Sunset North Coast Limited

I must have looked at these car pictures 100 times and didn't see the apostrophe. Looks like an easy fix with a touch of white.

BTW: We have 1 unsold 2R Set. First come first serve. Email me to get one.

For what it's worth, the real NP "Travelers Rest" passenger car belongs to the group in Portland, OR and usually can be seen at the Oregon Rail Heritage Museum. It has been used for crew member seating and meals at the headend of the excursion train behind SP 4449 (the last main line excursion was in 2018).

@sdmann posted:

I must have looked at these car pictures 100 times and didn't see the apostrophe. Looks like an easy fix with a touch of white.

BTW: We have 1 unsold 2R Set. First come first serve. Email me to get one.

Here's an example of NP's marketing of the car showing the apostrophe:

 http://streamlinermemories.info/?p=1402

@Hot Water posted:

For what it's worth, the real NP "Travelers Rest" passenger car belongs to the group in Portland, OR and usually can be seen at the Oregon Rail Heritage Museum. It has been used for crew member seating and meals at the headend of the excursion train behind SP 4449 (the last main line excursion was in 2018).

And I've seen photos of the car referenced by Hot Water without the apostrophe.

I just had not seen a period photograph of the original NP NCL car with or without the apostrophe.

Regardless, it's a spectacular set and I hope to see photos of the TR car interior soon. 

Here is a video of the North Coast Limited running at night past a Hobo Camp on the Rockford O Scalers layout.

And here’s a daytime video of the NCL on the Rockford O Scalers layout.

Wonderful video; thanks for posting.

Love the NP NCL; and the GN Empire Builder in the background.

How about a video featuring both of these legendary "name" passenger trains???

are you sayin the color is off

A local friend of ours has this North Coast Limited set of cars and the matching F units from Sunset 3rd Rail and he has brought the train over to run on The Rockford O Scalers layout.  It is a beautiful set and we like the improved diaphragm design as compared to the Olympian Hiawatha cars which we have.  Regarding the discussion of color fidelity, we believe the dark green is acceptable (but perhaps not perfect) but the light green is too yellow.  This is unfortunate, but it "is what it is" and we think anyone who has this set will be happy with it.

Here’s the Sunset 3rd Rail Northern Coast Limited train, owned by Armour Peterson, running on the Rockford O Scalers layout.  Notice the NP Slumbercoach (also a GGD car) in the consist which  dates the train to 1959 or later.

This prototype photo of the NCL heading into Chicago Union Station, was taken in excellent bright sunlight conditions.

Note the shades of green on the last 4 cars and the different shades of green on the two cars ahead of them.

@rheil posted:

Note the shades of green on the last 4 cars and the different shades of green on the two cars ahead of them.

Hello Bob,     Given the distance involved in the photo, not knowing when the various cars were built, and how long they were in service, I don't know how any kind of accurate comparison of color could possibly be made.....but then, maybe that's your point.

Respecfully,

Simon

@bob2 posted:

I should add that all Sunset efforts eclipse the K-Line products.  They are, of course, more expensive; you get what you pay for?

I agree, except for the GN Empire Builder, where GGD (Sunset) messed it up by combing the 1947 train with the 1956 dome cars, when the cars were all replaced between 1947 and 1956.  K-Line's Empire Builder had its own issues with window placement/arrangement and the dome shape/size, but they got all the car types right for the 1956 EB train, for the most part.

@Simon Winter posted:

Hello Bob,     Given the distance involved in the photo, not knowing when the various cars were built, and how long they were in service, I don't know how any kind of accurate comparison of color could possibly be made.....but then, maybe that's your point.

Respecfully,

Simon

Plus, the cars could have been recently shopped and repainted.

Rusty

@Rusty Traque posted:

Plus, the cars could have been recently shopped and repainted.

Rusty

That is exactly my point. These photos are from sixty +/- years ago when paint finishes did not last as long as they do today.

"are you sayin the color is off"

All I'm saying is that the real deal is placed directly in front of the 3rd Rail car in the photo.

What do you say?

