Show off your HO scale motive power!
A little background, since this is my first post: My father and I have been dabbling in model trains since I was about 3 years old (I am 20 now), although we are small-time railroaders so our layout is far too small (4'x6') for all these locomotives to be active at once. They have to be run in "shifts" with the rest in the display case or their storage boxes.
DIESELS:
Type: EMD F7
Make: Bachmann
Road Name: Atchiston, Topeka & Santa Fe
Road Number: 307
Description: This locomotive is very nearly identical to the one that came with our first train set, back in 1988 or 89, except that one had a dual headlight. It developed problems after about five years and Bachmann traded it in for a new one for us. We actually have two locomotives of this type, the other aquired in a "Loco/Caboose Combo Set with an AT&SF caboose. Since it has the same number we seldom run it, indeed we never even changed out the stock horn-hook couplers for knuckle ones.
These Bachmann train-set locomotives have undersized motors that drive only one truck, and run quite roughly with a lot of jerky motion and noise. However, both of ours still work even though they are about ten years old, so they have outlasted the original by double. This may be due to the fact that they were never run on the circle of train-set track with carpet fibers sticking up through the ties.
Type: EMD GP9
Make: Athearn
Road Name: Milwaukee Road
Road Number: None
Description: With the demise of the original Bachmann train-set F7, this is the oldest operating engine in our fleet (purchased around 1990-91) and looks it too, since it is the only one that received a weathering job, primarily on the trucks and wheels to make them look rusty (unfortunately not very visible in the photo). It was a reliable runner out of the box and still is today, although with a bit more gear noise. For some reason it was shipped without a road number and still doesn't have one. Luckily it's not liable to be mistaken for any other locomotive, since it's our only high-nose GP9 with a dynamic brake "bulge" on the roof.
Type: EMD GP18
Make: Life-Like Proto 2000
Road Name: Toledo, Peoria & Western
Road Number: 600
Description: This locomotive has also been with us awhile, purchased sometime in the early-mid '90s. It is one of the most detailed model diesels we have, complete with fan blades inside the roof vents, bell, windshield wipers, operating cab window visors, crew figures inside the cab, and more. Unfortunately it had a working life of only one or two years before an accident while attempting to solder a new headlight wire melted the plastic driveshaft. Since then it has been consigned to its shipping box until recently when I brought it out and snapped the shell back on for the photo.
Type: F-M H10-44
Make: Walther's
Road Name: Chicago & Northwestern
Road Number: 1054
Description: Can't recall exactly when we aquired this locomotive, but it was sometime during the mid-'90s and it was our first diesel switcher locomotive. Dad grew up in Beloit near a Fairbanks-Morse plant, and the Chicago & Northwestern operated the tracks near our house in Madison (where we lived until 1999) before the Union Pacific, then the Wisconsin & Southern took over, so this is a nostalgic favorite.
Like Athearns and Life-Like Proto 2Ks, we have found Walther's model diesels to be smooth and reliable runners and this is no exception.
Type: EMD SW1
Make: Walther's
Road Name: Chicago & Northwestern
Road Number: 1212
Description: 1212 joined our roster shortly after #1054 to help the latter out in the freight yard. Due to some rough handling (hey, I was young), most of the front railings are gone.
Type: "Hustler" 4-wheel switcher
Make: Athearn
Road Name: Chicago & Northwestern
Road Number: 46
Description: A mid-late 1990s aquisition to help out at industry sidings while the bigger switchers are needed elsewhere. This is our only Athearn locomotive to give us mechanical trouble, due to its belt drive. Both the original belts broke and it was out of order for awhile until one of my friends replaced them...with spare rubber jaw-bands from his orthodontist! It ran on those for nearly five years before one of them broke, and it has now been retired again.
Type: Center-Cab 4-wheel switcher
Make: IHC
Road Name: Milwaukee Road
Road Number: 2397
Description: One of our more recent additions, purchased after moving to Stoughton. It is now doing the job of the out-of-commission #46.
