Your favorite Odd-Ball Trains

I hear George Jetson was the engineer on this one:

And let's take a perfectly good Shay and dieselize it:

Rusty

Here is a .pdf file about Reading 65...it was unusual.

And you all know how I feel about the "Stiesel Shay"  ....absolutely love it!   Somebody needs to tool up a model...right now !

Found a photo on Facebook right after you commented about it.  

That and I know of a guy on facebook who made a shay diesel in HO( I think.)

And then..................

That blue thing looks like something out of India.  The wheels look like it was made, as some logging engines were here, to run on wooden pole roads.  Since they have only commercially built, in three rail, oversize three truck Heislers, I would grab a model of that one above, in three rail, as much closer to the version desired.

Let's set sail on Ingalls Ship Building's GM&O 1900:

Rusty

Inspection Locomotives

The San Luis Southern, in south central Colorado had (has)...they were down to just a wye and short lead off of old D&RGW std. gauge outside Alamosa....an odd ball, homebuilt "locomotive" that looks like a very tall caboose, with a cupola, for engineer, on top, and man doors in each end on the sides.  It looks vaguely like the diesel shay above....no..you would have to look twice at the "Shay"... the SLS critter would take one double take.  On my to-do list is an inspection engine, and a steam coach as pictured in the RR station at the Shelburne, Vt.  museum.

colorado hirailer posted:

That blue thing looks like something out of India.  The wheels look like it was made, as some logging engines were here, to run on wooden pole roads.  Since they have only commercially built, in three rail, oversize three truck Heislers, I would grab a model of that one above, in three rail, as much closer to the version desired.

Yes, it's from India. It's a hybrid monorail, I guess. The majority of the weight is on the single rail visible under the pilot beam. The road wheel is an outrigger that ran on whatever was handy, like wooden beams or even the road surface next to the rail line. Loads too heavy for a roadway could be carried without a lot of extra space.

I forgot I had a second file, here are a few more cool odditys...

An interesting steam motor coach, a predecessor to the McKeen Motor Car.  A failure, but still an experiment to see if a steam engine could power such a vehicle.  Steam Motor Cars with a reasonable success rate didn't come around until about the 1920's.  Sadly steam started going out only 20 years later, destroying the chance of many of the cars being built. 

A rare photo of the Adams Express, created in 1899 to 1900, it was designed to be perfectly aerodynamic.  As I remember, one trial showed speeds of 80MPH.

The more common photo of the Adams Express. 

An interesting steam motor car, Although interesting to look at, I would like to see one of these built in O scale.  

Possibly a knock off of the McKeen Cars?  This trailer car was home built in Alaska (If I remember right.)

Another Steam Coach attempt. 

ATSF Switcher engine.

The "GG1/2"

Another view.

Not really an oddity, but interesting non the less, who can name her first?

How about the "Darth Vader" Amtrak Cascades Talgo set?

Madison Kirkman posted:

 

Not really an oddity, but interesting non the less, who can name her first?

Carrot Top?  

Chas posted:

Madison Kirkman posted:

 

Not really an oddity, but interesting non the less, who can name her first?

Carrot Top?  

 

Not exactly, hint, she's driving something she's not famous for.  

Amelia Erhart?

WM's "jitney" at BOWEST yard near Connellsville,PA.
WW Jenkins collection

CarGuyZM10 posted:

Amelia Erhart?

I knew that,  I just didn't want to steal your thunder.  

The Delaware and Hudson had ALCO build them the L.F. Loree, named after the D&H president, in 1933. It was a four cylinder non-articulated Mallet 4-8-0 with higher pressure cylinders under the cab and low pressure ones up front, plus tender booster truck.  All drive rods, from front and rear cylinders went to the second set of drivers.  It was a very efficient steamer,  but not enough to compete with diesels.  Those two steam coaches pictured above, somewhat similar to some inspection engines, and to the photo at Shelburne, are what I want to build/kitbash.  I have not even heard of a model of one in HO.  (nor of the L.F. Loree)