As I mentioned before, I have these old N-scale Kato GP-9's with the fake frames. Now that I know JnJ has a correction kit, I'm thinking maybe it's better to upgrade than trade them in. (I don't think EMD will give me much)
I'd like to paint them AC, but this is a first effort, and I just know I'd mess up a scheme that complicated. Besides, where are the decals? I'm not hand-painting little bears....
So, I thought I'd do them as CN. One is already CN green, the other two are PRR black, so if I remove the lettering, paint the noses red, and slap on some CN decals, I should have a decent 3-engine consist.
Questions then arise.
In some photos, I see a cover on the long hood and spark arrestors on the exhaust. How common were these? Were the covers removed in summer?
The winter windows are always there, or did they come off in summer? Both sides, or just the engineer's?
The steps have what appear to be half-height kick-plates, whereas the units I have are see-through. Were they all like that?
I notice some units ran long nose first. Was this an early practice? If so, when did it change? Or was it a dual control situation for branchlines with no wye?
The safety stripe is white on some units, and yellow on others. When did yellow come in? Would a white striped unit survive into the 80's? And when were the last of the green units seen? I seem to recall a few in the early 70's, but I'm not so sure. Can I get away with it in the early 80's - on a branchline say - or is that pushing it?
Finally, why all the variations? Some of these units are solid black with red ends. Some have red cabs with zebra stripes running in either direction. Some have red cabs, no stripes, black cabs with red doors, and on and on. Was this a question of how much of a rush they were in, was it a shop or regional signature, or did they just have trouble making up their minds?
I've also seen all-red geeps with white cabs. Was this a test scheme, or a passenger variation?
I guess there's a website for this stuff right?
Mac B.