Vol. 20: Brandywine & Benedictine Railroad
Norm Stenzel’s Brandywine & Benedictine Railroad is a freelance railroad that exhibits the history of this magnificent line from its maiden coal tows in 1898 to its heyday in the mid-1950s.
The B&B hauls coal through Virginia and West Virginia along an exquisite route made possible by Norm’s careful study of topography. This is a railroad that, if we didn’t know better, could have actually existed. Norm paid special attention to incorporating era-appropriate scenery, and the time and place are impeccably depicted. It’s the perfect blend of operation, scenery, and detail – nothing stands out to detract attention from the trains.
Nicknamed the Mason Dixon Line, the B&B runs north and south from Winston Salem, NC to Pittsburgh, PA. It’s a mountain railroad with a maximum grade of 2.7%, which means she requires helpers to make it out of Salem, VA!
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2:02Overview of the Brandywine & Benedictine Railroad
In this video watch an overview of Norm Stenzel’s Brandywine & Benedictine model railroad alongside Allen Keller. The B&B is a freelance railroad documenting the history of the line from its beginnings in 1898 to the mid 1950’s. The B&B hauls coal in Virginia and West Virginia, on a route made possible by Norm’s careful…
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7:26Touring the Brandywine & Benedictine Railroad
The tour of Norm Stenzel’s Brandywine and Benedictine model railroad begins with a group of notorious railfans waiting for train 119 to arrive at Alleghany. The southbound ridge runner appears out of the Alleghany Tunnel. After some discussion with the authorities, the adventurers are allowed on board with no resistance by the police. At Crow,…
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12:15Operations on the Brandywine and Benedictine Railroad
An overview of the operations on Norm Stenzel’s Brandywine and Benedictine model railroad. Operations start in the Salem Roundhouse, where a transfer run from the Blue Ridge terminal eases past. the Norfolk Central RS-1 drop its cars in the next yard. The mine run will require a big articulated to handle train 927 on 2662…
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4:14Layout Extension & Railroad History on the B&B
Norm Stenzel’s Brandywine and Benedictine model railroad is a 1950’s coal haul that runs between Clearbrook, Virginia and Ballard, West Virginia. The railroad extends beyond the layout with the model section only being about 30 miles of a much larger railroad. It extends from Winston Salem, North Carolina and Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania running North and South.…
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3:31Construction on the B&B
Norm Stenzel began construction of his Brandywine and Benedictine model railroad in his basement room in 1989. It took him one year to finish the basement. He recommends finishing the modeling room to any modeler because it makes it more enjoyable. Dust is not a problem in a finished room. The basement is also independent…
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7:46Creating a Turnout on the B&B
In this video, Norm Stenzel, creator of the Brandywine and Benedictine model railroad shows how he scratch builds a turnout. First he gets the pieces arranged on the ties and prebends the rail by running it through his fingers to get the proper radius when it is spiked down. A tool he uses is the…
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6:10Planning & Design on the B&B
Problems that arose when Norm Stenzel was modeling his double decker Brandywine and Benedictine model railroad were in the planning stages. He wanted to make sure that there weren’t conflicting areas such as operators being in the same place at the same time. Major switches should not happen on the top and bottom level at…
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4:50Installing a DCC Decoder
This video will teach you how to install a DCC decoder. Norm Stenzel uses Digitrax decoders on his Brandywine and Benedictine model railroad. Red is a DN93 which is a one amp suitable for N scale for his smaller locos. Blue is a DH94 which is a standard one amp decoder for most of the…
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1:04The Odometer Car
Norm Stenzel knows that the track on his Brandywine and Benedictine model railroad is exactly 324.5 feet. How does he have such a specific number? He made an odometer car. Norm took a digital counter from RadioShack and mounted it in a 50 foot boxcar – something with double doors so the screen can be…
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