Quote from: Doneldon on July 30, 2013, 12:51:48 AM
Rye-

Actually, that's about all they were used for. They lacked the power for pulling commercially viable freight trains and their range was limited by the small quantities of fuel and water they could carry. But they were great as commuter locos.

                                                                                                                                                                            -- D

Perhaps folks with primarily switching layouts might enjoy having morning and evening commuter runs passing through to add to their mix.

Besides the lines in the East like Steamtown, Strasburg, and Cass, out West the Durango & Silverton and the Cumbres & Toltec are also coal-fired. In fact, on the day last October when my buddies and I road the C&T, a coal-fired locomotive pulling a train of loaded coal hoppers bound for Chama passed us while we were at our lunch stop.

Whoever is saying that coal-fired locomotives are illegal in the U.S. is just trying to make trouble.

Quote from: Doneldon on July 26, 2013, 05:34:15 PM

Quote from: Johnson Bar Jeff on July 26, 2013, 12:02:27 PM
I wonder how "pre" they're going to be? The mid- to late-1850s saw some nice looking locomotives.

J-J

Absolutely. That was the peak of the ornate railroad engine era. Locomotives started to be toned down during the Civil War and that trend continued until most of them had mere utilitarian design. Besides, you can pack more railroading in when you use small locos and 20' or 28' freight cars and passenger equipment the size of or only a bit larger than the 40' freight cars which dominated railroad consists for most of the 20^th Century.
                                                                                                                          -- D

D,

Absolutely! That's why most of my rolling stock would qualify as "old-timer."

J.B.J.

Quote from: rogertra on July 25, 2013, 01:36:46 PM
Beside, a good model railroad does not need mindless tail chasing, that gets boring really fast.  Follow Len's advice and check out track plans on variations of the 4 x 8.  Sadly, even MR continues to push the 4 x 8, especially around Christmas.

True, of course, but I suppose that's something that someone new to model railroading can get up and running fairly quickly, don't you think? People don't buy train sets--even good Bachmann sets--at Christmas with the expectation that they won't have their railroad running until Easter. Don't you think it's important for "newbies" to get something operating quickly so they don't lose interest?

Besides, if the "bug" bites 'em really good, after a few weeks of continuous loop running over the holidays, they can cut that 4 x 8 sheet of plywood into pieces and use it in the construction of a more sophisticated layout.

Incidentally, good point about how much space a 4 x 8 really takes up. Imagine how much more space would be required if someone followed the old, old suggestion of setting up on a ping-pong table!

Quote from: Royce Wilson on July 25, 2013, 01:38:40 PM
At the NMRA show in Atlanta there was a guy that has made an announcement of some pre civil war HO engines.

Royce

Those could be interesting. I wonder how "pre" they're going to be? The mid- to late-1850s saw some nice looking locomotives.

Quote from: BaltoOhioRRfan on July 24, 2013, 03:14:12 PM
I would have perfered a 2-4-4 forney like the ones in On30.

That would be kinda cool, especially if it were flexible enough to operate on tight radii.

Seems to me I once saw an eBay offering for something similar in wheel arrangement. I seem to remember it was kitbashed out of an old Rivarossi/AHM 2-4-0.

Quote from: Woody Elmore on July 19, 2013, 07:05:12 AM
The Lone Ranger and Roy Rogers TV shows kept alive the notion (from the earlier movies) that good guys wore white hats and the bad guys wore black ones. I don't know where wearing a bird fits in.

Fits in with being a member of the Crow tribe, IIRC.

Quote from: M1FredQ on July 19, 2013, 09:52:44 AM
Johnson Bar not only do we still have a "Drive In" but the owner put up a new screen last Summer!!!!!!!

People get there early tail gate dinner or snacks. Kids get into their P.J.'s

put up some mosquito netting, air-mattresses go up on the roofs of the SUV's and we all have a great time. It does get crowded sometimes!!!!!!

Thanks everyone for the heads up on the film can't wait to see it on the "BIG" screen!!!

Well, it sounds like lots of fun.    I have fond memories of family trips to see movies at the drive-in when I was knee-high to a cowcatcher. In fact there were two (!) drive-ins in the town where I grew up. One was called the Comet, the other the Sky-Vue. Both are long gone, of course. 

