I can honestly say I am a

I can honestly say I am a cross between #1 and 2. I have some steam that is un-modified but a majority of them has had some form of modification/ detail added. Then there are all the Bowser locos I have built and started to build are added to the list. Adjusting the running gear is easy to do with the proper tooling.

     Pete

Those were the days!

I'd forgotten about Bowser, Roundhouse, etc. kits.  Not forgotten, exactly (I have several on the bench at the moment), but forgotten about their influence.  While a diesel model was little more difficult to assemble than putting the handrails and brake cylinders in place, we had to rivet our valve gear and clean up very heavy and fairly rough boiler castings, glue or solder all the parts in place, etc.  I can definitely see why steam models were more intimidating.

I sure miss the days when I could daydream with a catalog in my hands, picking out the lovely and inexpensive steam locomotive kits that I wanted.  Now it's pricey (but pretty) RTR, or look for deals on eBay.

Definatley steam

I wouldn't say die hard but I do like steam and first generation diesels.

I'm with Pete, somewhere between 1 and 2, probably a 1 5/8th's steam. Have a few kit's to dress up and maybe change the gearing and motors in some. Haven't tried a scratch build yet in the smaller scale such as HO and O, but getting close to trying it someday. I am scratch building a live steam 1  1/2" 4 truck Shay though.

Bernd

I guess I'm #3

#1, of course!

I do keep a couple (literally!) of diesels just to be able to say my layout will be dated Fall of 1948!  I may even run them!

Almost forgot to mention...

Steam plus heavy electrics. I also like the heavy electrics used by the Great Northern,  the Pennys, New Haven and such. As a matter of fact I'm kit bashing/scratch building one now. 

A lash-up of steam and electrics makes a nice sight.

Bernd

Ken.  I have to add a few

Ken.

I have to add a few things to my original reply. Even though I have modeled HO for over 40 years I have just started acquiring some brass locomotives. I have 3 so far. Each one needed an almost complete drive train overhaul to accept a decoder for DCC. Changing motors and gearboxes can be a daunting task an a little overwhelming to someone not used to tinkering.

Even the RTR steamers I own needed some sort of tinkering to get running perfectly. Spectrum K4 pacifics run fairly good but very light on their feet. I had to add weight to them to pull a decent size 7 car HW train. Everyone of my 9 BLI produced locos needed something from a simple cleaning and oiling to a complete running gear and quarter job. There is only one RTR steamer that I had to do nothing but program and run and that is one of 2 P2K 0-6-0 steamers that I have. The other needed quarter and had a wiring issue. The most expensive loco I own needed work to run it. The P2K 2-8-8-2 is a great looking loco but having to overhaul the valve gear that was binding was almost too much to take for the price it cost.

So I am changing my initial declaration from in between 1 an 2 to a 1 and very little 2.

Pete

A slight bias to the question?

Hey,

I modeled (kitbashed) all steam when I was young. But my local steam line went electric in 1960.  But it wasn't until '75, when I got a brass model of a PE car as a "grown-up" birthday present, that the "electric" light went on. and the sparks began to fly.

The one true happiness of putting model electric motors in models of really prototypically electric motored cars has been with me ever since.

May the Electro-motive force be with you. . . . MMMMMmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm

Kinda raises the bar a bit

doesn't it ! 

" I am scratch building a live steam 1 1/2" 4 truck Shay though."

Love the way you casually drop that in as the last line, Bernd !

David

ps I'm definitely steam (1929), mostly RTR/brass, modestly kitbashing an old Roundhouse 0-6-0 into something a bit more CPRish

Personally DK Rickman You do beautiful work Building & Bashing

Me I'd consider myself 45% #1 & 55% #2 At the moment I have 3 HOn3  2-8-0 Roundhouse engines left to build and 3 already built.I re-gear all my Roundhouse Engines with NWSL Gear kits to make them run smooth and quiet as well as causing them to run at more realistic speeds.  I also have 1 HO Roundhouse 2 Truck Shay Built  with the back date boiler and the complete NWSL re-gearing kit installed that is just setting on the shelf in a box not being used, Two HOn3 - 2 Truck Shays w/Back date boilers w/NWSL Gears to be installed & 1 Roundhouse  HOn3 - 3 Truck Shay with the D&RGW Bumble Bee paint job Half built with the back date Boiler in the file and sand stage and the NWSL gearing already installed.

