how do you model your layout

[rexhea]

I model freelance, but try to keep roadnames, scenery, and industry matched to the southern Appalachians in the 50-60's. I would like to have an extension later that is prototypical. I believe the research needed would be interesting and a lot of fun.[:D]

REX

[twhite]

Both. I model Rio Grande and SP during the late steam era, but on a fictional 'California Extension' of the D&RGW that runs over the Sierra using the Yuba River watershed (midway between SP's Donner Pass and WP's Feather River Canyon). SP has trackage rights between Sacramento and Reno. GN has an occasional run-through via a fictional connection from Bieber, CA to Reno Junction. And right now, with a severe loco shortage on the Yuba River sub, I've got borrowed power from C&S, C&O, N&W, Pennsy and even that ol' debbil Santa Fe.
Dang, it's fun!

[ClinchValleySD40]

Protofreelance.

[on30francisco]

My On30 Tres Arboles Railroad is mostly freelanced but I base it on the logging lines and narrow gauge railroads that existed in the areas around the eastern part of the country in the first half of the century, however, I also use some equipment that was used in the western part of the country. My general rule is that if it was plausable it's OK.

[Anonymous]

QUOTE: Originally posted by Nieuweboer

mine is free lance layout and prototypical motive power adn rolling stock. However I pretend that the layout is situated somewhere west of Chicago where the country is relatively flat and where one is liable to have met trains from ATSF, UP, CNW and BN in the 60's with a sprinkling of SP/SSW and N&W. One can also meet
CB&Q as well as Milwaukee Road. I've often been to Chicago in the past and I've seen them all so I know that I'm not that errant.

Great i also model SSW with some RI run through power and some SP units in a TX/OK/MO local

[Nieuweboer]

mine is free lance layout and prototypical motive power adn rolling stock. However I pretend that the layout is situated somewhere west of Chicago where the country is relatively flat and where one is liable to have met trains from ATSF, UP, CNW and BN in the 60's with a sprinkling of SP/SSW and N&W. One can also meet
CB&Q as well as Milwaukee Road. I've often been to Chicago in the past and I've seen them all so I know that I'm not that errant.

[Anonymous]

I proto-freelance. I maintain a vauge Resemblence of the BN between Miniappolis and Chicago. But I deviate so much from it that Miniapolis is North Pendleton, and Chicago will probably be resemblence in Name only.

James

[krump]

nothing prototypical about mine at present. kind of a combination of all memories - residences, businesses of significance, basically the entire province "shrink-wrapped" into a 10X14 room...Vancouver BC area neighbouring Prince George BC and Michigan USA

[Anonymous]

I would say I model both because I model a fictional place. But a real railroad (csx) and I use prototypical operations. That is my answer and I believe i'm going to stick with out.


Wait... no that's my answer
Andrew Miller

[dragenrider]

I model a free lance short line with intersections on both ends with Mopac and running rights by same.

[vsmith]

Freelanced, narrow guage mining and industrial layout loosely based on southwest desert prototypes like the Arizona Copper Company RR and a few others. I just model whatever intrigues me from many different sources.

[n2mopac]

Hard to answer this one. I model a prototype railroad and location (BNSF Wichita Falls sub from Fort Worth to Wichita Fallt, TX, summer 2000) with prototype interchanges with real shortlines, but my operations, though reflecting reality, are freelanced to suit the layout, availability of operaters, and my own personal desires. I also take some freelanced "modeler's discretion" to include some scenic elements that are purely freelanced (i.e. a freelanced coffee shop in downtown Bowie, TX named after my daughter for one). I suppose the best term for my style would be "protolanced" though I strive for a high level of prototype integrity.
Ron

[CP5415]

MY WAY! [;)]

I model my railroad as I see fit. I mostly model the CPR but with an interchange with the MEC & another interchange with any other railroad I see fit.
After reading about people limiting themselves to certain locomotives, eras & or railroads, I'd get bored with that fast.
I'm not saying that there's anything wrong with that. It's just not my cup of tea!
I'll run anything & everything on my layout. If someone wanted to bring something other than the CPR or MEC, I'd say bring it!
Steam, diesel, don't matter to me!
I run my V&T 4-4-0 with my AC4400's
I can, because it's my railroad

Gordon

[Anonymous]

mine is both CNW never ran on the trackage that my layout runs on UP owned it and CWN interchanges with CaNW a freelanced cyber (although not for long) railroad

[Noah Hofrichter]

I went with both because I currently run a freelanced layout with prototype rolling stock and engines. My Next layout will be very strictly prototypical, aside from skipping certain towns and country space in between towns. It'll be based on the WSOR's Reedsburg Sub, from Madison to Reedsburg WI.

