inspection pit

[trainboy6936]

Hey everyone. I need some help. I am scratch building a maintenance shop for my HO layout. But I am wanting to build a inspection pit for it. Problem is that I don't know how to build one. If you need photos to help you help me. I can post photos. Thanks!!!!!

[richg]

A very simple way to usually find an answer with many links to store in Favorites. Have fun like the Bach-Man would say.

http://tinyurl.com/kk5n3fq

Rich

[JNXT 7707]

Have never done one (yet), but you might want to consider if your pit will be located  where it can be seen. If it's buried inside your roundhouse, a simple black painted area between the tracks that 'suggest' an inspection pit might be sufficient.

[Doneldon]

TB-

You can either do a simple inspection pit -- a long, narrow slot between the rails -- or a whole lower level. The slot is easy. Use a black patch as JNXT suggested if you won't have a good view of the pit. If the view will be good, say like in a roundhouse with a removable roof, build an actual slot. You'll need some stairs on one end and some braces across between the rails. The floor of your building should be concrete with walls of the pit to match. A really, really old building in a backwoods area might have a wooden floor and a pit with wooden cribbing on the sides. Such a pit definitely needs cross bracing. It might also have a ladder for access rather than stairs.

Larger engine terminals and roundhouses often had a lower level under part of the building. That would allow the workers to drop wheels from locos for truing or retiring. Such heavy repairs weren't done at smaller shops because the facility had to have enough work to justify the expensive equipment and highly trained workers. Lower levels were often built where the main floor was wood which was strongly supported by huge wooden columns. If you do this, it would be neat to light the lower level, populate it and maybe have some industrial sounds coming from down there.

Good luck with your project.

                                            -- D

[nfmisso]

Or you do the easy thing, and purchase a Peco one:
http://www.traintimehobby.com/products/Peco-HO-Code-83-Inspection-Pit-%252d-8356.html

[rogertra]

Did you Google "railroad/railway inspection pits"?

There's lots of photos on line both of real ones and models.

[Doneldon]

Or you do the easy thing, and purchase a Peco one:
http://www.traintimehobby.com/products/Peco-HO-Code-83-Inspection-Pit-%252d-8356.html

Sorry but this item is currently unavailable.

Please check back at a later stage.

[CNE Runner]

I checked my usual Peco suppliers and didn't find their excellent inspection pit listed in any. Going further afield, I checked with E. Hatton's (UK - Liverpool) and found that they have them in stock (in multiple rail codes). You can see for yourself at: http://www.ehattons.com/stocklist/results.aspx?searchfield=inspection%20pit

BTW: I have dealt with Hatton's before and they are excellent...fast shipping to the U.S. and they deduct the VAT amount automatically if the item is shipped out of the UK.

Hope this helps,
Ray

[rogertra]

Building inspection and ash pits, if you are into coal fired steam, is a fairly easy job using sheet plastic.

That is assuming you use flex track, hand laid etc., and not train set track and use Homasote or expanded polystyrene insulation for your roadbed.

Homasote or insulation is easy to cut into with a sharp hobby knife in order to excavate the pit between the rails.  Cutting the flex track plastic ties requires a little care so as not to damage the rail.  I did that after laying and gluing the Atlas code 83 track over top of the pit on my ash pit.  In the roundhouse, I just glued to rails into the guides cast into the floor of the Walthers' kit I used as it comes with inspection pits as part of the kit.

If you use train set track, like the Bachmann  E Z track then it will be much more difficult I'm afraid.

[Doneldon]

Cutting the flex track plastic ties requires a little care so as not to damage the rail.  I did that after laying and gluing the Atlas code 83 track over top of the pit on my ash pit.  In the roundhouse, I just glued to rails into the guides cast into the floor of the Walthers' kit I used as it comes with inspection pits as part of the kit.
If you use train set track, like the Bachmann  E Z track then it will be much more difficult I'm afraid.

Roger-

Exactly. Put the prefab track in before removing the middles of the ties. Do that
job with a Dremel so you get nice, even edges. Don't even think about using any
kind of roadbed attached track.
                                                 -- D

[Balrog21]

Here is a VERY nice video of a guy over in Austria. AT the 1:00 mark it shows how he made his inspection pits, These are the ones directly below the engine not a lower level, btw, this is almost how my engine facility will look. =)
Best and hope this helps!
Bal

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YaPyb3awmPE&feature=share&list=TLBF04jVRDsVY

[Doneldon]

These are the ones directly below the engine not a lower level, btwhttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YaPyb3awmPE&feature=share&list=TLBF04jVRDsVY

Bal-

Well, by definition they are all on a lower level because you have to go down roughly a story's height to be able to stand under the loco and work. By saying "lower level" I was trying to distinguish the small pits which are just narrow slots under the rails from the facilities which have more like a basement work area as well, a place where new tires could be installed on drivers, wheels trued, and so on.

                                                                                                                            -- D

[rogertra]

These are the ones directly below the engine not a lower level, btwhttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YaPyb3awmPE&feature=share&list=TLBF04jVRDsVY

Bal-

Well, by definition they are all on a lower level because you have to go down roughly a story's height to be able to stand under the loco and work. By saying "lower level" I was trying to distinguish the small pits which are just narrow slots under the rails from the facilities which have more like a basement work area as well, a place where new tires could be installed on drivers, wheels trued, and so on.

                                                                                                                           --

Actually Donald, inspection pits are around 30 inches deep or around three feet deep from the railhead.  Speaking from experience here.  A story is 10 feet and no pit is that deep.  You could never reach the underside of the locomotive from 10 feet :-)

Modern diesel facilities may have high level walkways but the pits are still around three feet deep to the top of the railhead.  If they were any deeper, you would have even more trouble working on underframe equipment and traction motors and even then, step stools, small step ladders and even boxes are used to reach over and around equipment.  Wheels are generally trued on a wheel lathe and the wheels are removed from the locomotive, both in steam and diesel either by lifting the the locomotive or by using a wheel drop pit.

See here: -

https://www.google.ca/search?q=american+diesel+locomotive+inspection+pits&source=lnms&tbm=isch&sa=X&ei=iw_vUbXNHoOziwKY-oDADA&ved=0CAcQ_AUoAQ&biw=1920&bih=943#facrc=_&imgdii=_&imgrc=p6FqyxgDR-aTjM%3A%3BczkEVfhmoDkuMM%3Bhttp%253A%252F%252Fwww.wheelsotime.com%252Fstorage%252Fthumbnails%252F7437619-8888322-thumbnail.jpg%253F__SQUARESPACE_CACHEVERSION%253D1286565797754%3Bhttp%253A%252F%252Fwww.wheelsotime.com%252Fblog%252F2010%252F10%252F8%252Fbn-locomotive-shops.html%3B450%3B604

[Pacific Northern]

for those using EZ track in their yard areas.

One of the members of the local railroad club has used just EZ track for just about all of his track, including the yard areas. He has filled the areas between the tracks with ballast to the yard area is level.

He has two cinder pits in his layout, and they were built using EZ track, cut with a dremel and the pit areas made from styrene plastic. Looks great,

I have some of my layout built with EZ track, jut the majority of the mainlines, my industrial spurs and yard areas are all built with flex track on 1" foam boards. I have used the new stone acrylic spray paints and they look great. Obviously they work great with foam.

Sure makes it easy to finish the yard areas in what looks like level gravel area. The new Stone multi colour textured spray paints by Krylon and others comes in a number of different colors so the ballast can be matched if required.

[Jerrys HO]

PacNO

I agree and thanks for supporting us who are a fan of EZ track. Looks great ballasted too.

Jerry