Modeling Passenger Trains, Yay or Nay?

[Green_Elite_Cab]

If you're looking for inspiration, I can't say enough about DVDs with archival 8mm and 16mm railfan footage from the 40s, 50s, and 60s (even earlier if you can find it -- Gerald Best was making railfan films in the 20s). An all-color railfan book is now in the $60-70-80 range, while DVDs can be found on sale for $10, and even at full price are in the $20-30 range.

Films will show things like passenger cars being deadheaded in freights for any of a dozen reasons, for instance.

I definitely agree. I picked up a few DVDs on the Northeast Corridor, such as Herron Rail's "Pennsy's Racetrack 1940-1980". indeed, that DVD DOES go to the 20s, both to the New york Tubes with DD1 jack-shaft electrics, and to Broad Street Station in Philadelphia (before it was covered up), with MP54s when they were new, as well as some steam. It didn't cost me much more than $20.

That was probably one of the major forces that pushed me to move my time period back to 1979 instead of the modern day (wanting to model freight was the other).