# Customizing a Lionel Coal Ramp



## Zeke (Feb 22, 2011)

I've had ideas rattling around in my head about how to customize this ramp and have been anxious to get started. I don't have everything figured out yet, so stay tuned – you might get to see some epic screw-ups. 

I'm going to start with the base and pillars and paint them to look like concrete.










You'll notice that the pillars have indentations in them. I bought some paper that's printed to look like cinder blocks and Ill put that in the indentations. That'll break up the concrete a little bit so it doesn't look like one big slab.










The walkway and railings will also get an overhaul. Those are the parts I dont have figured out yet.



















I'm thinking about using some brick sheets to build around the rear pillar and creating some sort of control house on top in place of the red bulb.











Here's a picture after the disassembly. The unloading magnet was held on by two side bolts and came right off. The uncoupling magnet was held on by one bolt coming up from inside the pylon, so I wound up taking off the whole thing.










Here's the block paper I got from Micro-Mark. It's going to need some dullcote before I apply weathering powders, but I think it'll look good.










I cut out an appropriately sized piece, peeled off the backing, and placed it in the indentation on the pylon.










Then I trimmed off the excess with an Exacto knife. Quick modeling tip – cutting the excess goes MUCH better when you use a new, sharp blade instead of the old one that hasn't been replaced in 5 or 6 years. 










I did the sides as well (sorry about the unfocused picture).










Here are the pylons all ready for painting. The block paper is on and has been masked off. I plan to spray the whole thing with multi-textured spray paint. Rustoleum makes a color called Desert Bisque which I think (and pray) will look about right. When it's dry and I take off the masking, it should look like the blocks were shrouded with concrete reinforcement. I don't know if that would ever be done in real life, but like I said, I want to break up the concrete a little so aesthetic considerations are coming in to play.










The "Coal Ramp" id plate was easily removed by flipping the ramp over and drilling out the two rivets. The bottom railing posts were cut off with a hobby saw. The next obstacle is to widen the steps. My plan is to cut some balsa wood with the same profile as the steps and then glue it on. Then I'll cover with it spackle, sand to the final shape, and then paint. In the second picture, you can see the cardboard template I'll use to transfer the shape to the wood.


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## Big Mike (Dec 2, 2011)

Ok, looks good so far, but I got a question,what holds the car in place when one is up there?...........Mike


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## AG216 (Sep 28, 2011)

Big Mike said:


> ,what holds the car in place when one is up there?...........Mike


there is a couple inside the end.
Zeke, great job, very clever the brick solution.
Andre.


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## Zeke (Feb 22, 2011)

Thanks Andre!

That's correct- there is a coupler in the last pylon.

I'll tell you something else - when you open the coupler and release the car, it takes a second or so but then it FLIES down the ramp. I once let the car go down the ramp to couple up to a train waiting right at the bottom. In that short of a distance, the car gathered enough speed that it slammed into the train and actually bent the truck.


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## rrbill (Mar 11, 2012)

Very nice work on the coal ramp, Sean. Your car is a good choice to use with it; it has vintage looking graphics from many years ago and good rivet detail.


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## Big Mike (Dec 2, 2011)

Zeke said:


> Thanks Andre!
> 
> That's correct- there is a coupler in the last pylon.
> 
> I'll tell you something else - when you open the coupler and release the car, it takes a second or so but then it FLIES down the ramp. I once let the car go down the ramp to couple up to a train waiting right at the bottom. In that short of a distance, the car gathered enough speed that it slammed into the train and actually bent the truck.


 
wow !, yea I've seen them in action ,and they do go down kinda fast, what if you added an electro magnet to the down ramp to slow them down ? just a tought....................Mike


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## brylerjunction (Aug 8, 2011)

looking good and cant wait to see the next steps...I think I will go grab some popcorn


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## Big Ed (Jun 16, 2009)

Hey Zeke you better add a cat walk for the guy up there.
These sites might help you in the future.

Do you know about this site?
http://www.cgtextures.com/

This guys a member here, free signs,
http://timeandseasons.com/home.cfm

Looking good Zeke, thanks for the how do thread.:thumbsup:


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## PW_Lionel_Collector (Jul 13, 2009)

This is an awesome idea! Can't wait to see the finished product!

