Sweet, Sweet, Prototype

One of my favorite feelings in the world is exactly mimicking the correct rolling stock for industries. I found Florida Silica Sand Co. in Plant City, FL on Google Maps, and decided it was something I might like to model in a module for my switching layout. I did some searching on eBay and found the exact cars and loads I needed. Depending on the version of google maps you use (I prefer the classic version), there are different cars on the spur, because the photos were taken at different times. One view shows a black CSX ortner with a BN 100 ton hopper, the other, a white CSX ortner. I also purchased a Missouri Pacific 3 bay covered hopper for use on this spur. They are frequently used (along with Cotton Belt versions of the 3 bay covered) to deliver the red landscaping lava rock in the BN hopper around Central Florida. All the cars I found are Micro-Trains, which makes it even better! Obviously, I'll need some more ortners for larger deliveries. Probably a 100 ton CSX 4-bay hopper too, as one of the map photos show, but the Trainworx one is a bad stand-in model. No detail under that load.