Coal traffic is on the move, way out west, behind modern diesel power on Craig Wright's layout. The consist is led by BN #5734, a Lionel U33C which Craig modified by replacing the hi-rail wheels with scale ones. Additionally, the front and rear pilots were removed from the trucks, and then glued and screwed to the frame. The coupler opening was filled in to represent a more prototypical configuration, and Kadee S-scale couplers were added. The Lionel Legacy system's electronics were removed and replaced with a SoundTraxx Tsunami decoder.
Next in line is a brass Rio Grande SD50 by Overland Models which Craig super-detailed following an article in the February/March 1998 issue of S/Sn3 Modeling Guide. This locomotive was actually Craig's first S-scale purchase.
The third locomotive is a brass Overland Models SD40T-2 which was detailed per the Rio Grande standards. All engines are equipped with a Tsunami DCC with full sound and lights. In the photo, the consist crosses over a scratch-built representation of the Santa Fe's bridge at Larkspur, Colorado. Craig followed the prototype's use of multiple materials supporting the bridge; concrete piers, and steel and timber trestle pilings. Craig used modeler's license and moved the bridge farther west to his version of the appropriately-named Westwater, Utah.
This photo appears on the inside cover of the February 2026 issue of Railroad Model Craftsman magazine in the NASG promotional ad campaign.