I am not sure if you are responding to me or not. If you are then I will agree that the color does not match the color chip exactly. However, how do you explain the two shades of both light and dark green in the above photo of the real train ?

I was responding to Marty Track.  But how do I explain those shades on the real train?  Judging by the time period that photo was taken, when those cars were painted and the amount of rust and dirt on that train: Age.  Reminds me of how much BN green weathers and ages.  A manufacturer always has choices; build a model as built, after mods, match a color to original paint chips, match the paint to historical society original cards, copy a color from another run or another manufacturer, do a faded aged paint version, use a gloss finish, satin, flat etc.  Did Scott make the right choice?  Everyone's individual eye decides yes or no.  As for me, I have not voiced my opinion.  I merely posted a photo for thought.

@Pete Kruimer posted:

Did Scott make the right choice?  Everyone's individual eye decides yes or no.  As for me, I have not voiced my opinion.  I merely posted a photo for thought.

I agree completely that everyone's eyes will decide. I recall being at the Cleveland 2 rail show a few years ago and a fellow came to me asking about the shade of a color used on a GGD streamlined train. i agreed with him that it appeared to be off by a large margin.

Scott had depended on a gent to supply the color as he was a very influential member of the XX Historical Society. The fellow knew steam power but was not a good judge of color. Scott and I had a conversation regarding that. I personally had a 14 car GGD train with 3 F units of that railway and sold it all since I couldn't get past the error ( at least to me it was).

Now tuscan red on the PRR ? That is almost any shade of red you want it to be. I have a color film taken with my grandfather in about 1950 in Baltimore that shows a fairly bright red B60 baggage car. Every other car in the movie is a browner shade of tuscan red, but this car was much brighter.

I have a 30 inch square PRR emblem cut out of a passenger car as it was being scrapped and it has been said to me by a number of PRR "experts" that the shade of tuscan is incorrect. But it is "real" tuscan from a real car. Plus in the 1960's I worked for the PRR handling mail on passenger trains. It was unusual to see two cars painted the same which goes to your point about aging.

R. Heil  --  Sunset Models / Golden Gate Depot / 3rd Rail

What could be more painful than having to sell a 14 Car GGD train with 3 F units?  I know the answer.....nothing!  

Color?  I think Justice Potter Stewart said it best about the situation; I know it when I see it.  We all have memories (and know how unreliable they are), books, the web, old photos and our own tastes on what color is correct.  Matching the color to the prototype during the great era of colorful streamlined trains is a fun game to play, difficult and challenging.  Bottom line is that 3rd Rail's entire NCL running the rails is a sight to see, and Scott's best to date.  I wonder what everyone thinks of the NP F3s to match this train?  I know a friend of a friend of a friend of a friend that worked hard to get that one accurate.

My reason for not buying this set was that I did not have a place to run such a magnificent and long O scale train, and have never owned a shelf queen--it's easily my favorite streamliner from the period.

Flash forward 6 months and I now belong to a club with a large permanent layout that's available to me 24/7; and, an even bigger traveling layout to run on once Covid 19 restrictions are removed and the venues resume their traditional dates.  My bad luck.

I have heard there is something else which can "throw" paint colors.  Or lack thereof: LEAD!

Also, there might have been a reason for a train having two domes next to each other:  car availability at the place where the train was made up.

Scott is already re-running the Hiawatha, and has several name train reruns planned.  Turn bad luck into good luck and start a campaign.  Email Scott to do another NCL run.  I know at least one other person who would be in.

i've got the same problem. I have 2 Sunset E8 units along with 12 Atlas Zephyr cars and no place to run them. Darn it. Guess that makes me a collector.

If GGD does another NCL run, I hope Scott considers the 8-6-3-1 sleepers. I would buy 2, and hopefully the available cars would include some lettered for CB&Q and SP&S ownership.

@The GN Man posted:

If GGD does another NCL run, I hope Scott considers the 8-6-3-1 sleepers. I would buy 2, and hopefully the available cars would include some lettered for CB&Q and SP&S ownership.

Id be in for 3! These are a MUST! You can’t have a prototypical consist without them. It was a shame they were not done on the first run. I would love to add them to my first run set if they are made in a future 2nd run.