- PW - Jason


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## Zeke (Feb 22, 2011)

Thanks for all of the kind words guys! I hope this thing lives up to expectations!

rrbill - the hopper started life as one of those ubiquitous Lehigh Valley hoppers and I repainted/redecaled it. Eventually, I will get a fake coal load installed and then it will serve as a "filler" car between the operating hopper and the engine. It takes 3 cars to do that, so I still need 2 more.

big ed - thanks so much for the links! I definitely to spend some exploring them to see what I can use for this or future projects.

And, yes, there just might be a catwalk (if I can stretch my limited skills). The ramp will work in conjuction with my coal loader. I'm envisioning a small control house on top of the last pylon of the ramp. From that, I think it would be cool to have a walkway going to another small control station overlooking the loader. I don't have all the details planned out yet, so we'll see how things go.


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## gunrunnerjohn (Nov 10, 2010)

Those are ugly brutes, that's a great idea in doing some customizing.


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## Zeke (Feb 22, 2011)

Well, we'll see how good of an idea it is when I'm done. There are plenty of ways for me to mess this up. :laugh:

With the yard work and some other chores out of the way, I was finally able to get a little more done. I got out the old scroll saw, cut some scrap pieces of balsa wood to match the steps, and glued them on.










After one coat of spackling, here's where we are:










Hopefully, one more coat and some sanding will finish these off and then I can paint.


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## AG216 (Sep 28, 2011)

pretty cool.
Andre.


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## Zeke (Feb 22, 2011)

Ok, got the painting done tonight. Here's what it looked like right after I took the masking tape off:










As you can see, there's some big contrast between the block and and the "concrete". I dug out my artist chalks and selected a medium gray which I began rubbing into the paint to soften the color. 










I think it'll be alright once I get a sufficient amount on and get it blended in thoroughly. I'm also going to put some black on to simulate coal dust residue.

The steps could have been better, but they're passable.


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## gunrunnerjohn (Nov 10, 2010)

WOW! That really looks great! Love how the "block" stands out, nice job!


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## AG216 (Sep 28, 2011)

that's rock!
now share your "Paint" technique.
Andre.


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## tjcruiser (Jan 10, 2010)

Wow ... that sand-paint concrete finish looks superb.

Can you describe the process?

TJ


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## Zeke (Feb 22, 2011)

Well, there's really no process or technique other than purchasing and applying Rustoleum Multitextured spray paint in the Desert Bisque color. 

I started doing some weathering tonight and ran into two obstacles with the block paper. First, it has a slight texture which should have helped when applying the weathering powder. However, the powder sort of clumped (for lack of a better term) and instead of being able to blend it all in, I wound up with many little specks of black. My theory is that the powder is sticking into the recesses of the texture but it won't stick to the top of the bumps. I had even sprayed everything with dullcote before I started. 

Second, the mortar lines are bright white and the powder really doesn't do much to tone them down. I finally figured out that I could go over them with a pencil and that seemed to help.

I went over the "concrete" areas with gray and black chalks and ink wash. The effect isn't what I had in my mind's eye when I started, but I'm fairly pleased with the results. Admittedly, I probably overdid it in some spots.




























In this picture you can see the "speckling" I talked about. Also, this is where I used a pencil to go over the mortar lines.



















I cut a line in the paint and darkened it with a Sharpie to simulate an expansion joint.


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## Zeke (Feb 22, 2011)

I have a few spots to touch up, but the base and pylons are weathered and done. I've started working on painting and weathering the rails. I used Rustoleum Flat Brown on the actual rail and red primer on the bottom. I didn't bother with the walkway since that will be covered anyway. I'm still a little bummed about the mortar lines in the block paper since they're still too bright.




























Here's my attempt at simulating patched cracks:


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## NIMT (Jan 6, 2011)

Top notch:thumbsup::thumbsup:

Hey if it's a coal ramp wouldn't everything be black?
Just a can of flat black and Waa Laa done! 
That would have saved you a ton of work!:laugh::laugh::laugh:


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## Zeke (Feb 22, 2011)

Thanks NIMT!

Yeah, using the paint would have definitely been faster. I need to get this done because, if I remember correctly, I have some HO flat car loads to work on.


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## tjcruiser (Jan 10, 2010)

Zeke,

That really looks great ... what an amazing transformation from the original. Very clever custom work!

