Another Eric on this forum? Things are going to get a little confusing with my doppleganger posting here (although I spell my name with a "K" (K... "Komachi..."), which is the good Norse/Germanic way...)!
But I digress...
Was there supposed to be an image added to your post, or did you neglect to mention which paint scheme you were discussing? It's hard to know which one you were referring to, the "blue bonnet," "warbonnet," Burlington Northern "Cascade Green" original Burlington Northern Santa Fe green and orange, or the new H3 black and orange (and according to GOLDEN ARM a possible newer H4, which substitutes the black with a dark green)?
A search on Google found these links...
http://www.railpictures.net/showphotos. ... NSF%209297
http://www-us.flickr.com/photos/brandon ... 194383191/
... a discussion on the locomotive's current paint job, which, incidentally is that funky experimental scheme it was painted in 9-11 years ago...
http://www.trainboard.com/grapevine/arc ... 67110.html
... and a few listings for scale model versions of said unit in HO and N scale (one notably on e-Bay), which I will not place here, as they may be a "limited run" item (just use Google and you're "good to go!")
I'm not up on the history of said unit, but from the images I've seen of it with it's funky paint job, 9297 is one of the units that was painted up in an "experimental" paint scheme sometime after the BNSF merger in '95. This was when the railroad was trying to figure out a new, "original" paint scheme to identify the newly formed company. The green and orange went on to become the color scheme of BNSF (then known as Burlington Northern Santa Fe) whereas the pinstripe idea survived in a somewhat modified form. The resulting paint scheme acknowledged Burlington Northern's Great Northern heritage, whereas the "cigar band" circle on the nose and the yellow stripes with black pinstripes were a nod to Santa Fe's warbonnet scheme (at least that's my take on that scheme).
Now...
Let me make this perfectly clear...
THIS THREAD WILL BE FOR THE DISCUSSION OF BNSF LOCOMOTIVE NUMBER 9297 AND OR THE EXPERIMENTAL PAINT SCHEME IT WEARS. ANY COMMENTARY ON THE "H3" AND/OR "H4(?)" PAINT SCHEMES WILL BE ADDRESSED IN THE "WHAT HATH BNSF WROUGHT?" THREAD AT THE TOP OF THE FORUM. IF THIS THREAD STRAYS OFF TOPIC TO THE "SWOOSH" OR "H3/4" PAINT SCHEME(S), I WILL LOCK IT (with one of my handy magic locks with the Milwaukee Road logo engraved in it)
!!!!!
So, let the discussion of LOCOMOTIVE #9297 continue...
"Remember, 'Big Brother' is watching."
- George Orwell,
1984.
