Hi, I am new to the MRR game. I am thinking about a 4X8 layout that will have 18" radii. I want to model the N&W, NS, Sou RR's. As a kid in Va, and Wva, I saw a lot of the old N&W steamers. I plan to do diesels as my motive power. I am confined to using 4 axle locos. I am looking for info pertaining to the different era of railroads, I.E. when/what were they. Also, what year(s) were the various Geeps available in those years for the RR's that I want to model. Any assistance would be greatly appreciated. Perhaps some of the N&W/NS/Sou modelers can help me with this info. Thanks for any/all assistance. Ponyboy
Greetings ponyboy......welcome to Trainboard! Sounds like you're planning to have a prototypical type railroad, and for that you've chosen a very good trio of railroads. You'll have a wide variety of 4 axle units that can be represented on your layout. How many units were you planning on having available? Just wondering if you will be "scaling" your fleet list as well? Some types that could be legitimately used would be: for N&W (pre-1964) H16-44, GP35, RS3, RS11, GP9, GP30, GP18. For 1964 and later you'd be able to add the NKP & WAB rosters as well. For NS (the original, thru the 1960s): GP18, and GP38. For SOU (including subsidiaries): GE44t, S1/2, RS2/3, GP7, GP9, FTA/B, F3A/B, F7A/B, RS11, H16-44, SW7. Plus for all three, there were various other switcher models used as well. Hope this helps. Keep us posted as you go along. Good luck, Bill
Ponyboy, First off, I have to echo Bill's sentiment: Welcome aboard! If you want to model N&W, Sou., & NS, you have confined yourself to 1982 and later (since NS was formed at that time). It's also about the same time I started taking photos. I grew up near a NS (formerly Southern) yard so I saw the transition take place. I'll tell you what I used to see (mid-80's): high nosed Sou. & N&W GP30's; High nosed Southern GP35's, GP38's, GP38-2's, GP39's, GP50's. A few low nosed (ex-NKP) GP30's and GP35's would make a rare appearance. Also, high nosed N&W GP40's might show up with 4 axle road slugs as well. And don't forget the yard staple: MP15AC's! Harold [ 12. March 2003, 02:08: Message edited by: chessie ]
Oh, for the reference materials.... I have several Withers Publishing books. They have excellent photos and information. Check out their website at: http://www.witherspublishing.com/catalog/default.php Harold
No MP15AC locomotives on NS, N&W or Southern. Only the MP15DC version from Southern Railway. Chris Toth
Hi Ponyboy....welcome from the NH contingent too! Question: when you say "NS" do you mean the current Norfolk Southern, or the "original" NS ? Mentioning "NS" in the same sentence with the older roadnames like N&W and SOU made me think you had the "original" NS in mind.
First off, I want to say big thanks to all who posted a reply to my post. That was mighty generous of all of you. Like I said, I am new at this game, so please forgive me. Since NS came into being in 1982, can I still model it with Sou and N&W? I am getting confused with this era and loco model thing. What model locos are time dependant to what era? Also, I bought a Walthers 2003 catalog and did not see a lot of N&W locos offered. This was also true of most of the online web sites that I had visited. I saw much more NS stuff. Perhaps I would be better served to do only NS but that seems so restrictive since I already am restricted to 4 axle locos due to 18" radii. Yes, I definitely will be "scaning" the number of locos in my fleet. I am retired and am on a fixed income, therefore I can't afford to get too crazy with this lashup For locos, I wanted to do Athearn Blue Boxes first to get my feet wet, and then go to Athearn Genesis, Kato, or Atlas. Does anyone have an opinion on this plan? Also who makes the most N&W stuff for locos? ponyboy
No MP15AC locomotives on NS, N&W or Southern. Only the MP15DC version from Southern Railway. Chris Toth </font>[/QUOTE]Chris, You're correct, my mistake. Harold
Ponyboy, I am not really sure about HO models, as I do N scale. I know Atlas brought out HO scale high hoods in GP40's and GP38's, but I am sure they are a lot more expensive than Athearn blue boxes. When I was in HO, I bought extra Athearn shells and made my own high hood units: SD40-2's, GP38-2's, etc. It was a lot of fun, in addition to creating a reasonably priced replica. Harold
