Here's an interesting concept. Which steam routes in the UK would you prefer. Golden age of steam- dawlish o'r run down routes towards the end of steam with the rust of the locos and the decreped lines shortly to be closed?
There is a place for all three, TBH. Who wouldn’t want a chance at driving a broad gauge steam loco or Stephenson’s Rocket, but at the same time running a 9F on an Annesley Windcutter along the soon to be closed Great Central? Much will depend on what DTG and their associates feel they are able to research, to do the chosen prototype justice.
No personal preference as i have neither knowledge or experience, any of those will make me give a try. But something old from end of XIXth century has an appel... Still it would need a lot of new assets I suppose.
I know it is a TS1 route but where does Riviera in the 50s fit in that? It is towards the end of steam I think but not exactly run-down? Thanks.
Maybe not a very helpful reply, but I saw that list thinking I’d be equally interested in each type of route.
I want to say that I like run-down routes (I tend to think of NTP as as non-steam run-down route for example). Industrial routes can be fun and "golden age of steam" sounds fun as well. Which category do you see the Crewe-Liverpool route fitting into? Okay a quick google suggests that the golden age of steam was somewhere between 1910 and the 1930s depending on how you define it. So, that makes it run-down I suppose.
Crewe to Liverpool definitely the era when steam was starting to be run down, but the route certainly was not, being an important main line and only a year or two off complete modernisation.
If being pedantic the British Railways logo used in the DLC is the pre 1956 one but there are mark 1's so if it is set around 1955/56 then it is just when the modernisation plan had been published. BR were still building new engines, I suspect most probably thought that steam would be around for quite a bit longer than it was. I have seen comments suggesting the BR standards were intended to work into the 1970's. I would say it is at the end of the golden age but just before decline set in. Steam was dominant for another few years. By 1960 I imagine most knew the writing was on the wall but I wonder if many thought that by 1966 steam would be gone from the Western region.
Thanks for that theorganist. So you'd take "golden age" to be up until diesels started coming in and it becoming mixed?
Yes you are probably correct. It would have seemed mad for some engines to last less than 10 years when there were some engines still running approaching 80 and even older.
I would say so as far as steam was concerned. I have a copy of The Railway Observer from 1955 just after the modernisation plan had been announced and it seems to be a mix of sadness but also looking to the future. I don't think it was until the turn of the sixties that enthusiasts really started to wonder how long steam would have left, plus with the Beeching report and subsequent cuts, it must have been a sad time for most enthusiasts. I do like the transition period as I love the classic traction and it is good to see it alongside steam, I just think the end of steam was a sad time, at least in the early 60's steam was still much in abundance. You often hear how great the sixties was as a decade. But with the ripping up of railway lines, towns and cities having their historic hearts ripped out to be replaced by concrete jungles and ugly buildings and the end of steam (despite the fact I know it was necessary), I just see it as a decade of destruction. Although I do love the trains and cars from this decade! Anyway I digress.
Thanks, I assume that the OP meant "Golden Age" in the same way as otherwise it is just 3 random time periods / emotions. Changed my vote now
I have to agree with the above response. Why limit your preferences to one or the other? What still has me going back to TSClassic is the variety available - especially in choices for steam, Everything from Cheyenne 1869 using Classic “American” and “10 Wheeler” locos to running Big Boy over Sherman hill and everything in between … I say go for all 3 plus industrial, narrow gauge, yard intensive and high speed passenger steam as well as quirky branch line.
Golden age of steam if they want something big they can try Ussyurisk Vladivostok 141km 88mi on a Russian FD & LV Class steam locomotives 2-10-2 and the Ye Russian Decapod 2-10-0. 2-10-0 can also serve as a German locomotive the DR 52.80 for Tharandter Rampe Dresden Chemnitz when it was in service with East German Railways DDR Deutsche Reichsbahn Chemnitz is called Karl Marx Stadt). DB BR052 RRO RSN HMA Main Spessart Bahn 1950s with DB BR 095.
What if I would prefer non-UK steam routes? I mean I'm not a big steam-fan anyway, but I would love to try some classic american 4-4-0 steam locomotives or Mikados or something.
I would equally enjoy all 3. As long as there's plenty to do and explore. I would really like to see pre-British Rail liveries and pre-grouping liveries and the unique rolling stock of different companies.
The 8F's saw service in Italy in the early 1950's as well as Turkey (some in service up to the 1980's as well the Middle East, and we all know how DTG love to recycle their locomotives. Just saying
Stephenson rocket would be an absolute waste of time . It'd be like the steam car on gran turismo. You drive it once, max it out at 4mph and never use again
How dare you diss the ROCKET! Joking, you have a point unless you are an enthusiast though. The Rocket was out of date before it got to the opening of the Liverpool - Manchester Railway where it was relegated to hauling ballast and killed a MP for good measure. For me I love this era at the start of Steam inter-City, other trains like Locomotion, Arrow, Northumbrian, Phoenix, and others. The advance in Steam technology was quite rapid and unrecognisable in a few decades saying that I like the Mallard, 1444 and few others so they would be good as well but for me the start of steam was the more fascinating.
Would love to see an American steam route set in the late 1940s. For me this would be ultimate railroading sim experience in TSW. During this period, classes of steam locomotive were still being built (Alco up to 1948, Baldwin and Lima up to 1949) and although the end was in sight for steam, it was still before the bulk of steam withdrawals in the early-to-mid 1950s. It would encompass the maximum variety of steam including the latest and greatest steam locomotive classes. There is so much untapped potential. The problem would be that if your reliant on modelling locomotives (and sounds) based on preserved examples you'd be missing out big time. There are many US railroads (apart from the obvious like Union Pacific) that come to mind that have no surviving examples of major steam locomotive classes - Northern Pacific, Denver & Rio Grande Western (standard gauge), New York Central, Pennsylvania Railroad (yes there is a K4, I1 and M1 but no, N1, J1, T1, Q2, S1 etc), Baltimore & Ohio, Chicago & North Western, Boston & Maine and the list goes on.
Absolutely correct and you are going to see them that they are quite smaller than a Union Pacific giant steam locomotive. Some are same 4-8-8-4 as a UP Challenger and Big Boy locomotives. Seaboard Coast Line 544 is a Russian Decapod 2-10-0 or 2-10-2
As someone who isn't really a steam fan, I'd like to see a late Steam/early Diesel era portion of the ECML (early 60s?). A chance for A4 Pacifics and two-tone Green Deltics (lots of people want a Deltic but it only really makes sense in the context of an ECML release). Chuck a 24/25 pack in somewhere and we're pretty well sorted for 1st Gen BR Diesel locos.
I was really offended by your post to start with and then remembered that I'd quite like Deltics as well, just not on this route
