Do I see a tunnel motor in that second vid?
OK not a real honest to goodness TM but it appears to have the T style radiator setup.
AND WHAT'S THAT BOX ON THE SD?
A turret for shooting nomad pirates?
I figure it's some sort of air cleaner assy.?
Steve
If everything seems under control, you're not going fast enough!
Because I spent a lot of time in Israel a model of Israel Railways in the 70s would not be out of the question. Most of the locomotive power during that period was American built EMD or GE so aside from repainting locomotives would not be an issue, however rolling stock would probably have to be scratch built.
On the domestic side I think the western roads UP and Santa Fe are probably the most modeled simply because especially as kids there paint schemes were the most colorful. Even the freelanced Staten Island West sometimes will have a western, presumably leased locomotive make an appearance now and the.
Joe Staten Island West
HMMMM. On a regular basis, I get to see Canadian Pacific, Canadian National, Southern Railway of British Columbia, BNSF and Amtrack. Always lots of borrowed power in the trains.
I would like to crawl over these and have a look.
There are some good articles/videos on maintaining trains in Saudi Arabia. The sand is a real problem for wheel and track wear and it gets into everything.
Check out the air filters.
Brent
"All of the world's problems are the result of the difference between how we think and how the world works."
BATMANI have always been a guy that wants to see what's around the next corner on the road.
The grass is always greener on the other side!
I have built layouts following Japanese prototype, Swiss standard and narrow gauge layouts, German standard and narrow gauge, British OO scale layouts and even a small HOn3 layout situated somewhere in Colorado.
If I want to watch "foreign" trains, all I have to do is walk the 50 yards to the mainline running from Bremen to Hamburg and I see locomotives from various German railroads, Swiss Federal Railway, Swedish Hector Rail, former Austrian Federal Railway locomotives now operated by a private railroad and all of that within 1 hour!
Happy times!
Ulrich (aka The Tin Man)
"You´re never too old for a happy childhood!"
Mark, if your suitcase feels particularly heavy, it is because I am in it. Have fun. I'm jealous.
Tinplate Toddler BATMAN I am surprised at how many model railroaders interest in trains stops at the border.
BATMAN
I am surprised at how many model railroaders interest in trains stops at the border.
Mark P.
Website: http://www.thecbandqinwyoming.comVideos: https://www.youtube.com/user/mabrunton
Tinplate Toddler BATMAN I am surprised at how many model railroaders interest in trains stops at the border. I am not surprised at all, Brent. People usually model what they find at their door step. The number of folks "going abroad" is small, even in model train crazy countries like the UK and Germany.
BATMAN I am surprised at how many model railroaders interest in trains stops at the border.
I am not surprised at all, Brent. People usually model what they find at their door step. The number of folks "going abroad" is small, even in model train crazy countries like the UK and Germany.
I guess your right, Ulrich. I have always been a guy that wants to see what's around the next corner on the road. I want to experience as much as I can, if not through travel, through books or videos.
BATMANI am surprised at how many model railroaders interest in trains stops at the border.
andrechapelonBesides, you don’t have to live in a place to acquire an interest in an area’s railroads. I have more than a passing interest in (in descending order) the railways of the UK, South Africa, Germany, Australia (mostly New South Wales), New Zealand, and France.
I am surprised at how many model railroaders interest in trains stops at the border. I am working my way through a rather meaty book on the Middle East that includes the Hejaz/Hedjaz/Hijaz (pick your spelling) railway history. That's the one T.E. Lawrence liked to attack. That lead me to the Eritrean Railroad in Africa. The history behind those I find fascinating and given that there is often a connection to the West, either through engineering or equipment or a variety of other things, it only adds to the knowledge base of anyone interested in real or model railroading.
I started looking to see if anyone modeled the Hejaz line from Damascus to Medina and to my surprise there is. Coming up with the right equipment to use in modeling it was a bit of a challenge and involves a lot of scratch building for the rolling stock. The engines on the prototype were German and that only involves kitbashing already available models.
There are excellent videos on You-Tube on the Hedjaz, a lot of the wreckage created by Lawrence still lays where it fell to this very day.
It's just my guess, but I would think where you grew up has the most influence on what you model. In the east, it's probably the PRR, NYC, B&O, and others.
Central US might be the BN, KCS, UP, and others.
West might be SP, NP, UP.
I'm sure there are a lot of other railroads for each area and modelers that have layouts from other regions.
UP and BNSF, along with their predecessors. Period.
Mike drop
Why do I say so? Because they have the most eye catching schemes of the present, and so did their mergers/ and railroads that bought others to form them. NS, CSX, etc kinda have bland paint jobs... same seems to carry for their predecessors... just my 2 cents. However that is what I mainly see on the rails (but that could be 'cause I dont live where the other roads are prevelant) and on layouts. And I believe it is because of thier paints schemes. And rich history.