Ponyboy, thanks for your kind words. In all reality, unless you're a "rivet counter" kind of modeler, you can run N&W, newer NS, older NS and SOU units all together if that's what makes YOU happy. The most important thing is for you to enjoy your hobby. Also, as your layout and your interests develop, it might also be possible for you to maintain different sets of locomotives, based on certain time frames, and lettered for the various roads you like, and run them at different times...to simulate different eras. I can remember one evening while walking my puppy seeing an (what I believed to be) ex-NKP GP18 rolling thru here on the NS in a four unit lash-up during the 1980s. It looked really odd sandwiched between a pair of SDs, but nevertheless there it was! So there's a good example of a locomotive that was originally built and delivered in 1960 that appeared to be still in service in the 1980s. So it is possible to mix some time periods and still be protypical. As was mentioned, most SOU units were high short hood, so maybe a little research into just what is available in HO for SOU might be in order. I'd start by checking the "HO" section of eBay for examples. I too am an N scaler, so am not too familiar with the units available in HO. I wouldn't be too concerned if you can't find many units lettered for the N&W. You could always "dip and strip", or buy undec units and paint and decal them just way you want. Many decal and dry transfer sets are available for N&W locos and rolling stock. Good luck with your N&W/NS/SOU empire. Keep us posted as you go along. Bill
Ponyboy, Welcome to the TrainBoard old buddy! If you are retired, like me, you can pretty well do as you please with your railroad empire ! Remember, unless you are going to have "stuffy type" visitors, you can run any engine or car you please, when you feel like it. I have saved engines ever since 1936, so I have a few, and some of them were gifts. I am not about to throw one away just because some guy thinks I can not be allowed to have a NYC lashed up to a Union Pacific with a Pennsylvania pusher! Remember when you had one Lionel, so you had to imagine it was a Big Boy? No one complained about it back then. You are the BOSS, you don't have to conform! Run what you want and enjoy running anything YOU want!
As everyones already said I'm going to say it again myself! WELCOME to the Trainboard family! As said, its YOUR hobby do as YOU like, an have FUN! Afterall thats what this hobby is all about! I run a steamer pulling CSX cars or a CSX diesel pullin old Western Maryland cars.... but its all for the fun of doing the "wat if" And loving every second, but I like a few of us here also enjoy the building of the trains, layout, etc. an I myself do it for a living.... So my job is almost like play an to get paid for it well. I'm living the "American Dream" but I enjoy it!!!! As with your end of the hobby its for YOU to enjoy... Run what you like wether someone says different or not..... Just HAVE fun DOING it!
Ponyboy welcome to the hobby. As a few have already stated you can model what you want and how you want. It is your model railroad and your model railroad world. If you want to be true to the prototypes or want to run a steamer pulling CSX cars it is up to you. On my model railroad I try to keep the type of equipment appropriate for the era. But that does not stop me from running my Reading steam locomotives with whatever cars I want. In my world one of the roads I model the Lehigh & New England is still around in the 1980s. It went out of business around 1961. On my layout my model railroad purchased the LNE and operates it as a separate railroad. One of these days I will get around to painting some second-generation diesels in LNE colors. My only suggestion is to figure out what you like and model it the way that is most enjoyable for you.
Hi Guys, Once again I want to thank everyone for all the additional info and advice for my post. To Shoreliner, I was not aware of an "old" NS versus a "new" NS. From what I have read, the NS corp. was created in 1982. That's the info that I got from their homepage. As I said, I am new at this game. I had/have been thinking about a 4&8 layout, but recently saw a nice shelf layout. All Benchwork that I have seen/found related to construction of 4&8 layouts. Question is, are there any plans for shelf layout benchwork? If so, where can I find examples? I am also leaning toward DCC control, specifically the Digitrax Zephyr started system. Comments. No, I did not plan to be a "rivet counter" nor am I going to get really upset on "exact" duplication or replication of my locos/rolling stock. Close will be good enough!! My military days are so far in my rear view mirror, I can hardly see the horizon!! The way I figure, over detailing stuff lends to more breakage and more worring about whether the grandkids will break something. Thus less enjoyment for everyone. Again, I say thanks. Ponyboy
Ponyboy, there are a lot of examples of shelf (or even module-shelf) type layouts. First, try to get a copy of "101 Track Plans" by Kalmbach. The same one mentioned before. It also has shelf-type layouts. Also many of John Armstrong's designs are for shelf..or can be broken down into a shelf style layout. Also many shelf-type switching layouts have appeared in Model Railroader and RMC. Time to start buying some books and researching the one layout that will be right for you. Good luck. Bill
