I'm thinking about starting a freelance railroad company and need some ideas. I model in HO during the present period. How hard is it to create your own railway? How difficult is it to paint undecorated locos?
The rights of neutrality will only be respected, when they are defended by an adequate power. A nation, despicable by its weakness, forfeits even the privilege of being neutral. -Alexander Hamilton
Not hard to name, you can use the regions, cities served, even industries if a private industrial line. Paint is often just simple two color or even just one color scheme, but can be a easy or difficult as you want to try. Decaling is often more tricky than the actual painting.
Have fun with your trains
It's not hard at all. Invent a name and call it good. Now, a plausible free-lance railroad may take some research and thinking - but how far you go with that is a personal decision. Your reason for choosing free-lance instead of following a prototype will probably influence the plausibility and the research and thinking going into it.
Because I enjoy designing and engineering and history, inventing plausible free-lance lines is an enjoyable part of the hobby for me. I pick a region and theme(s) and era. Then I read about various prototypes that operated in the region and era to gain some insight into common practices. Putting the information together, I look through topo maps and Google Earth to come up with a logical route. I invent a history to explain what happened. The railroad(s) are given a fitting name that I like. I select appropriate businesses for the railway to serve. Locomotives and cars are matched to the era, logically available suppliers and sources, and likely business needs. A numbering and painting scheme for the locomotives and home cars is developed. Lettering fonts are chosen and heralds are designed.
As for painting locomotives, the hardest part for me is starting. Once the brush, decals, or airbrush is in my hand, I am committed and there is no turning back. It is harder to start a pre-painted locomotive, but I finally manage to screw up the courage. Lots of others can give you better advice than I on how to paint a locomotive for a beautiful result.
Fred W
Chief Engineer, Wiper, Bottle Washer, and Jack of all Trades for the...
Picture Gorge & Western Railway - None more Picturesque!
Port Orford & Elk River Railway & Navigation Co - Home of the Tall Cedars
.....modeling foggy coastal Oregon, where it's always 1900.....
There's a bit of a learning curve, but once you start, it's easier than you think. I invented the name "Moose Bay" for my town, and once I had that, I was able to name the Moose Bay Transit Authority and paint up a trolley:
This was my first-ever paintjob on a train. I made the decals on the computer, and bought cheap rattle-can spray paint at the hardware store.
It takes an iron man to play with a toy iron horse.
It is pretty easy, My Port Destiny Terminal is freelanced . I modeled a Prototype before I like both and both required custom painted locomotives . It requires some thought to make it believable but it will work .
How hard it is to create your own railway is directly proportional to the breadth and depth of your imagination. Names can be as prosaic as Mudville Manufacturers' Railway or as far out as Moonlight and Violins. One 'railroad sounding' name was actually a tribute to a Glen Miller song, Tuxedo Junction.
Two old standby naming schemes are:
As for painting - since you did specify the present period:
When it comes to painting, I get away with murder! Thanks to Japanese custom, I can paint my 1964 TTT roster any color I want, as long as it's black! Reporting marks and data - white. Locomotive numbers are engraved on brass plates fastened to the cab sides, bunker and smokebox door. Passenger cars (purchased used from the JNR) retain their original paint scheme and numbers.
Chuck (Modeling Central Japan in September, 1964 - partially freelance)
My signature pretty much describes the names I concocted for this get up I'm piecing together. And I do agree with much of what is said here. I looked at many areas around the region I'm modelling and noticed there were a lot of names involving people of influence---hence Emerald, as in David G. Emerald--or a kind of whimsical sort of pet someone had--Leemer, or Lemur(note, in this case another name associated with this region) and the direction the route went in general---in this case---South.
As for the painting---I've got a bunch of 2nd hand lokes that are different in colour---much like an earlier BN merger. And all patched with various colour patches thrown in for good measure ---y'see the board is trying to work on colour arranging----we are tryiing to set up our own corporate identity---
Any argument carried far enough will end up in Semantics--Hartz's law of rhetoric Emerald. Leemer and Southern The route of the Sceptre Express Barry
I just started my blog site...more stuff to come...
http://modeltrainswithmusic.blogspot.ca/
It's fun. Choose a paint scheme that needs no masking. Or not much masking. That's better for the beginning. You company can have later another paint scheme.