Type: EMD GP9
Make: Walther's
Road Name: Wisconsin & Southern
Road Number: 4494
Description: This model joined the roster in 1998 or 1999, and has the distinction of being our only model locomotive for which I have actually seen its prototype in operation. It is also unique in being the only one of our four GP9s with a low front hood for better visibility.
Type: EMD GP38-2
Make: Athearn
Road Name: Chicago & Northwestern
Road Number: 4623
Description: This and all the diesels below were purchased relatively recently, at the Madison Model Railroad Show & Sales held in February from 2001-2003. #4623 has the honor of being our only operable "non-9" EMD GP unit.
Type: EMD GP9
Make: Life-Like Proto 2000
Road Name: Chicago & Northwestern
Road Number: 1719 & 1720
Description: Despite being identical locomotives with identical mechanisms, these two do not run quite the same. 1720 is a slighty faster engine and tries to pull away if placed in the lead when the two are double-headed.
Type: EMD SD40-2
Make: Athearn
Road Name: Chicago & Northwestern
Road Number: 6935
Description: Number 6935 was brought into the fold to help with long mainline freights that required doubleheading GP units.
Type: F-M H24-66 "Trainmaster"
Make: Athearn
Road Name: Chicago & Northwestern
Road Number: 1905
Description: Ditto from #6935
Type: EMD E6
Make: Life-Like Proto 2000
Road Name: Chicago & Northwestern
Road Number: 5005-A & 5006-A
Description: In theory, these E6s together with the 2 Erie-Builts below make up our express passenger service fleet. In practice, they don't run since our matched set of IHC C&NW "400" coaches not only looks terrible going around our sharp curves, but swing out so wide that they actually knock over trackside accessories such as signs, signals, people, etc! It's a pity too because these models look really cool with their operating Mars lights.
Type: F-M "Erie Built"
Make: Life-Like Proto 1000
Road Name: Chicago & Northwestern
Road Number: 6001-A & 6001-B
Description: See above
Those are all our diesels, due to text limitations I have to make another post for our steam roster.
A little background, since this is my first post: My father and I have been dabbling in model trains since I was about 3 years old (I am 20 now), although we are small-time railroaders so our layout is far too small (4'x6') for all these locomotives to be active at once. They have to be run in "shifts" with the rest in the display case or their storage boxes.
DIESELS:
Type: EMD F7
Make: Bachmann
Road Name: Atchiston, Topeka & Santa Fe
Road Number: 307
Description: This locomotive is very nearly identical to the one that came with our first train set, back in 1988 or 89, except that one had a dual headlight. It developed problems after about five years and Bachmann traded it in for a new one for us. We actually have two locomotives of this type, the other aquired in a "Loco/Caboose Combo Set with an AT&SF caboose. Since it has the same number we seldom run it, indeed we never even changed out the stock horn-hook couplers for knuckle ones.
These Bachmann train-set locomotives have undersized motors that drive only one truck, and run quite roughly with a lot of jerky motion and noise. However, both of ours still work even though they are about ten years old, so they have outlasted the original by double. This may be due to the fact that they were never run on the circle of train-set track with carpet fibers sticking up through the ties.
Type: EMD GP9
Make: Athearn
Road Name: Milwaukee Road
Road Number: None
Description: With the demise of the original Bachmann train-set F7, this is the oldest operating engine in our fleet (purchased around 1990-91) and looks it too, since it is the only one that received a weathering job, primarily on the trucks and wheels to make them look rusty (unfortunately not very visible in the photo). It was a reliable runner out of the box and still is today, although with a bit more gear noise. For some reason it was shipped without a road number and still doesn't have one. Luckily it's not liable to be mistaken for any other locomotive, since it's our only high-nose GP9 with a dynamic brake "bulge" on the roof.
