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Post by dazed on Mar 29, 2024 20:42:01 GMT -5
My primary era is ca. 2002-2012 (up until the SP searchlight signals were replaced in Tehachapi) but that is not something I am too strict about (the thing about later years than that is there is too much over-the-top graffiti for my taste, but I digress). A Trinity 5161/3218 would be fantastic for me. Ed A good portion of AZL's catalog is geared to that era, which is great for us. And most freight cars manufactured in the post-deregulation era (and even 5-10 years prior) are also good too. The Evans boxcars and Airslides being good examples, even though they were in their waning years in the mid/late 2000s. And of course there are plenty of very common prototypes from the broad spectrum of eras that Atlas can choose from as well. Funny, my era also has some ties to signals...same timeframe that searchlights were replaced on BNSF's Red River Valley sub between Fort Worth and Amarillo. But more importantly is...as time ticks by past 2000, that means less and less of the great mix of motive power, and more and more consolidation of railroads and schemes that fade into history. Especially after The Great Recession in 2008 when equipment utilization took a nosedive and older equipment was largely eliminated during that period. 2006-2008 is the sweet spot for me. BNSF SD70ACe's were new on the scene, ES44's were somewhat commonplace, SD40-2's still pretty common, etc. Anyway, back to the topic at hand, it is exciting that a second car from Atlas is under consideration. Hopefully the Evans car will be a hit and more great new stuff (including the aforementioned #8 turnouts) can help bolster Z with another good company.
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Post by dazed on Mar 29, 2024 11:17:30 GMT -5
What is your era? I have a decent amount of research gathered on the later years of these cars. We are not really locked into any era. Atlas looks to me to inform them of what will and what will not sell. Even with all of my experience in the industry and being in Z for decades, sometimes I get surprised at what moves and what doesn't. <snip> So to be honest, I was going to do the 4180 hopper since we have it in N scale. But Hans beat me to it lol. That's okay, just glad we didn't cut any tooling. The next car I'm considering is quite modern, that's all I can say for now! Steve, thanks for the reply! My comment about era was directed toward Ed, not Atlas. I figured that as time went by you would/could have a variety of products from differing eras. As long as it's something the fits somewhere around "mid-90's to mid-2010's" I'll do my best to support it. The Trinity 3281 would be great, too and I'm guessing that would be a very nice stepping stone to an eventual 5161 which would be absolutely epic.
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Post by dazed on Mar 29, 2024 0:44:41 GMT -5
Myself I would prefer AZL to consider producing GE U-Boats rather than bullet trains, even french.🙂🤔 Dom I’ll 2nd that! U23B, U30B and C30-7 please!! 😁 The C30-7’s and U30C’s are probably possible with the C44-9W mech. I have both in N but no interest in Z.
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Post by dazed on Mar 28, 2024 15:12:07 GMT -5
I can tell you there was a delay with the boxcar, but it was due to having to make a few tooling changes that I felt were necessary. They should be getting loaded into a container this week or next. I have a few ideas for the next freight car, stay tuned. Oh, BTW an AZL GP40-2 would be really great! As would a GP35. That was a signature loco for SP. Steve W Oh cool so maybe they will make Q2 then. I would like GP35's for sure. I'd buy a GP40-2 or two but it's not some major need. I need Atlas to do Trinity 5161 Covered Hoppers in Z!!! And bethgons. Two solid unit train cars with lots of schemes. Even if AZL does them also, I'd still buy at least two of every SKU in my preferred schemes from both of you. (BNSFx2, UP, et al for the 5161's and BNx2, BNSFx4, TGNX, EGSX, CCTX, et al for the bethgons)
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Post by dazed on Mar 28, 2024 14:59:55 GMT -5
Atlas has been sliding significantly on arrival dates across the board, so don't get hopes up for any time soon. That's fine by me, I don't mind waiting. Meanwhile I can look for proto pics showing them in a fairly advanced weathering state, since they will be older cars for my modeling era. For sure, I'm in no hurry either. I was just setting expectations....doubt these show in Q2 of 2024. Maybe we'll be surprised. What is your era? I have a decent amount of research gathered on the later years of these cars. I model 2007 "+/- a few years" so by then I'm fudging on a couple of the schemes and/or bending the era a bit. I allow for pretty good latitude in Z since there still isn't an insane amount of choice like you might find in larger scales.
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Post by dazed on Mar 28, 2024 12:39:47 GMT -5
I think this is sort of what they are shooting for, for obvious (or perhaps not-so-obvious) reasons. Take a look at their announcement video from earlier this year to get a better idea of what I'm referring to. There is a nice Mi-Jack model that was produced around 15-20 years ago maybe. I think it was part resin (main frame pieces) and part etched metal. (everything else) Not saying another isn't warranted, just letting y'all know. Between that and the printed options, I would personally rather AZL focus on other stuff. Let a smaller fish work on these types of details. From everything I've seen and what AZL representatives have said, the trucks are generic colors. Matching to the shipping containers/trailers isn't the majority anyway....there are a few especially JB Hunt, but they're white so should be easy to buy a white one and craft a decal to apply. I think if these are successful, we might eventually see a slightly more modern truck and then possibly the JB Hunts, Schneider, Swift, et al.
