is this cheating?


I agree with Carey. It's your railroad. Run what you want. I planned my layout about 25 years ago, and chose the transition era, because I did grow up in this era, and spent countless hours riding in the cabs of steam, diesel and electric locomotives. I even chose the year, 1957. I am tied into a time period, but enjoy it a lot.
 
For many years, a number of different railroads ran passenger excursion trains with steam locomotives pulling streamliner passenger cars. I fact, unless it has been cancelled for reasons of economy or repair to the hog, the Union Pacific runs #844 (a 4-8-4) from Denver to Cheyenne for Cheyenne Frontier Days every summer). Big Boy #4014 is being restored for just such excursions. While you could run a 40 ft. boxcar with Amtrak trains, you ought to remove the roof walk and shorten the ladders to remain with OSHA specs in modern times. Of course, you could argue that it is a privately-owned car being delivered to a railroad museum or somesuch, and that is why it retains its roof walk and ladders. You can also remove the "modern" rolling stock, and run older stuff. I model the 1940's to early '60's. But, occasionally, I have a young grandchild come over, and sometimes other youngsters, who never saw the old era. I have started to acquire a few modern pieces of rolling stock, including a BNSF B38-2 road switcher (yes, there was at least one post-merger), and some 50' covered hoppers with an EOT device on one instead of a caboose, which I can set out on the layout if desired. (In point of fact, the grandkid like running the older stuff, too. I just needs to have sound!) Then, again, as others have said, "It's YOUR railroad!" and you can do as you please without regard to what anyone says...unless, perhaps, it's your wife, girlfriend, significant other, etc. (Never argue with a woman, a skunk or a cook! :p )
 
jabber1990 said:
at some point there has to be a fine line between being a dictator and just being stupid
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Only you can define that line. For me I had an epiphany or "moment of truth" if you will when I was on an operational layout tour. For years I was a pretty big make stuff fit into a Freelance sort of guy. An operational layout tour is where one takes a weekend and we go from one model railroad operating session to another. You get to see and experience all sorts of operations, styles, and most importantly layouts. This particular weekend most layouts were mundane, but a couple were really good. Very long story short ... on the 2nd day we went into this one (remaining nameless) fellows house. At the intro meeting he ran through the normal rules of operations. The rules ominously started with the "Its my railroad ... my rules" line. During the orientation he kept interjecting how his railroad was so good, and how visitors always raved over the details, ad nauseam. So we get our assignments and go into layout room, and I was shocked. It looked like a carnival toy train display. No distinguishable road name, no time period, no geographic relationships, no discernible themes of any type. I instantly lost whatever "I'll do whatever I want" I had running in my veins. That is also when I realized creating a good freelance road is much harder than modeling a prototype.
 
I decided years ago to pick a region and theme and stick with it. I wandered off by a decade a few times and kind of regreted it later. I sold off some power that was a bit too modern. But I put the money back into the layout.

I really always wanted to avoid being associated with the Lionel syndrome of running trains of grossly distorted proportions and odd looking track, all whizzing around in the TV Adam's Family basement. That's how outside people used to perceive train modelers years ago -- as if we were some type of off-beat person. Most the modelers I knew rarely shared the hobby in casual conversations with others for that reason. But reasonably accurate modeling always overcame that wrong perception.

When singer Rod Stuart was interviewed on some TV show, the host announced him a also being an excellent model railroader. Did you hear the laughter and hoots from the audience? It's the uninformed public perception in many cases.
 
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While I do observe the philosophy of "Its My Railroad", I do proto-lance on my railroad. I follow a class one RR as my main objective, in this case the SOUTHERN, under steam. This is the proto part BUT, and its a big BUT, I also model what was in reality a RR that only had 12 miles of track total at any one time, the ALABAMA CENTRAL RAILWAY. However, I "changed" the circumstance of this part. I moved it to a more central part of my state, Made it a controlling partner, and have allowed it to have loco's that I personally like, that the SOUTHERN never had! I have a couple of SP engines, actually T&NO, a couple of rebuilt IC's, a N&W Y3a, 2-8-8-2, a C&O H5 2-6-6-2 and an H8 2-6-6-6. This is the free-lance part.

The whole thing is set up in the part of the state that I grew up in, and as a result am very familiar with. Even today I live no more than 80mi from where I was born and raised. The scenery will reflect that area in 1950.

So yes, you can have the free-lanced nightmare that was described by IH, and Charles, or you can have a RR like McClellan's V&O, Chubb's Sunset Lines, or Brooman's Utah Belt. A RR like these is what I'm striving for. A united theme, under a single concept. May not turn out as well as theirs did, but that's what I'm after.
 
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D&J RailRoad said:
Ya mean like running steam and diesel like this:

[video=youtube;X-A_89z3MHQ]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X-A_89z3MHQ[/video]
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Nice!! I use my Challenger to pull my California Zephyrs, as well as my PA/B/A set. If you're having fun, it don't matter ;)
 
Motley said:
You can run whatever you want, whatever makes you happy. However if you want stick to prototypes, then the steam trains should be designated as museum restoration trains on a modern layout
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Something like this, as seen in Altoona PA in 2012.