I'm beginning to realize that Windows 10 and sound decoders have a lot in common. There are so many things you have to change in order to get them to work the way you want.
ATLANTIC CENTRAL California may have lots of people, and by extension lots of model railroaders. But how many of those people are transplants, who may have ties to other parts of the country that may drive their modeling choices? I would not be quick to assume that most modelers in California model UP, or SP, or ATSF, any more than I would think everyone here in Baltimore models the B&O. Sheldon
California may have lots of people, and by extension lots of model railroaders. But how many of those people are transplants, who may have ties to other parts of the country that may drive their modeling choices?
I would not be quick to assume that most modelers in California model UP, or SP, or ATSF, any more than I would think everyone here in Baltimore models the B&O.
Sheldon
You’re forgetting the sheer geographical scope of the three railroads mentioned. You certainly don’t have to be a Californian to be interested in the ATSF, which went as far east as Chicago and as far south as Galveston, TX, the SP, which stretched from Portland, OR, to New Orleans, LA (via Texas) or the UP, which had terminals in L.A. and Portland and extended to Omaha.
Besides, you don’t have to live in a place to acquire an interest in an area’s railroads. I have more than a passing interest in (in descending order) the railways of the UK, South Africa, Germany, Australia (mostly New South Wales), New Zealand, and France.
Edit: Of all steam locomotive wheel arrangements, my favorite is the 4-8-2. The B&O T-3 is right up there in my pantheon of pretty Mountains with the South African Railways 19D, the SP MT series (except for the ex-EP&SW MT-2), Missouri Pacific MT-75, and the New Zealand Government Railways Ja (like this one:
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=Ajbrv7HzxAQ )
Andre
I think there was a time in the past, maybe in the 60's or 70's, when the first railroad in America, the B&O, was high on the list of roads modeled.
For whatever value it has in this conversation, there have been several B&O layouts featured in MR in recent years.
Of course the B&O in pure form is a transition era modelers road, or earlier, since from 1965 on it was in the gradual transition of the C&O/WM/B&O melting pot.
I model all three of those, along with my protolanced ATLANTIC CENTRAL, set in 1954.
When I started into model railroading I got a HO LL F7 Amtrak in Phase II. Unfortunately it never coaches or track to run when I bought at a train show. (This was decades ago when the loco ran.) I wanted to model the Cotton Belt in HO with Southern Pacific and New York Central in 1938 but never happened.
In 1998-2000 somewhere I bought a N scale Conrail train set and I got into CR because of the color and the logo. The time span for my layout hasn't changed. I chose the late 1980s into the 1991. Now I do the whole decade of the 90s.
Modern railroad UP, BNSF, AMTK in 1998-2007.
Proto freelancing railroading for me.
Any road within a mega merger or present railroad is popular.
Amtrak America, 1971-Present.
Some of us model the roads we grew up with or those we became familiar with as we moved. Others model certain roads out of historical affectipn. My guess is that UP and Santa Fe are the most significant because of their integral size covering much of the western and central US. Their trademark logos were/are heavily marketed and have a national presence. Having said that, I default to the old Great Northern out of memories of my youth, but I can honestly say there isn't a single railroad past or present I'm not a fan of in some way.
Cedarwoodron
I have always seen the Santa Fe as the most common "toy" train, but I have not run across very many actual layouts based on them, especially oveall to the number of other roads modeled. The BNSF I see more of. However, that may just be because I was not particulalry seeking them out, however I am curious how many people actually do model them vs the amount of Santa Fe locos produced. EDIT: Ok, a google search has turned up a lot more Santa Fe layouts. I am in the northeast, and that is my area of research, so thats probably why I tend to miss a lot of the Santa fe ones.
Unless we work at Trainworld or Model Train Stuff, it's just guessing. I would guess Union Pacific because there are a lot of people living in California.
If you are talking about just the old geezer population of modelers, (my guys) I would suspect the fallen flags, line NYC or PRR would be most popular with a predominance of freelancers.
In the old days undecorated models were readily available and they didn't have very many fragile bits, so it was easy to detail and paint your own freelance rail road. Custom decals were cheap. Now you have to deal with windshield wipers, aluminum window trim fans with real blades. Stripping paint without damaging all the extras is hard. There is no way I am steady enough to repaint the window trim.
I suspect freelancing will be much less popular in the future. I've adopted Howard Zane's philosophy, I don't have to have my own fleet of engines, I can lease engines from anyone. No more paint stripping for me.
My layout is the Northern Potomac RR somewhere in Western MD, West VA and PA.
