As an update to the roster that I buried in the Atlas GP-7 thread down below, I thought I might share another video roster that is current as of 2/2019. I am missing 3 locomotives: Atlas VO1000 #218 in Black/Yellow Life-Like E8 #2019 Cavalcade Life-Like E8 #2022 Middleground Let's see your N-Scale Frisco roster! I would love to trade! Thanks, John Moore
Life-Like did make the 2019 and the 2022 in 4/2005, I have them. These came with the newer mechanism with a split frame similar to Kato and Atlas. The 2022 comes lettered Middleground. I would have preferred it to carry the name Champion, since it did not last very long named Middleground.
I had the HO versions of SLSF 2019 and 2022. I also did not like the looks of the long "Middleground" name on 2022, so I changed it to "Champion" using the Herald King decals. I removed the old name with a soft rubber eraser, such that the red paint was not damaged, and then overlaid the new decal(s) in position (horse name applied on top of the gold base). Turned out great! As Larry noted, the 2022 ran far longer as "Champion" than it did with its original name.
I sold all of my life like E8s before the Broadway Limited ones arrived. I have those two along with 3 custom painted Katos, which is more than enough for what I want to run. The Life Like ones I had were the plastic frame version. Now that Atlas owns the old Life-Like tooling, I wouldn’t be surprised to see E units released ( Life Like also had an E6 and an E7 ). They probably will be upgraded with DCC sound available.
Can't blame you for selling them. This is one of the reasons why I am swapping the chassis out of 2020 with the DCC Broadway. Should be cool. An old Life-Like with an interesting twist... JFM
I have seven Life Like E8's, two of them are being custom painted to the Texas Special versions with E7 shells. They all run very smooth the last time I had them out. Also have four passenger car sets to go with the E units. Guess I lucked out and got good runners. Joe
The Life-Like E8s I had ran fine. I just didn’t want to convert them to DCC. I already had the 3 Kato units and the BLI units on order. In the broader passenger power realm, I have a boiler equipped GP7 and all of the FP7s Intermountain did along with the F7Bs ( 5127 and 5130 were equipped with steam heat and signal lines ( no boilers ) for use in passenger trains. The third number Intermountain did ( 5125 ) was not equipped for passenger service. See http://www.frisco.org/shipit/index.php?threads/f-units-with-passenger-designation.3741 ). The Frisco used all of these types of units separately and in conjunction with the E units. The most commonly photographed combination was a pair of E units with either a GP7 or an F7B in between, though there are plenty of photos of single E units with a single trailing unit of one of the other types. ( Frisco’s E units never had nose MU connections, so there was no way to MU three of them on a train... ) I also have a single Intermountain Katy F7B because there is photographic proof that Katy’s steam generator equipped F7Bs occasionally spliced Frisco E-Units on the Texas Special. Katy did not own any larger passenger B units either. Other Katy power did occasionally make it onto Frisco rails on the Texas Special, including the Katy’s Alco PAs.
Long ago, I was told by the late Lee Buffington, God rest his kind soul, that the MKT would now and then send up #2 with one or a pair of Alco PA's that were not running very well. To avoid delays on #1's return trip, the Frisco felt obligated to do some quick maintenance at Lindenwood, or lay the unit over in Springfield, to do a quick upgrade. The Frisco certainly billed the MKT for the pleasure of working on PA's, but suspected it was a way for the Katy to get some work done on those locomotives without increasing the work load in Katy's shops. During the final years of the joint relationship on the Texas Special, Katy had many sick locomotives crowding their diesel shops. K
Though I am still trying to find a photo I once saw of the Texas Special arriving in St. Louis behind a Frisco E8-katyF7B-FriscoE8 powerset ( as discussed in this thread: http://www.frisco.org/shipit/index.php?threads/mkt-in-springfield.9623/ )
Thanks, Daniel. I would love to see this video from deep inside your N Scale vault! @pbender Same goes for you, Paul! JFM
Why, oh why, do I find looking at a wall full of N scale Frisco power so oddly satisfying??? Nice collection of Frisco diesels! Andre
Hah! Well I don't quite have a vault so it might be a little disappointing. I'm trying to finish up a GP7 and 2 SD45's. That will bring my total count to 9 Frisco engines. But I've also been working on 6 coal hoppers and 4 gondolas so my progress is a bit disorganized. Maybe I'll put something together when the last 3 are complete.
Feel like such a slacker (in N-scale) when I see an impressive collection of N-Scale engines like this! I only have two...one E-8, and a couple of B30-7's (One DC, one DCC)...both same road number, so I count them as one...but, I do like it. On my freelanced "Somewhere in nowhere" n-scale layout...and yes, I know the coil cars are not prototypical behind that engine...I was test running them (new purchase). That's my story, and sticking to it...
If you have 1, that's awesome! 2000? Wow, Great! What is important is that we keep the Frisco running somewhere and that we keep buying everyone out so we can get a run of SD40-2s, SD45s, GP40s, anything and everything! The more Frisco, the better! JFM