Look at different prototype paint schemes and develop your own.
Wolfgang
Pueblo & Salt Lake RR
Come to us http://www.westportterminal.de my videos my blog
I wrote down a number of names and then decided on the Golden State Railroad. (GSRR). I even created a history of the railroad to make it seem real. As for painting, it is not hard. I use two paint schemes, the original gray with red lettering and the new two tone blue with the company name over a rising sun. Making your own decals is very easy and a lot of fun.
I concocted my Laurel Valley Ry. as an early ''80's Conrail spinoff, located in south western Pennsylvania. The concept was a bridge route following the old Ligonier Valley from the Conrail wye at Latrobe southeast to Ligonier, then on to Somerset via the abandoned Pennsylvania Turnpike tunnel at Laurel Hill. From Somerset, it connected to the WM's coal branches at Gray, and the B&O Johnstown branch, using trackage rights to reach the WM and B&O at Rockwood.
The LRV was the theme of several layouts, until I changed over to the current WM themed design. I keep the Laurel Valley alive, though as an interchange. I have a couple of locomotives and a raft of freight cars lettered for the line, mostly coal hoppers. I also take any cars that don't quite fit the WM theme and letter them for the LRV.
The lettering is a combination of custom dry transfers I had made, custom decals, and a variety of leftovers from Micro Scale sets.
Lee
Route of the Alpha Jets www.wmrywesternlines.net
First of all, welcome fellow Hoosier!
I'll have to ask some questions first: You have a layout now or are you intending to have a layout that models present period? Are your looking to freelance a Class 1 road, a regional, or a shortline? Are you looking to model something from the "top down" so to speak, meaning, starting from a prototype and then changing it a bit to fit your needs, and buying equipment accordingly, or do you want to have a railroad that supports the equipment you already have and the type of trains you want to run?
Class 1's and regional's will have their own paint schemes. A modern day shortline could likely use "patched" class 1 cast offs or even leased power. For example GP38's in a BN, BNSF, UP and CSX paint scheme are available from Atlas and could simply patched with decals and some of the lettering removed with pine sol. Other threads here describe that process.
If you want your own scheme, go solid colors and decals. Masking is tough to get looking right if you don't have experience. You could use a spray can for starters. Simple solid colors can be finished very well if you keep the can far enough away from the locomotive. Try flat and satin finishes since gloss paints get a bit gloppy right out of the can. No need for a primer this way and if you mess up, that thin coat can be used as a primer for when you get skilled at using an airbrush.
I model modern day as well. Freelanced in Indiana. Check this link for discussions about real Indiana railroads for info on them or as a general info source if you're modeling elsewhere.
http://indianarailroads.org/board/?num=1119268545
Hope to read many posts from you here since it appears our modeling choices may be similar.
- Douglas
indiana rr I'm thinking about starting a freelance railroad company and need some ideas. I model in HO during the present period. How hard is it to create your own railway? How difficult is it to paint undecorated locos?
How complex do you what it? There are questions that must be answered before making any decisions.
Examples:
1.Will it be a short line?
2.Regional?
3.Terminal road?
4.A major railroad?
5.Mileage?
6.Number of industries served.
Type of commodities haul.
Will your road be handling general freight or is the bulk of your traffic base grain,coal or paper?
Number of cars handled per year.In theory my C&HV handles 3600 cars a year while my HR handles 1500 cars a year-70% grain..My CB&T handles around 1200 cars a year.
By answering the above questions you can choose a locomotive roster that fits your traffic needs.
----------------------
Does the above sound extreme? Its not and rather easy if you do some basic research by looking up the type of railroad you want and by studying their maps and customer base.
A example..
Here is NS customer base ripe for modeling..
http://www.nscorp.com/nscportal/nscorp/Customers/
To big?
Let's look at BRC's customer base:
http://www.beltrailway.com/industries.html
Still to big?
Hows this?
http://www.aberdeen-rockfish.com/html/industries.html
This will give you ideas of the type of customers your railroad can serve.
Naming your railroad..
My best advice is to aviod "cutesy pie" names because it will grow old-even John Allen had regrets with his G&D name.
Larry
Conductor.
Summerset Ry.
"Stay Alert, Don't get hurt Safety First!"
