Research - Weight Station - Oahu Sugar Company - Fn3 (1:20.3 scale) Replica by Your Blogger

Photographer Unknown

Research

Weight Station - Oahu Sugar Company

This weight station on the Hawaiian isle of Oahu appears constructed of wood. 

Roof

Its pitched roof appears to be rusted corrugated steel. There is a flashing piece along the roof line. Notice there is a wooden awning over the door).  Its roof has a half-round gutter - likely galvanized metal - with two straps visible -there are likely three additional straps on this gutter that are obscured by the cut sugar cane.. 

Awning

Beneath the solitary wooden awning is perhaps a concrete pad or some other landing. Hard to discern but the wooden awning may support a corrugated steel panel.

Warning Sign

A warning sign is affixed to the shorter side of this structure that has what may be the solitary door. The warning sign (white lettering on a black background) - set at a height above an average man's stature - is illegible except for top row which we must suppose reads "No". 

Coloring

Building corners are painted white but at the bottom half there are either shadows or dirt. The door frame is likely painted white as well. A good guess is that this structure is otherwise painted red. Note the vent painted white that is visible on the side of the structure facing the photographer.

Foundation

Notice also that the building seems to be resting on top of the soil rather than embedded in the ground (see corner).

Windows

No window is apparent in this undated photograph of the prototype. Perhaps the lack of windows reflects an effort to make the building resistant to thieves or vandals?

Employee

Don't overlook the worker in this photo - notice: bib overalls, hat, shoes, rolled-up sleeves, holding something in his right hand, and tan. It would be great to model him just as he appears in this photo.

Mystery Solved?

What is the hose or piping on the ground visible in this prototype photograph? From Jim Stapleton:

A friend suggested it might be a cable for pulling loaded cars to the scale; this assumes there is a winch somewhere to the right of the photograph. The British used a similar arrangement especially around the docks; they had single-car-length turntables and short connecting tracks between parallel lines.  Powered capstans were mounted in several places and ropes driven by these capstans were used to pull the cars along the track.  Many US coal load outs in the east used electric winches to pull empty cars from the holding tracks to the loader.  When full the car would use gravity to run down to the small yard for pick up by the next " mine shifter".  

The idea is it would take a lot of guys to push loaded cane cars to the scale; a small electric powered winch would be quite sufficient.  Empty cars could use the winch, but probably two strong guys could move them. 

Revised March 19 2022


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