Type: EMD GP18
Make: Life-Like Proto 2000
Road Name: Toledo, Peoria & Western
Road Number: 600
Description: This locomotive has also been with us awhile, purchased sometime in the early-mid '90s. It is one of the most detailed model diesels we have, complete with fan blades inside the roof vents, bell, windshield wipers, operating cab window visors, crew figures inside the cab, and more. Unfortunately it had a working life of only one or two years before an accident while attempting to solder a new headlight wire melted the plastic driveshaft. Since then it has been consigned to its shipping box until recently when I brought it out and snapped the shell back on for the photo.
Type: F-M H10-44
Make: Walther's
Road Name: Chicago & Northwestern
Road Number: 1054
Description: Can't recall exactly when we aquired this locomotive, but it was sometime during the mid-'90s and it was our first diesel switcher locomotive. Dad grew up in Beloit near a Fairbanks-Morse plant, and the Chicago & Northwestern operated the tracks near our house in Madison (where we lived until 1999) before the Union Pacific, then the Wisconsin & Southern took over, so this is a nostalgic favorite.
Like Athearns and Life-Like Proto 2Ks, we have found Walther's model diesels to be smooth and reliable runners and this is no exception.
Type: EMD SW1
Make: Walther's
Road Name: Chicago & Northwestern
Road Number: 1212
Description: 1212 joined our roster shortly after #1054 to help the latter out in the freight yard. Due to some rough handling (hey, I was young), most of the front railings are gone.
Type: "Hustler" 4-wheel switcher
Make: Athearn
Road Name: Chicago & Northwestern
Road Number: 46
Description: A mid-late 1990s aquisition to help out at industry sidings while the bigger switchers are needed elsewhere. This is our only Athearn locomotive to give us mechanical trouble, due to its belt drive. Both the original belts broke and it was out of order for awhile until one of my friends replaced them...with spare rubber jaw-bands from his orthodontist! It ran on those for nearly five years before one of them broke, and it has now been retired again.
Type: Center-Cab 4-wheel switcher
Make: IHC
Road Name: Milwaukee Road
Road Number: 2397
Description: One of our more recent additions, purchased after moving to Stoughton. It is now doing the job of the out-of-commission #46.
Type: EMD GP9
Make: Walther's
Road Name: Wisconsin & Southern
Road Number: 4494
Description: This model joined the roster in 1998 or 1999, and has the distinction of being our only model locomotive for which I have actually seen its prototype in operation. It is also unique in being the only one of our four GP9s with a low front hood for better visibility.
Type: EMD GP38-2
Make: Athearn
Road Name: Chicago & Northwestern
Road Number: 4623
Description: This and all the diesels below were purchased relatively recently, at the Madison Model Railroad Show & Sales held in February from 2001-2003. #4623 has the honor of being our only operable "non-9" EMD GP unit.
Type: EMD GP9
Make: Life-Like Proto 2000
Road Name: Chicago & Northwestern
Road Number: 1719 & 1720
Description: Despite being identical locomotives with identical mechanisms, these two do not run quite the same. 1720 is a slighty faster engine and tries to pull away if placed in the lead when the two are double-headed.
Type: EMD SD40-2
Make: Athearn
Road Name: Chicago & Northwestern
Road Number: 6935
Description: Number 6935 was brought into the fold to help with long mainline freights that required doubleheading GP units.
Type: F-M H24-66 "Trainmaster"
Make: Athearn
Road Name: Chicago & Northwestern
Road Number: 1905
Description: Ditto from #6935
Type: EMD E6
Make: Life-Like Proto 2000
Road Name: Chicago & Northwestern
Road Number: 5005-A & 5006-A
Description: In theory, these E6s together with the 2 Erie-Builts below make up our express passenger service fleet. In practice, they don't run since our matched set of IHC C&NW "400" coaches not only looks terrible going around our sharp curves, but swing out so wide that they actually knock over trackside accessories such as signs, signals, people, etc! It's a pity too because these models look really cool with their operating Mars lights.
Type: F-M "Erie Built"
Make: Life-Like Proto 1000
Road Name: Chicago & Northwestern
Road Number: 6001-A & 6001-B
Description: See above
Those are all our diesels, due to text limitations I have to make another post for our steam roster.