Roster Review: D&H RS3-ms in 1984

#501 (December 1975)

In the mid-1970s the D&H's fleet of RS3 engines was wearing out. Faced with the options of purchasing more engines new or used, they instead decided to have rebuilt some of their existing RS3s. So, between December 1975 and March 1976 they sent 8 engines (#4106, 4107, 4112, 4113, 4115, 4119, 4122, and 4128) to Morrison-Knudsen in Boise, Idaho to be rebuilt. I have seen one source say ten engines were sent but eight returned, the other two being used for parts or later determined not worth fixing. With their short, rounded noses and large boxes behind the cab, their are easily identifiable.

#505 (October 1982)

The original 1,600 hp Alco 244 prime movers were unreliable, so many railroads besides the D&H began rebuilding engines with them in the 1970s. Here, they were given new power plants with more reliable 2,000 hp 12-251C engines which was larger and required raising their long hoods by six inches; their noses were chopped, dynamic brake cooling boxes were relocated behind the cab, and the rest of the engine's parts were refurbished. They were renumbered #501-508 and seven were repainted in the lightning stripe scheme, while #506 (formerly #4112) was painted in the Bicentennial scheme.

#503 (January 12, 1980)

When they came back, the D&H classified them as ARS-20M (RS3m engines), though Morrison-Knudsen referred to them as TE56-4A. However, some people also refer to them as as RS3u engines. If you have time to burn, here is an interesting online discussion on exactly what they should be called.

#502 (October 08, 1980)

In 1984, engines #501, #503, #504, #505, #507, and #508 were still painted in the lightning stripe scheme with no numbers on the sides of the hood. Like all of the other engines so painted, they got grubby pretty quick and by 1984 all had large numbers on their sides which would indicate at least partial, if not full, repainting occurred in the early 1980s. I am not sure what determined if a partial or complete repaint was in order, but likely whatever was cheapest. Engine #502 was the only RS-3m to be repainted into the "Altschul blue" scheme with yellow chevrons. And, of course, #506 received the bicentennial scheme at the time of rebuilding. 

#1976 (May 1977)

They all lasted on the D&H until 1988 when they were retired. That isn't very long for a class of engines that only served 12 years after being rebuilt (which sadly was longer than the ill-fated PA-4 engines). However, Guilford was simplifying its extended locomotive fleet over the three railroads it owned and in doing so was purging all Alcos from the roster. Thus, these had to go. One survives today, #506, which was the bicentennial unit. Perhaps because of its appealing paint scheme and usage on tourist railroads, it kept its red, white, and blue up until 2014 when it was repainted. Today, it works on the Western New York and Pennsylvania as #406 (discussed here).

RS-3, no #, to be #4501 (March 19, 1977)

Were they successful? No. The D&H decided not to do any more conversations because the engines were slippery and tended to struggle with heavy loads. One theory behind that is because the 2,000 hp primer mover was too powerful for such a lightweight engine body. More modern locomotives which use larger engines weight more, allowing them to get better traction. However, it appears around the same time the Colonie Shops attempted to rebuild an RS-3 in house along the same lines. Perhaps they thought they could do it cheaper, or faster? I don't know, but the engine was never completed.

Picture of Shell from website - used with permission

For those who can afford it, Overland Models has also imported a brass model (item number AA-1271-1 in 2008. They may have imported other road numbers as well. They are gorgeous models and I would love one, but likely will never have it. For the rest of us, Puttman Locomotive Works offers a cast-resin HO scale shell specifically based on the D&H's engines. They are designed to drop onto Atlas RS3 chassis. No handrails, cab glass, or other details are provided. The price ($38) is decent, so I likely will purchase several and store them for some time in the future when I want to build a couple. As I have a bunch of powered engines already, I might even make mine un-powered "dummies" to simplify things.

#502 in blue sandwiched in the middle (1982)

Of all the RS3m engines, I really want a model of #502 because I love the solid blue and yellow chevron scheme. It would also be nice to have #506 because it lasted as a bicentennial unit through my time period. Besides, I can only take so much lightning striped or solid blue locomotives! The other engines would just be more grubby lightning stripe engines, with either terribly faded large numbers on the sides or even worn completely away (like #508). I am in no rush to add two more similar engines like that to my roster.

