Ah, yes! An oldie but goodie.
1-4) EMD F3 in ATSF Silver and Red Warbonnet, 1 through 4 are the A-B-B-A portions in order
5) Brookville BLO-6 (tiny, only 600 hP, and relatively unknown - but looks like an RMT BEEP)
Gentlemen,
There is only one Diesel engine, it was made for the Northen Pacific by the Union Switch & Signal here Swissvale, Pa, the GP7, in the Steelers color scheme. It had a Caboose that went with it, for the work train. In the picture below it pulls our Box Car Christmas Train, notice the NP matching Caboose also. A Lionel original in 1959, it also came with the two tone Green Passenger Cars, which were very very popular, in the 60's, just noticable in the 2nd picture, on the inside track.
PCRR/Dave
The F3 - F7s get my vote. I don't care for any sharknose. To me they look like a poor imitation of an F3.
.....
Dennis
Originally Posted by TexSpecial:
I will always have the F-3 diesel as the best looking....especially the beautiful bright red and white Texas Special. No da.
TEX
Steve
2245 TX SP: The REAL red streak of the golden prairies! And I BOTH the 2245 and 2353!
Originally Posted by TexSpecial:
OK, showing photo's........here is a beauty!
YES!
santa fe f3 warbonet and the GM aerotrain!!
NS's 20 show ponies!
F units..especially ATSF
AC6000 in warbonnet (Lionel fantasy)
SD70's (UP & NS heritage)
ES44's
GP-7, 9, 28, 30
Joe
Obviously, it's the c415:
Just kidding... 
Jeff C
I love first and second generation diesels!
1. F units, I think the light & dark green Northern Pacifics look very classy!
2. GP7, the engine that could!
3. RS3, potatopotatopotatopotatopotatopotatopotatopotato...
4. Sharks, they just look so cool!
5. GP30, different in a good way!
Stack
Originally Posted by AGHRMatt:
My "Face only/maybe a mother could love" list:
- EMD Aero Train. A prime example of why cars and trains should not be allowed to inter-breed indiscriminately. All that said, I'm still thinking about getting one.
I had to laugh at that one. I first saw an Aero Train years ago and thought the same thing. But the more I saw it, the more it grew on me. The hybrid car- breeds- with -train concept was pretty out there for it's time and probably still is for most.
I like it so much I bought one. Gets a lot of admirers and fun to watch on the layout.
Only first generation diesels could be seen as not ugly in my opinion, so my picks are the:
ALCO PA + PB sets;
Baldwin Sharks;
Zephyrs;
EMD F3A & F3B sets;
Fairbanks Morse C Liner.
JeffC,
Its no GP7 but that c415 Pency is way cool no doubt about it.
PCRR/Dave
I'm more fond of the early stuff of the '30's-'40's than the later boxy stuff. so my list would be
5. UP 10000
4. Flying Yankee
3. UP City of Denver
2. New Haven Comet (or the Rebel, which is pretty close visually)
1. F3
Honorable mention goes to some of the more quirky '40s-'50's automotive inspired Sharks and Aerotrain.
IMHO
Tim
Timothy,
How about the UP City of San Fran in Classic Yellow and Gray.
Course the TX Special is pretty nice also.
PCRR/Dave
1 - Alco FA1/2
2 - FM Erie-built
3 - Alco DL-105/109
4 - Alco PA (esp. PA3)
5 - EMD (odd) SD7/SD9/SD24, but only with the high noses. (I realize that the SD24 is not the same loco as the 7/9.)
The EMD F-unit has always been esthetically challenged to me. (The E's are better - must
be the lanky-ness.) This unfortunate look is never more apparent than when an EMD F-something is spotted next to an Alco FA, which has a much more mechanical, sleek and sophisticated appearance.
Of course, none of them is a J3a Hudson, now is it?
Originally Posted by Bobby Ogage:
...
ALCO PA + PB sets;
Baldwin Sharks;
Zephyrs;
EMD F3A & F3B sets;
Fairbanks Morse C Liner.
All of those would be near the top of my list. I will just comment that all of the EMD E and F units had the same nose, except the earlier slant-nose E's are an interesting variation.
And of course this is the Zephyr. I reckon the slant-nose E's got their cue from these.
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Does the Comet, Flying Yankee and early Zephyrs count as diesels? 
I'm partial to the:
DL-109
FA/PA
Ea-7
FT-F7
and my surprise preference is for the humble GP-20. They just look right to me.
1. F3, F7 -- the epitome of streamlined elegance
2. E6,7,8 -- same as above
3. FM Trainmaster -- looks massive and purposeful
4. EP-5 -- McGinniss paint scheme made for a very striking motor (Yes, I know it isn't a diesel - electric, just an electric)
5. Alco FA -- trim taut lines made it handsomely suited to its purpose as a freight locomotive.
Trains and Boy Scouts. I don't think you can beat that mix! My favorite paint scheme.
Dave Allen got it right, IMHO...
Of course, this would be a close second....
KD
Where have I been on this thread, sly diesel that I am?