TJ


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## Zeke (Feb 22, 2011)

Thank you TJ! This part was easy. I hope I can pull off the rest of it!


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## Big Mike (Dec 2, 2011)

Zeke said:


> Thank you TJ! This part was easy. I hope I can pull off the rest of it!


 
the cracks in the slab is neet, very well thought out...........Mike


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## gunrunnerjohn (Nov 10, 2010)

Very nicely done, that's a 500% improvement over the stock look of the coal ramp! :thumbsup:


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## lears2005 (Feb 26, 2010)

Wow that is looking really good can't wait to see it all done


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## Zeke (Feb 22, 2011)

Mike, John, & Lears - thank you for the kind words!

My progress on this has slowed mainly because I'm really struggling on how to handle the last pylon. I did decide to go for a metallic look on the upper front and managed to get that done. 

I removed the two bumpers and springs and dipped them in Birchwood-Casey Super Blue solution.









Masking was done and then I painted the top portion first with red primer and then Testor's Silver Metallic.









I went over the area gently with 220 grit sandpaper to wear away some of the silver and let the red primer show through.









After a coat of Dullcote, I did some weathering with acrylics. I did use a rusty brown weathering powder on the bumpers and I might give the springs another dose of the super blue.


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## Kwikster (Feb 22, 2012)

Quite an interesting take on an old classic. Definitely looks better than the original. :thumbsup::thumbsup::thumbsup::thumbsup:

Carl


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## tjcruiser (Jan 10, 2010)

Instant rust!

:thumbsup:


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## T-Man (May 16, 2008)

This has been a really good thread. :thumbsup:


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## Zeke (Feb 22, 2011)

Thanks for the kind words guys!

I think I finally have a bead on how to handle this last pylon. The front section below the rails will be made to look like solid concrete. I'll attempt to build a separate tower module that will just simply slide over and cover the back half. 

I cut some pieces of styrene and built these supports that will go under the ends of the rails. They're far from perfect but close enough since they'll be painted and somewhat hidden anyway.



















Here's one glued in place. You can see I messed up here and didn't get the correct angle at the top. I will have to put on some spackling and get it sanded to the correct angle before painting.


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## Big Ed (Jun 16, 2009)

Looking great Zeke.
Can't wait to see it in operation.

I have been watching.:thumbsup:


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## Zeke (Feb 22, 2011)

Thank you Big Ed!

I've been juggling a couple of different projects, and just got back to this one today, although the progress was modest. I took some Plastruct #1 tubing and made some simple hand rails for the steps. I painted them with Testor's Steel, dabbed one some burnt sienna and burnt umber, then finished by rubbing on some black weathering powder.



















I had some exposed wires:









I thought some Plastruct half-tubing (HP-8) with bold detail might look nice:


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## gunrunnerjohn (Nov 10, 2010)

Great job, the rust looks real!


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## Hellgate (Nov 9, 2011)

great stuff!


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## tjcruiser (Jan 10, 2010)

Ditto on the thumbs up!!!

TJ


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## Zeke (Feb 22, 2011)

Thanks for the kind words, guys! I hope to get some more work done on this over the weekend and get some pictures up showing my plan for the new walkway and railing.


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## Zeke (Feb 22, 2011)

OK, I finally got back to this tonight and started working on the supports for the modified walkway.

I'm starting out by modifying these Plastruct gussets:









The one on the left is the original shape, and the one on the right is what it looks like after I modify it:









I take two and glue one to each side of a styrene channel and paint it gray. When I get all of these made (will probably take a while since it's tedious) I'll glue them over the holes that were for the original railing supports. This is just set in:


















Eventually, if this all works, I will run strip styrene the whole length of the ramp and glue it to the very ends of these assemblies. Than I can take some treadplate and glue it on top to create the new, wider walkway.


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## rrbill (Mar 11, 2012)

"Boy, you're a real perfectionist, aren't you?", he said with admiration.

Very nice work, Sean.


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## gunrunnerjohn (Nov 10, 2010)

That's going to be the fanciest coal ramp on the planet!


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## Zeke (Feb 22, 2011)

bill - thank you! I don't know about being a perfectionist, though. A real one would've added some rivet detail to these things. :laugh:

john - I guess it'll be fancy if I ever get it finished.


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## gunrunnerjohn (Nov 10, 2010)

I have faith that you'll complete it.


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