Finger Lakes Live Steamers - 50th Anniversary meet

Warning... massive post ahead!

Me with my awesome blond hair in 1987.

This past weekend my wife and I attended the Finger Lakes Live Steamers' 50th Anniversary Meet. This place is pretty special to me. Located about an hour east of Rochester where I grew up, I remember my parents bringing me to a couple of their annual open house days when I was a child. Looking back in the old photo album, that would be 1987 and 1988. As a boy fascinated by trains, it was all just too much. The size factor alone made them mesmerizing and the fact that you could ride them round and round made it almost feel like riding a real train. And the seeds were planted.

Me with my parents and siblings on straddle car in 1987

As is typical of a 5 or 6 year old, I decided I wanted one. I remember doodling lines around a drawing of the backyard of our house showing where I would put it. That it wasn't "too scale" or that I didn't have the money to build it anyway was entirely besides the point. I remember the club engines being painted in a scheme similar to the Erie Lackawanna's... which was important as my first HO scale train set had an Erie Lackawanna engine. My parents, who indulged many of my train fancies, never bought me a live steam engine. My dad did bring me back the following year though, which was almost as good.

1988 (in my pink ALF shirt)

I remember being about 12 and seeing an advertisement in Model Railroader magazine for Little Engines, a company that sold (and still sells) live steam locomotive castings. The ad said to send for the catalog, which I did. I remember opening it up the envelope and there was a bill for the catalog. I can't recall how much it was, but my mother made me return the catalog to them. Perhaps in an act of restitution, several years ago I purchased their most recent paper catalog. Though the F.L.L.S. advertised that they had junior memberships and that they had machine shop equipment on the premises, what I expected to do at 12 with the catalog anyway is unknown.

Though the open houses were open to the public and free, I never visited them again that I can recall while in Rochester (we went once with a VHS camcorder and I don't know what year they came out, but it might have been 1988). I distinctly remember a man named Charlie C. who brought a magnificent Little Engines pacific locomotive painted in the bright orange, yellow and blue Chessie scheme. While I thought it was pretty then, I was giddy in 2010 when he brought the locomotive to ALS and I met Charlie in person and got to tell him how much it meant to me to see it again after all those years. It was built to last!

1988

Certainly, as a college student nearby I blew the opportunity. Then I moved to Albany, and everything was forgotten until 2006 when I was looking through a hobby store and found several issues of Live Steam and Outdoor Railroading magazine for sale. Having now read nearly every issue since 1967, I can honestly say I got lucky. Those two issues (June and August) I bought were filled with train articles and other things that interested me. I didn't have a clue about the machine shop language and things like hit and miss steam engines didn't appeal to me (and still don't) but I bought the two issues anyway. Some issues have little train content and had that been the case here, I likely never would have bought them.

I later found out a friend had actually convinced the store to carry the magazine in hopes of attracting new members to the local live steam club, so I guess it worked! The magazine had a section devoted to club listings, and I found a reference to the Adirondack Live Steamers. I joined in 2007, rekindled my interest in the hobby, and the rest is history.

1988, and happily riding around!

My wife and I decided a couple of years ago to visit some of the live steam clubs that are within a couple hours of Albany, so in 2014 we visited FLLS again. We found the club to be extremely gracious as hosts and made several friends that day. Having not stepped on the property in twenty six years, I was amazed at some of the changes that had been made. The strange elevated 3/4 scale, 3.5" gauge live steam track was gone (it can be seen already in a state of decay in the picture at right). But, their 7.25" gauge track was just as I remembered it and after a loop around the line they let me take over and drive for a couple more trips.

They also had a new, extensive, gauge 1 layout. I have always wanted one in my garden and someday will have one. I have seen a few before that were nice but boy does the FLLS track look grand compared to them. It was set up to run electric and live steam powered trains, and I had brought my live steam Ruby engine and a few cars to play with. The last four cars are scratchbuilt. Though the picture at right doesn't really reflect the state of the railroad (it has lots more track and a big yard and multiple mainlines) this image of a train plodding along on a raised garden with lots of greenery is what I want my garden line to be someday.

FLLS - 2019

So, that is my history with FLLS. But how about their recent 50th Anniversary? And what has changed in the past five years (or the past 31 years?) At right is a modified map that was handed out at the recent meet. I marked in red the track I remember from 1988 (minus a passing siding here or there). Everything else is new. What's more, nearly all the 7.25" gauge stuff is new within the past 5 years! They are definitely expanding.

