I basically model, want to model, UP Kansas Division from roughly 1955 to 1965 centering on 1962. Why '62? Because that’s when GP30s came out, my favorite diesel, plus it still gives latitude with steam and diesel, but could also allow early 2nd generation diesels. This was when I started riding my bicycle to the RR yards and watched the crews switch and got really interested in MRRing. Later on in the 70s I would watch SP trains roll by in LA with those multi unit lash ups and so, I’ll use a little artistic license and allow tunnel motors, U-boats, DD’s, etc. however, 62 was about the end of roof walks on cars, which came on in earnest around 65. So, smaller 40-50 foot cars, but big diesels, with the opportunity to operate steam and still be in context. At least, that’s what I’m aiming for…
I model a freelance anthracite carrier (NE PA area) in 1910. For me, the attractions are:
- I’m a steam fan, and this time and place specifies camelback locos, which is a little off the main path.
- 1910 is late enough to run articulated mallets, which I like (yes there was a camelback mallet, the Erie L-1 Class).
- The 1890-1910 era saw a hugh variety of new freight car designs ranging from “modern” all-wood to pre-USRA steel, with everyone and his dog thinking they invented the perfect all-purpose, universal freight car.
Lots of modeling opportunities!
Jim
1890-1913, Colorado. Why? Probably William Henry Jackson. When I was a boy, my dad gave me a reprint of an 1887- era book, “The American Railway.” It was full of woodcuts made from Jackson photos, and now that I’ve seen the originals, I know what a marvelous job they did of selecting the best ones: the Palisades at Alpine Pass on the DSP&P, Breckenridge from Windy Point, the loop at Hagerman Pass, Cameron’s Cone - you name it. I fell in love with the era and it’s equipment- and while I’m under no illusions about that age (all you have to do is read about their dentistry practices and food options to truly appreciate our own time), I always feel some awe at the things they achieved. It IS hard to avoid Disnefying it all- but some modelers do it well, and the research is part of the fun.
Your point about equipment variety for that era is also a good one.
[quote user=“stuckinthe50s”]
I am still fairly new to this forum, still being moderated, but not new to the hobby. From my profile name you may be able to figure out what era I model, 1955 to be exact. I picked that year because I can do steam and 1st generation diesel, the variety of freight cars, passenger trains, variety of models for this era, but mostly because I am familiar with this era. This is the time that I discovered trains, saw the end of steam, got my first lionel and I look upon this time with nostalgia. I could have done the 60’s but that is when I discovered sports, girls and answered the call to duty.
One thing that has impressed me from some other modelers is when they do a scene that just looks familiar to me. I look at it and feel that I have been there. I have found that with the plethora of suppliers with stuff from this time, I have had an easy time Doing this for my era. Kalmbach has released several books on this era, there are plenty of photographs and movies, On the Waterfront, that helps me to accurately model this era. I am a freelancer so I need only to do a generic scene that feels right, borrowing form here and there to accomplish my goals.
I am greatly impressed with people that model later eras. Yes, we have all of the corporate and franchise buildings that look the same all over the country, research is easier, but we are all too familiar with the time, and it makes it all that more difficult to build that scene that we all can relate to. I have seen some that model today, do excellent scenes. Some scenes I actually believe that I have been there recently. Of course every interstate exit looks the same, which challenges the modeler to make it look familiar while also different from others. My problem with modeling today, is so much that I like to model is gone. The textile industry that was the main source of livelihood in so many communities in the South are gone
It just goes to show you, the reasons why people model what they do vary from person to person. Probablly the most common reason is people were influenced by what they saw in their formative years, however it’s obvious that some are influenced by other factors such as history, grand parents, exposure to steam, variety, uniformity and a host of other things. People need some sort of a special connection, whatever it is I suppose - you name it - some have, some have yet to.
