The question is when will we see accurate Blue/Grey Surfliner cars in HO Scale?
Amtrak is a strong seller, so I don't understand why Walthers is dragging thier feet, I'm sure many modelers would love to have something to go with the Blue/Grey Athearn F59PHI.
It's hard to see but I glued a .030x.030" strip at the ends to lengthen the USP sides, cover the gaps and frame out the ends. It's a little oversized, but held Frogtape when I painted the blue.
The Cali car/Walthers kitbash turned out fantastic.
Mine doesn't move.......it's at the station!!!
Sorry to bud in here so late but you can use green or blue Tamyra paint to tone those lights down. I use the Tamyra paint with LED light strips that are this and don't take up much room at all. The are 12 volt so a resistor is not needed.
Kev
Can't stop working on the railroad!
John-
I don't think you'll have those unsightly gaps. Remember mine was just the USP sides added to an old Walthers Superliner with a separate TSP Budd roof. The full kit includes the TSP Budd core and the ends, while not quite prototypical, do fit better. On my next unit (a cab car) I'm getting the full kit as well. The sides only kitbash was a real learning experience. (This was my third project after a 25 year hiatus.)
Here's the best pic I have for the ends. Have fun!
Paul
Paul,
Thanks for the photo and the Link! Nice work. So I have ordered one Cali car from USP and looking forward to getting it. I am trying to get good photos of the prototypes 'ends' to see how off they are. I saw the 'gaps' in yours and curious what I will have to do to remedy that!
Thanks again,
John
Great work!!
http://www.haworthengineering.com/
~Excellency in the Details ~
Wow Paul that looks fantastic. Super job.
Matt from Anaheim, CA and Bayfield, COClick Here for my model train photo website
I did a Union Station Products Amtrak California Coach/Baggage sides only kit bash with an old run Walthers Superliner II Diner. While the sides are under $50 I put many, many hours into the project.
Check out my results here
http://acmodels.boards.net/index.cgi?board=midwest&action=display&thread=104&page=1
Paul Z.
irishgreek Modern, Thanks for the ideas. Those interiors look really nice. Did you light them too? This is a very 'noobish' question, but what is a 'normal' consist of a California? Would there be any lounges or sleepers? Or is it usually just coaches and baggage (or a step down)? Thanks, John
Modern,
Thanks for the ideas. Those interiors look really nice. Did you light them too?
This is a very 'noobish' question, but what is a 'normal' consist of a California? Would there be any lounges or sleepers? Or is it usually just coaches and baggage (or a step down)?
Thanks,
Lighting is kind of where I'm stuck with the project right now, the LED's I bought are too bright and the Walther's strips don't fit when I close the roofs. I may try Rapido or Kato or just use several incandescent mini bulbs.
From what I've been able to deduce from photo's, a typical Surfliner set would be Engine, 2 Coach Trailers, Business Class, Coach Café and Cab Baggage at the rear. The Cafe's can be any position and occasionally there is a Superliner rebuild in Surfliner Paint (Walther's put them out a few years ago). I'm sure someone from out west can verify/correct this info.
Just wanted to join in with my 2nd set of Union Station Amtrak Cali cars. This is the Surfliner Business class car, prior to decals. On the first 5 I had used the Hi-Level core kits and yes the roofs are wrong (the height of the sides is right). On the Surfliner cars I used 5 old Con-Cor Superliner bodies and they turned out much better. I saved money by buying the sides and decals only, although I splurged on the Palace interiors. Since I started these for 5 years ago I've met Antonio FP45 and discovered AlcladII of which I used Brushed Aluminum and Smoke window tinting on these kits (Model Master French Blue, also).
While I have never bought or built the Union Station Products kit for the Amtrak California cars, I have heard that they do not match the Superliner cars. They are based off the El Capitan cars rather than the Superliner series. I think the difference is in car height and the roundness of the roof.
But, if you had a solid consist of the Union Station Products kit, you would never know. I'm still holding out hope that Walthers will release these eventually but you never know.
Michael,
Thanks for the reply, but to clarify, I meant the Union Stations Products Amtrak kits. Sorry if I was not clear.
But, your Union Station kit does look pretty awesome! Is that supposed to be a particular station? I.e. Chicago, LA, etc?
John,
I have the Walthers Union Station kit. Its worth every penny of that $100. Fairly easy to build, and has some nice thick and sturdy plastic.
