Some musings...
NYC F3 Black w/simple nose stripes on FA's:
Have yet to see any of the NYC's early FA's with that scheme. So far, all (a dozen or more) FA pics that I found while digging had the Lightening Stripe scheme.
Switchers:
Okay, at first I thought about an RMT "Bang" diesel, having had one a few years ago and seeing that it was a decent runner. SO, for several weeks I've been watching the Bay for one to appear to get an idea of what they go for on the second hand market. To date there's been: Nada. Zip. Squat. PLUS, it appears almost all of the RMT offerings on The Bay are higher than a cat's back ($$). You can get decent Lionel Postwar rolling stock cheaper!
Now, I'm sure if I wait long enough, RMT will miraculously find some another case or two of Bang's that were long lost and hidden in their huge "Raiders Of The Lost Ark" type warehouse they must surely have... and no doubt these will be an even later version than the cases they found last time... with new upgrades and all. 
BUT... nearly $300 for a traditional sized toy train? Um, no.
SO, I've been doin' some learnin', and schooled myself a bit about the little Marx "1998" Alco switcher. Took a look at some of them and, lo and behold... I actually like the little fellers! The one in this pic is the one that really made me step back and go "HMMMmmmmm"...
Looks pretty nifty as is, but I think with a bit of doin', one of those could look pretty stinkin' good, and ought to blend in nicely (size wise) with my proposed steam and diesel rosters.
Like I said... HMMMMmmmmm.
Andre
