GP 38 Cab Replacement (Update 10/12)

[traingeekboy]

Nice looking model. With the paint on I'd be hard pressed to say it isn't something prototype.

Yeah, I'd say it looked that clean for maybe a week, and then it would have been covered with dust and soot. Perhaps time to break out the weathering powders and give it a serious immersion in dirt.

I spotted a nice looking E9/8 on your workbench too.

That cat is quite the handsome beast. Who is that? Seems everyone has some sort of critter who lives on the layout.

The railway in the background is a bit of a tease. Could use some more shots of that layout so as to see the track arrangement.

[EngineDriver]

Hi Griff, thanks for your comments, the E8 that you saw is an F7 its one I made from odds and sods mostly Athearn though.

The cat is "Angel" she was rescued last year as a kitten, she and her brother were destined to have diving lessons in a bucket of water if no-one wanted them Her brother went to some friends of ours. I have uploaded a picture of a pair of E8's for you, hope you like them

[traingeekboy]

Love the E8's. Actually all the E and F units are just wonderful.

Uh, you're not gonna repaint that beautiful Illinois central gulf unit back there are you? I have a super soft spot for ICG. The City of new Orleans ran on the ICG, got to ride it as a kid in the seventies between Chicago and Champaign, Ill; where the division point and crew change happens.

I'll have to show you my first attempt at painting a N scale diesel with rattle cans. No one made an ICG one so I painted my gp38-2 into ICG. I had to have one. Then I never finished it.

[EngineDriver]

The ICG Geep you can see is a long term project. It arrived to me as a basket case no motor, broken gearbox, all the hand rails missing or broken and some steps missing. Oh and the cab roof was also missing! So I started to replace all the missing and broken parts from bits out of my "bits box". It is now a runner but I am not happy with original type of motor that is in it now so I have just taken delivery of a "Mashima" motor for it, which will be fitted very shortly. Next after that I have to fabricate the hand rails and finish the body work, fit couplings and then the paint shop!!!! Sorry Yes its destined to be.....................................?

[traingeekboy]

Ok ok, I know Penn Central.

Seeing as it was rescued from the scrap heap I am not so disturbed. And yet ICG orange and white is so beautiful. Or have you seen the GM&O red and white stripe jobs?

http://farm2.staticflickr.com/1024/1320669139_6f8c58d1e9_z.jpg' alt='URL>'>

When illinois central and Gulf Mobile and Ohio, parallel lines running chicago to the south, merged into illnois central gulf in 1972 you could see lots of color on a freight train.

And if you must have black, there is always the Black and white version.

http://donsdepot.donrossgroup.net/dr0400/gmo637.jpg' alt='URL>'>

I'm fairly partial to anything that ran into chicago. Even PC ran into Chicago since the New York central had a line to chicago. Don't take me to task on that one, but I'm sure they would have had that line when they merged.

And New york central owned the Indiana Harbor belt running into Chicago, so IHB could theoretically be seen with NYC and with a stretch of imagination PC.

Guess so, here's some Pc units on former IHB track.

http://ptatransitauthority.blogspot.com/2009/08/blog-post.html" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

The wonderful IHB livery.

http://yardlimit.railfan.net/archive/bn/029-099ihb.jpg' alt='URL>'>

My fascination with IHB came when I wanted just one DCC sound fitted steam loco. I shopped at my local hobby store Caboose hobbies and they let you test run all the locos. I tried everything. The best running were the Broadway limited NYC passenger locos that were their first release at the time, and the Life Like Heritage 0-8-0 switchers.

i've told this story often, but I'll repeat it here. The LL cost over 200.00$ new. I waited and waited. Then one day all they had left were IHB ones and they went on sale for 118.00 or so. At the same time the decoder for it went on sale at half price. It took a year of waiting, but I bought it and did my own decoder install.

If you want to talk about model comparisons I doubt many HO models can compare to the LL switcher.

http://www.wig-wag-trains.com/Walthers/Walthers%20Pics/Locomotives/0-8-0/920-90023-LnN.JPG' alt='URL>'>

Not the best photo of the model. but you see all the piping. The gap between boiler and undercarriage. Chains on the tender bogies. And it has the smooothest running mechanism I had ever seen on a model train.

I could go on and on about chicago lines and I havent even brought up Chicago Central or Chicago and Eastern Illinois, or Chicago and greatwestern. he he he Lots of beautiful lines.