Noah

[Anonymous]

After 3 freelanced layouts that were not that fun to operate, I spent a lot of time thinking about operations. I wanted to operate trains of all 4 (back then) western roads, because I had a lot of rolling stock in those colors (but mostly SP). I came up with the Idea of a paperwork railroad that they all had rights on, but running in places that don't have rails today or never did. So essentialy it's a bridge route.
So I guess you could say I model prototypical trains on a freelance route.

And let me say it's a lot more fun operating on a model build for operations.

[Anonymous]

UP, SP, ATSF, Rio Grande, WP, and MoPAC, somewhere in the west. There'll be actual citys, like LA, Omaha, and Cheyenne, but the track plan will be totally free lanced. The locomotives I will run will be from the 40s and 50s era, but I will have a few "time travelers" from the future on the layout, like an FP45 and a DDA40X.

[Anonymous]

My track plan and structures are freelanced. One is practically forced into such on a table top layout. But I can model the prototype in my engines and cabooses (although there are a handful of freelanced items there, too).

---jps

[simon1966]

My track plan is from my imagination and dictated more by the space I have. Individual industries are modelled after very specific locations.

[Catt]

I freelance,but I have connections to 3 prototype railroads.My Grande Valley RR. is totally frrelanced and has been since 1978.

Inspite of that the GVR has connections with Canadian Pacific,CSX,and Norfolk Southern.I find this is a bonus in my modeling because I can trim my GVR locos to my taste,but I also get to see how close I can get to prototypical appeearance on the other roads.

By the way the GVR started as an HO railroad ,but now is an N scale railroad with an 0n30 branch.[:D]

Nuther by the way for you,I also connect with other members of NARA and most but not all of them (that I connect with) are freelanceed.

[88gta350]

I voted for other because I model a real line that was abondoned in the 40's, but move it to modern day as if it survived. Check out my website to see the whole story.

[tomwatkins]

My layout is based on a real stretch of railroad, the western end on the Southern Railway's Murphy Branch, but with some rewriting of history. In my version, the Southern and the L&N exchanged trackage rights after the floods of 1916 and rebuilt both the Southern' and the L&N's Murphy Branches to handle more and heavier traffic. This lets me run much larger locomotives ( up to and including light mountains) and larger trains while still modeling the area with quite a lot of accuracy.

Have Fun,
Tom Watkins

[darth9x9]

A freelanced-prototype. I model Chessie but I don't want to model mile-by-mile of what the Chessie had and didn't have. My layout will have the 'feel' of Chessie. It is mostly like what Bruce Carpenter did on his BNSF layout where he has industires that aren't on the BNSF but he wants them to justify the traffic he wants to see. Lastly, I have some units that Chessie never had but I like to think of them as 'experiments' on the railroad such as:
- Chessie B&O GP-38-B (cabless)
- 2 B&O GP-50s
- 2 Chessie C&O SD-45s

And yes, I just had my modeler's license renewed last week!

[Anonymous]

My layout is purely freelanced. It could proably be located anywhere in North America.

[Fergmiester]

Freelanced as I don't have the time or energy to get into super detailing. Besides with freelanced I can run anything, anytime I want. The best of all worlds!

[Big_Boy_4005]

Prototype all the way, though very compressed, about 10 to 1. It includes most of the highlights of the area, including mainlines, junctions, yards and industries.

[Jetrock]

I model a prototypical region that had a lot of railroads running around it--downtown Sacramento in the transition era featured SP, WP, SN, CCT and the occasional AT&SF engine. I've seen too many photos of cars from all over the country being pulled by SN engines or motors to worry about the names on my rolling stock--I'll run whatever I like, be it GN, Rock Island, Southern, heck, I'd run a G&D boxcar on my line.

I do like to stick fairly close to the prototype, though. Whether others do or not is up to them...

[Anonymous]

Mine is freelanced. It's loosely based on what it's like out in the southwest region of the country, but with a little of the midwest and the southeast thrown in just to give it some extra character. The roadnames I model are Santa Fe, Rio Grande, Southern Pacific. Amtrax also makes an apperarance every now and then.

[mikebonellisr]

Freelance, but based loosely on the putnam div. of the NYC.98% of the people that view my layout are not modelers and most of those know nothing about steam.I've even taken the liberty of { GOD FORBID] painting and lettering some pennsy G5's, A5's & K4's in NYC livery because I LIKE IT,and not that I would care anyway, but nobody knows the difference.