The Plan

Here is the basic overall view of the 8' layout all together. I will be working on the left side first with the Sand & gravel and United Fisherman's Cooperative. I will be using code 83 track with Peco #6 switches. I may also try the Rapido Rail Crew switch machines for this layout, not sure yet. 

Looking forward to it......

I have always enjoyed your work and looking forward to the latest round.   I also enjoy the good background on a layout like you provided.  Feel free to share a little of the proto stuff  so we can share the vision.

Steve

Some more research stuff.

Astoria was nice enough to post some aerial photos form 1967 on their city website. I have also gathered some other images of the area I plan to model. I also want to make a day trip there sometime soon. 
 

Here is the sand and gravel plant along with the Union Fishermen’s Cooperative warehouse. I have yet to find any photos from ground level, so I doing a bit of freelancing of the structure. 
 

Here is a warehouse that appears to have been some sort of sawmill at some point. The structure still stands, but has been very heavily modified into offices. I am not exactly sure what I am going to have as the industry here, but I am going to build the structure. 
 

This is the loading dock, woodchip loading, boiler house and chip storage building. I have gathered a few photos of the mill and will of course be doing selective compression and modifying things to fit the layout. 

As I get closer to building each structure I will post more photos of them. 

First section

I built the first section of layout using 3/4” plywood on the ends and 1/2” plywood for the rest. The base is 4” deep and 2.5” on the front to allow for the slope to represent the Columbia River. For the backdrop I used 1/8” Masonite with a 1/2” frame behind it for stability. Next I will be preparing the backdrop for painting by starting with a base coat of interior paint. Although there is not a lot of material It feels pretty strong yet remains rather lightweight. 
 

Wharf and Trestle

It seems like a really large chunk of the tracks in Astoria are either on the wharves or trestles - either way it's steel on wood over water.

Are you going to duplicate that look?

Lots of fill

Jeff,

The area I am modeling is east of the depot, and although much of this area was built on pilings by my era it has all been filled in with rip-rap. It makes for some interesting rock banks and walls. I have also noted that along the edge of the water there are a lot of pilings which look like they were placed to keep the rock from washing away. 
 

I may in the future build a mode of the pier area which included the grain mill and warehouses, but for now I will start with the area around the mill. 

Backdrop

I painted the backdrop with a couple of coats of interior latex color is called “Spacious Skies” which is great for my more eastern Oregon modeling area but a bit light for the Oregon coast. 
 

Next I started with creating a sky color closer to that in the picture I was working from and roughed in the clouds using acrylic artists paints. 
 

With the basic area of the clouds figured out I work from the farthest away to closest as I add layers and detail. Clouds are very organic and I just keep messing with them until they look “right”. I do work from photos but try to not duplicate clouds 1:1 but more shapes and pieces of clouds. 
 

Final step is to leave it alone for awhile and come back later. I find that with a fresh set of eyes I may need to make adjustments instead of just staring at the paining. I Laos know that during construction things may happen to the backdrop, so I am prepared to make changes as needed. The backdrop is just part of the scene and would be treated differently if I was actually painting. 

Layers baby layers

Very nice backdrop....really

Very nice backdrop....really LOVE it !

I'll follow your post !!!

@Greg

Greg,

Nice job on the backdrop.  I've been watching some Bob Ross videos lately and your efforts, especially the clouds, reminds me of his technique.  Looking forward to more posts from you on the backdrop (and the rest of your layout, of course).

Al Carter, Mount Vernon, WA

You are the artist, Greg! I

You are the artist, Greg!

I like the runaround...short as it is for more operation rather than just a few facing/trailing point spurs.

Well done.

Barry

Thanks everyone!!

Thanks everyone for the nice comments! Es I have watched many Bob Ross videos. The other videos I watch are by Kevin Hill and James Smiths, who are true painters. Mine are good enough for backdrops. 
 

I have been working on getting the foam cut and placed so I can figure out the building placement which in turn I can finish the backdrop.

Astoria layout

Greg,

Astoria is one of my favorite places to visit on the Oregon Coast.  Very nice job on the backdrop painting.

