I have a "Texas" 1950's theme layout and run MKT, T&P, Santa Fe and some MP trains. Are there any other forum members who operate these railroads on their layout? O gauger's who live in Texas, Missouri, Oklahoma, etc...... Forum seems to be majority of East Coast railroads, lets show our colors also. If you can post photo's that would be fun to see.
Steve, Lady and Tex
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As you know Steve, I am a big TS fan and run two of them on our layout.
I run Mopac, Katy, SP, and UP. I was born and raised here in Austin, Texas and am a member of the Tinplate Trackers of Austin, Texas.
Does it count to just be an admirer of the Katy?
Art
Love them all and trying to add to the collection.
The more I look at the Texas Special, the more it appeals to me. I think I need to get the IC City of New Orleans and a Milwaukee Road passenger first though. Have to go by priorities. 
Art
MoPac: some of the most handsome, impressive and well-maintained modern steam
locomotives ever completely ignored by the 3ROS hobby. Someone (author Joe Collias,
maybe?) said that MoPac steam had kind of a New York Central handsomeness to
it, but without the NYC's loading-gauge (size) restrictions.
They had some twin-sand-dome 2-8-4's that they converted into one of the best-looking classes of 4-8-4's ever, for starters.
When a child, I had a railroad book that pictured yellow Katy cabooses, and so yellow
is the color of my free lanced road's cabooses. The Mopac is admired because they
had THE largest and most interesting variety of different cabooses than any other road
that I've found. My road will have a connection with the Mopac so Mopac cars will roll
on it.
I model the Texas and Pacific exclusivly. I have a 2-8-2, a 2-8-0, a 0-8-0(formerly Lionel and Western), and a 4-6-2 all in T&P livery. All of the engines are numbered after prototypical engines. I also have 1930s era rolling stock to go with them. I am currently building a new layout or I would post pictures. My old layout had to be pressed into service outside as a chicken coop. Everythig is in packing/storage boxes. The T&P which played a major role in the economic development of northeast Texas and northwest Texas was a federally chartered railroad and a lot of it's buildings and rolling stock can still be found. Unfortunatly this is not true of O scale equipment. I did not know until last month the T&P had built some stone arch bridges that are still used for roads.
Brian - my eye's light up when you post these babies. I'm patiently waiting.........
Texas Eagle - I visited a club layout in Temple last year, closest I got.
Texas SP - do you have a layout? Hard to find some road name items now.
Chugman - anything counts, but I would ge a TS first.....
D500 - thanks for the MoPac steam info.
TP Fan - I could guess from your name...like to see some pictures of your TP items.
c.sam - Great looking set. Once I modify to 072 I can fit the Katy SD70 to run.
I wish more of MoPac, Katy, T&P items were made. I try to get what I can. I'm have some rolling stock in MKT, T&P and Santa Fe I am selling. Email me (profile) and I will send list.
Steve, Lady and Tex
Not a Katy operator (at least not yet), but I had to get one of these when they were re-issued:
If I relocate to Texas, though, that may change. If I model the Imperial Sugar Facility in (appropriately named) Sugarland, I'll have to add some MoPac to the mix.
MoPac GP spotting a car on the sleeper track at Kansas City Union Station.
Brian - my eye's light up when you post these babies. I'm patiently waiting.........
Texas Eagle - I visited a club layout in Temple last year, closest I got.
Texas SP - do you have a layout? Hard to find some road name items now.
Chugman - anything counts, but I would ge a TS first.....
D500 - thanks for the MoPac steam info.
TP Fan - I could guess from your name...like to see some pictures of your TP items.
c.sam - Great looking set. Once I modify to 072 I can fit the Katy SD70 to run.
I wish more of MoPac, Katy, T&P items were made. I try to get what I can. I'm have some rolling stock in MKT, T&P and Santa Fe I am selling. Email me (profile) and I will send list.
