LEGO Train 12 Volts Posted June 24, 2011 I've just voted "hi degree" because since I was a child I remember my father's H0 Markling collection, with a lot of German, Switzerland and Italian steam and electric locomotives. The masterpiece was the BR23 and this kind of steam locomotive (I mean the BR series) influences a lot my train production! I like Lego set 182 and 7750 for this reason: red wheels and black main body! The Big Boy, that I consider one of the kings of the steam engines, has not the same appeal for me! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Toastie Posted June 24, 2011 Very nice topic, TheBrickster! Well, very high influence I guess for me. When I was 8 years old, steam engines made my life. They were roaring by and left me - paralyzed. That was back then "at home" in Northern Germany. So Ben's 23 is one of my favorites, as Teddy's 01 is. We moved to the US for some reason some 30 years down the road. And had the chance to room around at Long Beach, LA. Man. American diesels. Five of them piled up to pull container cargo through nearby deserts. SD40's, GP38's, ... you guys know how to make them strong and pretty. Yes. It is about Geography. The more you come about, the more ideas you have ... All the best, Thorsten Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
22kane Posted July 27, 2011 (edited) If anybody mentions that abomination against all that is right and proper in American railroading called "Penn Central", though, I'm gonna go postal... What's wrong with the Penn Central, other than the obvious? It's a fascinating history really and serves as an important time in railroading in the U.S. Many good things came out of it like deregulation which may have saved railroading as we know it today. I have always been heavily influenced by the trains I've seen growing up. Conrail had a main line about 10 blocks from my childhood home (originally a Reading/Pennsy line) and I spent many hours there each day. I was able to see most of the Penn Central power converted into Conrail blue and it made for some interesting lash-ups. Today's railfanning is pale in comparison to the plethora of locomotives seen in the early 80's. I model in N scale outside of Lego and it's all paint schemes that ran through the state of Pennsylvania at one time or another. I've found that most modelers prefer the trains they watched as a child and I'm certainly no different. Being from the all diesel generation I prefer diesel to steam, probably why my Maersk loco is my most prized possession. I've done one MOC so far and decaled it in Conrail and with more practice I plan to have an entire fleet of Conrail Lego trains. Can you tell I like Conrail? Edited July 27, 2011 by 22kane Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Brik-el Posted July 27, 2011 As I look upon various train MOCs shared on EB, it gets me thinking, how does WHERE YOU LIVE influence your train building? Recent orange diesel trains shared by Sergio depict Portuguese trains. Others by Ashi Valkoinen demonstrate his interest in Hungarian trains. Personally, I've always liked Wild West steam trains. Does where you live influence what you build (or) do you just build trains that you like? Discuss the topic here: I live in Canada, so my influence is certainly based on where I'm from. The big 2 here CP and CN. My pics of my MOC will show you. Love that red and white. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Shupp Posted July 27, 2011 I would say "high degree." I got into this hobby without caring too much about where my prototypes came from, though all but one was American, but I've come to focus more on the American northeast, where I live now. Now all the projects I have in mind are based on local railroad history. Partially this comes from living in the area and seeing the remains of that history around, but for me it also has to do specifically with being able to more easily visit surviving equipment in local museums. The other thing that influences me is the fact that, at least for American prototypes, there is just so much that hasn't ever really been done. Modeling the 20th Century Limited got me doing research on lots of NYC prototypes, and I found that most of them had never been rendered in Lego, so I can definitely draw a lot of inspiration for future projects from that. After all, if you make the first Lego model of something, you can feel like you made the best one! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
peterab Posted July 28, 2011 After all, if you make the first Lego model of something, you can feel like you made the best one! Why didn't I think of this I'm working on a BR 103, a very well loved German prototype, which has a few difficulties for LEGO renditions. At least by looking at all the other versions I get to copy all the good bits, and stand on the shoulders of giants as it were. If I built local prototypes there are only a few people that even build Victorian Railways. Unfortunately one of them is arguably the best LEGO train builder in Australia, and I'd put him in the top ten in the world. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