Ron
 

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jabber1990 said:
I am wondering if its "cheating" to run a modern layout and run modern locomotives just so that I can run outdated locomotives and outdated cars, and even run entire trains that are out-of-era?

I'm trying to get "back" into the hobby after a 10-year hiatus and now that I actually have some money now I know what I'd love to run and if I See something I'd like to run it

yes, I know that its my layout and I make the rules but at some point there has to be a fine line between being a dictator and just being stupid
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Consider this: If you go out to Littleton, NH, they operate a scenic Railroad and pull their steamer out on a weekly basis for trips. This is a modern railroad that runs on modern tracks with "antique" equipment and period cars (Though I'm not saying that track couldn't stand an update). If it happens in the real world, why not on your layout?

I'm pretty much in the same boat as you. I'm trying to run a "real" layout after years of just saying, "Yeah, I have a model train..." and never really doing anything with it. I'm sure there are purists who would look at what I have set up and tell me thousands of things that are wrong with it. But you know what? It works for me. :cool:
 
KB02 said:
... But you know what? It works for me. :cool:
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And this is what it all should be about. Everyone should remember from the pickiest rivet counter to the most free of free lancers, There is no correct way to be a Model Railroader.
 
Hi-

While I'm new to this site, I've been involved in model railroading for many years. When I finally got to a point in life that I could have a layout-the basement and many family obligations out of the way now-I went the proto-lancing route too. I'm modeling the anthracite roads from the mid-1960s to midnight, March 31, 1976. This allows me to use just about all of the equipment I've acquired to date. I am not modeling a specific road, though the LV will eventually have a few more engines than anyone else. (Hey, how can you beat PAs on the point of passenger or freight!) I will take some liberties with the time frame-if I feel like running a Conrail train, I do have a couple of engines in that paint. But the earliest days of Conrail aren't that far past my intended time frame, so I am comfortable with that.

I didn't give up on my MILW modeling; I still have most of that equipment and will run it when I feel like it. I ended up going solo when my local club was simply NOT interested in acknowledging the fact the MILW came to town on a branch line and only considered NP and GN models as "appropriate" to the club layout.

And 40' box cars lasted into the early 2000s. There were a group of modified blue GTW 40' cars that were running on the BNSF in interchange service. These cars had had their heights made higher for some reason.

Photoman475
Proprietor of the Anthracite Division of the Bankrupt Lines, America's only true transcontinental railroad!
 
Run whatever you want. If anyone gives you guff about it, tell them you model a parallel dimension where _____ is accurate (____ being whatever you decide)...

I run an imaginary branchline of the PRR. I run diesels and steam that never actually shared the same tracks at the same time. The Burlington Zephyr comes through occasionally on a "demo run" on tracks it never ran on IRL. I don't really care. Why? Because I like the Burlington Zephyr, got a great buy on the Con-Cor model a few years back, and I'm not going to keep it on a shelf because it's "not right"...

I have friends come over with absolute modern-era rolling stock and locos. They run quite nicely right next to my 1940's era steam and heavyweights... And? My very best MRR-friend models Germany in the 1950's. When he comes over with European locos and rolling stock... They're welcome to track rights. I'm a strong proponent of the "if you're enjoying your hobby, you're doing it right" theory.

Do I try to mostly keep things vaguely prototypical? Yeah. Does my layout have a bunch of 1950's era structures AND a modern fast food restaurant? No. But what I do and what you do... Neither is wrong nor right. I run what I run because I -like- steam and I -like- F-style diesels and I'm not a big fan of GP-style diesels, Acela passenger trains and fast-food restaurants. Not because it's "right"... I have a 2-8-8-2 that never ran on PRR tracks. I don't leave it in the box. I will one day get a "Big Boy" and I'll run it - despite it never having come within 1,000 miles of what I model. So?

If you find that striving for authenticity, or striving for prototypical accuracy, or even (Gods help you) rivet-counting is pleasurable, by all means.... But if you find that running K-4 pacifics next to Acela Express trains works for you... go for it. Make up a "story" for why that's so, or don't, as you prefer... And anyone who tries to tell you what you're doing is "wrong"... Invite them to go do whatever they like on their own empire. Truth is simply this: I can't think of a single Model Railroad in the world that is actually prototypical. That would require miles (not scale miles, real miles) of relatively straight and level track, without industries to switch, without towns to stop... The vast majority of railroad track in this nation is (boring boring boring) straight and level miles of track between points of interest. The largest layouts MIGHT prototypically have one town, one industry, one yard... We basically have NO HOPE AT ALL of being actually prototypical. It is a question - for every last one of us - of the "compressed relativity" compromises we're willing to make. And that "compressed reality" applies to both time and space...

So until someone else is paying your mortgage and buying your supplies and building your benchwork for you... You do what you like.
 
PS - Per Photoman and others here... If you really insist, you can usually find a prototype "excuse" for whatever you want to do anyway. 40' box cars, "excursion" trains, etc.

Heck, on one day my shays and heislers can be running up-grade from the sawmill to the "logging camp"... and on the next, they can be doing "excursion trips" from the "small town station" to the same mountain top... where they stop at the "historical reproduction" of the logging camp.
 
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