Since Black Stone started building their HOn3 Engines and Rolling stock I have 3 of their 2-8-2 K-27s and 2 of their 2-8-0 C-19 engines one with the Factory #40 RGS paint scheme and one undecorated That I'll be adding the #41 and the Rio Grand Southern on the tender. I also have a few HOn3 Brass engines 2-8-2 class 125, Two 2-8-0 C-16 one 0-6-0 yard switcher  and Painting and bashing all the brass engines one way or another. None of my engines were built after 1903 so I have to say what's a Diesel engine ?

Dan

Glad to know I'm not alone

Aside from a little friendly ribbing for those who have the poor taste to prefer diesels, I was really curious to see who else is interested out there.  It seems that the diesel modelers (and modern era in general) gets most of the play.  Maybe we're not as prolific, or too busy working to document our progress, or do we figure nobody is interested?  Whatever the reason, I'm glad to know that I'm not alone in my love of building and working on steam models.

Now, one of these days, I'm going to get around to my HO scale coal fired live steam model....

That last line

I have a feeling you don't believe me David.  

Go here and follow the link.   http://www.kingstonemodeleng.com/RailroadShop/Shay/shay.htm

Right now the On30 bug has got 'ahold of my butt and it isn't letting go until I get a superstructure finished for that friction drive I blogged about several weeks ago.

Bernd

Roundhouse HOn3

I have one of those, maybe two, don't know right off hand. The one I do have is not completely finished. Talk about a long term project. I think I have a second one in storage somewhere. Also have a couple of standard HO Roundhouse engines. Now that I have the machine shop up and running they are going to get some new gearing and a coreless motor for smoother running.

It's an engine that burns liquefied coal, in other  words the next generation of motive power.

Bernd

Live Steam?

Hey I resemble that remark. 

Bernd

HO live steam

Well, if it can be done in Z scale (actually 1:240, which is smaller than Z), I figure it ought to be possible to make a decent HO scale steamer.  Fire it with pulverized coal, fed by a miniature screw conveyer, and off you go!  The tricky part is controlling it.

I certainly do

believe you Bernd - we've seen the sort of machine work you do at smaller scales, so have no doubt (just a smidgin of envy!).

David

All three

I guess I do all of the above. Diesels are nice and reliable but steam is fun to watch and hear.  I'm bashing some RTR models (both diesel and steam) so they are closer to what the prototype used. I had to modify a Bachmann 0-6-0 to add a working front coupler (thanks, Bachmann).

Hey Dave

Don't be envious, anybody can do it with a little coaching when they start out. I didn't know it all when I started. You should have  seen the scrap bucket before I got better at doing these things. Now I save the mess-ups and turn it into something else. I'll post an example when I get the super structure finished for that friction drive critter. It's getting pretty close to semi-finished, don't ask, it just sounds good. 

Hey give it a try and ask questions. Remember there are no such things as dumb questions, only dumb answers.

By the way I hope you know I was only kidding.

Bernd

Small scale live steam

Ken,

You know you'll need an atomic atom smasher to get those water molecules to HO or smaller scale before you can get the water into those very tiny water tube boilers? Same goes for the coal or they just won't run right.

Bernd

OO Scale Live Steam

I model steam, probably categories 1 and two, as I re-number R2R and also have some out of the box, like the Mallard:

Seen here hauling a mixed rake of 15 Gressley Teak and Pullman coaches.  You don't get the effect of the hiss of the steam, or the smell of the exhaust in a still.  The downside is it's a mucky beast!  Although the 1:1 scale A4's have three cylinders, the Hornby Live Steam model only has two, but they certainly make up for it with oily deposits that they leave on the track.

Benchwork and scenery coming soooooon.

Have a few north American outline diesel locomotives, but not ventured into the steam era from there.  I guess I am comfortable with what I know best.

Norman

Catagory #1 Crazy

Delaware & Hudson 2-8-0's created from Bachman Spectrum models.

  https://forum.mrhmag.com/post/delaware-hudson-consol-scratchbashes-12186222

https://forum.mrhmag.com/post/carbondale-walpole-valley-railroad-modeling-the-dh-rutland-12186263    

Greg

OO steam

Very nice looking engine there Norman.

Does it have wobbler pistons or are they slide valves. Sure would be interesting to see were they hid those cylinders.

Bernd

Definitely #1 with tiny bit

Definitely #1 with tiny bit of #2 & a smigging of #3

Reading consols

Greg,

Those are some of the best Spectrum bashes I've ever seen.  I've thoroughly enjoyed your blogs on building them, and I hope you will continue to share.