Model Train Journal

Over on NK they are really whacked out over some color errors on some Lionel F units (NY&OW for one). Was wondering what the 3 rail contingent had to say over here?

Rich

Maybe those guys need to be milked?

E7 wrote:Over on NK they are really whacked out over some color errors on some Lionel F units (NY&OW for one). Was wondering what the 3 rail contingent had to say over here?

Rich

Doesn't matter much to me. Color depends on lighting. My F-3's don't look the same color outdoors as indoors with all different light bulbs I have (incandescent, fluorescent, LED, cool, warm and in-between.) Plus in real life (before my local railroad changed from S.P. to U.P.) the Black or gray locomotive color depended on the era it was last painted in and how much the paint had faded in the desert sun. My favorite F-3 is a clear ghost unit, no color at all.

webenda wrote: Color depends on lighting.

Perception of it depends on the individual's eyes, too.

I don't see them in the 2018 catalogs but there are illustration in the 2017. Looking at images posted on Google there are anything from light gray to dark gray for the main background and the yellow accent stripe is also all over the place. The EMD advertising "card" shows the dark grey background and an almost UP armor yellow. Other photo's of actual equipment are much lighter in color. I can't tell if it's lighting or just faded paint. The "traditional" F-3 sets from 2012 is definitely dark gray and bright yellow.

The colors are wrong. When paying the money for these units, the color should be a helluva lot closer than those units arrived. They are justified in their complaints IMO. I commented on the SFs not being as shiny as expected because of how Ryan Kunkle explained them to be but I wouldn't consider them to be wrong but some of those other engines were just bad.

Ryan Kunkle just posted information on OGR regarding new shells being made for the affected units. You can either have the swapped free of charge or keep the old ones and purchase new shells.

Wow. Not even close. Here is a screen grab from the YouTube video review of the 2012 traditional F3 in O&W colors

Guys....I understand your frustration but continued personal and nasty comments are not going to be tolerated. There are ways to express yourself without having to make some of the comments I have had to spend part of my afternoon editing and/or deleting. Either make your feelings made in a civil manner or don't comment at all. There are a handful of you that have been getting worse lately and it is getting old...perhaps it is time to clean house again?

Alan

Alan Arnold
Publisher/Partner-Advertising Sales Manager
O Gauge Railroading magazine

E7 wrote:Over on NK they are really whacked out over some color errors on some Lionel F units (NY&OW for one). Was wondering what the 3 rail contingent had to say over here?

Rich

Well I live in a fantasy world and run toys on toy track with one too many rails. If the colors are pretty, I'm happy despite whether they are prototypical or not.

jlong wrote:

E7 wrote:Over on NK they are really whacked out over some color errors on some Lionel F units (NY&OW for one). Was wondering what the 3 rail contingent had to say over here?

Rich

Well I live in a fantasy world and run toys on toy track with one too many rails. If the colors are pretty, I'm happy despite whether they are prototypical or not.

Bingo! Well said. Sometimes we lose sight of the fact that they're toys.

jlong wrote:

E7 wrote:Over on NK they are really whacked out over some color errors on some Lionel F units (NY&OW for one). Was wondering what the 3 rail contingent had to say over here?

Rich

Well I live in a fantasy world and run toys on toy track with one too many rails. If the colors are pretty, I'm happy despite whether they are prototypical or not.

While very true for one market, totally not for another. How hard would it be to get it right, and to make it pretty, and fully capitalize on sales to all markets? Probably not hard at all.

Rufus T. Firefly wrote:How hard would it be to get it right, and to make it pretty, and fully capitalize on sales to all markets? Probably not hard at all.

Impossible. The perceived color depends on the individual's eyes, his mood at the time (or stage of insanity), the color temperature of the lighting, the age of the paint, what his standard for the "right" color is etc, etc.

Which is the correct T&P color?

webenda wrote:

Rufus T. Firefly wrote:How hard would it be to get it right, and to make it pretty, and fully capitalize on sales to all markets? Probably not hard at all.

Impossible.

I disagree. Get something justifiable and present that as what you are going to use up front. What a concept - tell folks what the color is going to be in advance....... Color photos exist - you use what's available and match it. You don't paint stuff in paisley or polka-dot.....

Which is the correct T&P color?

Again, you use one that you can justify using - pick any one that you can (preferably not the unique one ) and use it to defend your decision making. The quick research that you did demonstrates that variations exist -- pick one and show buyers in advance that's what it's going to be and make that happen. Deviate from what you can defend at your own risk.

Rufus T. Firefly wrote:

webenda wrote:

Rufus T. Firefly wrote:How hard would it be to get it right, and to make it pretty, and fully capitalize on sales to all markets? Probably not hard at all.

Impossible.

I disagree. Get something justifiable and present that as what you are going to use up front. What a concept - tell folks what the color is going to be in advance....... Color photos exist - you use what's available and match it. You don't paint stuff in paisley or polka-dot.....

Which is the correct T&P color?

Again, you use one that you can justify using - pick any one that you can (preferably not the unique one ) and use it to defend your decision making. The quick research that you did demonstrates that variations exist -- pick one and show buyers in advance that's what it's going to be and make that happen. Deviate from what you can defend at your own risk.

I have to agree with Rufus and MartyE on this. It's 2018 and the technology exists to arrive at a close, if not exact, color match. Pick a color / era / condition for the model based on its history, advertise it, and then meet it. Period. Especially when you're charging that kind of money. At least be close. It shouldn't be a total crap-shoot as to what you get.

George

Who gets to decide the color ? All these crap toy trains are made in China. Who looked at the shells before they shipped them....