Henry
COB Potomac & Northern
Shenandoah Valley
Overall, I would say the most "modeled" railroad is Santa Fe because growing up I saw alot of Lionel layouts especially during the holidays. I remember seeing all those SF locos and rolling stock. According to the Lionel video I watched, Santa Fe paid Lionel $1500.00 to use their logo i'm sure that helped sales.
OP wants to know the most popular railroads modeled, but also which ones we model, scroll up to the OP and give it a read or two.
I model primarily the Chicago, Burlington & Quincy, specifically the line through central Wyoming, because I grew up there. I also model the part of the Chicago Northwestern that ran from Casper to Lander, and the Northern Pacific at Laurel, Montana, where the Burlington terminated on the north western end.
I modeled the Great Northern for some years prior.
I model the Milwaukee Road, and have for over 55 years. I don't really follow the prototype, just the paint schemes.
I suspect the presence of Walthers in Milwaukee is the reason that there are so many Milwaukee models to choose from. and
It takes an iron man to play with a toy iron horse.
Hello all,
I remember reading that Santa Fe actually paid early model makers to paint their trains in their livery colors of red silver.
That is why Santa Fe was so popular early on.
I have a freelance pike with livery colors of black with safety orange- -similar to the Denver & Rio Grande West.
Because the fictitious location is in the mountains of Colorado; from the 1970's to the 1980's, the D&RGW, Atchison Topeka & Santa Fe (Blue & Yellow scheme) and the occasional Southern Pacific locomotives make appearances.
Currently about 40% is AT&SF, 25% D&RGW, 5% SP and 30% BS&P.
Hope this helps.
"Uhh...I didn’t know it was 'impossible' I just made it work...sorry"
I model Santa Fe, a little bit of Missouri Kansas Texas, a little bit of Amtrak, and I have one Metrolink Train in my HO Scale Collection.
I also have Athearn Genesis SD70M-2 Demos in Blue/Yellow and looking to get maybe two Genesis SD70M's in either the Dark Red Leasing Scheme or the Red/Grey Demo Scheme.
Any of you have Demo Units in your collection or on your layout?
Paul3D&RGW can be considered if you throw in the Narrow Gauge empire.
Even if you don't throw in the Narrow Gauge, D&RGW seems to be quite popular and the standard gauge lines scenery is very lovely and why I fell in love with it to model. I have never seen the Narrow Gauge Rio Grande in person, but the standard gauge is quite spectacular.
Aside from what I think, I have noticed that it seems to sell very well. It could be possibly in the top ten of standard gauge RRs.
Rio Grande. The Action Road - Focus 1977-1983
And now, for the most popular:
(Drum roll please........)
Proto-freelancing!
You get your SF Warbonnett, your UP Armor yellow, your DRG&W Black and orange, your N&W black/blue, your PRR Brunswick green, your NYC lightnings, your SP daylights, your CR blue, your BN green, really, any of them you choose, and you can choose what location, even imaginary, and what era!
Really, don't we all do this? We pick our favorite paint scheme(s) and build a layout to operate them, some more closely adhering to the true prototype than others.
Ricky W.
HO scale Proto-freelancer.
My Railroad rules:
1: It's my railroad, my rules.
2: It's for having fun and enjoyment.
3: Any objections, consult above rules.
Paul3D&RGW can be considered if you throw in the Narrow Gauge empire. The standard gauge part is quite interesting already, with big steam, colorful paint schemes on diesels and passenger cars, and dramatic scenery, but the Narrow Gauge is a thing unto itself. Every Narrow Gauge layout has at least one D&RGW car or loco on it, or so it seems.
Reinforcing Paul's argument, I'll join in pitching the Rio Grande as punching above its weight. For a small rather regional if strategiclaly located line that struggled financially much of its existence and which essentially disapparead into the UP two decades ago., it does OK. Runs of its locos and rolling stock tend to sell out faster, rewarding manufacturers who make that choice enough to keep a steady flow of useful models showing up.
Mike Lehman
Urbana, IL
I grew up on the Oregon coast. I like and model SP, and all it's paint schemes up through "bloody nose" prior to "speed lettering", which I don't dislike, just too modern for my era. I can't stand the "Kodachrome" schemes.
I do like UP's colors, have 2 or 3 diesels in the mix. Dan
BATMANTrans Siberian.
"One difference between pessimists and optimists is that while pessimists are more often right, optimists have far more fun."
Just looking at past and present ads, I´d say the most popular roads modeled are the UP, AT&SF, PRR and the SP and N&W!
These roads had so many engines which became signature engines for the model railroading industry - Big Boy, Challenger, War Bonnet Diesels, J´s, K4´s, GS, Cab Forwards - all of them still best seller in the trade.