I thought it would be interesting to see if those in the group would talk about and photograph their first Frisco model. For some, like me, that was several years ago but I remember it like it was yesterday. While at Drury College in Springfield in 1978, I completed an Athearn GP7. That model is long gone somewhere but I sure remember gleaning information and parts from my local hobby store owner on south Campbell St., a fellow named Stever Wernitz. I had the basic Badger airbrush with the aerosol propellant, Floquil paint, Details Associates parts, etc. I vividly remember filling in the holes for the dynamic brakes with Squadron Green Putty. I could only afford a dummy unit at the time but it was Frisco and it was mine. Wish I still had that model. Anyway about 1980-1, I completed another dummy, an Athearn GP35 and decided to put a flashing circuit in it. I was able to find it and attach the photo for your amusement. Sorry about the sharpness. I could not get my camera's auto focus to do the depth of field thing very well on this model. I think I still have a few other initial modeling efforts that I will try to dig out. I have to say that seeing the unusual Shark/C-Liner/whatever that Ken Mc post recently reminded me of my early efforts although I never put Frisco heralds on the roof on anything. If you still have any of your initial modeling projects, why don't you photograph them and let us see how far we have all come. Remember how we had to paint almost anything Frisco? Now we can work with manufacturers and get what we want. I still remember that Virginia Slims commercial, "You've come a long way baby!" I think I have a photo of that billboard overlooking Rosedale with a southbound leaving the yard. Hope to see some responses, this could be fun. Ship IT on the Frisco! Rick
My first Frisco Project was an Athearn torpedo boat GP 35. That was nearly 30 years ago. I too think it is long gone. I will look around my "STUFF" and see if I still have it. I also did an SD 38 but I stole parts off of it for a later "Katy" model that I did. I think I still have the first caboose I ever did with an Interior. Does anyone remember the company's name that built the caboose interiors. I sure wish those models were still around. The first GP 38 that I ever built was an Athearn and I used a canon cab on it. I still have it and in fact it is in the engine house on my layout. It still runs and I have installed a decoder in it. Unfortuneately it took a dive to the floor and the cab and nose are damaged. Someday I will rebuild it. I will try to get some pictures later in the day.
I wish I still had mine to photograph. It was a brass Tenshodo GP-7 ordered in the late 1950's and brush painted. The decals were those horrible ones from Walthers - all that was available at the time. I took it to college to run on the MSM railroad club in the sub basement of Old Met. It ran poorly, but when I went to get it upon graduation, it had been stolen. The Varney NW-2 was there and later became a photo subject for the FMIG's joint project NW-2 article.
Hey I remember that NW-2 article and recently got a real copy of Prototype Modeler on Ebay from Jim Senese. Now that takes me back a few years. When I got a photocopy of the article from a friend (I could never find the actual magazine) I thought that we had reached the apex of Frisco modeling. I must have read and reread my photocopy 100 times. I could never find one of those old Varney shells either so I had to make due with an Athearn SW for a switcher. You guys root around a little and find some of those early efforts and tell us about them and shoot some photos. They helped to get us where we are today. Ship IT on the Frisco! Rick
Sakes Alive -- Now you have me going ... back about 40 years. My first Frisco modeling attempt was the loco that was in Swope? Park, KCMO. Basis was a Mantua Mike with some "homemade" and Cal Scale parts. I was new to Kansas City, HO RR modeling, the Frisco, scratch building-kit bashing, very broke and really did not know what I was doing or how to do it. Looks like some railfan stole the bell, probably my son, about 4 at the time, who had several of my models down on the carpet when I came home one day. Has not been out of the box in years - forgot the bell was missing
Excellent! You know after seeing your steam engine on the mantle, I think I am going to display a couple of my early efforts for nostalgia and as a benchmark for the progress we have made getting better and more accurate Frisco models. It might even start a conversation (or laugh) or two with visitors to the layout. Thanks Sirfoldalot! Ship IT on the Frisco! Rick
At the same time that 1352 was under construction, I purchased this Kit from the hobby shop at 75th and Troost Ave. I think I did a fair job on it considering my experience at the time. I consider it the "second" RR model I built. As I remember, it was a very nice kit to work with. Appears it was damaged at the same time as the 1352 was.
Rick what a great thread idea! Your story is similiar to mine but I still have the GP7! Not long after I did the SW. These were done in 1989 and ran on a small shelf layout I built in the spare bedroom of my first house. Man did these two log many miles either working together or seperate! I later did a U30B and then a SD9 ( I was prone to put decals on anything) but they have long since been scrapped. It is truly amazing what time does for ones skills! I keep these two on my shelf to remind me of what it use to be like.
