As many of you may know, I model the 50s on a GN line. I have era appropriate rolling stock, diesels, and steamers. My question is, would it be feasible to have a secondary fleet that represents 1965' or so? For example, take the steamers off the layout, the rolling stock that does not fit, and any diesels that would have been retired. Then, add in some "modern" (to the time period) freight cars, as well as some newer diesels. Like a GP 35 and a Uboat. I could still use the GP 7s and 9s, and similar road locomotives. Sometimes I just wish I could have the look of the "modern" diesels without totally going Foobie. I figure that over 15 years the buildings would not have changed dramatically enough to be noticably out of the time period. Then, when I feel like hopping in the Time Machine and popping back to the 50s I can with minimal effort. Thoughts? Suggestions?
JJF
Prototypically modeling the Great Northern in Minnesota with just a hint of freelancing.
Yesterday is History.
Tomorrow is a Mystery.
But today is a Gift, that is why it is called the Present.
JDawgMy question is, would it be feasible to have a secondary fleet that represents 1965' or so?
Hi JDawg,
IMHO, it would be completely reasonable to be able to switch your layout from the 50s to 1965. Like you said, the buildings won't have changed much, and your later freight cars from the 1950s layout would likely still be in service.
You may want to be able to swap steam locomotive service facilities for diesel shops, or just park the new diesels in the old facilities. You could set up a Steam Locomotive Preservation Society to justify keeping a coaling tower and a water tower. However, the large steam service structures aren't absolutely necessary because many current steam preservation railways just use tanker trucks or fire departments for water and dump trucks for coal.
I think that the best advice that has ever been given in this hobby is this: "It's your layout. Run what you want!".
Cheers!!
Dave
I'm just a dude with a bad back having a lot of fun with model trains, and finally building a layout!
Downtown Tenafly, NJ stayed very much same-looking from the '50s into at least the early '80s, spanning from the use of steam engines to RS2s/3s and then Conrail six-motor and Harmon Select-A-Power equipped units. (This was a town with one of the highest nominal incomes per capita in the United States).
Areas like Thurmond, WV have apparently remained substantially 'the same' for a much longer period.
We've had discussions about making some elements of the scenery 'modular' in such a way that some buildings or signage could be replaced for 'different eras', or progressively changed buildings to show community 'evolution'.
One of the things about 1965 is that there was still a lot of "standard railroading" aound - cabeese, passenger trains (fewer ad more worn), way freights, marker and classification lights and flags, dispatchers dispatching a division not a whole railroad, manned towers and station agents, team and house tracks - in a lot of ways, the only changes in 65 were diesels and radios on them.
I can back-date my 60s layout to the 1930s by swapping diesels for steam and replacing some rolling stock. It allows me to have more engines and freight cars, too. I am not fussy about built-on dates, so there's some modeler's license there. I like small urban regions where many structures don't change much over decades.
I have found that many visitors to the layout are much more aware of the cars and trucks than of the trains on the tracks. If you have a significant number of vehicles, consider swapping most of those out, too. Cars don't last as long as trains in the real world.
I have a lot of brick structures that don't need any changes, but I have a couple of as yet unbuilt kits to swap out for more modern buildings. My gas station has a set of old pumps that can be swapped for new pumps as well.
It takes an iron man to play with a toy iron horse.
JDawg As many of you may know, I model the 50s on a GN line. I have era appropriate rolling stock, diesels, and steamers. My question is, would it be feasible to have a secondary fleet that represents 1965' or so?
As many of you may know, I model the 50s on a GN line. I have era appropriate rolling stock, diesels, and steamers. My question is, would it be feasible to have a secondary fleet that represents 1965' or so?
Take my layout for instance. The date is April, 1955. So, why are there freight cars with a 1971 build date? Hmmm, well, ummm, dunno. What, me worry?
Rich
Alton Junction
Yes, except for their being no steam engines, it was pretty much the same. Many railroads continued to use roundhouses for their diesels - Minnesota Commercial railroad still does! Freight cars have to be rebuilt after I think 25 years of service, so a car built and lettered in 1946 would still be fine in it's original paint in 1965.
BTW if you moved it ahead to 1967 you could include a few brand new 'big sky blue' GN cars to help emphasize the change in time.
Course as a Twins fan, 1965 is a better memory than 1967....
I do exactly this.
I have three fleets of equipment. The "Fleet Of Nonsense" is firmly set to be appropriate for 1954. This equipment is well detailed, and will be the star of the show, so to speak.