I guess that would make me a proto-freelancer. My reason is based upon reality, The mighty SP absorbed the narrow guage Lodi & Sierra Nevada Railway in 1903. In the process, SP abandoned considerable portions of the line, only to regret it later when reclaimation and river dredging made the land valuable for growing. My line is based upon this abondoned route as I envision it in 1927.
For accounting purposes, the Lodi & Sierra Nevada Railway name was retained, though all motive power is currently leased from the Southern Pacific and so lettered. Maintaince of way, passenger equiptment and cabooses continue to use L&SN reporting marks. A expansion is under way to connect with the Central California Traction Company, this will bring electric freight operations with home road painted and lettered electric motors, I have yet to develope a paint or lettering scheme for these. I'm leaning towards the vivid red-orange that was formally used by the Northern Electric and was in the process of being phased out by 1927 by parent Sacramento Northern. My excuse is we got a sweetheart deal on the surplus paint! I await the day the when the L&SN will operate electric freight motors displaying three paint schemes!
Dave
If you're modelling 'today' you don't need a paintscheme right away. Several models of lease engines are available, any railroad could use them. Maybe get one of them first then you can run trains a while while researching what you want to do as far as a freelance.
http://www.katousa.com/
http://www.athearn.com
If I were starting over again designing my freelance RR paintscheme, I would use Tamiya paints so I could use their spraycans. Compared to other brands, their spraycan paint comes out much finer and smoother and is IMHO as good as airbrushing as often as not. If you're new to painting and decaling, I would try to find some inexpensive plastic freight cars kits and practice on them. It's generally harder to mask and do a second color than it is to use decals, Virnex makes 'no need to trim' decal stripes that come up to IIRC 1/4" wide, so you could paint the engine one color then use decals to make a stripe along the body.
Overall, I'd keep away from silly names that you'll grow tired of later. Real railroads generally were named after cities, states or rivers, with the names going in one direction...for example the Milwaukee Road was the Chicago Milwaukee St.Paul and Pacific, which followed in order east to west.
You could also take a "free lance" approach to an actual railroad. Simplifies the naming and painting of equipment issues, does it not?. Example, having your interpratation of the Monon run through significant mountain terrain
If your vision for your railroad is rooted in reality and and you strive for accuracy, then maybe not. But keep in mind, it is a model railroad in 1:87 scale. It all is influenced by the sum of what makes you, you.
By all means, have fun and enjoy it.
Conemaugh Road & Traction....
CR&T: Captures the essence of three local fallen flags -- the Johnstown Traction Traction Company (PCCs & Brills), the Conemaugh & Blacklick (Bethlehem Steel industrial-only RR), and the Baltimore & Ohio (branchline). Also, Greater Johnstown is located in the Conemaugh Valley.
Circa 1956: Transition era for maximum motive power flexibility -- PCC, box motor, some steam, and diesel switchers.
Class I: 2-track Pennsy mainline for both freight and passenger interchanges with the CR&T.
So, a railroad name can be a prototype combination of era, motive power, and geography. One other variable can be the amount of space available for the model railroad layout.
Then comes color schemes, logos, and lettering.
Conemaugh Road & Traction circa 1956
WElcome Hoosier from another!
Gotta ask, you tied to INRD? Or just a fan? I ask because we've had important people from other buisnesses use their company as a screen name, and several employees are mrrs.
Roadnames: I pulled Dad and I's Half-Moon Orion & Northern out of several fictional towns we made up when we told stories to pass the time travelling. They aren't joke city names that can get old fast, though if you take the initals rightm you get the two major scales we dabble in.
Painting: If you do 2 color, try to mask things in Strisght lines. Example: BL2s are a Pain in the FRED to paint, because of the curves of the side frames. (Look cool though) Go to Railroad Paintshop (<<Link) and copy-paste some of their white line pictures. They are partially copyrighted; you can use them all you want for yourself, but you can;t post them online without the original designer's consent. That said, they can be quite handy for dabbling in custom paintschemes. If you have it, they work great in Photoshop. If you don't they also work in MS Paint, but you have to be more careful with small details not getting filled in, and your lines.
-Morgan
Difficult to paint a freelanced line? Naw!
And presto!
The Cedar Branch & Western--The Hillbilly Line!