The Ferry Fairy visits…
only temporarily though…
Mark let me borrow his Walther’s Carfloat for a while to get some dimensions from it as I am thinking of scratching building some for the Terminal. It fits right in nice as the Walther’s version is correct for this area. Even the size is right, 17 40′ cars. I am also waiting on some drawings of carfloats from this area as well, hopefully between the two I can come up with something suitable.
It does reveal one flaw in my design though. The water level is a bit low, by about 1/2″ or so. At this level it might be close to the low tide level of the Harlem River. The float dock would be angled down to reach the float if left this way. I might try to raise it up a bit so it isn’t so distracting, but that will be a bit of a job.
Also, had I made the water 1″ wider I could have fit in a tug, which would have been a very nice scene. Perhaps if I add material to raise the water level I could make it a bit wider without it looking funny.
I’ll have to give that some thought.
-T.
About the Author:
I'm your host, Tim Warris, a product developer in Port Dover, Ontario. Since March of 2007 I have been documenting the construction of the former CNJ Bronx Terminal in HO scale. For my day job, I design track building tools for Fast Tracks, a small company I own and operate. Fast Tracks makes it fast and easy to hand lay your own trackwork. Stop by our website to learn more!
Posted by: Tim | 04-18-2008 | 03:04 PM
Posted in: Latest Posts
Well I don’t know about an inch of water, but to put some clear epoxy resin for water in would raise the float about 1/4 to 1/2 inch. Another alternative would be ad 1/2 plywood or other wood which could be wider than current section, and then add the water on top. With a little work on the edge if tappered just right you would only see deep water from the side. Would not know how adding an inch would effect the ride in the car.
Kurt
Just think, with a few cuts in the water and a good lever you could simulate the final docking by having the float pull into the dock from about an inch or so back, and then have the float move away when done. Would ad some realizm to the float area.
Hi
I am planning on adding an additional piece of material, probably plywood, to raise up the water level and widen the width of the water. I like the idea of the water being wider than the base, will help create the illusion of distance and aid in photography.
Tim
Tim, I travel around on business and I found a Walther’s carfloat and apron last night at a hobby store in the Indianapolis area (Plainfield) called ” Big Four Hobbies”. They have the set assembled on consignment for sale there. I didn’t get a price on it, it’s not finished to your standards and needs some work, but it looks new.
But that’s not the best part. The guy working there, an older gentleman, saw me looking closely at it, and started a discussion. Well, don’t you know he is the retired CNJ division structural engineer from Elizabethport, N.J. who was responsible FOR CNJ CARFLOAT MAINTENANCE !!! What a wealth of information this man had about this aspect of railroading.
You may want to connect with this fellow as a resource for information, he had lots of stories about all the NY/NJ carfloat operations, PRR, CNJ, over the years. Most interesting was the story of how divers found several boxcars submerged at the end of the apron of the CNJ dock in the ’70’s.
Anyway, thanks for the email, best of luck with the purchase if you pursue it.
Rick
Which tug kit are you going to use for the float handling? Sould look nice with a tug holding it tight in the dock and waiting for the order to move out.
Glad you liked the idea about adding height and widing the waterway for the tub and float together.
Kurt
Hi Rick,
Thanks for the heads up on the carfloat. I gave them a call yesterday and it is still there, they are asking $150 for both the float and the apron.
I didn’t get a chance to talk to the maintenance engineer, but I think I may prepare a few questions and see if I can’t get in touch with him later, would probably be a very interesting conversation.
I will probably pass on this float though, I got the impression they weren’t too keen in shipping it somewhere, plus I am leaning heavily on scratch building the float so I can get some that are a bit more unique. I have been in touch with some modelers who have original blueprints of some floats, which should come in handy for the project!
Cheers!
T.