The "Prop Fleet" is mostly inoperative locomotives that I bought for cheap and repainted. These are not so strictly held to a standard of 1954 compatibility, but most are.These are used to bring variety to my photographs with equipment that does not need to be maintained.
Then, every so often I just need to do the Time Warp again, so I take a jump to the left or a step to the right.
The "Time Warp Fleet" contains equipment from the 1800s to the 1980s. I use these when I feel like running something a little different. These are not always as well detailed as the Fleet Of Nonsense, but they are just for fun.
-Photograph by Kevin Parson
Variety is good for me.
-Kevin
Living the dream.
My current layout will be set in 1980s Conrail but I still want New York Central in the late 50s to the 1967. In some spots will be triple and double mainline though New York state. The changes are very minimal that scenery rural areas stay the same.
The same method can be use for Burlington Northern/BNSF for Chessie System in mountainous terrain.
Amtrak America, 1971-Present.
Hello All,
The Colorado Model Railroad Museum, in Greely Colorado, has special theme days to accommodate time periods prior to and after the base time frame of the 1950s.
Changing the track plan of such an extensive pike is not feasible, but they can change eras by the motive power and rolling stock.
The latitude in time frames they have given themselves allows for many eras to be represented; from the mid- to late-steam age to the present tier diesels- -there's a little something for everyone.
My freelance pike is based on coal mining operations on the Western Slope of Colorado in the 1970s - 1980s.
From the upper unloading track back to the mainline there is a historic wooden spiral trestle (helix) that has become a limited-run historic excursion when the mine is not operating.
I run an "Olde Tyme" excursion train, powered by a USRA 0-6-0, w/Vanderbuilt tender, and a 0-6-0 Side Tank Porter as a helper up the 3% curved grade; both converted to burn oil.
Occasionally the Royal Gorge excursion train makes an appearance with its F7 A-B-B-A set complete with 85-foot passenger cars on my 15/18-inch asymmetrical curves.
The overswing of the cars looks ridiculous, but for a moment- -my coal-based pike becomes a sightseeing destination for rail fans, despite the era.
Hope this helps.
"Uhh...I didn’t know it was 'impossible' I just made it work...sorry"
You def could go modern after starting with a 1965 layout. Mine is later: early 1980s and I've got quite a few cars from the 1950s. There are plenty of ways to mix and match things.
Need to find 1980s sedans, etc. to really "ground" the layout.
Story... kinda.
I know this with a guy who built a layout with the W&LE. He ran the Wheeling and Lake Erie trains and did switching duties and such, but when he had some little cousins or other kids come over, he would switch some of it out to the Unstoppable fleet (no matter how unrealistic the movie was). He ran his own versions of the "AWVR" rolling stock, and had different schemes and eras (like in the movie, how the attemped stopping locomotives were an old oily gray but the hero locomotive was a new blue scheme, along with the AC4400CWs in an old gray scheme). he would run them and sometimes even making scenes from the movie, such as the exploding boxcar scene.
So, if you ever want to switch eras to have multiple, its possible.
Cheers!
I belonged to a club that had a point to point railroad. But we realized that for public shows, people want to see trains move. We had some unobtrusive turnouts that allowed us to convert the layout to three seperate "show loops" (that way if there was a problem on one, or even a diaster and two were out of commission, there was still something running at all times) running continuously. On a home layout, a way to convert to a loop might be handy when small relatives or neighbors come to visit. But you need to include it when you plan your layout, it's a lot easier than adding it later
FWIW the layout I'm building is designed to rotate between several timeframes, but I see it as being more involved than swapping out a few engines and cars. It would be say 1951 for six months or a year, and then I'd take a few days to a week to change the layout - engines, cars, automobiles, billboards, even some buildings - and move it ahead to say 1969, and then stay in 1969 for six months or a year, then move forward again. Eventually it would go back to the start. We'll see if it works. May be kind of wacky idea, but back in the olden days RMC did publish a story about it so apparently someone at Carstens thought it was, if not sensible, at least 'interesting'.
Stix) I like what you said. Be interesting to know your outcome. It would also be a neat way to follow a Railroads, ahem.... a Model Railroads natural progression, just as we do the 1:1 versions over time. As most of us model a certain year, even down to the day.... and stop time there. This would resemble a 'living' layout per se.
Put me down as someone who will be doing the multi-era thing. Its just the way my collecting has worked out. Seems that modellers license thing is kinda tied in with that 'oooo i gotta have that' thing. The more I collect, the more license i need to explain all this stuff!
PMR