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Post by dazed on Mar 28, 2024 10:43:41 GMT -5
Atlas has been sliding significantly on arrival dates across the board, so don't get hopes up for any time soon. Stuff that is getting delivered now was originally slated for delivery 2-3 year ago.
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Post by dazed on Mar 27, 2024 12:33:07 GMT -5
The first run is now done and we are preparing shipping. Hopefully we can start delivery late April! Photos of RI and WP Thank you Hans Riddervold (AZL) ! Can you tell us if these will be available as singles or is it only 2's and/or 4's?
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Post by dazed on Mar 26, 2024 14:54:41 GMT -5
Why do many of “Reply with”? It fills gigantic threads. I don’t think we need to see the same pix on top of each other We know the Topic And it's pretty easy to go in and edit it after the fact, too. At least pick only your favorite one if there are multiples. I get it if you're trying to comment about some particular feature of a photo or something like that. (yes, I've done that) But the whole post probably isn't necessary.
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Post by dazed on Mar 25, 2024 23:16:06 GMT -5
Oye... Yep, we can pick apart my assessment of the frequency of certain geological formations having grass on them all day long if y'all want, or you can just take it for what it is...a generalization about railroad-specific instances of this happening. (and without trees, btw, which was another qualifier) Point being, it doesn't look good as it is, versus the "desert" version. Which honestly still doesn't look great, but getting to something somewhat believable is MUCH easier as a desert scene. I'm trying to be nice and provide constructive feedback. But yeah, keep nitpicking. And frankly I still stand by my assessment. Good grief.
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Post by dazed on Mar 25, 2024 15:34:15 GMT -5
The super flat plateaus are common in the desert, but in other climes it would be an oddity for the most part. But maybe that is more common in Europe, dunno. Unless you are modeling Uluru... Which...is in a desert.
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Post by dazed on Mar 25, 2024 11:16:04 GMT -5
If that is in response to my comments, I think I didn't explain well enough. I was meaning just a single mound on maybe the upper right corner for example. Large than the clusters of rock you placed, perhaps the same height as the plateau. With that arrangement you've done, at best it is something from a desert scene. (but again, hard to gauge without trees. If you aren't planning to use any trees, then the desert-scape is the way to proceed)
I would encourage you to look at some reference materials such as books or online videos (YouTube) about scenery. That will help guide you to get something that looks good. Without knowing what you are attempting it's hard to give good advice, but my BEST advice is just emulate what others are doing to get more realistic scenery.
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Post by dazed on Mar 25, 2024 10:21:05 GMT -5
Guess it depends on what you're modeling? What types of trains are you running? My frame of reference is North American railroads and the top (with modifications mentioned below) would be BNSF or UP in the Southwest portion of the US. The bottom might be something like the NS or CSX in the Northeast, or it also looks like parts of Missouri so back to UP, BNSF, CPKC, et al.
Both have merits...I think for the desert version you need to use more sand/yellow grass for the ground cover below. You won't have the benefit of a lot of trees but you do need some type of vegetation...joshua trees or mesquites, cactuses and other appropriate plants, plus more rocks spread about. Short random sprouts of yellow static grass would help the look, or darker colors for specific types of vegitation...I'm not really up to speed on modeling desert scenery but there should be plenty of online resources with tips. It doesn't have to be desert, it could be "high plains" with the desert-ish plateaus like that.
For the "colorful" version, you will need trees and lots of them for the effect to be good. I would also add a mound to about 1/4 or 1/3 of the plateau just to give it a little more uneven look. The super flat plateaus are common in the desert, but in other climes it would be an oddity for the most part. But maybe that is more common in Europe, dunno.
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Post by dazed on Mar 21, 2024 17:19:57 GMT -5
BN/BNSF had Baby Tunnel Motors... (Only half-kidding... The GP15-1 shared the signature lower-rear see-thru air intakes and rooftop-mounted radiators. 4-axle vs 6-axle but the resemblance is there.)
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Post by dazed on Mar 21, 2024 13:08:43 GMT -5
For the next production run, here are the Original buyers of the EMD GP38-2 I'd prefer to see (and not previously made by AZL): CRIP (Rock Island) BRC (Belt Rwy. of Chicago) B&M (Boston & Maryland) CSS (Chicago, South Shore & South Bend) South Shore Freight CRR (Clinchfield) DT&I (Detroit, Toledo & Ironton) EJ&E (Elgin, Joliet & Eastern) GM&O (Gulf, Mobile & Ohio) ICG (Illinois Central Gulf) IT (Illinois Terminal) LI (Long Island) PC (Penn Central) they bought the most with 223 units P&LE (Pittsburgh and Lake Erie) SCL (Seaboard Coast Line) TM (Tex Mex) TP&W (Toledo, Peoria and Western) Wow, you have some varied interests! Good bet that quite a few of those made it to Chicago at times.
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