As we pulled up we had trouble finding out where we were supposed to park. They have at least three parking lots, not all of which are marked, and in the chaos of moving to each of them I managed to set up this shot as we finally found our spot. I think it is a great juxtaposition of three things all in the same area, presumably doing the same thing (moving people) via three different modes of transportation technology. We saw many Amish (I think?) people during the morning drive by in their carts, and on the southern edge of the property there was a man teaching his sons how to cut hay in a field with a giant blade cart thing. I believe that is the technical term.

It was a really nice day, and it wasn't too terribly hot, but still I decided to set up my folding camping chair in the shade by the elevated gauge 1 track. FLLS has a permanent garden railway line and a smaller raised live steam track, but this looked to be temporary and brought in for the weekend. Though the sun shifted throughout the day, as did our chairs accordingly, we were usually no further than 10 feet from this track. As a result, I got to see a lot of the G scale live steamers run. This looks to be an Aster Hall class pulling a lovely rake of 9 coaches. It ran for about 30 minutes without much interruption from the driver.

At the same time, right in front of us was the 7.25" gauge main line and train after train went by. The main line was busy and backed up in places, though their signalling system worked well to keep the trains spaced apart. I particularly enjoy the older 1800 based locomotives, and this Railroad Supply locomotive and coaches were really well done. I don't know if the engineer attempted the grades on the middle flyover section, but he had no trouble keeping up speed on the level areas. At one time I considered building a locomotive like this but was concerned the grades at ALS would prevent it from operating well. I might have been wrong.

A group from the New Jersey LS banded together and brought a trailer full of goodies to run. Of interest, there were two pacific locomotives that individually were running with nice long trains and together were really pulling hard. It was interesting to hear the engineers trying to work together to get their locomotives in sync with one another. Another point of interest is that both locomotives appear to be derived from the Little Engines design, but the final detailing was taken in different directions. I especially love the Southern "Crescent Limited" green and gold scheme on the second engine. The moon on the cylinders is really classy.

Speaking of long trains, this poorly lit shot shows the double headed engines working around one of the original curves with a very long train. All of the cars behaved well which is quite an achievement as slack action can build up over the length of the train.

Here is another long train, mostly passenger style cars but also a few bench style riding cars. The amount of work it must have taken to put everything together and paint it all is incredible. I think that there were nine passenger cars trailing the riding cars.

Here is another train from NJLS being driven by Ron. If you look to the left of him, you can see the roof of a covered flat car that provided protection from the sun! That was a nifty idea. While I was relaxing in the shade eating my pizza, Ron offered to let me use his train (we aren't total strangers). It was a classic pizza vs. train moment but I stuck with my food and he took another lap. When he came around again, I got on board with my pizza and he showed me the new track and how to operate his engine. For the third and fourth laps, I drove the train around (my pizza was gone). It is a great hobby and people are very generous with their equipment. His engine behaved beautifully and I managed to keep it on the rails the whole time.

What was I pointing to?

Next time I come, I might try and arrange with someone to bring my equipment. There were several other people from ALS here, as well as other local clubs in the North East that I am friendly with. It was nice to go back to my roots and see that while some things have changed, others have remained the same. I believe that they are pretty boxed in their current location which is why their track is folding in on itself instead of stretching out very much. All of it operated well (aside from a pesky electrical switch machine that was quickly fixed) and I personally didn't observe a single derailment. That is quite an accomplishment. FLLS has a lot to be proud of. They have open days for the public to attend which are free, and I would highly recommend anyone with an interest in trains to stop by and check them out. The hobby is a lot of fun and can really stay with you. If you asked me in 1988 where I wanted to go to have a good time, I would have probably pointed to FLLS. In fact, I guess I did...

The following are a couple more pictures from the 2019 meet, without any commentary by me.

US Toy Train Company - A&A RR models

I primarily model in HO gauge, but I like to collect anything and everything related to the Arcade and Attica Railroad. As someone who has regularly monitored EBay for A&A stuff for the past 15 years, there isn't much I haven't seen. And if something is rare I know it pretty quickly. I have a couple of pieces in my collection that I believe are rare but it is difficult to say based on EBay sales. One caboose I literally just found this week because I intentionally mis-spelled a word and the caboose popped up. It took me about a second to decide I had to buy it!

