Menards 279-5923 Cripple Creek Lumber Yard O Gauge

Where are those 2x4s? At the Cripple Creek Lumber Co.

The basics: Railroads haul well over a million freight car loads of forest products every year and the Cripple Creek Lumber yard is ready to become a focal point for industry on your line. This is a multi-level storage building with a simulated corrugated steel exterior. The model is completely assembled and weathered and features business signs on both ends. The rear of the building is enclosed and the front has two open levels for receipt of lumber and dispatch by truck. The structure is 12-1/2" wide by 11-1/2" deep and is 6-3/4" tall.

Cripple Creek has interior and exterior lighting. The building is designed for use with the Menards Plug & Play 4.5 volt power supply, sold separately. Check Menards SKUs 279-4061, 279-4062, or 279-4050. You may wish to consider the 8- or 9-piece Plug & Play accessory kits (SKU 279-4035, 4681) and to serve multiple structures and vehicles. All are available separately.

Why you need this: Lumber and forest products are one of the earliest commodities to hit the rails and are just as important today as in the past. Large and heavy, wood products are impractical to truck long distances, yet they are needed everywhere. The Cripple Creek Lumber Yard is a natural fit to service your model railroad’s home building and construction businesses!

The weathered exterior is beautifully rendered. The roof replicated rusted corrugated steel and has a brownish tinge from rain and the rays of the sun. The external walls are gray, with heavy grime on seams and spots where dirty rainwater might flow. The rusty and dusty look is a good fit for any railroad modeling the 1930s forward. It has a classic small town look, but with features that make it look ready for work today.

The front is open revealing ground and upper levels. Take a look inside ground level and you’ll discover it is erected with trusses and beams. The ground level has four groups of material placed on dunnage. There are four bays ready to load the goods on a truck, and two workers engaged in a chat. Jack is resting in one corner near a hand truck. He is probably hoping for a squirrel to pass by so he can get some exercise.

The upper level is very well illuminated and has safety railing along the outer edge. There is storage for four bundles of lumber ready to move to a construction site. A worker appears to be deciding what grades of wood need to be re-stocked!

The center part of the structure is raised above the roofline. There are four 12-pane windows on front and rear. Cripple Creek signage is placed on both ends above the doorways, and there is exterior illumination from beneath the roof. Both sides have broad doors that may be slid into open or closed positions. You can’t run a train through it, but a delivery truck will be just fine!

The rear of the building has the office. A doorway and window are on the left side. There is a high voltage warning sign and an electrical power box to their right. On the inside, the office is a building within a building, with storage space available on the office roof. A large exhaust stack pops out of the office roof, supported by multiple guide wires.

This is a great rail and highway merging point. Lumber comes off a rail car, gets warehouse, and is moved along the road. This would look even better with a few Menards lighted stake-bed trucks spotted there (SKUs 279-4601-4606). This is an instantly familiar structure and it is a great for your industrial park!

Dimensions: 12-1/2”W x 11-1/2”D x 6-3/4”H

Shipping Dimensions: 15.35 H x 13.58 W x 7.68 D

Shipping Weight: 3.0625 lbs