I am into the 1920s. I like steam and I am not into diesels so much. I like the architecture of the houses and town buildings better. My layout has alot of scratchbuilt Sears and victorian houses. For some reason I love the model T’s and other 1920s type cars. I also have horses and carriages. I especially like the billboard refers.
First of all…welcome to the forums.
As my signature says, I model Reading and Conrail together in an alternate history. I was a teen in the 70’s, and I witnessed my beloved Reading become a part of and disappear within Conrail in 1976 and beyond. At the time, I was a bit resentful…but then in 1988 something cool happened…I was hired by Conrail. That changed things. I now hold my experiences on Conrail with considerable affection.
In a nutshell, I model 3 eras…loosely. Reading…early to mid 50’s, Reading and Conrail in the 70’s as an altered history, and Conrail into the latter 80’s…also with a little historical tweaking.
Mark H
One other thought…if I were to choose a different era other than my 1954 setting, the choice would be easy for me - the glamorious days of the early 20th Century.
Early steel passenger cars, narrow vestibule and open platform wood passenger cars, early “modern” steam.
That era also holds a special interest for me in the architecture of the buildings - since my profession is the restoration of old homes, mostly late Victorian and early 20th Century styles.
But that can still be modeled in the 1950’s or even today - I live in home built in 1901, which we carefully restored to its 1901 appearance.
Sheldon
The choice of equipment becomes easier when you narrow down your era. A look at the Official Railway Equipment Register for your time period will tell you whether a particular type of freight car existed in your time period. A bit more research may be needed to determine whether it was used in the way you want to use it, however.
This makes me wonder about the modelers who stick with the modern era. What do you do if you’ve just done a beautiful job detailing and painting a locomotive, only to discover that the real railroad just modified or repainted that engine so that your work is now outdated? To be honest, I guess it’s perfectly OK if that doesn’t bother you. But I think it would bother me. Modeling a fixed time in the past takes away the guesswork.
Tom
One thing to remember is that in 1906 the safety appliance laws changed so a 1910 car will have a very different grab iron arrangement than a 1890 car. Its actually an easy spotting feature. If the car has grab irons on both the sides and the ends of the car its probably a post 1906 car.
The Roundhouse 36 ft boxcar is a really nice model, but if you look at the details, its screams a 1910-1920 car.
Circa 2000-2013, freelanced regional/shortline partnership lines. (Yes, plural.)
With a little caveat: I have 611 restored by this time… Oh, and zero graffiti.
Why 2000? One of the real partnered shorelines started around this time.
Why 2013? More coal traffic… Several coal fired power plants started shutting down after 2012-2013. So, high intermodal traffic, decent general freight traffic, and good coal traffic.
And, having a shortline allows older second-hand, (or third, forth, or more owner equipment, depending…), along with shorter trains. Partnering with a couple real lines allows me to run their equipment, plus my own. Making it a regional allows run-through mainline power, and options to run intermodal trains. (Including heritage units.) And, having restored steamers? Just a railfan’s dream railroad…
One advantage of modeling the Maryland and Pennsylvania RR in the early 50’s is that they were still using steam from the early 1900’s (all but one steam locomotive pre WWI) as well as truss rod home cars and open platform passenger cars. They had small diesel switchers (SW1, NW2, SW9) as well. Plus they interchanged at both ends with the PRR and the B&O in Baltimore - so bigger steam and diesels could be run by including a small portion of these lines.
Enjoy
Paul
I grew up during the 70`s with Penn Central and the local that always had B&O power going through town. I used to watch the PC from my bedroom window. So, I model what I used to see as a kid.