Howard, Hey that Geep and SW look lots better than my initial effort! I did mine in O/W and had the orange paint creep under the tape around the hinges. Not real bad but not real good. Your photos are nice and focused too. I think my technique needs some work . . . . Glad you kept these units around and that you photographed them for us. Dig out some more stuff if you have it. This is really interesting. I think I have an Athearn tank car somewhere that I painted up as a company service tank, now what did I do with that? Ship IT on the Frisco! Rick
Say is that one of Dale Rush's famous signs behind Howards engines in the photos below? Ship IT on the Frisco! Rick
Well... my first Frisco attempt was occassioned by a day spent at the Frisco's Ft. Smith yard back in '69 or '70. Hostler Winston Harvey invited me aboard and allowed me to tag along all afternoon as he hostled various power about to be serviced. Among the engines I rode was GP7 526. So pumped was I about that afternoon, that as soon as I could I picked up an Athearn geep at Ft. Smith's "Golden Spike" hobby shop, a bottle of Floquil "Weathered Black", some Champ decals... and presto: A terribly rough first attempt at kit-bashing (removed the dynamic brake blister) Frisco's 526. That model is long gone with only a few equally terrible (scratched/faded/poor quaility) pics of it in the background. However, I do have a pic of my first serious attempt at modeling in '75. It was F7 #24 built using a ubiquitous Athearn F7. I modified the windows, et al. From this model on, I got deeper and deeper into kitbashing/modifying/scratchbashing until I left Frisco modeling as my main thrust sometime in the 90's. Anyhoo... I do have a pic (not exceptionally good) of the first serious Frisco model I built. Here is a shot I used as a Christmas Card in '76 (I think?).... Andre Ming
Here are a few photos of my firsts. I don't have a real quaility camera and the caboose looks especially more red in the photo than it does in real life. I have the very first Ffrisco model the GP 35 setting on a borrowed Kato frame. I robbed parts off of all these models to use on other projects over the years. The Gp 38 has a new Atlas underframe and motor. When it was first built it was a Athearn dummy that I put a EMD prime mover in. This was back when Athearn first came out with the GP 38-2. Man have models come along way. This particular model was damaged and I have started to rebuild it. Rick you have started me going again. Bob
Here are the only two of my original Frisco "roster" that still exist here. Details have been added to them through the years, but their basic garb is as first done around 1978-79-80 after we returned to StL from Cincinnati, and I returned to model railroading and I joined FMIG. Those were good days for many reasons - one being that we could actually go down to the tracks and experience the real Frisco! o The F7A and F7B are original Athearn F-units, both were undecs and hand brush painted by me before I had an airbrush. Sure couldn't paint those stripes straight today - too many old age shakes! I used Microscale decals. The side grills are Walthers decals, no longer available today. Wish they were, as they look OK. The two F7's were both powered once, but just sit around in the background as dummies today. I don't want them to get too close to the Genesis Frisco F3's - that would hurt their feelings! o The FA1 and FB1 are kind of collector's items now - original Train Miniature ALCo's. The FA is powered, the FB is a dummy. The FA cost $14, undecorated; the FB cost $6, undecorated. Things are quite different today! Again, I hand brush painted these two, though many details have been added. Microscale decals. The FA was repowered with a "TanCan" motor after a few years as the TM motor was a joke. I still use these two guys, and they look "fairly good" alongside the P2K ALCo FA/FB units, and run well with them. I developed a method to hand paint these in SLSF b/y by lightly scoring the top and bottom of the side stripes with a sharp Xacto blade. Then, with a steady hand and a small, flat brush, it was fairly easy to keep the yellow paint (Floquil) inside the score marks. I then hand painted the yellow ring around the side portholes and the nose "cigar band". The F7A nose took several attempts, but I got the FA nose pretty close on the first try. Go figure! I removed the d/b from the F7A, but that was so traumatic for me that I left the darn thing on the F7B! You might notice the Athearn F7A rear truck is broken, the result of an unfortunate fumble several years back. It has defied repair. Do any of you have an old, plastic, original Athearn dummy EMD Blomberg truck frame in your junk box you would be willing to part with? These are the ones with the two pins that just snap onto the Athearn metal frame bolster. If so, let me know and we will work something out. Nobody, including Athearn, seems to have these any more. Ken
My first bonafide Frisco project was also an F7A (already posted elsewhere here at http://www.frisco.org/vb/attachment.php?attachmentid=5974&d=1231037684). I did this about 12 years ago and I at least waited until I picked up Frisco in Color to try it! Judging from the weathering job, it should have been outfitted with spark arrestors, as it seems its lived a long life. Alas, my father-in-law moved about the time it was finished and dismantled his layout. I've been trying to sell it but I think Rick may have the better idea. I might build a tiny vignette and display it at work as a good conversation piece.