#201 Tender

I moderate a post on Railroad.net about all commercially available A&A models and I try to keep it updated frequently. The most interesting items on the list are O scale tinplate models manufactured by the United States Toy Train Company (USTTC). The company had an address of Route 78 and 362, Bliss, NY, 14024. Some of the items were shown in a brief write-up in the February Classic Toy Trains magazine. Oddly, the caboose wasn't shown in the write-up (perhaps it didn't exist yet?).

#501 Coach

I had actually run across a few of the pieces in the Arcade train station, but not all of them. I assumed at the time they were custom painted models. I learned later that they were commercially released. They are pretty rare. In the past 10 years I have seen only two boxcars, two gondolas, one coach, two different cabooses, one tender, and one station offered for sale. That's it.

#301 Gondola

Some history of the USTTC might be in order. As someone who isn't an expert on anything tinplate, I would refer you to this excellent summation of the USTTC. Sadly, the company is out of business. Per a different online thread, the owner passed away in 1989. However, there appears to be a second USTTC with that name! The second company released models of A&A stuff and was a small sheet metal shop as its normal business. They both manufactured tinplate O scale stuff, and because I am not an O scale tinplate expert it looks like they used the same trucks, couplers, and even base cars bodies. Perhaps the second company took over the first?

#403 Boxcar

Regardless, I find these A&A models charming. They clearly were a labor of love, and the boxcar is especially nice. I bought the gondola for a rather hefty price several years ago, and then the rest of the models (except for the Station) nearly fell into my lap when some seller wanted to move them all on EBay and was frustrated at high reserve prices not being met. He then listed them starting at $1 (bad mistake) and I got all the rest for nearly the same price as the gondola. I should have purchased the second gondola just to have a spare!

#901 Caboose

Under the "huh?" category, the company released two cabooses. Neither was featured in the magazine write up, and I assume that they were done later on. But, the A&A actually had two cabooses and the end cupola model is reasonably close to it (well, as close as the coach and gondolas are). I just saw the center cupola caboose this week and bought it, and it looks original. I suppose the owner might have switched roofs, but nothing looks amiss to suggest this. A real quirk of a car.

#901 Caboose

Now, I need something to pull them. I am thinking a Lionel 44-tonner, which isn't tinplate but it looks large enough and is readily available on the market. Repainting it would be a snap, and I will replace one of the couplers with these tinplate hook things so that it can couple to the other cars. Finding a steam engine of the 2-8-0 or 4-6-0 wheel arrangement that is inexpensive probably isn't very likely.

The station I have only seen come up once and it never sold, so perhaps it will appear again. It has nothing to identify it as an A&A model, so it might get listed under a title I wouldn't normally associate with it. Sigh. I guess that is what makes collecting fun!

Broken turnout switch rods

I have been intentionally avoiding working on the layout for months. Longer than that, actually. Since I qualified for my Electrical M.M.R. certificate last summer I haven't really done anything on the layout. And most of that is because I am waiting for my switches to break. When I installed my Micro Engineering switches, I had problems with some of them. Not only were several broken during installation, but three more had their throw rods damaged. Actually, it broke into two pieces and I spliced it together with a piece of styrene on top. But I don't trust it. Several other modeler friends have also expressed recent issues with Micro Engineering turnouts. It is sad to see a great company put out faulty products.

Not knowing if I wanted to replace them with Peco switches or something else, I just left them alone for over a year. Well, this week I finally purchased some printed circuit (PC) board ties from Fast Tracks. I will make new switch throw rods. Hopefully they will be stronger. It will test my soldering skills, but I have come a long way in the past few years. And, if that doesn't work, I won't be any worse than I am right now.

New York Museum of Transportation (Rush, NY)

One of my train projects that has been on the back burner for over 10 years was the construction of a 1/8 scale caboose to go behind my live steam train. Not really knowing what type of caboose I wanted at the time, I borrowed a book which featured cabooses and found one I liked: a DL&W caboose. It was a classic wooden design, had unusual milk train trucks, and seemed symmetrical and “just right.” I contacted some people in the DL&W historical society and found out some more information. I discovered that a local short line (the original Genesee & Wyoming) close to my hometown purchased one used and later donated it to a railroad museum where it is currently preserved. Happiliy, Model Railroader magazine had published plans for it in February 1952

Magnet from gift shop drawn by Jim Dierks.

