Prototype information for the modeler

 The pensy turbine 6-8-6 is a insterting loco at least, and "toy train" manufactuers have made many models of it notadly M.T.H. and Lionel. But has anyoun ever seen the 6-8-6 in HO, but not in brass?

Thanks!

Those engines are probably too unique to ever be produced in plastic in HO.  There was only one of each and they only ran on the west end of the PRR with very short lives so they have no crossover appeal and a very small time window.  Since scale modelers have a tendency to be more accurate in their time period and modeling effort I wouldn't hold my breath in HO or N.  I don't hear a clamoring for either one from diehard PRR fans.  Most of us would kill for a good plastic H 8, 9 or 10 2-8-0.  The PRR had thousands of them and most serious PRR modelers want three or more.

ndbprr:

Those engines are probably too unique to ever be produced in plastic in HO.  There was only one of each and they only ran on the west end of the PRR with very short lives so they have no crossover appeal and a very small time window. 

I disagree.

Based on the recent releases of the 4-12-2, the Erie Triplex, the Aerotrain, the UP turbines and the plethora of Big Boys, the potential of making another huge locomotive that was basically a footnote in history is too hard to pass up.  I would say only maybe the Jawn Henry would have a higher chance of being produced.

And just to save a billion keystokes of bandwidth that will inevitably be burned up when it is produced, no it won't be able to go around an 18" radius curve and handle a #4 crossover

I agree 100% with both of the two previous posts

ndbprr:

 ...I don't hear a clamoring for either one from diehard PRR fans.  Most of us would kill for a good plastic H 8, 9 or 10 2-8-0.  The PRR had thousands of them and most serious PRR modelers want three or more.

And a lot of us who model other roads that interchanged with the Pennsy would find a good P-Road 2-8-0 very useful, too.

Frankly, though, I could easily see MTH making an HO S2 turbine, given the number of times and ways they've already made them in O gauge-- it would be just like their bringing aquarium cars to HO scale.

It is a great engine to have and reminds me of my youthful Lionel days.

Doc

dehusman:

ndbprr:

Those engines are probably too unique to ever be produced in plastic in HO.  There was only one of each and they only ran on the west end of the PRR with very short lives so they have no crossover appeal and a very small time window. 

I disagree.

Based on the recent releases of the 4-12-2, the Erie Triplex, the Aerotrain, the UP turbines and the plethora of Big Boys, the potential of making another huge locomotive that was basically a footnote in history is too hard to pass up.  I would say only maybe the Jawn Henry would have a higher chance of being produced.

And just to save a billion keystokes of bandwidth that will inevitably be burned up when it is produced, no it won't be able to go around an 18" radius curve and handle a #4 crossover

Only thing I'd add is (based on the UP Challengers and such) that once it's produced, at least two to four other companies will announce they're making models of them too.

FWIW if I was a model railroad manufacturer considering a new steam engine, I'd look at doing one that's still around, like Milwaukee 261. That way, you appeal to steam-era modellers, but someone modelling recent years can realistically buy one to use in railfan excursion service.

Also FWIW the PRR had over 4800 2-8-0's at one time.  It may even have been as high as 5800.  Many were sold to shortlines and other railroads as the PRR dieselized.  Ideally the chassis and drive should be done in a way that allows the H8,9 and 10 differences to be easily altered or parts and different diameter drivers and boilers to be interchanged. I am dead serious when I say most serious PRR steam era modelers want at least three and I have seen a couple of posts where as many as ten were wanted.  This is an engine that a manufacturer could have in production for several years.  Maybe even a decade to go with obligatory F unit and GG1.  

I would be totally unsurprised to learn that the PRR steam turbine is looked on as a toy locomotive by the designers working for the various model manufacturers.  After all, if it wasn't for Lionel, very few people would even know that it existed.

OTOH, with minor detail modifications the H-8/-9/-10 superstructure would drop right onto 4-6-0 (G-5) or 4-4-2 (E-6) mechanisms.  As for the differences between the 2-8-0s, I (literally) can't see a one scale inch difference in cylinder diameter

Chuck (Modeling Central Japan in September, 1964 - where the 2-8-0s are JNR 9600 class and turbines are confined to power plants)

Manufacturers don't seem to have the good sense to produce a Harriman Consolidation or Ten-wheeler.  With small changes in details, they could easily be made available in several versions to fit into different eras and the several railroads that had them.  And for something good looking and practical in the articulated field, why not a D&SL 2-6-6-0?  They won't have to "screw" with it to make it compatible with 18-inch radius curves.

Mark

If you can find them, Gem Models imported brass Pennsy turbines in 1960, the first run was limited to 225 peices and were sold on a reserve basis, these were hand built, thus the feature finer detail then the second run that was imported for the masses. By the way the first run sold for $225.00 and the second run sold for $125.00, gotta love 1960 pricing!

Dave  

That is well before Jimmy Carters 18% inlfation and 23% interest rates on credit cards.  That is more like well over $1000.00 today.

I really hope MTH releases an S1 duplex for HO.

ndbprr:

That is well before Jimmy Carters 18% inlfation and 23% interest rates on credit cards.  That is more like well over $1000.00 today.

The last time the US had a balanced budget was Bill Clinton's last couple of years. The last time before that was Lyndon Johnson's last budget. In between those two, the closest the US came to having a balanced budget was Jimmy Carter's budgets of the late seventies. Oddly enough, even though many people believe Republicans are the best at running the economy, all three of those men were Democrats.

In 1979 Iraq invaded Iran. The first thing each country did is destroy the other country's oil shipping facilities, effectively cutting off a huge chunk of the global oil supply overnight. Since we had failed to listen to President Carter's warnings about our dependence on foreign oil (he was afterall a nuclear scientist and understood these issues better than most folks) we suddenly faced oil shortages which saw gas prices soar, which of course raised the prices of everything else - since it now cost more to create and ship products, even if the products themselves were not directly fuel related.

In a couple of years, Iran and Iraq built new pipelines and found other ways to get their oil to market, and began selling as much oil as they could as quickly as they could to get money to buy weapons for the ongoing Iran-Iraq war. This sudden flood of oil caused world oil prices to plummet, and caused the faltering economy of Ronald Reagan's first term (10% unemployment etc.) to turn rebound without causing undue inflationary problems, as would normally have been the case with Reagan's record-setting budget deficits.

Somehow our friends on the right have used this as an example of how great a president Reagan was, and how inept Carter was. It really was just a matter of issues out of either man's control.

Anyway...$250 for a brass HO engine sounds awfully high for 1960. Could this really be an O scale engine?? Seems to me when I started in the hobby in the early seventies brass HO engines were around $80-100. Remember that a big issue in the 1960 election was whether the US dared raise the minimum wage to $1 an hour.