Very Sweet!

I like the use of the 2 horsepower locomotive and also the photographer using the tiny flatcar as a camera dolly!

Personally I continue in the position that a US built war/export locomotive SHOULD be available in 1/35th scale to the hobby market. It should appear right alongside all the German locomotives that continue to be churned out by the hobby industry.

To my knowledge that list would include only two possibilities: the diminutive 0-6-0 tank engine built by H.K. Porter & Company and the chunky 2-8-0 S-160 Consolidation built by a number of manufactures for the US Government exclusively for export to the countries of Europe.

Of this last entry over 2100 copies were built to Army Transportation Corps standards by all the major US Locomotive manufactures between 1942 and 45. These engines served nearly everywhere! They served in England, in almost every nation in Eastern and Western Europe as the Allies advanced, were exported to India and North Africa and even served post-war in Alaska.

All I can say to that is "It's a great time to be a modeler!"

The advent of CAD and 3D printing has dramatically reduced the time, effort and $$$'s it takes to do a design and make a pattern. Those technologies are what/who we have to thank for the great improvements in our hobby. As well as all the fresh new models we are seeing.

As to the future - anything is possible!

p.s. I already have my NYC Hudson in S gauge so I am happy on that score!
(IMHO most beautiful "toy" model locomotive ever made!)


Mike Koenig photo 2017

Tonight the family went to see the new Disney movie "Dumbo". All other comments aside there were two trains appearing in the movie. (both completely digital as was most of the movie.) The first train was practically a total embarrassment to any modeler or railfan* but the second interestingly enough was an Army troop train and it was pulled by a very well done S-160 steam locomotive like the one on display at Ft. Eustis, Army Transportation Museum. It is a shame that the better looking locomotive appeared for only a few seconds while the viewer was tortured for several minutes by that other "steam abomination".

*What is the logic of making a film that is intended to appear "real" only to design a locomotive that then looks like a cartoon? They might as well have used a "Thomas the tank engine" and been done with it!

Up to now we have been "covering" (discussing) the S-160* US built locomotives quite a lot on this thread. My current movie related comments stem from the fact that Disney chose to represent an S-160 pulling a troop train in the movie and to do so very accurately, albeit only in the background. - That is the connection here.

* For a long time I actually thought the S-160 WOULD BE the next steam locomotive to appear in 1/35th scale model form. However Commander Models seem to have dashed all those hopes and while it is still listed in their online catalog, will no longer even respond to my written inquiries.

Hi Michael. Found a great picture of Liberty Locos.
Picture comer from: https://eisenbahnstiftung.de/bildergalerie/Reichsbahn%20im%20Krieg?search=&br=&page=1
USATC S-160 at Depot Newport Wales



Greetings!

Robert Jan

With these Russian cars does Armor 35 also go to the extent of using the correct Russian track gauge of a scale 5 feet or will these work on the "standard" gauge 1/35th scale tracks I already own?

Given Armor 35's high level of accuracy in everything else I suspect these are all built to a true 5 foot gauge but I thought it best to ask.