As it turns out, none of the diagrams that I had showed the underside of the caboose. I am not a stickler for details such as having all the nuts and bolts and framing exactly in the right place (most people can't see the underside of a live steam freight car when it is on the track right-side up, which hopefully it will be!). But, I thought some rough representations of the brake gear and such might be appropriate and I didn't want the frame I had welded up to interfere with this. So, I had to get underneath one. Thankfully, but G&W #8 and another caboose still exist and both are within about an hour's drive from Rochester. One is near where my father-in-law lives, and he kindly took a ton of useful pictures for me. G&W #8 is located at the New York Museum of Transportation in Rush, NY.

It is a small museum primarily focused on trolleys, but it did have a couple of regular railroad pieces of equipment including the caboose. It should have been simple to visit one day when they were open but recently they moved it into a covered storage building to facilitate repairing the roof. Rats! I didn't want to drive all the way there just to be turned away. However, some networking put me in touch with Jim Dierks, who works there. He kindly arranged to give me a tour and access to the underside of the caboose for picture taking and measurements. So, on a warm Sunday afternoon after spending the weekend visiting with my parents I trekked over (and got lost).

I also quickly skimmed the rest of the museum and got a ride on one of their operating trolley. It was nothing like riding a train, as it was stop and go like a bus, and the noises were much different. Aside from the compressors recharging the tanks for the brakes and controls, it was very quiet. The interior of the car was decorated in period correct advertisements, and the seats flipped back and forth so that you always could face forward. I saw a deer in the woods and it didn't seem at all concerned about the trolley. The trolley line is only about a mile or so long but it does connect part way with another local railroad museum. Occasionally, they run combined events but the overhead wires don't extend all the way so transfers between the trolley and another train are required. 

One last point of interest. When I was a kid, my parents would take me downtown to Rochester's Midtown Mall. Apparently, at one time it was the biggest and best mall in the area but a kid doesn't really grasp things like that. However, I do recall that at Christmas the central atrium area would be decorated to look like the North Pole, their would be clocks that made music and had animated figures, and there was a monorail you could ride. But I grew up, the mall died, and memories faded. But, this museum has the actual monorail in its display! It sure is small (and short) now, and I don't know how I could have fit it in. But, it is a piece of my childhood and I am glad it wasn't scrapped.

Happy Fourth of July!

As we celebrate our Nation's signing of the declaration of independence on July 4, 1976, I thought I would post two of my favorite images of Delaware and Hudson #1976 and Boston and Maine bicentennial RS3m #1976 decorated engines.

D&H #1976 (9-25-1976)

The first is peculiar in that there is a Rock Island F-unit behind it, so I wonder if this was taken as part of the gathering of Bicentennial painted engines that was sponsored by Trains magazine. They had an interesting article about it in the March 2005 issue (titled the "That 70's Issue").
#1976, (formerly 506, and before that RS3 #4112), kept this paint throughout its career with the D&H. It later was sold to the Tioga Central Railroad, then the Wellsboro & Corning Railroad, and finally the Western New York and Pennsylvania Railroad in 2014. The WNY&P repainted her solid black with yellow chevrons in October 2014. Sadly, I didn't have the foresight to take pictures of it when it was on the Tioga Central.

UPDATE: It was acquired by the Arcade & Attica Railroad of all things in July 2023! So she lives on. 

This engine wasn't the D&H's first red, white, and blue engine. The railroad also provided GE U23B #2312 for the 1974 "Preamble Express" (more info here). It would further go through two other paint schemes (solid blue, and blue with yellow nose). There was also GE U23B #1776 (formerly #314) which as far as I know retained its colors through its end on the D&H.

B&M #200 (undated slide)

The second engine of interest to me is Boston and Maine Railroad GP38-2 #200. While the D&H engine was simple and classy, the B&M engine looked like they tried to wrap the entire engine with an American flag! Painting and maintenance of the engine must have been a nightmare, and the broad white bands on the side probably got dirty quick. It was delivered in solid blue (#212) but was painted in this scheme and renumbered in March 1975. It looked brand new in April of 1976 (or perhaps they repainted it). The scheme lasted through the fall of 1979, but by the end of the year it was repainted into their blue scheme with vertical white stripes on the front of the nose. (More online pictures here).