Quote from: M1FredQ on July 17, 2013, 06:10:02 PM
It is supposed to come to our "Drive In" here in town that would be fun!!!!!

Seriously? They still have a drive-in where you live?  Cool! The train sequences would be awesome on a big drive-in screen.

Quote from: Doneldon on July 17, 2013, 05:37:12 PM
J-J

We didn't get far from trains at all. It's a well-known fact that the Lone Ranger was a major railfan who kept train movies in his saddlebags along with an HO pike and his masquerade costumes. There's not much to do in the evening around a campfire, you now, or even in a western hotel when you're TLR so you can't hang out at the saloon or with the dance hall ladies.

D

D,

Those saddle bags must have been a little like Mary Poppins' carpet bag: Whatever you need, you just pull out of the bag. 

JBJ

Frequently there seems to be a desire for a Spectrum-quality "Jupiter" and "U.P. #119."

Quote from: Woody Elmore on July 17, 2013, 06:41:52 AM
Clayton Moore wore the mask in public. I remember that, over the years, he was sued and then he sued - all over the silly mask.

It wasn't that silly to him--or to his legions of loyal fans.

The one series of legal actions that I know a little bit about wasn't started by Moore. Long before 1980's The Legend of the Lone Ranger was released, the producers of that film brought an injunction against Moore to make him stop making appearances because they claimed his appearances as the Lone Ranger might hurt their movie. Moore sued--they were harming his ability to earn a living (doesn't it always come down to money?  )--and I believe he won.

Apparently the producers' action against Moore angered a lot of Baby Boomer fans of the Lone Ranger. I believe The Legend of the Lone Ranger is generally considered a flop, though, personally, I like it well enough. I even own a lunchbox tied into the movie (complete with thermos). 

Quote from: Woody Elmore on July 17, 2013, 06:41:52 AM
I used to love his disguises (old man, old woman) and never thought about from where he got the disguises.. He sure didn't keep them in saddle bags.

Yeah, where did he get all those disguises? 

Sorry for getting so far away from the trains aspect of the new movie. ...   

Quote from: M1FredQ on July 16, 2013, 10:55:58 AM
One of my brothers is an Anthropologist Archaeologist on North American Indian Tribes with focus on the Midwest and Northern Plains. I will run the Tonto "look" by him and see what he says.

Supposedly it's based on a painting of an actual member of the Crow tribe (which maybe doesn't make much sense for someone who is supposed to be a Comanche), but it would be interesting to hear what a professional has to say about it.

QuoteAs a little kid my Dad took us all to see the actors when they came to Chicago and I never forgot what an impression they made and how nice they were to all us kids.

I've read in the Wikipedia article about the Lone Ranger (the character) that Clayton Moore and Jay Silverheels took very seriously what they considered their duty to be role models for kids, so it's nice to read that your experience jives with what I've read.

Quote from: Desertdweller on July 11, 2013, 08:26:31 PM
For all of this, I read in "Trains Magazine" that the railroad used in the movie was a six-mile temporary loop that was taken up after filming.  It also said the locomotives in the movie were full-size mockups (like used in "Hell on Wheels".  The trains themselves were pushed by a Diesel locomotive from the other end.

That's interesting to know. Thanks! 

I figured the engines were mockups, and I still think that ten-wheeler looks a lot like the Big Hauler.    I still find it a little puzzling that they chose to use a ten-wheeler instead of a 4-4-0.

I, too, thought the duck-billed passenger cars were done well.

Quote from: jonathan on July 10, 2013, 06:07:54 PM
The principal locomotive in the movie is a 4-6-0.  I believe that one is real, though I can't remember who lent it to the studio.  Some cars were also built for the full train shots.  There were plenty of shots around the principle train and locomotive to convince me it was real.

I found this about the trains in the movie:

http://www.sheknows.com/entertainment/articles/1005605/lone-ranger-featurettes-heroes-villains-and-trains

Scroll down and play the featurette about the trains. It doesn't answer a whole lot about the trains, but it does tell us something.