making some changes like adding the yard tractors and chassis.

This is another view. When I return home I will take a few more pics from the other end and post them

I have removed one row of containers so instead of two deep its one deep.Also trying to find a backdrop that shows more containers and some type of port, if possible. This would give the backdrop a 3D type of look. So far the backdrops I've looked at would not work....

Neal

Gotta give those Truckers a chance

Need to leave a little room for the trucks to swing by and spot chassis, move containers etc!

I like the lights on your cranes. They also have flashing warning beacons on the end to attract the attention of drivers (and other cranes). With all the activity, collisions are always a risk.  If you're into to sound, they are constantly beeping too (becomes tiresome after about 15 seconds.)

Animated Container Crane build

There is a 9 part series on a German website that shows an animated crane. Unfortunately it's all in German. This loading is from track to road or road to track vehicles. Part 1 starts at bottom of page.

http://www.plastikschnitzer.de/page/3/ 

And one from ship to shore or shore to ship. Scroll to the bottom for part 1.

http://www.plastikschnitzer.de/blog/category/containerkran/sts-ontainerkran/

Bernd

Suggested Backdrop

How about this one?

https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Stacking_Intermodal_container_in_Port_of_Chittagong_(17).jpg

Bad link

Bad link. If you have the website for the company you're trying to show me that would be fine

Neal

Bad Link

I think I fixed that link.

Roco 1786 HO Container Crane

Curious, does anyone have, or know how to get more detailed images of this out-of-production Roco crane??. All I get when I do a search is multiple ads from ebay, etc,...our modern internet crap that puts these hogs in front of all other sites to do a decent search !!.

I recall seeing one of these on a module a long time ago at Timonium show, and thought it looked real nice. So nice that I bought one kit, but can't find it at the moment.

Walthers Mi-jacks

I think I am committed to utilizing those Walthers Mi-jacks. I have several already but they are used ones that had damages. Does anyone have some unused ones they just didn't get around to utilizing? Perhaps they would like to trade for other structures??    I would like to have 2 or 3.