[traingeekboy]

All this talk about Penn central got me wondering when and for how long it ran.

1968 to 1976 not a huge window of time for a modeler.

[EngineDriver]

Griff, I have just spent ages looking at those pictures you have posted. I really like that 0-8-0 switcher the detail is outstanding. I have also poached that Transit Authority website and put it in my favorites, another source of useful photo's!

As to the Penn Central I don't know why we got into it like we have, it all started with my son buying a geep at a swapmeet. I kept saying I was going to spray it something else like santa Fe or U.P, but as we used it it kind of grew on me. So we had another and another etc etc. We already had a few Pennsy loco's and some varnish, so it seemed to follow on somehow. Fortunately we have set our layout, albeit fictionally, in the general chicago area so we can as you say with some modellers license run pretty much what we like so long as you don't over do it. Just so you don't think it's all I do, my next project is restoring a Union Pacific SD40-2 that I have recently acquired from Ebay. It was lettered up for the Florida East Coast but still in UP yellow so it won't take much putting right.

[traingeekboy]

Well, here the railroads in big cities do transfer runs from one yard to another. It is not only feasible, but likely, to see a freight train pull into another lines yard. It's the only way to interchange huge cuts of cars between lines.

Don't get me wrong I like P C, But there are so many pretty paint colors one might want to have.

Dang, now I'm startin' to look at my US N scale again and plot and scheme.

p.s. Walthers bought out Life like and re- released it DCC and sound equipped.

[EngineDriver]

It would be nice to have DCC but it would cost a small fortune to convert all our loco's. somewhere in the region of £200 per loco if we were to fit sound as well, which if your'e going DCC you have to have sound or it's not worth it. We have some 100+ loco's at the last count! And yes I know we could sell some to finance the conversion, we have thought of this but how do you decide which to keep and which to sell? The layout works very as it is and will only get better now we are outside again, and hopefully we will be into the second building this next year so the trains will have a destination instead of just round and round

Talking about "N" gauge I have my youngest son's layout to complete this winter, I keep doing a bit but can't work up much enthusiasm for it! (New Year resolution?)

[traingeekboy]

Some of the decoders for sound can run DC. BLI has always had dc and dcc operation on their sound decoders.

http://www.broadway-limited.com/paragon2-3.aspx" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

But I am in the same place regarding DCC on my layout. I don't have a ton of Ho locos, but it's still a chunk of money and time to convert. I'm still debating what to do. I'll probably end up going dcc just because it would take the same amount of time to put control blocks onto my layout.

I keep eyeing those PC E8's you have. I must resist the urge to buy American trains for my ho layout.

[EngineDriver]

Seeing as you 're keen on E's and F's here are another pair of E's resting between turns of duty on the depot at "Jamesville"

[traingeekboy]

Ahhh i miss those locos. used to see em as a kid when i'd visit the grandparents in chicago. *sigh*

Seeing as you are into American outline...

http://www.rr-fallenflags.org/" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

A lifetime of photos.

[EngineDriver]

Cheers Griff, superb link. As you say a lifetime of photos. Maybe I will paint something different now Hey not be long before midnight here, Santa will be here soon!!! Merry Christmas to you and your family. Nige.

[traingeekboy]

And to you. Say hi to Santa

I have to prepare dinner soon. Should be fun having the family around.

[traingeekboy]

Another reason why I like the 70's in the Us best.

Grand Trunk diesels have a nice color to them.

http://www.trainboard.com/railimages/data/1634/GT_4517.jpg" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

[EngineDriver]

Interesting photo, simple colour scheme, almost a "dip job" as you say. Whats with the large things on the exhausts?

[traingeekboy]

It's just another weird upgrade mod. I think model railroaders call them torpedo tubes. I am trying to remember what they are for... Possibly steam generator tanks for passenger train heating. Don't take my word for it though.

Yup, looked it up and found a description for a model of one.

http://www.athearn.com/Products/Default.aspx?ProdID=ATHG62430" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

[EngineDriver]

No, not them, there are some wierd shaped things on the exhaust stacks they might be spark arresters, but on a diesel?

[traingeekboy]

Yeah now I see them. They're hidden against the tree a bit. Yup spark arrestors.

[EngineDriver]

Ah, ok