O Scale Trains Magazine Online

Building Lauther’s Perfect Pickles - Part I
Martin Brechtbiel
The Design
I wanted to incorporate a pickle plant in my evolving plans
for my version of a branch line of the Cumberland Valley RR
that survived into the 1930s. Having completed my two pickle
tank cars and a vinegar tank car, their logical destination would
then be a pickle plant, very loosely based on a picture of the
Heinz plant in the city of Chambersburg, PA. This brick structure
was very large and extensive, and I had yet to locate an
adequate number of views that would let me accurately build
it. Additionally, much of my layout is more rural, so wooden
structures would be in the majority. I did manage to locate an
O Scale kit (Wabash Valley Hometown Series, I think), but only
after I had already started my building. I also found that there
was a simple plastic kit in HO that apparently passed through
several brand names. The two that I acquired were from IHC
and Tyco, yet were identical in all regards. These kits provided
the spark for getting started. While my building, Lauther’s Perfect
Pickles, may have a passing superficial resemblance, I think
the rest is unique.
The Materials
The vast majority of the construction used commercial scale
lumber from various sources (primarily Kappler and Northeastern
Scale Lumber), some other commercial building materials,
as well as a number of detail parts. The sources for all materials
are listed throughout this article. The board-by-board style of
construction is also fairly close to the techniques for building on
the 1:1 scale, with the exception that various glues assemble the
parts rather than real mortar, bolts, and nails.
The Foundation and Base
Just like any good structure, the entire building needs a good
foundation. This fictional building was planned to reside on my
Cumberland Valley & Metal branch line operating in Franklin
County, PA. A common foundation style seen in that area is
built of cut fieldstone or limestone blocks. Only a small portion
of the foundation would be visible after “planting” this building
into the scenery. Options included variations on plaster castings
or blocks, but I chanced across another commercial material,
Dr. Ben’s Baby Building Blocks. These come with a rough edge
on four sides, and are of uniform thickness so they can be easily
stacked into a wall. They also are a blue-grey color that nicely
mimics limestone, and appear to originate from some sort of tiling
material that can be easily cut with a pair of nippers.
The foundation for the main building was then constructed of
these building blocks with an outside dimension of just over 30’
x 40’ (I’ll use scale feet and inches except as noted.) with three
courses of stone tightly fitted together with staggered joints.
These went together very quickly and smoothly with CA glue.
I should note that I built the entire structure working on a sheet
of plate glass. It provides a very flat surface, and allows a razor
or scalpel to release any errantly glued pieces of the foundation.
The foundation for the adjacent boiler house was constructed
similarly, with outside dimensions of just over 24’ x 14’; this was
only two courses high to obtain a step down between the two
connected structures (Photo 1). The foundation of the one wall
extends an additional seven feet to ultimately support a trellis
wall and the rafters for the boiler house. The two foundations
were attached initially by a little dab of Walthers Goo to set
them in place with the boiler house foundation located ten feet
north from the South wall. At this point, I want to define the
compass as it pertains to this project. The wall with the porch is
“South”, the opposite trackside wall is “North”, the boiler house
is on the “East” wall, leaving the sheltered tanks at the “West”
wall (Photo 1 and Figure 1 on Page 44).
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40 • O Scale Trains - July/Aug ’06