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We have been calling our large underground layout a coal mine, but going forward we will be referring to that as the crystal mine, due to the large number of real crystals now displayed in that cave.
The new animation uses geared motors to slowly rotate the crusher and a servo motor to move the coal car in and out of the mine entrance. I recommend geared motors (available online) as a good choice for modelers, against building the gears yourself, which can be quite difficult.
The Tortoise Switch Machine ™ is used to move the coal car in and out. It is a servo motor, and we’ve used this successfully before to move our tractors in the farm scene and the waitress at Mel’s Drive-In. I have mounted an arm on it with a fishing line to the car. An intricate wooden trestle for the coal car to ride on dresses up the scene.
The original animation from 1945 used one motor to do 3 things. Since motors are abundant nowadays, the complicated pulley arrangement used by the very clever author is not necessary, and would be a maintenance nightmare given the amount of hours our layout is open to the public. We use a motor for each distinct movement.
The original animation has an oil derrick going up and down. We will be building this separately and placing it in the desert, where it will be more appropriate. This is another advantage of using separate motors for each movement.
We will post again when we have completed the project!