my ESPEE MODELERS ARCHIVE

California's Railroad to the U.S. 1861 - 1996

Cotton Belt
DT-6-6-2000

As no RTR model has ever been released and with only 46 ever made perhaps never will.

They may have been made in brass?

I think a kitbash/scratchbuild will be required in any scale.

Being as this diesel has been described as two Baldwin DS4-4-1000's on a common frame; and Stewart (in HO Scale), have released a DS-4-4-1000, then a couple of these shells and a custom built frame with trucks from a Stewart AS-616 perhaps might be a starting point.

Decals:

Microscale has a decal set 87-992 for Confederate Gray and Epaulet Yellow FT units, which may be usable for the as delivered paint scheme.
( I did use their Daylight set for F units 87-50 on a GP7... )

There were two orange and black schemes, the early 1951 one had an orange arc on the cab the latter 1955 didn't.
Both should be a fairly simple mask and paint using Daylight orange and black with 10" Cotton Belt decals from Microscale 87-11.

The scarlet and gray scheme applied in 1958 followed the previous paint mask, and is different to an SP standard, decals would be the same as above.

Models:

• N Scale
  • ?

• HO Scale
  • ?

• S Scale
  • ?

• O Scale
  • ?

Model References:

• Extra 2200 South, Feb 1969 page 18 - photo of early orange and black scheme
• Extra 2200 South, Apr 1969 page 21 - photo of early orange and black scheme
• Cotton Belt Locomotives by Joe Strapac - page 194/195 for as delivered paint scheme and scarlet and gray scheme
• Cotton Belt Pictorial by Steve Allen Goens - pages 54/55 color photos of later orange and black paint scheme