I was looking over my locomotives yesterday and seen a hodge podge collection of CR,NS,CSX,a OC GP7,2 R.J.Corman geeps,7 CF7 in various shortlines,lease units,IHB,BRC,C&O,Chessie,N&W,Southern and my freelance C&HV,SCR,Summerset and Huron River..With over 55 years in the hobby I should have settled down years ago and modeled one road
That ends the prelude to my question.
Of course we all realized its a enjoyable hobby with many interests.
But...
I wonder how many of us starts out with a goal in mind and ends up like me with a hodge podge roster of locomotives?
I, too, have a hodge podge of locos and cars.The difference between us would be that I achieved my goal. All I ever wanted to do is enjoy myself. I've had at least half dozen layouts of all kinds, and had a blast with all of them. Mostly scenery. One time I wanted a pond, so before pouring, I ran a car in it with ruts leading to the road. You guessed it, a woman driver standing by, wringing her hands, while a tractor was chained to it to pull it out. I get a big kick dreaming up oddball scenes.
I can't tell one deisel from another, so the hodge podge makes me no difference. Since each RR used them up, they sold them to me cheap, so my RR is a whing-dinger.
Lynn
Brakie Wrote:I wonder how many of us starts out with a goal in mind and ends up like me with a hodge podge roster of locomotives?
Larry;
You can certainly add me to the list of those with a hodge podge roster of locomotives. Started out intending to do one thing, then got interested in something else; while in the mean time, the manufacturers kept coming out with other locomotives that I've always liked. Result: My ISL will be one road one time and another road the next time! Did I need to buy all these locomotives? NO!!! But the temptation was just too much and now they're tempting me again with an L&N U28B!!!
After a scant 8 years, its still CP and nothing but CP. I don't know. No other road name even remotely intrests me. Except maybe CN. I have thought about a "what if" scenario for my home layout and pretend that CN took over the Kettle Valley instead of CP. Just for my own kicks. That said, I'm glad I've stuck to my guns. I've probably saved myself a small fortune.
I can say that I don't, I stuck with conrail since the beginning without steering away
Larry I was that way years ago but quickly realized I needed to focus. I picked a place. era and theme and sold, traded or gave away everything that didn't fit. Got to say it's saved me a boatload of $$$$$$$ !
Steam? a Hodgepodge
Diesel? a Hodgepodge
Gauge? a Hodgepodge
Era ? a Hodgepodge
Sagaponack Montauk, became Sagaponack Montauk & Cindys Harbor
Sag Harbor Shipbuilding & Dry Dock Company came about when I got into narrow gauge. (
Parent Company of the SM&CH, and SHLC )
Shinnecock Hills Lumber Company came into being when I took an interest in lumber roads.
Chicago & Northwestern was part of getting into the modular group ( diesel era )
B&O, C&O, N&W, D&H, because I liked their steam locomotives.
Western Pacific, I just had to do an FT-A+B+F7-A, in the road I first saw that combo. I had modeled that in SM first, and then repainted in SM&CH.
I've certainly suffered from the 'ooo shiney!' syndrome in the past and collected a hodge podge, but in my defence I hadn't made a 'connection' to any one railroad or area.
Now I stick to to areas of interest:
1st, Wisconsin during the 'Wisconsin Central' era, (so much foreign power was around that some of my 'hodge podge' can be accommodated, even my prized pair or Rio Grande Tunnel Motors) and
2nd, Norfolk and Western late '60s early 70s. Most of my remaining 'hodge podge' is gradually being repainted black .....
I never sell for a loss what I can recycle
Cheers,
Kev
Tyson Rayles Wrote:Larry I was that way years ago but quickly realized I needed to focus. I picked a place. era and theme and sold, traded or gave away everything that didn't fit. Got to say it's saved me a boatload of $$$$$$$ !
I was focus when I was younger but,as I grew older I lost that focus.
Of course club membership can be used as a excuse--well that's my story and I'm sticking to it....
Now I'm thinking of backdating to the late 50/early 60s simply because I've always liked the Zerbra striped Santa Fe locomotives,PFE reefers and West India Fruit & Steanship boxcars .
I'm seeing a potential "show your loco roster in a group shot" thread!
Oh, all Penn Central and not yet repainted Pennsey for me...except for my freelanced Kings Port & Western locos.
Fortunately I have always stayed in focus on ATSF diesel power. That being said, I have over 70 models ranging from GP20's through GP60's and Dash9-44CW's. I move time frames around from 1975 to 1995 depending on my mood. I do have a single Frisco GP38-2 for interchange traffic. If I'm running post-1980, that line becomes a branch instead of an interchange. Freight cars are a different thing though; I've got over 100 roofwalk/solid axle bearing cars boxed up under the layout.
willie
I have a variety, but not sure if I qualify for the hodge-podge list. I am proto-freelancing a railroad similar to the RF&P, in which most traffic originates and terminates off line. The RF&P saw B&O, C&O, PRR, ACL, SAL, and Southern, with an occasional FEC. So my hodge-podge is all eastern roads that would have "passed through", just like the RF&P had. Primarily, though, I have home road (Baltimore & Potomac) or parent-road (PRR) locos.
Dave
I have locos lettered for 3 different eras in British railways. And no discipline as to what region. Plus N. American.
The rest of it I claim is my wife's. 2 "scales" and 3 gauges. She does seem to have a slight weakness for Colorado (!) and the Polar Express and Eggliners and Walter Disney and ...
I have trimmed my collection in the last three or four years to four NYC locos, one PRR loco and two local road name locos. Yes, I had several others before, but have gotten rid of them to concentrate on these.
I do have two other locos in the same grouping put away for possible future use.
And then there are all the custom built "wooden" loco's I've built