Model Railroading > Model trains in actual revenue freight service

In the 1940s, the Cleveland Clinic employed a Lionel train to transport radium, a radioactive material used in cancer treatment. The train ran from from room to room, pulling a depressed center flatcar carrying a specialized lead container.   It was used so employees didn't have to physically carry the dangerous material by hand.

https://books.google.com/books?id=9NgDAAAAMBAJ&pg=PA149&lpg=PA149&dq=%22radium+train%22&source=bl&ots=YQCZopzGYC&sig=ACfU3U1FGDecyZ5dj_iyDyjCJTAuqTqTBQ&hl=en&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwjEpJayjdXpAhV8mnIEHQCPC80Q6AEwCXoECA4QAQ#v=onepage&q=%22radium%20train%22&f=false

There are also several existing examples of railroad-themed restaurants using G-scale trains to serve drinks and food to customers.

Are there other examples of model trains employed in actual revenue service transporting objects, even if done simply for novelty and not necessity?

IIRC there was a temporary shielding of radioactive material built out of lead bricks, the lab (Univ. or Chicago?) used an HO train to remove and replace the specimen when needed for experiments.
The tracks were curved so there was no direct path from where the material was stored to the outside.
This is from a very old memory....

If you think about it, John Allen used his layout to make money from doing Varney ads, etc. Not exactly freight service but his railroad was technically a revenue source, sometimes.

My G scale railroad is regularly used to transport hand tools, track materials, ballast, paint and brushs, cleanup materials, etc. between my workbench and worksites.

Also, rocksalt delivered to rotary car dumper located above the water softner!

-LD

Maybe not "Revenue" service, but actually serving a purpose, I've operated on an outdoor G scale layout where the owner loads side dump cars with gravel chips and the operating session (T&TO) includes operating the loaded gravel train (27 cars IIRC) up the line (uphill).  I believe the estimated weight of this train is 450 pounds.  Usually operates with three large battery-powered steam locos (and 3 engineers) to make it around the curves and up the hill (there are three helixes required to gain elevation).  The main line is about 2,000 feet liong and gains 40 feet in elevation.

First photo shows the train preparing to leave with a big mallet up front and two more modest locos being added to the rear.  The helpers aren't just for show.

Arriving at a long passing siding one crew will then shove cuts of cars onto a spur leading to a model timber trestle where the side dumps are unloaded gradually creating a fill where the trestle is located.

Second photo shows the dumping operation on the trestle.

To respect the privacy of the owner I won't mention the location of this private "layout".

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There was a drug store in Dearborn, MI that used a Lionel train to bring prescriptions from the pharmacy in the back of the store out to the front counter.  Ran overhead.

There was a restaurant down near the now-demolished Kingdome in Seattle that brought out your order with a train.

TJY

"The Train" restaurant in Prague near the main railway station is highly recommeded. The food is quite good as well. All drinks are taken out and emptys returned by train. Food is served by waitresses. The yard behind the bar is massive. Each table is a spur track off the main line complete with tunnels and bridges. 

The Choo Choo Diner in Des Plaines, IL used trains to bring food out to the counter. It's a couple of blocks from Metra's Des Plaines station.
http://www.thechoochoo.com/

Model_L Wrote:
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> Maybe not "Revenue" service, but actually serving
> a purpose, I've operated on an outdoor G scale
> layout where the owner loads side dump cars with
> gravel chips and the operating session (T&TO)
> includes operating the loaded gravel train (27
> cars IIRC) up the line (uphill).  I believe the
> estimated weight of this train is 450 pounds. 

I always thought if I lived in a rural area, I'd build a 7.5" line from the house to the road to carry the trash cans, maybe a spur from the garage/shed to the garden to carry tools.   In other words, make it serve a purpose instead of just something to ride around for fun. I figured there might be a few business owners out there somewhere that decided to employ model trains in some part of the operation.   

Another example I came across, though not "model trains" per se, is Special Metals in Huntington, WV. Their plant has an extensive small-gauge railroad (2 foot gauge or thereabouts, about the size of an amusement park line).  Google maps view:

https://www.google.com/maps/place/Special+Metals+Corporation/@38.4161404,-82.3742302,223m/data=!3m1!1e3!4m5!3m4!1s0x884607fc73a9a5c1:0xb3c1bd402539b31e!8m2!3d38.4149586!4d-82.3844405



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 06/06/20 11:27 by i64west.