King Coal: Sooty’s Coal Tipple

The United States became an industrial giant for two reasons: American ingenuity and vast quantities of inexpensive coal for power. Sooty’s Coal salutes the mineral that heated homes, fired the electric grid, burned in the steel plants of Pittsburgh, propelled battleships and ocean liners, and moved several generations of steam locomotives! Sooty’s Coal Tipple now lets you add the coal industry to your railroad.

The basics: This is a fully assembled and decorated structure with a compact 9" x 8-1/2" footprint and a height of 12 inches. The tipple structure is supported by eight concrete supports.

There is brilliant illumination beneath the structure and safety lighting on the staircase. Up top are red warning lights for low-flying aircrafts.

Why you need this: While King Coal’s fortunes are not what they were, plenty of car loads still feed power plants and major industrial complexes. Even today, coal can be seen as a boutique fuel for coal-burning stoves at second homes or hunting lodges.

The tipple packs in the detail, starting at the ground level. The concrete support columns have brick fascia. Here and there, well-developed moss can be spotted growing around the bricks.

A limited-edition hopper from Cripple Creek & Western Railroad is included. Decorated in a festive yellow, the sides are adorned with the logo for Sooty’s clean-burning coal. A piece of coal with red flames proudly illustrates how pure its combustion is!

There is an enclosed conveyor for moving the coal up from the mine to the tipple for car coaling. There is ample room beneath the structure for short or long coal hoppers. The coal loading area will accommodate all hopper cars.

Nevertheless, no matter how careful the loading, sometimes there is a mess. The new guy on the job, a hard hat wearing staff member, has a shovel in his hand. You’ll find a neatly stacked pile of coal that fell from the hopper.

If your railroad is a steam-era pike, Sooty’s tipple would make a good steam locomotive coaling tower for a roundhouse area!

Near the tracks is a two-level wooden staircase with safety-vest wearing employees on the second and third levels. Jack can be spotted near his dog house, situated beneath the staircase. It even has his name painted on it.

In addition to the limited edition Sooty’s coal car, you get an officially licensed 1957 Dodge® Sweptside pickup truck. This Sooty’s company vehicle has a streamlined design with chrome up front and the flaming coal insignia on the cargo cover!

The Sooty’s Coal Tipple is right at home on a steam-powered layout or in a modern setting with diesels and multiple car unit trains.