Steel mills and their customers are fastest growing users of barge transportation in the nation. With many steel mills now working at or close to capacity, barge carriers benefit from the mills' seemingly unquenchable appetite for scrap steel, iron ore, pig iron, coal and coke. Much of this arrives by rail, of course, but barges play an increasingly important role in their transportation.

The Mississippi River and its immediate tributaries handle most of the nation's barge traffic, about 322 million tons of freight per year. The Ohio River system is second, with 238 million tons a year. About two-thirds of this is dry bulk material, as opposed to chemicals, oil and gas, which make up about seven percent. Additionally, substantial numbers of tugs and barges move along the East Coast via the Intercoastal Waterway and, at the other end of the country, in Puget Sound.

From 1994 to 2000, the volume of dry cargo moving by barge grew by almost 60 million tons. Iron and steel commodities grew the fastest, followed by grain. At the present time, coal is the largest single commodity hauled, but it is expected to become second to finished steel shipped by barge to fabricators.

Steel mills, scrap iron, coal, aggregates and open-top barges all go together in the world or transportation. As described here, they can be easily brought into the world of model railroads, as well. The author chose to build a fleet of generic barges for his HO layout.

My HO scale model railroad is based on the B&O in the Pittsburgh area (see the October, 1999, RMC), so I needed several barges to move products to and from the steel mills. The type of barges I wanted were not available commercially, so I decided to scratchbuild them. This kind of challenge is one of the things that makes the hobby fun. I came up with what might be best called "basic barges." They were not difficult to build and were unbelievably inexpensive.

Construction

To begin, using a table saw or radial arm saw, cut a 3/4" piece of plywood measuring 3" x 14". This will be the base for the barge's hull. Note that above the waterline some barges are sloped at both ends, while others have a sloped bow and vertical stern. Take this into consideration when you cut the plywood. To cover the plywood, use either .020" styrene or five-ply cardstock. I cut two pieces measuring 15 1/4" x 7/8" for the sides and two more measuring 3 1/4" x 7/8" for the ends. Overlaying the plywood saves having to seal and sand the wood to look like steel. If you wish, you can score lines in the plastic or cardstock to represent weld lines, though this may be easier to do after they are glued to the hull. Make any allowances for a tapered bow and stern, and cement the plastic or cardstock to the wood. (Sand the top of the deck smooth first.) Round the adjoining edges slightly (if you used styrene you won't have to seal the sanded edges an extra two or three times) and the basic hull is ready for the next steps.

For the raised coamings around the cargo hold, I used 13 1/2" x 1/4" strips of .020" styrene for the sides and 2 1/2" x 1/4" across the ends. A top flange and vertical bracing may be on these coamings. For HO scale, .010" or .015" thick styrene strip by about 3/32" wide would be appropriate. In any case, the top of the flange should be flush on the inside. The vertical bracing (gussets) is often wider at the deck and is tapered to match the width of the flange's overhang, although for "scenery purposes" you can just make the braces from straight pieces of strip stock; .010" or .015" thick styrene will look good. You can raid the model ship details supply at your hobby shop for the needed bitts and cleats for towing or pushing; choose sizes that look right and proportional on your model.

I spray painted my barges with Boxcar Red and Grimy Black. Lots of weathering is in order, so use your favorite techniques and materials.

Since these "open" barges have solid hulls, they definitely need loads. I mixed up some gypsum perlite plaster and placed mounds of it in the cargo areas of the barges. Once this was dry, I painted either black for coal, burnt sienna for iron ore or gray for limestone. I also added some Prieser figures, plus buoys and boats to finish the scene.

These aren't superdetailed models, but you can produce a fleet quickly. They are good "scenery" and will help keep your steel mills running around the clock.