Like a lot of modelers, I modeled railroading as it was during my formative years, the early fifties, with First Generation diesels (steam was mostly gone in Wisconsin at that time). In fact, I wasn’t interested in steam at all–until I got an American Flyer “Silver Bullet” passenger train for Christmas in '53. My brother came back from the Air Force the following spring (he’d signed up for a minimum 4-year hitch, rather than slogging it out on the ground during the Korean War–and never left Mississippi). By that time, I realized that my streamlined Pacific, a good reproduction of the B&O #5304, would look silly pulling freight, which is what I was watching on the Soo Line, so I checked one of the Model Railroader Cyclopedias out of the library and, armed with a copy of an issue of MR from '52, built a sheet metal shell from an article called “O Gauge Mikado–Vintage 1910,” by Messers Robb and Ramsdell. Looked pretty good, too, considering I was only about 15 at the time and didn’t even own a soldering iron (I used a “wood-burning pen”; anyone remember those?).
I always looked at MR whenever I visited my brother and when the Late Paul Larson became editor in September of '56, I was exposed to early 1900s modeling with his photos and articles on his HO Mineral Point & Northern. Like others who responded to this string, I became HOOKED with equipment from the days of Wood Cars, Steel Rails, and Iron Men. As has been said, the photos are usually B&W, and prototype drawings in MR, as well as articles by Larson and Gordon Odegard, and others, provided me with enough ideas to last three lifetimes.
My suggestion to anyone modeling–or freelancing–a particular road, is to join the historical society for that road, plus collect books, as you can afford them. I was lucky enough to buy the 3-volume paperback reprints of the “1898 Car Builders Dictionary” and others by Newton K. Gregg’
I model several eras.
78-80 because I have a large collection of IPD short line boxcars and I can have cars from several fallen flag railroads like Milwaukee,RI,PC,C&O,B&O,BN,SF,Cotton Belt,SP,Southern,N&W C&NW etc.
84/85 for my C&HV and Huron River RR.No reason other then that.
94/95 so I can use my CR,NS,CSX,Ohio Central,IHB, BRC and Summerset Ry.
All I need to do is swap out freight cars and vehicles that’s fits the era whenever I what a change of pace.
Fun facts…While my ISL is generic the industries retains believability for my chosen eras.
Era.don’t need no stinking era.
Hello All and welcome to the forums,
My pike is set in the 1970’s and 1980’s. This eara was pretty much chosen for me based on several factors.
When I was working on track plans I narrowed it down to two industries; coal or logging. I also wanted to freelance the area where I live- -the mountains of Colorado.
These two industries allowed for actual operations of loading and unloading of these commodities. I decided to model a coal branch set in the Rockies.
I’ve never been a huge fan of steam so I settled on diesel. In doing my research I discovered that there was an upsurge of coal trains in the Rockies due to the “fuel crisis” of the 1970’s.
There it was…
A freelance diesel coal operation set in the '70’s to the '80’s!
Hope this helps.
My modeling era is about 30 some odd years before I was born, must be the really odd man out.
I can’t say I model an era. In Japan, an era is the entire reign of a specific Emperor, and my modeling is concentrated in one month of the 39th year of the 63 year era Showa. Likewise, my location is rather specific - the upper Kiso valley, with a few twigs grafted on from other places.
As for why, I used up some of my accrued leave visiting the area with my wife and family, and we had a wonderful time. We rode the 30 inch gauge logger out to the approximate heart of nowhere, explored towns that had not felt the weight of WWII bombs and got to know some very interesting people. I came away with a bagful of exposed film, books of field notes and sketches, the local topo map and the JNR master timetable for September, 1964.
I had already decided to model Japanese railroad action as I was observing it. The Kiso country provided a much more manageable modeling environment than suburban Tokyo. My master plan, including roster building, has been set in granite ever since that visit, and is very unlikely to change.
For the remainder of my Air Force career, and the rather nomadic post-career period, I built whatever bits and pieces I could find room for in our undersize venues. Not until my final retirement eleven years ago did I ever have a space big enough to try to do my dream justice. When my wife ceded me the entire double garage I achieved nirvana. There’s still a LOT to be done, and what I have doesn’t look very impressive, but I foresee having fun for as long as I hold out.
Chuck (Modeling Central Japan in September, 1964)