I am confused by the track at the lower left of your plan.  Does that service the United Fisherman's Co-op?  If so, how do you switch the cars?   Fish canning was a BIG part of the local economy.  Bumble Bee had a cannery in Astoria.   It would be a shame to have the industry on the layout, without getting to switch it too.

just a thought.

Some clarification and an update.

The building was I am modeling was one of the many structures that United Fusherman Cooperative had I the area. In my limited research although there was a spur there by the 1960’s they no longer took rail cars. This was part of the net repair, storage and boat repair. The canning facilities were closer to town in a much large facility. 
 

this section was also designed to fit into a large overall plan that would allow me to spot a car here if I found Information to support it. 
 

I kind of had the day off, so I did more painting on the backdrop. Still very much a work in progress. 
 

Nice switching layout

Nice, Greg! Another small switching layout within 16 square feet! And in HO scale, too! The backdrop looks really nice! Greg, when you get a chance, could you please share your track plan onto my thread?

https://model-railroad-hobbyist.com/node/30394

Wendell

One question. The tail track

One question. The tail track at left is not very long for switching  Will you have a "staging cassett" that attaches for operation? 

Very nice backdrop!

So this is where the plywood for my furniture factory comes from?

I am having a furniture factory industry in one of my spurs set in 1969 in east Los Angeles / South Pasadena area, and i have a couple of project-boxcars to be kitbashed into SP&S boxcars bringing in raw materials from the PNW. Given that you are set in 1968, i made the opening comment.

Great work on the backdrop and i am looking forward to seeing more of this.

Part of a larger plan

Bill,

I am in the process of turning a single car garage into a workshop and layout room. This will feature a permanent t almost all the way around the room layout. There will be a 2’x8’ section that will be open. This is where I will “plug-in” this layout. I plan to make another post regarding this larger layout soon. 

Plywood source material?

Greg, interesting switching module. I am a bit confused though. In the last part of your post on 6/29 you make reference to woodchip loading. This appears to be the only reference to wood so far. After watching this video on plywood manufacture

I'll have to drive up to

I'll have to drive up to Astoria to check out the back drop - good job!

Lon Wall

Garibaldi, OR

plywood source material

Narrowgauge asked; 

< < I am wondering where your source material for the plywood is sourced from?

Thanks for posting that interesting video link to plywood manufacture.

Not posing as an expert, but I did grow up in the Pacific Northwest.  In 1968, a plywood mill in Astoria would most certainly have received local area logs by truck.

My guess, woodchip loading would most likely come from discarded centers/small poles after the veneer was shaved off, or possibly from the waste created when first lathing the log to make a round for veneer cutting.  Woodchips would likely be shipped outbound to paper mills.  Debarking process would probably produce "hog fuel" for the boilers or the conical "wigwam" waste burner.

Peeler Logs

Plywood is made from veneer. The logs were sourced from Oregon and Washington and trucked into the plant and placed in the log pond (not currently modeled). The logs were then cut into 110” pieces to be peeled later. Anything under 110” was then sent out of the pond to be ground into hog fuel. The logs would then be brought into the plant via conveyor and placed in the peeler were a very sharp edge would be placed against the log and the log spun in a large lathe. At a certain point the blade cannot go any deeper and core remains, sometimes these corespondents  are sold other times they also go into the grinder. The sheet of material would roll off the log like a carpet being unrolled creating veneer. This veneer would then be cut, stacked with resin(glued) and pressed to create the plywood. Once the wood had been turned into sheets they would be cut to specific sizes, namely 4’x8’. All the scrap from this process would be sent to be ground up also. 
 

On the modeled portion will be the woodchip loader (all the excess material the plant will not burn to create steam) and the loading dock to load plywood into boxcars. 

Heres a BC video......

I used this video for a reference  for the general overall process of plywood I found helpful when adding a plywood mill to my layout

Cork and Hot knife

Work continues on my layout. 
After drawing out the track plan on the plywood I use DAP adhesive caulking. They recently changed the packaging, but it works the same. 
 

I also made a trip to my local Harbor Freight and picked up a Hot Knife tool. Unlike the string or wand style tools this thing is designed to make quick work of foam sheets. It also has variable temperature to do other tasks and was less than $20.