Some will say do whatever I want, but what does everyone think about having multiple railroad names on a layout? Is it nuts to have a Santa Fe loco mued to a NYC and a Conrail loco. It might look a little funny, I guess. Does everyone predominantly buy one road name and just stick with it. I'm not into painting locos, and don't have any desire to do it. I just want to buy and run. Therefore, I'm somewhat limited on the locos I buy if I just run one railroad. Get my drift? Your comments are more than appreciated.
I model 4 different roads on my layout. The Ashley Drew & Northern is my home road. I also model the three roads that the AD&N interchanged with. The Rock Island, the Missouri Pacific, and the Arkansas & Louisiana Missouri. My focus is different than yours, I am trying to closely model my prototype and recreate the flavor or atmosphere of a busy, hardworking southern shortline. I do not mix the equipment as far as engines and cabooses go, but I do interchange cars between all of the roads. I have tried to achieve a realistic car mix on my layout for both car types and road names. If you are happy with your selection of equipment, run trains and enjoy them.
I use primarily, ATSF, Southern and SP. When I mu the loco's I try to keep the same roadnames together. With steamers I'm more apt to interchange roadnames when multi-consisting loco's. My feeling is do whatever you feel comfortable with. It is your railroad. You could limit yourself to two - three roadnames. Have fun deciding your choices.... Stay cool and run steam....
Some days at certain interchange points, you can find all kinds of locos in various paint schemes. DM&E has all kinds of units. They have the home road units, CP Rail patch units, and UP patch units. If you were to interchange with another road with various other patch units, you could have quite a rainbow of loco paint schemes! I like to break it up a little bit. But then you could most generally find pooled power where I would watch trains. So that is part of my modeling scheme.
I model the area of eastern NM where the ATSF, SP & RI came together. Since I lived in Alamosa CO I also have some D&RGW. I have spent many hours on Soldier summit so I also have UT RWy. Since every major road is merged out west into two roads I have lots of BN & BNSF as well as UP. Since there are run thrus I have those I have photographed or have seen photos of. No you are not crazy.
Over the years, a lot has happened. Which many people don't believe. I was very surprised, after learning about one of my favorite railroads. Back in 1966, they'd leased power to the New York Central. Northern Pacific RY F units, were regularly seen in Ohio! This must have been after those F's were surplused by new U Boats. Anyhow- Plan your N empire, as you see fit. There might just have been a historical example, for what you do! Boxcab E50
I saw the following consist at a crossing the other day: 2 - IORY (Indiana & Ohio Railway) 1 - Southern Pacific (Renumbered for IORY, not repainted yet) 1 - Union Pacific (Again Renumbered for IORY, still in yellow/gray scheme w/ UP logo's painted over) 1 - CSX not renumbered Sorry don't know each type of loco, I'm not much into diesels. After seeing that, I would have to say pretty much anything goes if you want to do a small branch lines that is buying up old equipment.
To go to the extreme, I model 1951 in Maryland, but will also be running 2003 British freight trains (not at the same time) I will remove the obviously American buildings and replace with suitable modern ones, or blank scenery whilst running the UK stuff
I originally starting modelling UP then decided to model fallen flags of UP. However I'm basically modelling around 1982 predominately MoPac with MKT, Rock Island, Western Pacific and Rio Grande running through.
In the beginning I started collecting my favorites - ATSF, SP and BN and used to run engines of the same roadnames together. Now, as the collection grew, and as more old road names disappeared, it is a mixed bag. I now run BNSF together with SF & BN, UP with SP & D & RGW, NS, Conrail, and CSX together with some fallen flags. Some days I just run whatever I fancy, you can term it as modelers' licence. http://cliffordconceicao3310.fotopic.net/c328807.html
I solved my problem of what to run by the road I chose as my modeling evolved. SP&S was owned by parents NP and GN. In the steam era they had very few engines of their own mostly running hand me down power from the parents. Even when they did purchase new steam it was based on an NP design. So often locos in the GN Glacier Park scheme and NP's grey boilers showed up simply relettered for SP&S and converted to oil burners. In the diesel era there were even some FAs and an E-7 in the GN Builder paint, only with SP&S lettering. Passenger service is somewhat easier in that a number of cars were either in NP NCL paint or GM EB paint and lettering with only small SP&S lettering in the corners. In my case just change the number and add the SP&S initials lettering to the corners. Most of their cabeese were either from the parents or based on thier designs with the excepton of the bay window type. SP&S drew most of their car fleet from the parents for shipping, only owning a limited number of car types. In those the majority were flats and woodchip gons. The area I choose to model is centrally located with a lot of through traffic off the Oregon Trunk line often behind pure GN power lashups. Later on Western Pacific had run through power. Once in a while the SP&S leased some SP Alcos and ran them painted in SP colors. It was not unusual to see an occasional CB&Q unit run through in a consist. Roads often had a "Trackage Rights Agreement" over segments of each others line in order to reach some of thier lines not directly connected with their main. So it would not be uncommon to see a solid motive power consist down to the caboose of another line, on other than their own rails. Sometimes due to the signaling and track control systems on the home road it was necessary for one of thier locos to always be in the lead just to activate those systems. So in summation mix and match run throughs occured back when in the 1 to 1 world and still do today.
