John, here are a few pics my dad took sometime between 86-88, as that was when we lived in Offutt AFB, NE. Door looks to be white. Here is another shot from I believe Feb 94, door also appears white. I haven't decided if I want to include the door or not, probably will, so if I run it as part of a dead head on a train, I can slap it on.
Thanks that settles it for me then, white it is. Managed to trim the door to fit so that it may just stay on its own. If not a tiny dab of Woodland Scenic's Scenic glue will do it. It dries to a tacky glue that allows one to reposition things like figures later. Next up on the list is to come up with the rear red marker lights.
Started putting the BN Theatre Car together after going into my tiny peoples box and finding some folks to occupy the rear seats. Came up with Bubba of Bubba's meat packing plant and Missus Bubba and all the little Bubbas, a future shipper on the BN. As usual when you modify and add and change stuff fitting back together can be a challenge sometimes. Still thinking about the rear markers which have yet to be added and two white floodlights below the window sill. Meanwhile at the same time I am continuing with my cabooses. The GN BSB have the Northwest safety symbol indicating assignment in Washington State and I am re lettering my center cab and the logging line caboose fleet all to Turtle Creek Central. One of the things I am not happy with is the size of the N scale people. Something is not to scale. Either the people or the car interiors, or both. Have to find me a tad smaller people.
Finally finished the BN Theatre Car. I went digging in my diesel parts box for the lights to do the rear floods and the marker lights and it is posed with the other car showing the before and after modifications. Since I am for now retaining the old original truck mounted couplers I will not do any more to the rear. Another view showing a side shot of both cars. And my completed cabooses for BN, Turtle Creek, and GN and the lone re-decaled for Turtle Creek center cab.
Thanks for the comments. Doing the rear end of that car was a challenge for the old eyes. The danged Horribly Oversized folks actually have a complete end casting to do that car with. Just doesn't make sense to offer the car sides in N scale and then not have the very important end piece. Gave some thought to also doing the power car but probably won't as HEP power wasn't much in use before Amtrak and I am set in the BN era where the steam heat was still in use for most cars. Hopefully by late this Fall I will start work on the Mount St. Helens or Mount Hood lounge/buffet/sleepers now that I have found plastic sides for them.
So, are you ready to begin? </Ra's al Ghul> First step is to trim the truck centre spacing down to match the prototype. Then the adventure really begins with the trucks.
Glacier View was converted to HEP when they turned it into the theater car. For my version of Stampede Pass, I just used a Walther's 10-6 sleeper, filled in some windows and then used some Atlas GP40-2 radiator grilles to replicate the radiators on it. Stampede Pass was the power car from sometime in the 80s. I have yet to paint mine, but I can post photos later if you want.
Started taking all my logging and branchline locos and re decaling them for Turtle Creek and doing some PM on them. Finally got around to taking the last Class A Climax and installing the new drive mechanism replacing the old SW-9 mechanism with the newer Bmann 44 tonner. The previous two out of the three went smooth as silk as far as the mechanism replacement but not this one. All three are completely different being made from whatever was in the scrapbox at the time. I decided to keep the boards and DCC function capabilities as a just in case and on the first two everything fit. Not on this one with the oil bunk causing the issue. So for the last hour or two I have been carefully removing all the detail parts like chains, ropes, shovels, etc. and hoping to be able to cut out and raise the oil bunk without destroying the little critter. The other two Class A versions are in the photo along with two 2-6-0, two 4-4-0s, two Shays and some other locos.
Managed to raise the oil bunk so the decoder board clears without Mr. Murphy rearing his ugly head and re-attached it. Then dug in my parts box for the last of my truck side frame castings and applied them with Goo after sanding the original side frames down. Day or two of allowing the Goo to set up then some black paint and a re decal and put the tools back on the tank top. After a stint on the test track I will finally have all three of my Black Satchels running at last. Black Satchel is a logging term used by some to describe these critters.
