I want to suggest a run of not just one, but a set of 6 or 8 CB&Q coal hoppers, in chinese red, 1950-60s. Q Engines from this time period are out in steam and will be coming out soon in diesel. Coal hoppers are almost always in a group, and almost always from same company. A train full of coal hoppers from different railroads, looking like a stick of Lifesavers, is just not realistic.
I'd be up for that for a 6 or 8 car set run in black. (I prefer the black as the red faded quickly and I saw a whole lot of pink rolling stock growing up in Aurora, IL in the early '70s.) The CB&Q built around 2500 70 ton, offset side, 3-bay hoppers between 1948 and 1951. Chinese Red was introduced in 1958.
I would buy 6. The train I'm putting together could use a string of coal cars. Although I'm in NY, I'm from Illinois, and we have long runs of coal cars running to our power plant nearby here in NY. So I'd have Illinois, and the boy's train could have a mess of coal cars like he will see all of the time when he goes train crazy, which he will. Six Pack for me.
