Some get the attention like the NYC Hudson and PRR T-1.
The NH I-5 screams class - I wish someone would make these in HO.
I am not so fussy about the streamlined steamers. I like the beefy look of a NKP Berk, an Allegheny, C&O’s 4-6-6-4’s, and so one, even the Super Heavy Mikes recently discussed in MRC. While I can appreciate the utility of the cowling, I think it spoiled the lines of the locos overall.
Just my opinion…
Before starting, I admit that this is one man’s opinion and may or may not indicate bias.
Got it right - the Norfolk and Western! Shrouding looked like a speeding bullet, and the gold-bordered tuscan stripe provided just the right amount of color.
Close but no cigar - the NYC ‘Roman helmet’ Hudsons, the NH loco above, the PRR bullet-nosed K-4 and other jobs that admitted that there was a round boiler under the shroud.
(Dis)honorable mention - the PRR T-1, which looked like a ship out of water and ran like a ruptured ox. Fast when it worked right, which wasn’t as often as it should have been.
The ‘You’ve got to be kidding’ award goes to all those shovel-faced atrocities that got built in the 1930’s, frequently over locos of questionable mechanical merit.
For sure the end of steam and the beginning of diesel was a classic period. The larger scales used to attempt these more often than the HO constructors do. I wish we saw more than just the N&W J’s in HO for streamliners. Even then there are two manufacturers doing them and there must be half a dozen Big Boys and Challengers out there. There must be a market for other rare locomotives instead of just blindly copying what’s already been done. What a cool thing it would be with Hiawatha’s and NYC’s streamliners available alongside the I-5. We can always hope. J.R.