Yes I see your point. Got the top photo from 

Pictures of BNSF 2824

How about this picture. More of a match?

Maybe but, you really should be looking for the same road number series, i.e. 1600 series.

There are no BNSF GP.38 in the 1600 series. GP 38 are the 2100 & 2200 series

Looks like the BNSF pumpkin paint scheme on your loco needs a bit more orange pigment.

   Bill T.

"The real deal vs Lionel"

   I saw this hopper parked on a spur track a while back....DaveB

It's a nice looking model, enjoy it.

Yep, I'll second that.  Just enjoy it for what it is.

BNSF 1603 in real life is an SD40-2, not a GP38.  And from I could see it looks like #1603 was never repainted in the Pumpkin paint scheme and instead retained its original Santa Fe blue & yellow "freightbonnet" paint scheme with only the BNSF logo patch on the cab being the only fundamental change. 

In short, the Lionel model based on the cab # doesn't match the engine or paint scheme that wore it.  On a traditional engine as the Lionel one.  If it was done on one of Lionel's higher-end scale models then I personally would be more critical of it, but since the model in question is from their traditional line & not completely to scale, it's not that big of a deal; artistic license, nothing more, nothing less. 

Originally Posted by Kurtds:

Sorry about the subject line. I know it is not cool to some of you. My point was that Lionel did a nice job on the model they created that look like the BNSF by my work. Yes not the same Type locomotive but close. Thanks Kurt

Some of us understood what you were trying to say.  Even if it's not perfectly correct (and when is it ever "correct"?), it's great when your own model/toy/etc train captures the feeling you get when seeing the real thing.   It's especially pleasing when there's a local connection. 

Thanks for sharing.

Sharp looking! Enjoy it!

That's really nice, man.

Thanks for the post, and time spent to photo.

A bunch of "open mouth insert foot posts!

"Family" is fun huh Kurt?

 Everyone makes mistakes. Luckily we all have a voice for the times "experience" flubs one.

.....and written words $^¢# sometimes for mood anyhow.

I have lots of trains here, non are 100% prototypically accurate.

 The PW 2037 an Adriatic, my favorite train and namesake, was never even made in American styling.

 I learned about that sometime, somewhere. It wasn't here, but easily could have been.

 Beats never realizing it.

Id rather have it known as wrong, than go on thinking it was "right" when its not. 

Now that would be really embarrassing

Oh yea, "Not steam", not prototypical, but sharp as a tack

What else ya got?

"I saw this BNSF in the rail yard by my work."

    Interesting that there are still some GP30's working. SP got rid of their a long time ago  Apparently they didn't like them as well as their Gp-9's which got rebuilt and lasted much longer.....DaveB     

out of scale handrails are a dead giveaway in many diesel models when placed in a side-by-side comparison with their prototype.  IMO it really distracts from some otherwise fine molded-in detail.

No—The original poster drew the comparison between the prototype and the model with the title of the thread. 

The flaws in the model vs. the "real deal" were rightfully pointed out. It is a discussion forum about trains and for a while the discussion WAS about TRAINS. It was derailed by some who only wanted to talk about PEOPLE. 

Nice catch! Enjoy it.

Kurt, I for one say your locomotive is fine, so enjoy it as I'm sure you are.

I think that people forget that for 95 years, the vast majority of Lionel products were "representations." They were toys that were not precise scale models, which today we call "traditional." Details were suggested or, like the sheet metal handrails, were meant for durability. In the original definition, this was hi-rail, which had nothing to do with scale. If you wanted scale, you went to HO - which many did.

One of the train magazines did an article over a decade ago on the term "hi-rail" has been hijacked to now mean scale proportions and detail. I know, it's just a word, but words have power and meaning.

Kurt, sad but even here on the hi-rail, 027, traditional 3-rail O gauge forum (note, it reads: gauge, not scale), if you post something about hi-rail, 027, and traditional trains, you're very likely to get shot down over it.

Truth is, there's nothing wrong with any of it. Scale may be the attention getting trend, but I'm sure the production numbers of a typical starter set from Lionel probably equal a good chunk of the scale product line up. Lionel has said the Polar Express set is the best selling set in the entire history of Lionel, and it is neither scale nor prototypical.

So Kurt, enjoy your trains. I'm a 027, traditional operator. I'm interested in realism, but I don't obsess over it nor let it ruin my day. I have K-Line Alco FA's and S-2's I've repainted to Conrail, CSX, Norfolk Southern and Canadian Pacific. I don't worry that most of those roads didn't operate those locomotive types... I'm going for "representation."

And I could take a stab and guess that Lionel did the orange color on this model a little bit lighter as it makes the BNSF herald show up better. Which is fine with me.

I'm just happy that Lionel has chosen to put some modern roads and paint schemes on traditionally sized trains in starter sets. And I can't be the only one who feels that way, as I have been told by several dealers, these modern road starter sets have done very well.

Don't worry OP, this forum is a great place to learn. I like your post and understood what you were saying. Enjoy your train 

I remember one of my first posts about High hood diesels. Boy did that go well 

Kurtds, nice comparison.  I always like to see if I can find my locomotives in the real world whenever I see a train somewhere.   

Yeah the "rivet counters" need to be over in 3RS or 2RS don't they?  I mean this is the " Hi-Rail, O27 and Traditional 3-Rail O Gauge" section anyways.  

Kurt, I guess you must see a lot of trains near your work.

Your post with the photos just reminded me of something. Lionel had just come out with new CSX diesels, and they looked a lot like the ones I was seeing near me here in NJ, I thought it was kinda neat, and that was what brought me back into "O" trains. 

(I've since sold those CSX diesels, but I still have the "O" bug)

I see the "Lionelville Pipe Co" in your picture. Do you have more things like that on your layout?

Looks looks like you have a neat little man cave thing going on. Portland Timbers fan?

Matt

       



Yes I am a Portland Timbers supporter. I have  Lionelville Rail/Truck Transfer Depot and a Southern Pacific Freight Terminal (Pacific Friut Express Terminal) 

I have always wondered if this pic was the inspiration for the Lionel 622 NW2. Recall that in the 1949 and 1950 catalog it was pictured as a New York Central and referred to as SW1 in the catalog.

46 years later they produced this.

Pete

Neat photos!

"The real deal vs. Lionel" would be a fun project--like a traditional-sized analogue of Ted Hikel's O Scale freight car guides. Take a Lionel piece, and compare it to the prototype. Or if no prototype is obvious, discuss some possible ones. How close / far is it from scale? Did it really come in those road names? It could be fun information to collect.

I remember reading an article some years ago on Marx lithographed diesels. Despite their obvious stubby proportions and lack of realism, it was intriguing to see just how close Marx tried to get the paint schemes. I'm sure traditional Lionel is full of similar revelations.

Here's my MTH gp unit

Now how about THAT! A model of the same real deal, even with the same road number. Very impressive.

As a starter loco level, its even tougher to knock the point off that "sharp tack". 

That is sweet!