Here is another interesting link showing Andy Fletcher's artwork of bicentennial engines. My favorite on the list is probably Conrail GG1 #4800.

Roster Review: D&H RS3s in 1984

#4103 in Colonie Yard (March 1984)

As part of continuing research on the D&H's roster in 1984, I thought I would focus on the Alco RS3 class next. While the Baldwin Sharks and Alco PAs are more iconic of the D&H in the 1970s, the RS2 and RS3 engines were the backbone of the fleet in the 1950s and 1960s and went everywhere on the system. Though they were similar, all RS2s were gone from the D&H by 1973. Purchased primarily new from Alco in early 1950s, the RS3 fleet was once 104 engines strong. Sometimes coupled up three or four at a time to move heavy tonnage, they soldiered on for the D&H into the mid-1980s and I believe at least one (#4068) still regularly operates today on the Delaware Lackawanna Railroad.

#4103 (July 1984)

They were delivered in the all black with yellow stripe scheme, but they were then repainted into the lightning stripe scheme. By the late 1970s and early 1980s, a few were given the solid blue dip paint scheme. By 1984 only three or four true RS3 engines remained. Those were #4075, #4099, #4103, and #4118. If you are wondering why I listed four numbers but said "three or four" remained, it is because there is very little data to confirm which engines were on the roster in May of 1984. The Bridge Line Historical Society's page on RS3s has lots of details, but it conflicts with other sources. There isn't a lot of photographic evidence for three of them (except for #4075), which is odd because they would have been some of the last operating RS3s to work on Class 1 railroads.

#4084 (August 21, 1977)

Some odd things happened with their RS3s during the 1970s. Six were leased to the Providence and Worchester Railroad for their start-up operations, and there they received an orange, black and white repaint known as the "Popsicle scheme." When they came back, a D&H shield was added to the cab. Two more were leased to the Vermont Railway. A pair were swapped with the Boston and Maine for some RS-3 engines with steam heaters for pulling The Adirondack passenger train. Finally, eight units were selected for rebuilding into RS3m units and they will be the focus of a separate blog post. In general, though, most just stayed with the D&H until they were sold or scrapped.

#4099 (1981)

I believe that two RS3s kept the lightning stripe scheme through at least 1984. There is a picture of #4103 but it is absolutely filthy. It is impossible to tell if it originally had large numbers or not, as only ghost images of the words "Delaware and Hudson" are visible on the side. Per the BLHS, it was with the D&H through 1986 before being sold. The #4099 had been more elusive.  I finally have a photo of it in Colonie in July of 1984, with large numbers on the side, but I can't see if it had small numbers. I know it ended up on the Cuyahoga Valley Railroad in Ohio, and they kept it in the D&H scheme at least through the 1980s. It currently works there on their scenic train.

#4075 in Colonie Shops (April 12, 1984)

Probably the most photographed of all of their RS3 engines was blue-dip #4075. This engine was actually the second D&H RS-3 numbered #4075, as the first one was swapped to the B&M for a similar engine with steam generators for heating passenger coaches. They received in trade B&M #1508, which was renumbered #4075. Its heritage is easy to spot as it has number boards on all four upper corners of the body, something which the B&M had (but not the D&H). They were never removed. The BLHS has the engine being purged in 8/1982, which doesn't jive with my other research.

#4118 in East Greenville, PA (October 30, 1983)

Also to receive the solid blue scheme was #4118. This engine has been more problematic to track down its history. Some sources have said the D&H rostered it until sometime in 1984, when it was sold to the shortline Octoraro Railroad in Pennsylvania. I have slides labeled fall of 1983 showing it working in East Greenville, PA, There, it was leased to the Octoraro RR's and was working on the old Reading branch (the old Wilmington and Northern Railroad). Not knowing anything about the area, I made a call for help online. Did the D&H loan it to the Octoraro RR to test before selling it to them? Was it sold before 1984? If it wasn't operating on the D&H in 1984 then I don't want a model of it.

