Route Update

The Central Vermont Champlain Division is currently about 98% done. A major push in the last few days resulted in the completion of major scenery and track work as well as the placement of ambient sound effects. We now head into the final stage, which will be a sweep of the route. During this sweep, I will look for breaks in the scenery, inconsistent speed limits and any other minor errors that may persist. The route should go into Beta mode next week! 

Route Progress: Wrapping up the CV Mainline

Well you wouldn't want to drink hot milk, would you?

Tonight I plugged away at finishing the last major segment in my current WIP, the Central Vermont Route (officially named the Central Vermont's Champlain Division). The southern end of our CV Mainline is located in a city known as Bloomfield, VT (no relation to the real life Bloomfield, VT). Our Bloomfield much more resembles Bellows Falls, VT; a small industrial city bordered by a winding river and steep, wooded hillsides. At the center of Bloomfield is the Central Vermont mainline and yard, including a short spur serving Green Mountain Creamery, a major customer. There was once a branch leaving the mainline here that headed south, but is recently abandoned at the route's date (1960-65).

Completing Bloomfield is the last step that stands before the "technical" work begins on the route, which includes adding ambient sound effects, labeling sidings and adding speed limits. It shouldn't be too long before the route will be available at Railworks America.

An aerial view of Bloomfield showing the Creamery, Depot, CV Mainline and yards as well as the abandoned branchline.

Bloomfield Depot, showing CN/CV power and the Green Mountain Creamery in the background.

The Central Vermont Railroad: Coming soon to Railworks America!

Boston & Maine F3 4228 (McGinnis Paint Scheme)

A project I started and finished today is B&M F3A #4228. Most of the B&M locomotives which were painted during Patrick McGinnis' time as president of the Boston & Maine got far more basic paint schemes, but #4228 was selected to receive an experimental scheme designed by McGinnis' wife. It had previously been painted in the classic maroon and gold Minuteman scheme. For much of its operating life, the flashy and "progressive" blue paint scheme served as a kind of contradiction, as the locomotive was often dirty and worn down thanks to the neglect that the B&M suffered under McGinnis' controversial management. Regardless, #4228 soldiered on into the early 1970s when it was finally scrapped. It enjoyed a varied operating life, pulling freight trains as well as the last long distance B&M coach passenger train, The Ambassador. 

B&M 4228, soon available on  Railworks America.

Wordless Wednesday #2

Maine Central RS-11 Uploaded

Uploaded to the Railworks America file library.

WIP: MEC Alco RS-11

Maine Central's Alco RS-11s

Today I started repainting the fabulous VirtualRailroads Alco RS-11 into the famous Maine Central pine green paint scheme. The MEC owned two RS-11's, numbered 801 and 802. Both road numbers will be represented in the pack. It's always an....experience repainting early B&M and MEC diesels as lining up the striping in the texture files is quite frustrating. But it pays off! I may be writing some scenarios for the Portland Terminal route using these locos as well.