OK this is really interesting . . . . Andre - Really like the Christmas Card idea and your nighttime winter & snow shot. I think it looks great! What are you working on now? Ken - Your first units look a lot better than mine did. You brush painting really looks nice. Not sure I could have come close to pulling that off. Do you use an airbrush now? I will check my vast parts boxes to see if I have a dummy snap on Blomberg Bob - You have the most modern "firsts" probably because you are a young whippersnapper. Glad you hung on to yours and you may be in a minority of reworking yours in to model to operate on your current layout. Mine were just to bad. Chris - Glad you hung on to your first Frisco model. I won't be putting mine on the mantle but it/they will be in the train room somewhere. These models are good reminders of where we have come from which were very humble beginnings. We had to make enormous compromises and do lots of work to get reasonably close. Now we look at the landscape and we see more new Frisco models coming down the track 1. Steward Executive Line U25B Ph IV in orange & white (later this year) 2. Athearn Ready to Roll SD40-2 (later this year) 3. Proto 2000 H10-44 in orange and white (due about anytime) 4. Athearn Genesis GP15-1 (Bob H when is this due?) We are also anticipating an Atlas U30B, including the #846 Xtra Reliable unit. I think we just might see a detailed SD45 with and L shaped window in the next 12-18 months too. Shouldn't leave out the OMI brass International cabooses in umpteen paint schemes. We still have a lot of needs like a couple of 50' yellow plug door box cars but we are doing well. I am in Frisco heaven. Ship IT on the Frisco! Rick PS Anymore "first Frisco models" out there?
Rick - Yes, I use an airbrush now. I have two Paasche's - a single action and a double action. I'm a bit of a klutz with the double - too much going on for my simple mind! I don't really trust myself with it, and almost always use the single. Ken ps - I have found brush painting with Scalecoat II to work pretty well for area painting - that's what the black is on the F7's and ALCos. I always brush Floquil for detail painting. But, I am finding it difficult to get Scalecoat II now that my local hobby shop has closed. One problem with brush painting, of course, is that the paint coat is usually much thicker than that from an airbrush. The front of that Athearn F7A has a "rather thick" cigar band on it! But, from a distance it looks OK. Up close, not so!
Using an article on a Milwaukee Road SD40-2....I think it was from the July '76 Model Railroader.....I did a Frisco SD40-2 based on that article. Athearn SDP40 body shell, modified with a GP35 end, and a spliced porch made from treadplate swiped from a tow-truck model I had kicking around. My Dad really liked the treadplate, for whatever reason. It wasn't "correct", but it looked neat. The frame (as per the article) was from an Athearn FP45. I think the decals were Herald King. Not the greatest, but it was a favorite thru my college days. Where it is now, nobody knows.......
My first Frisco effort that made it to fruition was a 1200 series caboose and a GP-38-2. The caboose started out as an Athearn, with seperate grab irons and corrected window spacing and locations. It left the roster about 10 years ago with the back date to the 40's, I think it ended up on Ron Williams present layout. The second also started out as an Athearn, with a Cannon cab and seperate grab iron, eyebolts enclosed pilot among other details, it's still around although I don't have photo's. Both these models where completed somewhere around 86/87. It's amazing how time goes by. Brad
Thanks Rick for the kind comments on the old modeling/photo effort. I never have been worth a crap at model photography. Thanks for your interest in regards to current model efforts. As for what am I working on now? Well.... I have upsized my scale so the models will have more visual impact. I am now in S scale. (The larger models also seem kinder to my aging eyes, too.) In addition, I have DOWNSIZED the layout space and layout complexity. Since modeling the Frisco (almost exclusively) for two decades (70's into the 90's), I have come to learn that I have too many interests to accomodate by modeling only one theme. I have also given up on trying to cram the expanse of the Ozarks into the spaces I've had for model layouts. SOoooo... Once I realized I was frustrating myself trying to cram mountain expanse into a model layout... I went with a theme that allows maximum track in minimum space: Urban area switching. For my small space (around the walls of a 9'6" x 12' 10" room + 2' x 9'6" closet), the urban setting is proving to be a very good choice. Thus, the "KC Lines" idea was born. I will be using the layout as a stage of sorts on which a variety of players can perform. It will feature urban switching operations. It is loosely based on the West Bottoms area in KC circa mid-60's. (Remember, my first 16 years and 9 months on this planet were spent in the KC area watching KC trains!) By making this decision, I now have a selection of about 13 railroads in which to indulge. Frisco will play a very important role in my "KC Lines" theme... but it will be only one of the players. I am going to have to rely HEAVILY on backdrop/flats. It didn't take but one "cost study" of ONE large flat to be created by kitbashing DPM panels to realize using such flats was out of the question. Using cast flat modules, a large flat would have cost about $250... and I need to cover almost 34' of walls! The flats alone would have cost over $3000.00. No way. Of neccessity, I created my new PhotoFlat idea. I am still working out the details as to how this is going to work, but the initial attempts are promising. I have included some pics of mock ups on the abuilding layout to at least give you an idea of where I'm heading. Sorry... no Frisco appears in the pics... but there will be! Some of the pics are annotated with additional info. Now, it bears mentioning that I also model in "V scale" (computer simulation via Microsoft's Train Simulator). In V Scale I am tackling the Frisco and the Ft. Smith region in 1908... but that's another topic for another time. Have a great evening!
