01-12-2014, 12:56 PM
I pulled out some of my dormant Virginian projects. Before Atlas came out with its Train Master, I got a couple of bluebox Athearn Train Masters in Virginian, assembled and painted the handrails, and added a few tweaks.
I also remotored them:
However, Atlas then came out with its version, which was enough better that I focused on those and left the Athearns aside for some time. Then I found a dummy Athearn undec at a swap meet and did it up as a post-merger N&W unit. I pulled it out yesterday and did a little more weathering:
Originally I thought that, as a dummy, it would do best in a dead line as a scenery item, but I guess it's good enough to run with the Athearns (the N&W didn't mix the ex VGN units with much else). So then I decided I would number the Athearn VGN units for N&W post merger (I never got around to numbering them, in part because the VGN only put numbers in the number boards). The N&W ran the ex VGN units for some time in VGN paint with just new numbers:
So I'm going to add a few more details, number them for N&W (maybe have to make up my own artwork for the numbers on the cab side), and weather them. The N&W didn't wash them like the VGN did, which will help tone down the Athearn paint, which isn't as good as the Atlas.
I also remotored them:
However, Atlas then came out with its version, which was enough better that I focused on those and left the Athearns aside for some time. Then I found a dummy Athearn undec at a swap meet and did it up as a post-merger N&W unit. I pulled it out yesterday and did a little more weathering:
Originally I thought that, as a dummy, it would do best in a dead line as a scenery item, but I guess it's good enough to run with the Athearns (the N&W didn't mix the ex VGN units with much else). So then I decided I would number the Athearn VGN units for N&W post merger (I never got around to numbering them, in part because the VGN only put numbers in the number boards). The N&W ran the ex VGN units for some time in VGN paint with just new numbers:
So I'm going to add a few more details, number them for N&W (maybe have to make up my own artwork for the numbers on the cab side), and weather them. The N&W didn't wash them like the VGN did, which will help tone down the Athearn paint, which isn't as good as the Atlas.