Train crew ?...

[AntonioFP45]

On Railpictures.net there's a cool picture of a UP U50BB #46. Looks like the late 60s or early 70s.

You can see that the engineer is wearing a light green button up shirt that would be suitable for an office atmosphere. More proof that Preiser figures will definetely work as diesel locomotive crews.

[Budliner]

I have a few that fell out of my atlas aem's
black plastic


K

[AntonioFP45]

QUOTE: Originally posted by cwclark

there is a pieser figure of man crouching with an overcoat on that fits perfectly in the widow of athearn EMD units .....a little whittling on the guy with a hobby knife will change his appearance so they all don't look the same..i just glue him in by the window...chuck

Good point CW,

In the Preiser figure section of the Walthers Catalog, in checking carefully there are quite a few figures wearing casual dress in sitting positions that would pass for more modern locomotive engineers. The traditional pinstripe overalls just don't cut it for time periods after 1960, unless it's a tourist type operation.

[AntonioFP45]

QUOTE: Originally posted by 4884bigboy

QUOTE: Originally posted by swdave

FP45 what if you are modeling steam, don't they have to have a crew in each engine or where they Mu'ed.

Steamers had a crew in them whenever they were on a train. And even when they werr dead-heading, they still sometimes had a crew.

Dave,

Steamers were not capable of running as Multiple Units. This was one of the major advantages that diesels offered in addition to much cheaper maintenance.

So yes, on a long freight train with 2 steamers pulling there would be engine crews in each locomotive.

[tomikawaTT]

I've started installing crews in all of my locos, which often requires major surgery to get them to fit.

As for the engineer facing the wrong way - didn't John Armstrong rig a diesel switcher with an engineer who turned his head from front to back?

[Anonymous]

QUOTE: Originally posted by swdave

FP45 what if you are modeling steam, don't they have to have a crew in each engine or where they Mu'ed.

Steamers had a crew in them whenever they were on a train. And even when they werr dead-heading, they still sometimes had a crew.

[Anonymous]

sure. I bought 2 Preiser train crew sets, used the shoveling firemen and sitting engineers plus two guys who apparently just took their lunch box out of a closet in the tender. Three steamers crewed like this. I do however have a problem with the shovelers and walkers: they are frozen in time. People sitting are much more realistic as they sit still anyway. 2 cts.

[Anonymous]

FP45 what if you are modeling steam, don't they have to have a crew in each engine or where they Mu'ed.

[Santa Fe buff]

I just have them stand by my Loco's. Not inside as my loco's are N-Scale.

[gvdobler]

I don't understand not installing figures because you might run consists. Is it more realistic to run "ghost" trains with no figures?

Look at some pictures of the V & O railroad. Some of the most real looking picture ever taken, and they all had figures in the engines.

I'm in the process of filling 12 passenger cars to about 65-70 %.

[waltersrails]

i don't add them but a couple of my engines have them.

[tjsmrinfo]

i did 1 loc. iys an athearn genesis sd75i. has room for a 3 man crew but i only added 2 crewmen.

tom

[Anonymous]

Sure do. My main switcher has a crew plus 2 brakeman side riders

[cwclark]

there is a pieser figure of man crouching with an overcoat on that fits perfectly in the widow of athearn EMD units .....a little whittling on the guy with a hobby knife will change his appearance so they all don't look the same..i just glue him in by the window...chuck

[Anonymous]

I never installed any figures in any of my Loco's

[AntonioFP45]

Something brought up by a poster a few months back regarding cab interiors. Sort of a "Rule of Thumb".

If you have a group or groups of locomotives that you run in double or triple header formations, then you might not want to put crews in all of your locomotives, rather insert them in the units you think will be the lead unit on most occasions.

Not difficult in HO, but can be more challenging in N Scale. I like Preiser's painted figures. One thing I intend to do is instead of using the "traditional engineer" with the striped overalls, I'll be using figures dressed more "post 1960s". Even as a kid I remember seeing engineers generally wearing polo shirts, wind breaker jackets, flannel shirts, jeans or khaki type pants.

[Billba]

Good evening Tracklayer,
I don't have them in every engine yet, but I probably will eventually. [^][^] Especially me HOn3 engines. [:P][:P]

[CP5415]

I usually paint the cab windows black on the inside of the cab so that I don't have to worry about crews.

Gordon

[Anonymous]

It depends on the loco. I have a few open-cab steamers that either have or will have a crew fitted, mainly as you can see right into the cab and it looks very odd without them. At the same time, you can really go for it on detailing - removing the plastic coal and putting the real stuff in its place, etc.

[AntonioFP45]

For those of you with Proto 2000 locomotives that have the unpainted crews in the cabs, check out this cool website. Pretty neat techniques!

http://www.brifayle.ca/

[loathar]

My new Bachs come with them and they look cool. I plan on putting them in all my locos.
You just have to chop and cut them so they fit. The Bach engineers are actually half figures with one arm and no legs glued to the side frame in the cab area.

[Anonymous]

My p2k's came with crews,I just paint them and leave them in,even in mu,many crews deadhead back home,and back in the sixties crews were 5 or 6 men anyhow.

[BRAKIE]

I use to add the crew in my engines till I saw how silly they look when I was mu'ing my units as I never seen crew members in each unit of a consist. or the crew looking back wards while the unit was running in reverse while returning a local or transfer run to the yard.After all diesels operate equally well in both directions..There were times when steam engines operated in reverse direction.So,I no longer add engine crews and remove them when they come installed from the factory.Yard units on the other hand gets crew members.[:D]

[Big_Boy_4005]

They are almost standard on Lionel engines these days, though I think they are a little undersized. Even O scale cabs are a little cramped, because one of 2 motors is in that space, at least on the diesels anyway.


6K

[Texas Zepher]

I've noticed that unless it is summertime, so the windows are wide open, or they are hanging out it is really difficult to see anyone in the cab.

[railroadyoshi]

From this point forward, my plan is to add these features whenever I do a DCC conversion.

i havent done this before.

[howmus]

Never have figured out how to get them in there........... On many of the small ones there sometimes isn't any space to add them. On the Bachmann Spectrum locos, they come with the little people already in them so they can run the choo, choo. I only use steam (no diseasals back in 1925 ya know) so each loco can have a crew and be prototype. I do feel sorry that the poor people never get to leave the engine, even when it is parked and the fire is out.

[Anonymous]

The only figures I have are the ones that came already in many of the Atlas loco's I have. So no, I haven't "installed" any yet. I have thought about doing it though. My only problem with it is that my consists aren't always in the same order or use the same locomotives pulling a train.

[Tracklayer]

Have any of you guys installed an engineer and fireman in your locos, or do you figure no one would really notice if you didn't ?.

Tracklayer