I'm just curious. I don't have a huge selection here as there are no short lines nearby. I see UP, BNSF, CSX, and NS come by and for the most part I find their engines to all be fairly boring when it comes to paint. The occassional KCS will come through though and while their gray paint was plain, I really like the red, yellow, and black. It's different but vibrant. In my little corner of the world, KCS has the prettiest paint job. Who do you think has the nicest paint and where are they? Let's see them if you've got some pics.
Several of the commuter operations are pretty sharp. I would consider NJ Transit, New Mexico Roadrunner and Coaster (San Diego) to be among the best.
I have to admit that since I spend everyday watching NJTransit I hardly noticed if theirs was particularly good, just that it changed on modern equipment. I actually prefer not-too-fancy schemes, A Rio Grande with just basic lettering and a few stripes or something similar was good enough for me. Something like this always presented more of an air of power, rather than a very colorful scheme, not that there aren't some I like. This of course is just my humble little opinion.
I could be biased, though...
Mike WSOR engineer | HO scale since 1988 | Visit our club www.WCGandyDancers.com
Among my favorites were:
1 Wisconsin Central units were Imron epoxy painted, simonized and kept spotless.
2. Iowa Interstate is a close second because the basic body color is black but their engines are always spotlessly clean
3. I hated BN green and black but since the merger I like most of their paint schemes with the pumpkin scheme my favorite.
A few favourites ...
Some other neat ones that were painted in Horicon.
canadian pacific because they are red and also bnsf
The road to to success is always under construction. _____________________________________________________________________________ When the going gets tough, the tough use duct tape.
1. Santa Fe warbonnet.These,unfortunately are getteng badly weathered.
2.KCS Retro Belle.
3.Wisconsin & Northern.
4.Iowa Interstate
5.South Shore.
6. NS.
Delaware & Hudson Blue & Gray Lightning Stripe.
"I've spent most of my money and time on trains, the rest I've just wasted."
1. Southern
2. NS
3. Aberdeen & Rockfish
4. Seaboard System
5. Chessie System
Kevin
I like the CN paint scheme....lots of black which to me is the right color for a locomotive. I also like the Montreal, Maine, and Atlantic colors..nice and very much in the spirit of WC.
CN all the way for me! Especially stripes!
NCRR Operated by North Carolina Department of Transportation.
Dave
Lackawanna Route of the Phoebe Snow
For mine, it'd be these
1. Burlington Northern's Alizarin Red, Crème, and Grinstein Green (Executive)
2. Missouri Pacific's Turbo Eagle
3. The Rock's Bankruptcy Blue
4. Electro-Motive's SD90MAC 'Nu-Wave' Demo Colours
5. Atlantic & East Carolina's Green, Red, Yellow, & Black.
"Look away...look south"
I will be different, I love switchers and the MRS in St Louis has to have one of the classiest paint schemes applied to a switcher unit. They also keep them spottlessly clean.
Here is a pic of one I am getting ready to model in HO. Mike
LHS mechanic and geniune train and antique garden tractor nut case!
When I posed the original question, I actually meant who CURRENTLY has the nicest engine paint jobs? There have been some pretty ones in the past though.
Currently? hmm...I'd say the Kansas City Southern's Retro Belle scheme. It made a good come back since it was able to fit on widecabs since the days of the E-Units. But now, it's adaptable to the standard cab diesels.
Right now, KCS wjthout a doubt. Maybe Warren Buffett can use his 22% control of BNSF and change some of its board of directors and put in Mike Haverty as Vice Chairman and consultant. Wouldn't it be sweet to see him bring back the warbonnet a second time and get rid of the wedgie and the orange? Just wishful thinking.
.. I'm kinda partial to the WC and MMA paint as well .
My post is currently in service.
I like Progressive Rail, largely I'm sure because it's based on the Minneapolis Northfield and Southern paint scheme I grew up with....
...although they chose not to use the silver roofs of the original paint scheme.
Another favorite from my youth that I really liked was Big Sky Blue...how 'bout you??
fredswainWhen I posed the original question, I actually meant who CURRENTLY has the nicest engine paint jobs? There have been some pretty ones in the past though.
Well, in that case, I'm going to have to go with either NS or KCS Retro Bell.
Norfolf Southern... it's all black with simple white logos.
The classiest paint scheme ever was the old L&N dark blue and cream passenger livery.
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