Sidetrack Laser HO,N & O Scale Laser Cut Model RR Kits
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HO & O Scale Background Building
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wagons in Black Widow paint mostly, come to mind on the mainlines. Not only that, but that hallowed paint scheme it- self was not long-lived. In 1957-1958 the SP decided grey and scarlet were more to its liking. (Slow down the parade!) It wasn’t just steam. The Chicago &
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PO Box 447
Newberg, Oregon 97132 503-449-5361 Dealer Inquiries Welcome
North Western (which dieselized in 1956) was still buying new stream- lined cars from Pullman-Standard for its 400 fleet when Dwight Eisenhower took office for his first term. When he and Mamie packed up to retire on their Gettysburg farm in 1960 the North Western had already been in front of the Wisconsin PUC and the ICC pleading for mercy because of its losses on passenger traffic. Massive train-offs were the result. The New York Central ran into the same prob- lem, buying new passenger cars by the trainful around 1950. Oops. Pick your own examples–they are easy to find. Transition era? Not so fast. Not so
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easy. It is better to pick a year or two for your modeling locale and stick within them unless you decide it doesn’t mat- ter.
If you decide that it does, however,
it may open additional doors and inter- ests leading to new modeling projects and changes in your operating scheme. The above applies to any time you
choose to model, of course. One of the things that makes this both interest- ing and a challenge is that the rate of change was and is uneven. Technology, national and global economics, culture and population demographics, regula- tions and equipment rules, all that gets stirred in the pot. This means that there are periods of both “pulses” and “plateaus.” Everything seems to be about the same, maybe a decade or two,
then, “boom,” it it is not.
This should come as no surprise. For one thing, most railroad equipment lasts for a long time. These machines and the cars are rugged, and they stay around as long as there is a purpose for them or until something inter- venes:
technology, society, etc. The
question here is how it fits with our model and layout building, and how we respond to it if at all. Rural areas sometimes change slow-
er, though, and they fit on our bench- work better. There is less pressure on the real estate, less impetus for mod- ernizing or razing things. Significantly, this has helped business in some places now that “quaint sells.” Having avoided the unfortunate moderniza- tion of their cast iron fronts and wood- en porches with those horrid thin alu- minum frames and sheet glass on storefronts or dumpy additions on Vic- torian jewels, the Nevada Cities and Cape Mays of today offer something appealing to visitors, and to modelers, too! They make wonderful trackside scenery. Still, change comes to them, and trucks have replaced local freights except for bulk commodities like grain. To close, no matter when our model- ing is supposed to be, the calendar is important. As it continues to flip pages we all become historical modelers, and it doesn’t take long. Are we in a pulse or on a plateau right now? Well, it de- pends, but it feels more like a plateau to me. Except. Well, you decide, both for the world of prototype railroading as well as on your layout and work- bench. One thing is for sure—like it or not we do have to take time to think about time.—BILL S.
www.georgestrains.com 92 JANUARY 2013
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