Fantasy (What if) paint schemes

[wjstix]

NYBob

Never saw a discussion about the hobby companies producing engines with the what if they didn't merge etc. paint schemes. This is different from the heritage pain't jobs. Opinions?

 

I guess an example would be if a company produced say an SD-70 in Great Northern "Empire Builder" scheme...or maybe a Soo Line "Little Joe" electric (as if the Milwaukee's electric lines had lasted into the Soo-Milwaukee merger era). Certainly some manufacturers have done things along those lines.

 

I would agree that I would not consider someone modelling two real railroads that existed at the same time on the same layout, although they really never connected, or modelling a pretend branch of a real railroad, to be a "freelance" layout. To me freelancing is kinda like a historical novel - you're taking a main character (a made-up but plausible railroad) and having it interact with actual historical figures (in this case, interchanging with real railroads).

 

BTW I would argue against some of the modelling 'experts' who have said that the way to "freelance" is to take a real railroad and copy everything about it - it's paintscheme, equipment, operations, etc. but change the name and herald (logo). A lot of the fun of freelancing to me is coming up with a unique but plausible paint scheme for equipment, deciding which engines and cars the railroad would have used if it really existed, what it's depots looked like, etc.

[ricktrains4824]

I would conside the "fantasy paint" along the "what if..." scenario. Like the EL ES44 I mentioned. "What if EL was never folded into Conrail?" They could have a fleet of ES44's now. 

Freelancing I consider a made up locale or railroad, or both, that is in a "it could happen" plausable setting, like my Lake Erie & Southern home road, in a made up location somewhere in NW PA/NY to NE OH region along Lake Erie, that interchanges with the real railroads of B&P, NS, CSX, and WNYP. Everything about it is made up, from roster, industries served, to locations. 

Freelancing could also entail a entirely made up land, as Kevin has done.