Your Santa Wishlist to Manufacturers for 2018

[nkalanaga]

Jerry:  I'll take your word for the open/solarium ratio.  I was guessing, based on the GN's replacing the open platform cars on the Empire Builder, that most roads would have done so.  The GN's decision was based on AC and higher speeds, and the replacement was 7 cars, including the James J. Hill in your picture.

Unfortunately, by the 1960s it seems to have been gone, because 1074 was then an ex-Frisco streamlined coach acquired in 1966.  I could probably assign it to a (fictional) railroad museum in Great Falls, and run it in fan trips behind one of my steam engines.  I wouldn't mind having a model of it.

[CBQ Fan]

I don't need one, as Amtrak didn't use them in Montana, but it should sell well.  I'm sure there were a lot more of those during the steel heavyweight era than open platform obs...

For Montana you would need something more like this... (the orange and green should be all that is needed to justify one... B ))



But, no, solarium cars did not outnumber the open-platform observation cars... in fact quite a few were rebuilt from open-platform cars (the Hill car is one of the rare examples of being built this way).

In "as delivered" paint but the altered side panels was purely CRR, done when they upgraded the unit to F9-specs.  Really love the idea that the 800 has been returned to its original paint... but I had my repaint first...

I would definitely be in for the Great Northern version. I would also take one in Q even as a stand in.

[nkalanaga]

Well, there's two customers, and three cars.  How many does MT need before they'll start tooling?

[Ike the BN Freak]

Modular SD 40-2 bodies so B units can be made.

Issue with this idea is that if we are doing the protos, and only ones I can recall are the 3 BN home built units, is that they are all different.

BN 7500 has corrugated radiators and the battery boxes relocated to inside the hood
BN 7501 has chicken wire radiators and the battery boxes in original location
BN 7502 has chicken wire radiators, dynamics relocated to cab end, and battery boxes relocated to inside the hood

Just too many differences between the 3 to make it easy to do as a ready to run loco.

[jmlaboda]

I would definitely be in for the Great Northern version. I would also take one in Q even as a stand in.

Not sure how it happened but one of these cars ended up on the Southern Railway roster which rebuilt the car to a Modernized business car, SOU #4.  Later Re# 15 it last served leased to Auto-Train in full Southern dress and now resides on the Austin & Texas Central, a far different looking car from what it originally was built as.

[Maletrain]

Well, there's two customers, and three cars.  How many does MT need before they'll start tooling?

I wish it was that easy, but the B&O solarium cars that I would like to buy had only 2 or 3 over-size windows at one end, and that is a pretty conspicuous "spotting feature."  So, it would be hard for MTL to make a car that would not be a noticeable "foobie" on most roads if they matched on particular solarium car.

If they did make one with the number of large windows that I want, I would order 2.  But, I don't know if those would sell to anybody but B&O fans.  (Maybe Jerry knows what window configuration was most common?)

[Maletrain]

Getting back to the wish list:

Bachmann: Make a high headlight B&O Pacific.  A P-7 would probably sell most, but a P-1d would actually be more useful to those of us modeling coal country trains in the mountains.

MicroTrains:  Make a heavyweight, paired window baggage/passenger combine.

BLI or Bachmann: Make a B&O T-3 "war baby" 4-8-2 (smoke box centered headlight) and a Q-4 2-8-2 with a high headlight.

(Where is emoticon for "Not holding breath?")

[gelboy45]

I still need some GP9 'Redbirds' for all those heavyweight MTL Norfolk and Western passenger cars..........

Please, please.

Gerry

[jmlaboda]

I still need some GP9 'Redbirds' for all those heavyweight MTL Norfolk and Western passenger cars..........

Please, please.

Gerry

Boy, don't we ever!!!

Adapting an Atlas GP9 isn't at all easy, especially since the units, at least, would need fuel and air tanks like the GP20 below the Geep, not to mention the steam generator detail.  They were some of the earliest examples of EMD using this arrangement on Geeps and it lead to a standard practice that endures until today.  While using parts from a Life-Like GP18 or GP20 helps having a proper model straight off the shelf would be a boon to N&W modelers... just don't know if we will ever see such being done (hmm... a phase III GP9 with 48" fans would be even better...).