1: Warbonnet F3. It's the best looking because it is the best looking. There ain't no argument here.
1a) Virginian Train Master Followed by 1b,c,d,e,f Lackawanna, Canadian Pacific, Wabash, Demos et. al.
2: Warbonnet Alco PA ABA It's only second because it ain't first
3: Warbonnet E6 See #2 above
4: Any other F3 as long as it has lightning stripes See #2
5: ES44AC Evo Gevo It is awesome. It just ain't old enough yet.
1) F3, F7 is, by no contest, the best looking and timeless. It especially shows it's best features with the Santa Fe War Bonnet, Texas Special, and PRR Brunswick Green with the cat wiskers paint schemes.
2) E6, 7, 8 in Santa Fe War Bonnet.
3) Fairbanks Morse in the NYC Cigar Band paint scheme. This has better proportions than the ALCO PA's
4) RS-3 in the NYC Lighning Bolt paint scheme. I think this beats all the GP's
5) Don't forget the 2500HP Transfer Diesel in PRR Brunswick paint scheme. The symmetry, appealing box shape, and large size look good to me, but then again, I like symmetry engines like the GG1 and I like box shapes like the E44.
For me, the color scheme is more important than the model. Give me a Wabash Trainmaster over a NYC Lightning Stripe F-3.
My Choices:
Alco PA
Alco RS1
EMD FL9 - F3/7 too short, E's too long, and I like the B+A-1-A trucks
EMD SDP45, in particular the EL/Conrail models
EMD GP30, even in dirty Conrail painted over PC black these things were still impressive
Martin Z
How about the GE BQ23-7 (Come on, who doesn't like the nice utilitarian 'Get er done' stylish features of this oft maligned beauty?)
1. Budd RDC-1/-2/-3
2. FM C-Liner (NH Buff & Green)
3. Alco DL-109 (NH Buff & Green)
4. Alco RS-3 (NH Orange & Black)
5. CF-7
Alco HH660
FM H10-44
Lima RS-12
EMD BL-2
Alco RS-27
Okay, somebody has to pull for the underdogs!
Tom
I like the looks of the trusty old GP9s, the best looking (IMO) being the B&M "Bluebird" paint scheme:
First off, I don't quite get the concept of the five best looking diesels. There aren't five good looking diesels. Diesels in general are boxes, some of which have rounded corners and ends and some don't.
The exceptions are:
1. E6 - the angled nose and the Art Deco paint jobs designed for this unit give it a flair lacking in the later bullnose E and F units. I include the Burlington E5 and whatever that Mopac unit with portholes instead of square windows was called in the E6 category.
2. The original Burlington Zephyr - an Art Deco masterpiece.
3. The Fairbanks Morse Erie Built - only the Milwaukee Road version with the chrome "mustache" on the nose. The Olympian color scheme and the late-deco stainless fluting on the nose elevated these units above the rest of the PA's and Erie Builts.
Everything else is just a box with a diesel engine and a bunch of electrical gear inside.
Originally Posted by Ace:
I thought "best looking" implied graceful aesthetic styling but lots of folks have turned the discussion into "favorites". Whatever!
"Graceful" and "aesthetic styling" are in the eye of the beholder! Some people think "boxes" are graceful. Others think "chrome mustaches" are styling. I think the SP "Daylight" Alco and the F7 in the Black Widow paint scheme are a work of art! Classy strong elegance! The Trainmaster is a rectangular Rembrandt when it's in Black Widow paint, but it's not my favorite. Different things are pleasing to different eyes. Nothing is implied. 
Originally Posted by Hogmaster 1:
Today's diesel locomotives all look pretty much the same. The same goes for the rolling stock as well. This got me to thinking what are in my opinion, the five all-time aesthetically best looking diesel locomotives ever produced. My 5 favorites are as follows:
1. EMD SD40-2: With it's extended porches, it aesthetically appears to be both graceful and brutally powerful at the same time. The proportions are visually perfect on it.
1. EMD SD40-2: With it's extended porches, it aesthetically appears to be both graceful and brutally powerful at the same time. The proportions are visually perfect on it.
Chet Klyn
LCCA
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Sometimes words are meaningful...sometimes they're not. Nothing was implied as to what was the "best looking" on this thread. If Olde Frothing Slosh spins some people's needles...it's probably beautiful to them. Maybe they just think the girl on the can label is a "beauty."
My entries;
-Burlington 9900 pioneer zephyr{3 car- no mars}
-Burlington 9901/2 zephyr{4 car w/mars}...no King/Queen sets!
-E-5 As in "Q" S/S
-E-8As in "Q" silver
-any diesel in "Q"chinese red and grey
...sadly, I can't add the North Shore Electroliner, MR Hiawatha, EP4 lil Joes, MR boxcab{4 unit!}, golden CB&Q 4960 excursion, and of course the CB&Q 4000 Aeolus...see, not all Q engines...but I probably bleed chinese red since my grandfather worked at the Aurora roundhouse, so I come by it honestly!