Steve, Lady and Tex
I do have a layout, was building a table style, but missed the interaction of having it on the floor. I pulled out what I was constructing and went back to the floor. Will be doing scenery details around the outer edges along walls.
My tie in to two of these lines is as follows:
My grandfather worked and retired from SP in the Englewood yard in Houston. In his stories he always talked about switching cars and what not which would route to the Katy yard west of Houston. So there is a lot of rich history on all of that for me.
As for the mopac, that was the first modern style diesel (not a carbody) I received as a kid. It was exciting for me because those were the kinds I always saw as a kid in the 80's.
As for the other Texas related items, I am a 9th generation Texan born and bred, so anything Texas tweaks my interest.
About the closest I'll probably get is modeling a Texas Electric freight motor or two. Frisco was my primary interest when I lived in SW Missouri, but my fiancé lived in Branson, so I'd occasionally see a Mopac freight roll through town.
Jeff C
I hired out on the Mopac in 1974 as a switchman, moved up to locomotive engineer in 1978, now in my last year on the UP, still out of St. Louis.
Always liked the MP blue and gray diesels, even though everything was Jenks blue when I started out. So, now I have both along with Texas & Pacific diesels.
I keep hoping one of the manufacturers, MTH, would make up the F7's in the blue and gray scheme, a one paint scheme for all the MP Lines F7's. MP, T&P and the KO&G F7's all had the same scheme with different nose heralds and side lettering.
But you gotta love those Screaming Eagles on the turbocharged diesels of the 1960's an 70's.
Dan
I did not know until last month the T&P had built some stone arch bridges that are still used for roads.
TP Fan, Do you have the locations of any of the bridges. I am a big fan of old bridges, particularly railroad bridges. Thanks, Pat B.
OOPS, still getting hang of attachements.
My railroad is the CBS, When built it was owned by Santa Fe, CB&Q, Mopac, KCS and Frisco. The CBS RR use the engines for the parent roads. Today the CBS is owned by BNSF, UP and KCS. BUT we have not repainted the engines so you can find engines in BN, Santa Fe, Frisco, MP, Katy, UP, BNSF and KCS colors. The CBS Railroad runs from Clayton, NM to Springdale, AR with most of the track across northern Oklahoma.
Railroad offices are in Farmington, Arkansas.
Finished this one a while back!
The Mopac is admired because they had THE largest and most interesting variety of different cabooses than any other road that I've found.
The Missouri Pacific Historical Society published a very good book that you may be interested in about Missouri Pacific cabooses by Jerry Michels. Pat B.
Here are a few of my Mopac trains on the Austin Tinplate Trackers layout.
I'm a 6th generation Texan and am also interested in most things Texas!
Texas Eagle 77, What models are the caboose and the diesel? Thanks, Pat B.
MoPac: some of the most handsome, impressive and well-maintained modern steam
locomotives ever completely ignored by the 3ROS hobby. Someone (author Joe Collias,
maybe?) said that MoPac steam had kind of a New York Central handsomeness to
it, but without the NYC's loading-gauge (size) restrictions.
They had some twin-sand-dome 2-8-4's that they converted into one of the best-looking classes of 4-8-4's ever, for starters.
Joe Collias produced an outstanding book titled MoPac Power on Missouri Pacific locomotives, primarily steam. He also produced similar books on the MKT, Frisco, and Texas & Pacific. Pat B.
Have there been enough Missouri Pacific and Texas & Pacific freight cars produced in traditional O gauge and O Scale for a decent representation?
Andrew
I did not know until last month the T&P had built some stone arch bridges that are still used for roads.
TP Fan, Do you have the locations of any of the bridges. I am a big fan of old bridges, particularly railroad bridges. Thanks, Pat B.
I found one old stone railroad bridge over Bullinger Creek in Sealy, Texas. I believe it is a three arch bridge.
http://www.flickr.com/photos/nakrnsm/6340829142/
Steve, Lady and Tex
I did not know until last month the T&P had built some stone arch bridges that are still used for roads.
