If one were to model the Milwaukee Road…

[jargonlet]

I mainly model the Erie, EL and Pennsylvania in ho scale. However I do like many roads I don’t get to model. I guess I fall into the never met a train I didn’t like catagory. I am thinking about making a small Milwaukee Road layout in N scale. By small, I mean 2x4 to 3x6 range. I don’t know much about the Milwaukee Road but like what I have seen.

If I were to do a small layout:
I am looking at 2 eras, late 40’s or late 50’s. I like the freight units kato did. I understand these to be from the late 40s. How long did that scheme last? Did these always run as full sets or get split up? Kato sells them as an ab set but not larger sets. Did the FP9 that kato makes run in freight service prior to the 60’s?
I have one of the Fox Valley Hiawatha that I picked up before I moved to HO. What era does the Fox Valley Hiawatha fit? I believe it was sold as the 1936 version.
As for cabooses, is there a listing of what lettering fits what era?

[Sokramiketes]

I've been down this path and find the 1948-1950 period very modellable given the stuff that has been manufactured.

Off the top of my head:

-Kato F7's delivered 1949.  You want an ABA set on the east end (Chicago/Milwaukee) or ABBA out on the transcon.
-Class A Hiawatha steam (FVM) still in service on secondary trains until 1950.  Correct scheme will have running indian on the tender, and stripes to match the 1948 scheme
-Kato Olympian can be backdated by adding the maroon letter board and gray roofs.  Train built 1947-48.
-FVM ribside cabooses, look for the earlier model, and in the scheme with maroon lettering
-BLI has done the Fast 15 set of E6's in the 1948 scheme

[jargonlet]

That’s all good info. I would want to do something more on the east end. At one point I was modeling the prr in 1947 and still have a lot of that era rolling stock. I had also bought the Hiawatha on a whim and held onto it despite not having any real use for it. Would the primary freight scheme be like the one on the kato pair during that era.

[brokemoto]

Did LL do the Eries in CMStP&P?  CMStP&P did have Eries, although for a pike as small as what Original Poster proposes, they might be too large.

[sd45elect2000]

Yes, LL did the Erie built engines but they did the late version, off the top of my head I think they were the 22 AB and the 21 ABC.

Randy