Forum etiquette

Mike,

Well said.

In my dealings with manufacturers I have found that they want to be as accurate as possible for the least cost. Translated this means that if we can provide a railroad paint diagram of the subject matter, the project becomes easier and less costly. Railroad paint diagrams can be scanned into a graphics program used to produce today's amazingly sharp paint jobs we see.

Paint diagrams are a little hard to come by these days and, often, they do not cover all the equipment we need. The second best thing we can provide is a good quality color slide, preferably perpendicular shots of all four sides of the subject. These can be scanned and used to produce a paint diagram as mentioned above but there is more work involved to get a good diagram. This is how most new model car paint schemes are done.

The final thing we can provide is additional information such as car series numbers, renumbers, shop dates, etc allowing the mfr to build multiple numbers of a car or engine. In addition, supplying car side information that may not show up on a photo very well is also very helpful.

I suggest that we start a library of these items in a separate tab under the prototype Frisco. That way, mfrs could view anytime they want after joining the group. Not sure if you knew it or not but a lot of great cars came out AFTER the Morning Sun books came out. Many Kadee, Intermountain, etc cars were not only based on the photos in Morning Sun books, many carry the exact same road number ! Pretty cool, huh?

That's all I can think of for now.

Ship IT on the Frisco !!!!!!!!!

Rick

 

Mike:

I concur with Rick's post. When we were working with Brian Marsh of Overland Models on the current International Wide Vision Caboose project, we suggested he look in this forum for possible paint schemes which may resulted in at least one more offering.

As I volunteered to do, I am trying to do the best that I can to post new product introductions as soon as I find out about them and in the process ask for updates, pictures, etc. from modelers on the forum. The recent thread about the HO FM H10-44 model is a good example of the kind of feedback that helps everyone. With the dwindling amount of local hobby shops and the increase in online sales, I feel this approach becomes more and more pertinent. Fellow modelers like Rick and Ken Wulfert (Meteor9100) to name a couple, post invaluable information that we can reference about detailing models that become available. This is the kind of information that elevates this site into a resource forum vs. a "nit-picking" site that laments why manufacturers can't ever get it right.

Bottom line, I feel we are on the right track and will only become better. The recent addition of the DCC Forum is a great example.

Bob Hoover
FriscoFriend

 

Mike,
I concur wholeheartedly with your sentiments. I live in Neosho, Missouri, a small community (pop~10,000) in deep southeast MO,astraddle the old Springfield main line into OK and TX. Also, I am new to the Frisco, having been an SP and NWP modeler for 40 years in California. Unfortunately, very little SP equipment is readily convertible to Frisco. Being new to the Frisco, I have little to offer in the way of prototype info and much to learn. This forum is far and away the best location to do that. Lets keep it polite, informative and friendly. After all, this is a HOBBY, not life and death. It is for the enjoyment of all of us, no matter what our interests or inclinations. For what its worth, I have a Frisco SD-7 with dynamic brakes. I used Oddball decals for the GP-7, with the Railroad Roaman "Frisco" because it seemed to fit the long hood better. AND, I liked it more. It's numbered 640, after the nuclear submarine I was on (the old Benjamin Franklin, scrapped now). A second one will be numbered 639. Idid all this because the SD-7's, lettered SP Black Widow scheme, are simply too good a runners to be left off the railroad. After all, its my model railroad.
Carry on! Neosho Doug|-|

 

No kidding. Several groups I participate in are that way. Every new release is picked to shreds the minute it hits the hobby shop shelf, or box on the front porch.

I was on one group that spent days bickering over whether an Atlas RS1 had the correct brake wheel for the paint scheme it was delivered in.

The irony was, that it was a somewhat obscure road to boot, with precious little offered commercially.

And they wonder why their group doesn't grow. I unsubscribed from that one........

 

In the few years I have been on FRISCrg, this is by far my favorite post. I would love to be able to talk to manufacturers about getting more FRISCO and FRISCO RELATED products available.

As unique as a lot of the FRISCO equipment was for the most part, I have always been surprised that more equipment is not available. I would personally like to see more Steam, of course, more variety of wheel arrangements, more rolling stock both old (steam era) and new (from the dawn of the diesel age) available. But most of all, I would like to see a PLASTIC, ACCURATE, INEXPENSIVE passenger set done for the FRISCO. There was such a variety of different paint schemes for the FRISCO's passenger service that it would be a producers and modelers dream to come up with all the different paint schemes and do them in sets.

I would almost bet, they couldnt produce enough sets to appease everyone not just on this site, but, FRISCO modelers in general!!!

 

I'm not much into passenger equipment, manly becuase there is almost nothing that is Frisco Prototype. I must admit, I do not understand why no one has produced the Frisco/Katy Texas Special in Plastic not Brass; I'm sure they would sell. And how about the Firefly engines and cars in plastic; I do not know about everyone else, but being retired, brass is just out of the question for me. Although I like to scratch build, I find it intersting that the Frisco had to pass away before anything Firsco became available. I have purchased everything Frisco that has come out in plastic as I can afford them even though I scratch built most of them long before they can out.

 

Until now I would have said there probably isn't enough demand for a TEXAS SPECIAL/METEOR model in plastic to justify the tooling costs. However, now I observe that Walthers has brought out a PERE MARQUETTE (!) set, which, I would think, will have extremely limited appeal. Particularly (and I am no expert on this road) since it looks as if it is mostly comprised of off-the-shelf models already available separately. So, maybe there is hope.

GS

 

Certainly, but it is also a very fertile metaphor. Enough of it applied in the right places around suppliers might encourage fabulous flourishing of our Frisco favorites.

 

Good point Richard, The Santa Fe BLUE GOOSE has been out for more years than I can remember, yet there is not all that many FRISCO STEAM Engines in plastic. The 1522 model that came out by IHC was not something I would have wanted, but, I almost bet with the different types of Tenders Bachmann produces, I would almost bet they have what it would take to come out with a pretty accurate model of our FRISCO PHILLY!!!! I dont want to bash manufacturers, I just think I am part of the general population that would really like to see some affordable and accurate models for OUR RAILROAD!!! another thing that surprised me is that for the time the 1522 was running with the St Louis Steam Association, ( I know I got that name wrong) I think it would have been a pretty neat concept with all the more modern era modelers out there that the 1522 and THAT Passenger Excursion train didnt come out in the form of models. I woulda mowed lawns, sold blood, mortgaged the house, and sold organs on ebay to obtain that set, nothing new though, I already do some of these to get some of the stuff I want anyhow...ok, Just kidding, I just scrimp and save everywhere I can to get better equipment to run on my layout!!!