TP Fan, Do you have the locations of any of the bridges. I am a big fan of old bridges, particularly railroad bridges. Thanks, Pat B.
I found one old stone railroad bridge over Bullinger Creek in Sealy, Texas. I believe it is a three arch bridge.
http://www.flickr.com/photos/nakrnsm/6340829142/
Steve, Lady and Tex
TexSpecial, That is a beautiful bridge. It would be a nice subject for a layout scene. Pat B.
Not a Katy operator (at least not yet), but I had to get one of these when they were re-issued:
If I relocate to Texas, though, that may change. If I model the Imperial Sugar Facility in (appropriately named) Sugarland, I'll have to add some MoPac to the mix.
They don't make sugar in Sugar Land (two words!) anymore! Most of the plant has been torn down!
Sorry to say, but the TS did have run through sleepers from the PRR and B&O at St. Louis!
I do think the TS is an underated passenger train in terms of looks! Then again,Warbonnets are overrated!
The Austin group had a MP train with 3 SD40-2's and a U 30C at the WGH show in Houston. Those guys have a power system which could run a arc welder! Amazing!
My layout is in the process of rebuild. I feature T&P steam passenger, UP steam freight, and MKT Alco with Texas Special livery. I would really prefer an MKT diesel in freight, but they are hard to find, but I will get there. Would like a MoPac, but that's too many engines. Have cabeece in all three liveries and more, and a wide variety of rolling stock, mostly boxcars and tankers.
My layout is in the process of rebuild. I feature T&P steam passenger, UP steam freight, and MKT Alco with Texas Special livery. I would really prefer an MKT diesel in freight, but they are hard to find, but I will get there. Would like a MoPac, but that's too many engines. Have cabeece in all three liveries and more, and a wide variety of rolling stock, mostly boxcars and tankers.
There were MKT Alcos without the Texas Special silver markings that hauled freight, but I can't find them. MTH shows one, but the stock picture with black trucks is apparently incorrect in that the actual item has silver trucks. Anyone have this one?
Texas Eagle 77, What models are the caboose and the diesel? Thanks, Pat B.
The caboose is Overland Models and is brass. I used to see those all the time go thru Austin. The engines are Atlas O. They did those about 6 years ago. I also have the GP15, MP15's and U23 Atlas did in Mopac Jenks blue along with the SD40 MP Canaries they did.
Have there been enough Missouri Pacific and Texas & Pacific freight cars produced in traditional O gauge and O Scale for a decent representation?
Andrew
There is a lot of nice scale MoPac rolling stock out there. A lot is by Atlas, but some MTH, Lionel, and Weaver but if you didn't get it when it came out its hard to come by.
The Austin group had a MP train with 3 SD40-2's and a U 30C at the WGH show in Houston. Those guyes have a power system which could run a arc welder! Amazing!
Dominic, that was my MP train. Glad you enjoyed it! Those engines were done by MTH. They also did SD50's MP Canary scheme. I also ran a trio of Atlas MP15's on a mixed freight down there in Houston.
The Austin group had a MP train with 3 SD40-2's and a U 30C at the WGH show in Houston. Those guyes have a power system which could run a arc welder! Amazing!
Dominic, that was my MP train. Glad you enjoyed it! I also ran a trio of Atlas MP15's on a mixed freight.
Texas Eagle 77, Who manufactured your SD40-2? Is the MoPac livery factory paint or custom? Thanks, Pat B.
The Austin group had a MP train with 3 SD40-2's and a U 30C at the WGH show in Houston. Those guyes have a power system which could run a arc welder! Amazing!
Dominic, that was my MP train. Glad you enjoyed it! I also ran a trio of Atlas MP15's on a mixed freight.
Texas Eagle 77, Who manufactured your SD40-2? Is the MoPac livery factory paint or custom? Thanks, Pat B.
Pat, The SD40-2's, U30C's and SD50's are all factory by MTH.
