08-16-2011, 02:14 PM
Actually, Pete, my post was in response to riverman, whose comment
I took to be in answer the the question posed by the thread title: " What Era, Railroads, & Locomotives are you set on?"
I agree with you somewhat about Big Boy's appeal, as there are lots of "big" locos worthy of note. U.P.' s Challengers are better looking, in my opinion, as were many Northerns. The best looking Berks were, in my estimation, the 1900s of the Mopac and they re-built them into equally handsome Northerns. I've seen the Big Boy at Steamtown, and, while it is impressive even as a static display, the Reading's T-1 on the other side of the parking lot loomed larger to my eye. I wouldn't call the latter especially good-looking, though, but she started life as a Consolidation and we've all seen plastic surgery that didn't quite come out right.
Performance-wise, though, the Reading nailed it. 
For good-looking locos, my favourites by far are NYC's Hudsons: J-1, original J-2, and J-3. I can see something attractive in almost any steam loco, though.
riverman Wrote:ALL of 'em, Arghhhhh...
I took to be in answer the the question posed by the thread title: " What Era, Railroads, & Locomotives are you set on?"
I agree with you somewhat about Big Boy's appeal, as there are lots of "big" locos worthy of note. U.P.' s Challengers are better looking, in my opinion, as were many Northerns. The best looking Berks were, in my estimation, the 1900s of the Mopac and they re-built them into equally handsome Northerns. I've seen the Big Boy at Steamtown, and, while it is impressive even as a static display, the Reading's T-1 on the other side of the parking lot loomed larger to my eye. I wouldn't call the latter especially good-looking, though, but she started life as a Consolidation and we've all seen plastic surgery that didn't quite come out right.
Performance-wise, though, the Reading nailed it. For good-looking locos, my favourites by far are NYC's Hudsons: J-1, original J-2, and J-3. I can see something attractive in almost any steam loco, though.