I frequently see Norfolk Southern engines coupled with Conrail, Canadian Pacific and even Southern Pacific (!) locos at Gang Mills (upstate N.Y.) Occasionally there's some flat black locos with markings too small to identify. It's a small NS yard, and handles a lot of local traffic for Corning, Inc. among other things. Apparently there's a lot of leasing of motive power being done? Bob
on existing old layout -Santa Fe trains -trackage rights over specific portion of line by imaginary logging line "Johnston and East Texas" based somewhat on Moscow, Camden and San Augustine, Texas and South-Eastern (officially common carriers through mostly dedicated to owner-mill business), and a lumber mill owned tramway (not common carrier) on portable Navy blimp base layout -US Navy switcher for switching of base "industy" spurs If I ever build the monster big "dream" layout, all above plus: -imaginary "Karankawa Docks" port railroad based on Galveston Wharves RR. -imaginary "South Texas Urban Belt" ("STUB") based on Houston Belt & Terminal and Port Terminal RR Assn. (prototype combine of all trunkline RRs serving Port of Houston) -Missouri Pacific and Southern Pacific interchange -Texas Mexican passenger train (real but time-warped) (the "monster" layout for reference to routing possibilities: http://www.railimages.com/albums/kennethanthony/aej.jpg
A lot of it is going to depend on the nature of the traffic - where it starts and ends. In the earlier days of intermodal, ATSF and NYC ran a joint transcon, with power from both roads. In the pre-mega-merger days, some of the coal trains coming out of Powder River had collections of motive power (one picture I've seen is of MoPac and DRGW units). So yes, mixed consists are perfectly acceptable.
I hold it down to one railroad just to keep total expenditures down. Besides, I don't have a place to store 300 locomotives from more than one line!
Although I'm partial to the Pacific Northwest and flavor my scenery with sand and evergreens, I model no particular road. I like to model scenes that work with my track plan and room conditions. I favor roads that once ran in the PNW such as NP, GN, SPS, and Milw Road. But, also enjoy Espee and ATSF equipment. If something ACL turns me on, I'll buy that too. My favorite era is the mid 50's but I also like to splurge on steam and modern era equipment if it turns me on. So, in a sense, there really is no prototype to my modeling. In general, I want my pike to be believable but my goal is to be fascinated and I will break any status quo modeling rule if need be. Am I crazy? Gosh, I don't know and really don't care. All I know is I'm having fun and that's all that really counts.
I am running either Deutsche Bundesbahn (about 1950 to 1970) or Pennsylvania (1950 to 1965). Some buildings, such as the depot, shall be removable, other places, like the town using DPM kits, will be fixed. Obviously I need a lot of modeller's license, but I love both german and american trains So far it is no problem, as there is no scenery, and some buildings are standing around on the plywood.
Multiples road names on a layout while it makes sence, I love it! Always seeing the same road names and paint schemes is getting a bit boring with time. A patched unit adds interest. Or a railroad that merge with another and it's units runs with the other ones. A green BN unit in a consist of orange BNSF ones always surprise our eyes!
The Williams and Ashfork Railroad presents itself to be a diversion of multiplicity. When it comes to model railroading I live by two rules. (1) It must be fun. (2) Don't limit the potential of your modeling effots by getting locked into one era or one railroad. My first efforts at model railroading stayed with the ATSF. Yellow book ends, then yellow war bonnets with the awesome red on silver warbonnets. But then you'd expect that when many in the family worked for Santa Fe. My Great granddad a Moffat Man having worked for the D&RGW. He inspired or helped develop my interst in the D&RGW. Other family members sited train trips on the Western Pacific, Southern Pacific and the predominate Uniion Pacific. I tried mixed consists and that helped. Now, to say it simply I am living up the rules I established. The Williams and Ashfork is a little known parent company of the ATSF, who later invested in the other railroads represented, slowly gaining control. You won't find it in the history books but watch for profit margins to fill the pockets of the parent company. Of course they don't need special ienterst money they are rich from the ore, coal and natural gas deposits they own. Does this sound all to familiar? Operational examples: When I want era specific. Out of the staging yard comes trains appropriate to the era. If I want an UP employee special it can be led by a DD40X or a Steam Northern. The California Zephyr, Santa Fe Chief , SP's Daylight with the 4449 on the front and assorted mail trains and fruit express can and will make appearances Variety is the spice of life, who said that? See what they started. I am having FUN! [ November 20, 2005, 02:25 PM: Message edited by: BarstowRick ]