The Austin group had a MP train with 3 SD40-2's and a U 30C at the WGH show in Houston. Those guyes have a power system which could run a arc welder! Amazing!
Dominic, that was my MP train. Glad you enjoyed it! Those engines were done by MTH. They also did SD50's MP Canary scheme. I also ran a trio of Atlas MP15's on a mixed freight down there in Houston.
I was the guy from Houston Tinplate enjoying your layout. The MP15's also looked great! A UP unit with good paint in Jenks Blue I think is an under rated livery!
The High Plains Division of the Panhandle and Santa Fe Railway Company, represents the ranch country just off the caprock west of Dickens, Texas. There's one foreign line engine -- an SP Baldwin-Westinghouse AS-616 -- that runs on a local freight by trackage rights, but this is the Home Road otherwise. I would be willing to have one foreign line train at a time on the railroad, and M-K-T, Rock Island, FW&D, T&P or MP would be fine. If Sunset/3rd Rail ever does a small steam engine for one of those roads, I might get one. Or a GP7. However, I have a few projects to finish before adding more trains.
Tom,
I love your overpass. How did you make it?
Here are some more pics of my Mopac and Katy trains on the Austin Tinplate Trackers.
Diesel Dan, whatever you did to photograph your engines, it brought out the true color of Missouri Pacific blue, which hardly ever happens. You are awarded five buzz saws.
Texas Eagle 77, you have some fine central Texas trains there. The Katy brought a relative part way from Tennessee to California in 1937, and I have always had a soft spot for it. In 1956, I saw a MoPac EMD E7 at Kansas City and was absolutely stricken by the beautiful shade of blue. Thanks for the compliment on the bridge, but I did not build it. It was designed by Roger Farkash and made on the TW Trainworx laser cutter. It includes a simulated plate on the end identifying it as a government project built in 1936. Roger does nice work.
You Austin guys love to run LONG trains. A 63 cars refer train? That SP train could cover the line from East San Antonio to Tower 55 via Toer 3 in Flatonia!
You Austin guys love to run LONG trains. A 63 cars refer train? That SP train could cover the line from East San Antonio to Tower 55 via Toer 3 in Flatonia!
We just like to run them like the real ones. Our longest was a 72 car reefer train. We did that at WGH San Antonio in 2009. A bigboy pulled it all by itself and then later we double headed a 4-12-2 and a Challenger together. If you go on our website there is video of it. In the pic below you can see it starts in the yard on the left and ends in the crook of the L on the right.
The TS livery, either the REAL one or the Lionel 2245 one, are underated liveries!
I hope the Austin group come back to Houston for the Big Texas Show!
I did not know until last month the T&P had built some stone arch bridges that are still used for roads.
TP Fan, Do you have the locations of any of the bridges. I am a big fan of old bridges, particularly railroad bridges. Thanks, Pat B.
The bridge is somewhere between Paris and New Boston. I got the information from an article in the November Texas Parks and Wildlife Magazine. It can be accessed by going to tpwmagazine dot com (I am not sure how to enter a web address into text on this forum. The article is about a rails to trails project and one mans recent journey down the trail. Can anybody find this bridge and send us some more pictures?
I'm strictly Stanta Fe and Steam Era to early transition. My layout build in progress is the Raton Pass.
Keith, thanks for the comments. I just purchased the MTH Premier TS ABBA set and sent to Boxcar Bill for upgrading to TMCC/RS and LED lighting. Can't wait to get this set back.
Always like your unique O gauge choices.....especially the always great looking "orange & blue" Lionel Lines stuff. Enjoy your postings.
Steve, Lady and Tex
And Amtrak uses the T&P version of the TEXAS EAGLE logo as its own for advertising of its version!
Here are two pics of the bridge in Roxton, TX. I got off Google maps street view.
They don't make sugar in Sugar Land (two words!) anymore! Most of the plant has been torn down!
Sorry to say, but the TS did have run through sleepers from the PRR and B&O at St. Louis!
