Chessie

Timing is everything, so the saying goes. The September 1972 debut of the Chessie System did not go without notice to the makers of HO-scale model trains. The 1970s represented a time in the hobby industry when a number of companies entered, and often exited the market, while others saw great expansion and growth.

The attractive paint scheme chosen for the Chessie System made for attractive HO-scale replicas. This website presents the many and varied examples of Chessie System's famous paint scheme, as it was found on HO-scale (1/87th actual size) model trains. In addition to information regarding who made what and when, comparison to the prototype Chessie roster is also presented. There were Chessie F-units in HO-scale for example, but did they exist in the real world?

Click through the pages and enjoy the many Chessie System HO-scale models. Perhaps you'll find some you remember owning as a kid or find some you want to begin searching for today to add to your collection.

Lionel was among the many model train makers to offer Chessie System items. Above is Lionel's announcement ad from 1974 that the company was returning to the HO-scale market. Lionel used its replica of the the Chessie System gold GM50 diesel in both large 027 and HO-scale in this ad. Lionel utilized a GP9 for its gold GM50, rather than the prototypical GP40-2.

The Chessie System colors were C&O Enchantment Blue, Vermillion Red, and Federal Yellow. Some HO-scale train makers took some liberties with these colors, even to the point of ommission. As seen on the above Bachmann F9, the Vermillion Red was dropped entirely. I wouldn't count on official paint chips of Enchantment Blue and Federal Yellow matching up perfectly either with the colors present on this F9.

A wide variety of models were dressed in Chessie System colors with little regard to prototype. Athearn's AC4400 is an exception however, as the company marketed this as a Fantasy Road release. Review the many models across this site for more interesting examples of never-were Chessie locos.

Model images provided on this page are from a variety of sources including the author's collection, eBay auction images, product catalogs, and others.

Information sources include: Wikipedia.org and The Chessie System All Time Locomotive Roster found on TrainWeb; The Chessie System Photo Archives and Jerry Doyle's "Chessie System Diesel Locomotives" from TLC Publishing.