If you're like me and are immediately attracted to black locomotives with white lettering, then the Train Simulator payware community has got a couple of things that you might be interested in. Before we go any further, let me say that I have no interest, financial or otherwise, in the companies or products mentioned below the fold: NORFOLK AND WESTERN RAILWAY - The N&W purchased second- and third-generation diesel-electric locomotives from several builders, the American Locomotive Company of Schenectady, New York, second among them. The N&W's Alco roster also was expanded through its mergers with the Wabash Railroad and the New York, Chicago & St. Louis Railroad in 1964. Some of their Alco locomotives would soldier on into the late 1980s and perhaps further, clustered around the coal docks at the Norfolk Southern Railway's Lamberts Point.

Comes now Gaetan Belanger, a French Canadian with a knack for 3D models of Alco/MLW locomotives. He has released a payware set of N&W Alcos and rolling stock that is reasonably priced at $12.99. Represented are the following locomotives:

C425 1006 (ex-Wabash)
C425 1010
C425 1011
C425 1013

C630 1130
C630 1131
C630 1133

RS-3 2541
RS-3 2545
RS-3 2550

RS-11 334
RS-11 343
RS-11 344

T6 22
T6 24

These locomotives are offered with appropriate cabviews and sounds, and come in a variety of liveries. The "Pevler blue" livery and its follow-on, the black-and-gold "half moon" cover several units, while others are decorated in the stark "NW" black and white livery implemented after John Palmer Fishwick assumed control of the N&W in 1971. Also included in an "extras" set that Mr. Belanger released is an N&W class CH cabin car, #518409. This steel cabin car, now owned by the Roanoke chapter of the NRHS if I'm not mistaken, is appropriate for use with steam locomotives as well as the diesels it's included with. Also included are three 100-ton hopper cars, N&W 11088, 11091, and 11098 in loaded and unloaded configurations. It is believed that these are N&W Class H11B.

For more information, or to purchase, visit V Scale Creations.

NORFOLK SOUTHERN RAILWAY - Created in 1982 from the merger of the Norfolk and Western Railway and the Southern Railway, the NSR has been famous for (among other things) long hood forward locomotives and the General Electric D9-40CW locomotive. The crew at Diesels West have produced quality examples of both these things with their SD40/SD40-2 and D9-40CW locomotive sets.

-The SD40/SD40-2 set is described and available for purchase here. Included are the following locomotives:

NS SD40 3193 LU
NS SD40 3185 TU
NS SD40 1611 LU
NS SD40-2 1631 TU
NS SD40-2 3306 LU
NS SD40-2 3227 TU

Any locomotive designated 'TU' is a 'trailing unit', one that doesn't come as a leading unit (LU) with an assigned cabview. This can of course be changed by a savvy Train Simulator user.

-The D9-40CW set is described and available for purchase here. Included are the following locomotives:

NS D9-40CW 8949 TU - NS1
NS D9-40CW 9267 TU - NS1
NS D9-40CW 9751 LU - NS3
NS D9-40CW 9761 TU - NS2
NS D9-40CW 9838 LU - NS4
NS D9-40CW 9851 TU - NS4

The 'NSx' codes describe liveries, inspired by the 'YNx' system used by fans of CSX Transportation. NS1 is the 1982 livery, also referred to as the 'Thoroughbred' scheme. NS2 is the recent update to livery which italicizes "NORFOLK SOUTHERN" on the flanks while adding a horse's head to the speed-lettered 'NS' at the same time. Also, the framing around the windscreen is painted white. This has been referred to elsewhere as the 'whiteface' scheme. NS3 is, I believe, the most recent version which replicates NS2 but for the white framing, which is cut back to only the area above the windscreen and surrounding the number boards. This has been referred to elsewhere as 'unibrow'. NS4 snarkily describes the tendency of the NSR to have its locomotives delivered unpainted, with only a stenciled 'NS' and a number. These are often referred to as "ghost boats"; an amusing version can be seen here. Be sure to use a separate browser window for that link; RRPictureArchives has a nasty tendency to resize browser windows without your permission.

That's it for the N&W/NSR information; anything else will be passed along as I learn of it.

Originally drafted 02 October 2006 at 22:40:04.

Posted by: Country Pundit at 06:21 PM | No Comments | Add Comment
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