I do think the TS is an underated passenger train in terms of looks! Then again,Warbonnets are overrated!
Yep. Stand corrected on Sugar Land. Saw the aerials and you can see where parts were, then when I saw the facility up close and personal it was pretty obvious the facility hadn't operated for some time. They were having a Farmers' Market there when I was down there last July. The track configuration of the area lends itself to being turned into an Inglenook switching puzzle or a through-track module.
Ricky: Nice looking MoPac and Katy Geeps. Was out in Katy this week and saw the remnants of the branch that ran along I-10.
Since the title of this thread has been expanded, here you go:
First locomotive weathered. The Apprentice did most of the work as he was instructing me on the technique.
Scale-wheeled Blue Goose. Still need to hunt down some appropriate passenger cars.
I renumbered this "patch" GP35 as I received three with the same road number. I'll get around to weathering this and the others.
Just got this one last week.
I did not know until last month the T&P had built some stone arch bridges that are still used for roads.
TP Fan, Do you have the locations of any of the bridges. I am a big fan of old bridges, particularly railroad bridges. Thanks, Pat B.
The bridge is somewhere between Paris and New Boston. I got the information from an article in the November Texas Parks and Wildlife Magazine. It can be accessed by going to tpwmagazine dot com (I am not sure how to enter a web address into text on this forum. The article is about a rails to trails project and one mans recent journey down the trail. Can anybody find this bridge and send us some more pictures?
I have read abut the "Katy Trail" which runs through Texas and Missouri. Quite an extensive trail system following the path of the railroad with historical sites, stations and trains along the way. Has anyone toured this trail?
Steve, Lady and Tex
Here are two pics of the bridge in Roxton, TX. I got off Google maps street view.
Those are interesting pictures. I will go by Roxton the next time I am near it and try to findthe bridge. For any of the Forumites in the Austin area the Elgin(Texas) museum has an excellent collection of railroad books. They are from a private collector who willed them to the museum, over four hundred volumes with a heavy emphasis on Missouri Pacific and Southern Pacific. The museum is in an old train station which by itself is worth a look. There is also an 1890 railroad station that the chamber of commerce uses. Two nearby restaurants are the City Caffe which has been in business for over a hundred years and Maxines which has a more modern menue. Elgin is so small you don't need directions.
The High Plains Division of the Panhandle and Santa Fe Railway Company, represents the ranch country just off the caprock west of Dickens, Texas. There's one foreign line engine -- an SP Baldwin-Westinghouse AS-616 -- that runs on a local freight by trackage rights, but this is the Home Road otherwise. I would be willing to have one foreign line train at a time on the railroad, and M-K-T, Rock Island, FW&D, T&P or MP would be fine. If Sunset/3rd Rail ever does a small steam engine for one of those roads, I might get one. Or a GP7. However, I have a few projects to finish before adding more trains.
Tom - I too am a big fan of your scenery. I know you that you give the credit to TWTrainWorx and they did a fabulous job. It captures the look and feel so well in my opinion. Never get tired of seeing pictures of your beautiful layout.
Art
Live in south central arizona, I run SF, SP and some UP on the layout
And the MP ran lines in TX: MP, T&P, I-GN, Cane Belt, Houston-Baytown interurban, GCL, part of the HB&T, and others......
I have read abut the "Katy Trail" which runs through Texas and Missouri. Quite an extensive trail system following the path of the railroad with historical sites, stations and trains along the way. Has anyone toured this trail?
Steve, Lady and Tex
Steve, here's a map showing the entire "Katy Trail" in Missouri. It runs 240 miles!
That's one L--O--N--G park!
Here's the Missouri website that explains many things about this State Park.
Someday I'd like to bike ride a portion of this trail as I live near it but so far that day remains elusive.
There is a similar trail in Texas however I believe it's a 3.5 mile portion of the MKT line that ran through Dallas, TX.
Mark
The section to the Katy from Shepherd Dr. to UofH Downtown is now part of a City of Houston hike and bike network.
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