After looking at my trannies of these, or similar cars, I snapped in 1999, I'd also go for Exhibit C. http://www.users.globalnet.co.uk/~diggle01/hoppers/bnsf/bnsf2.html If I was confident that they were going to be that colour, I'd pre-order.
Just an update about color... There is a photo of an InterMountain pre-production BNSF "Power Bar" 5161 on N-Scale Supply's website. ( http://www.nscalesupply.com/DenverShow.html about 3/4 way down the page) To me, I think that is acceptable and was excited to see they had abandoned their dark brown interpretation. (for the record, I think it could still be a little more "red" than brown but I will concede that lighting might be the culprit.) HOWEVER, I received a PM from a fellow Trainboarder stating that the IM guys at the show said they were wanting to "darken it" a little. NOOOOOOOOOO! (in my best Darth Vader "Padme's Dead" imitation) Why they have it in their heads that darker is better is beyond me. BNSF is :no: NOT :no: ATSF. And worse, their impression from their statements at the show is that the top walkways are WHITE, not silver/aluminum like they really are. NOOOOOOOOOO! NO! NO! (in my best Luke Skywalker "You're Not My Father" imitation) OK, maybe I'm overdramatizing a bit, but it does appear that my concerns are potentially being realized. So, I do intend to contact IM about this but I'm still trying to get other opinions so that I might present a consensus to them instead of my own personal view. I will be making my own thoughts known as well, and I also suggest that anyone else interested in the BNSF versions send InterMountain an e-mail. ( intermountain@intermountain-railway.com )
digisnaps, You took these photos? Excellent! I've viewed many photos on that site recently...very nice. Especially that overhead of the 5161. Thanks for sharing, Doug
Doug I plead guilty! It's overdue an update but so many things to do, so little time............ I'm sure I have shot of one of these cars with all-over brown roofwalks and hatches. I'll see if I can find it. Like you, I'm keen that they get this right, especially the colour. I'll buy if they do it right, won't if they don't. I'm happy to send them an email and point them to the link, or you can. Either way is fine by me. Whether they look and listen, is another matter but you have to try..... Paul
And I thought people were calling it the "Wedgie". Cool picture, BTW. Nice to see cars with fresh paint and no graffiti
I think BNSF officially calls it the "Power Bar" logo or something like that. It is a treat to be so close to the plant...hundreds upon hundreds of these cars everywhere. Now they are making UP's. I will soon be moving to your neck of the woods though--Aurora/Montgomery area. Soon as I find a job up there.
I was very happy when these were announced, especially when it looks like the promised LBF product has evaporated!. I took DougA's advice & sent IM an email, lets hope that they get it right. I am not so fussy on the colour, but they must not paint the etched walkways white!. Thanks
36" I found a nice document about the BNSF 5161's on BNSF's website: http://www.bnsf.com/markets/agricultural/equip/bnsf475350.pdf Even has the paint spec! bwahh hah hah!!!
Wow, what a fun morning. These stories are kind of fun, but here's the skinny. Color is not being changed. These are matched closely with other BNSF cars out there and have a good look to them. No one said they would be darker (although it may be fun to do on later batches, I have hundreds on photos of these cars and they do weather differently. Also, if you study the logos, they change appearances too.) Also, not sure where white walks came from. Certainly not from me. The walks are silver on these cars (If you look at repaints like the PS or ACF cars, the walks were usually painted.) What does need to change to silver or white (depending on road name) is the roof hatch. This will be corrected on the production cars. That's all for now. hope it helps clear up some questions. Matt
Which color are you talking about? If you are using the same paint as you did on the last ACF's, (brown) I would like you to show me the BNSF cars (real or model) that are that color. On the other hand, the preproduction photo of the 5161 I saw looks great. Darker is fine as long as it is dark red and not dark brown. I'm not arguing some crazy shade issue here...I'm arguing the wrong color altogether...which the ACF's were. And, I presumed that the ACF's also would be "matched closely with other BNSF cars out there".
Thank you Mr. Lion! Doug, the color will be the reddish brown you have seen in the photos so far. The painted samples of the BNSF, NS, Farmland and NAHX shoud be on our site in a day or three. No problem on discussing shades of color. Just wanted to make sure you guys had good info. Bad info, like white walks, is ....well.....just bad info. Looking forward to making lots of these cars. The BNSF is really interesting as I've seen four or five versions of the paint so far. Not sure we'll hit them all, but for guys that want a train of these things, (like me) they are coming. Matt
Thanks! Good to hear, Matt! And welcome, too! I am aware there are different paint versions, logos, etc. and I'm sure they'll look good. I'm in for at least 24 #'s of the circle logo cars..."power bar" is out of my era but I'm not selfish, bring 'em on!!! And thanks for clearing up the "white walks" issue, it is appreciated. Now, how 'bout them flat cars? :teeth:
Unfortunate Developments, Me Thinks Small update...road numbers and new photos on IMRC's website. And some pretty big screwups if this is their final answer. mg: (EDIT: I'm now convinced this HAS to be a preproduction car, so take the following with a grain of salt) 1. Despite assurances that they know what the color configuration of the roof is, they are painting the troughs mineral red. (on the bright side, the color looks good, even if it's supposed to be silver) 2. The logo appears to be slightly too big, and slightly too close to the top of the car. The logo looks to be touching the seams, and this isn't correct. It's very close though. This is somewhat forgiveable, but 1 above isn't. http://www.imrcmodels.com/n/html/67201.htm I'm praying this is a preproduction car. Again, the color looks great on the parts its supposed to be on. 472229 472341 472355 472363 472372 472380 473132 473145 473154 473167 473186 473225 Ad shows build date of 3-05, but the numbers correspond to the first 2000 units, all built in 1998 unless I'm mistaken. I suspect the 3-05 part is supposed to go with their announcement of swoosh scheme cars that just hit the presses.
Well, I just got my 12-pack, and I regret to inform you guys....that if you didn't get this car you likely missed out on n-scale CAR OF THE YEAR! I haven't got out the fine-toothed comb yet but there's really no need, THEY LOOK AWESOME! The color is perfect, the roof is the correct color, and the etched details are superb...the etched stainless roofwalks capture the look of the prototype very well. They even put the yellow grabs on the ends of the roofwalks, which I didn't expect. I'll try to take and post some pics sometime this weekend. If you model BNSF, you need to find some of these because they are about as BNSF as it gets. Thanks to Matt and the rest of the crew at IM for a job well done!