#4177 - Note the window insert (pre-April 1974)

As it turns out, I don't own a single RS3 model. Nearly every manufacturer has made one either ready to run or as a kits and various online forums have debated which one is more accurate: see here for one. I am not concerned about counting rivets, the correct number of headlights, whether the exhaust stacks are parallel or perpendicular with the body, etc. But I do want the model to run well, be easy to convert to DCC, and have it painted in the correct D&H paint scheme for 1984. Several have been released but none with the correct road numbers. Admittedly, the blue dip would be pretty simple to custom paint. And, if the lightning stripe engines didn't have large numbers (or they wore off) then it would be simple to take another one and just renumber it on the corner number boxes.

Only four engines (or less?), and I will eventually acquire models of some of them, but until I know more I will play the waiting game.

New HO display case

My layout, which sadly hasn't been featured much lately on this blog, is below a ceiling that is exposed with rafters and such. Dirt falls from it. I was hoping to have a drop ceiling installed by now but I can't get a hold of the General Contractor I planned to use. And, until that is in I don't want to do any scenery (or ballasting) of the track. And, I also don't want to store my trains on the layout where they will get dirty.

But, it is depressing to have trains just stored in boxes. All of my G scale trains are in boxes, as are my Lionel trains (except the ones I had out for Christmas, which are still waiting to get packed up!) and my American Flyer stuff. Boxes boxes boxes. I want to see my trains. So, for the past few years I have been looking online at display cases. They have to be strong, presentable, and have dust covers or doors (those three characteristics eliminate any D.I.Y. sort of shelf). One has jumped out at me over and over again. Amazon has HO display cases in three finishes (black, cherry, or walnut) for $100. Ebay carries the same line of shelves. I don't expect much from a $100 shelf, but it can't break under the weight of the trains or fail to open/close. Most other shelf options are more expensive custom jobs such as these from Trackside Displays that look fantastic but cost three times as much. I figured it was worth ordering one from Amazon and seeing what you get for $100.

Since my basement walls are cinder blocks, I don't want to drill lots of holes in them. I don't want water to come in, and it is hard to keep the holes from crumbling and enlarging. So, since my rafters are still exposed I built a simple drop frame from 1x2" and 1x4" lumber and supported by angle brackets at the top. It cost less than $10 and once painted blue to match the walls is pretty innocuous. The bottom of the frame wasn't secured to the wall initially but it has a little spring to it, and I didn't want my shelf shaking when I was putting trains in it or taking them out. So, I ran a thick bead of Loctite adhesive (similar to Liquid Nails) along the bottom of the wood frame and pushed it into the wall. Once it set, the frame was stable.

Rear of case showing tiny factory mounting brackets

The display case isn't bad at all for $100. The hardware isn't the best, though the latches on mine certainly keep the lid closed. And the lid is UV resistant plastic, not glass, which cuts down on weight and protects my trains from harmful UV rays. It came with a protective film that was easily removed. Despite Amazon saying it would have green shelf backing, it came with black backing that I like a lot better. The mounting brackets on the back (see picture) are pathetic though, and I quickly removed them. I planned to drill through the back of the shelf and screw it directly to the wood frame, but the back is thin particle board or chipboard. So, I used L-brackets that I had on hand and properly sized screws (in pre-drilled holes in the shelf) to mount it to the wall. The L-brackets are visible but I can live with that. It feels pretty solid now, and that makes me happy.

And now I can see my trains. Some are calling out to me to run, like my RS11s. Some still need weathering, like my PA1 and my C424. Along the bottom are some of my Arcade & Attica models, including some custom painted 44-tonners and a tourist gondola I detailed during my younger days. Along the top shelf are two engines in the blue & black paint scheme I adopted for my shortline Rochester and Western Railroad. (I developed that paint scheme independent of Montana Rail Link, though I am sure both were inspired by the Burlington Northern). That Erie Lackawanna GP50 was my first HO train, though it can't move now as the motor is burned up and the shell is in pretty sorry shape. Various other sentimental pieces adorn the shelves too.

Do I love it? Yes I do! I can now see my trains whenever I want. I can (theoretically) pull them off the shelf and run them instantly. And I can show them to my friends. Sure, the shelf spacing is very tight so if you frequently take stuff on and off it probably will be annoying. And I wish it were slightly deeper. But I think it is great. So great, that I have another display cabinet on order right now! I need it... my three RS36s are currently in the mail to Elgin Car Shops for detailing and weathering and eventually when they come home they will need a spot to go.