Michael
CEO- Mile-HI-RailroadPrototype: D&RGW Moffat Line 1989
Matt, Peter and Michael,
Thanks so much for your replies. Really appreciate the information! Those Walters' Superliners look really nice, except for the single door... But the paintwork is so sweet!
BTW, have any of you done one of those Union Station kits? Would like to know how good they are before I dish over $100 on any of them.
Thanks for the great pic with the Dash8 too!
HO scale kits are available from Union Station Products. Complete kits that even include decals.
Amtrak California Coach
Amtrak California Coach Baggage
Amtrak California Cab Car
Amtrak California Decals
And this is the Walthers car you could use (although discontinued and out of stock):
Amtrak California Superliner
But if you don't want a commuter train, you could model Amtrak's Coast Starlight. It can occasionally be seen with a Dash 8 like yours. Sometimes the lead loco, like the photo below (note the mismatched phase IV AC unit):
irishgreek Hello all. Sorry if I was wrong to 'resurrect' this old thread, but I was Google-ing around and could not find a better one on this site. (Using the search above I could not get it to work right...) Anyhow, I am new to this site and also just getting into the model railroad hobby. My wife has purchased me an Atlas HO Amtrak California Dash-8. I have not been able to locate any cars that seem to have been made for these trains and was wondering if any of you have any updated information on them since this 2007 date? Thanks.
Hello all.
Sorry if I was wrong to 'resurrect' this old thread, but I was Google-ing around and could not find a better one on this site. (Using the search above I could not get it to work right...)
Anyhow, I am new to this site and also just getting into the model railroad hobby. My wife has purchased me an Atlas HO Amtrak California Dash-8. I have not been able to locate any cars that seem to have been made for these trains and was wondering if any of you have any updated information on them since this 2007 date?
Thanks.
It is out of stock right now but there is this car....
http://www.walthers.com/exec/productinfo/932-16166
One option would be to get any Superliner car and repaint and reletter it.
The Dash 8s are used on the Capitol Corridor, Sacramento-Oakland San Jose, not the San Luis Obispo - LA - San Diego Corridor where the surfliner cars are used.
However, there are standard Superliner coaches used in the "Amtrak California" colours on Capitol Corridor trains, so a standard Walthers Superliner coach could be painted in the colours seen on the modified Con Cor car illustrated earlier in the thread.
I don't post photos to the web, but if you need one send me a message and I'll e-mail you a photo.
Both Surfliner and Capitol Corridor trains often include a standard Superliner car in standard Phase V colours, so you could just use a couple of those while you search for or repaint other cars.
I've only seen one such car in each train, either repainted or not, and trains are usually at least four cars, so even stretching the point there should be at least three repaints and one standard car for the train to look much like the prototype.
Maybe I should send the photo to Walthers and ask them to make a Superliner coach in Capitol Corridor colours too. They might not even know they exist, being located a long way from Sacramento.
Peter
Ya those were discontinued a long time ago.
But you're in luck, Walthers is coming out with a new dome car. Not sure when its realeased.
read about it here: http://atlasrescueforum.proboards.com/thread/1485
Southwest Chief wrote:But what doesn't make sense to me is the MPI locos use EMD prime movers. So I would imagine EMD could redesign the F59PHI to comply with crashworthiness standards and use the newer "cleaner" prime movers. They just need a good solid contract, and I don't see that coming any time soon with all the new orders going with MPI.
But what doesn't make sense to me is the MPI locos use EMD prime movers. So I would imagine EMD could redesign the F59PHI to comply with crashworthiness standards and use the newer "cleaner" prime movers. They just need a good solid contract, and I don't see that coming any time soon with all the new orders going with MPI.
I don't quite understand the crashworthiness thing. If anything needs crashworhtiness standards in commuter trains it's the cab cars!
Hope you didn't think I was talking about the Athearn version...this is still being produced.
But real F59PHI's have ceased production since around 2000 or so. Something to do with crashworthiness and emission standards that took effect in 2000. Hasn't anyone noticed why all the commuter companies are now going with the MPI ugly ducklings and not the classier looking F59PHI?
Metro Red Line wrote: If you live in the ACE corridor, then sabotage the F40s when they're not in use during the weekends. This will make ACE buy F59PHIs and likewise Athearn will make them...problem solved :)
If you live in the ACE corridor, then sabotage the F40s when they're not in use during the weekends. This will make ACE buy F59PHIs and likewise Athearn will make them...problem solved :)
Not quite. F59PHIs are no longer being manufactured. So ACE, after obtaining appropriate remedies after the sabotage, would have to get one of the MPI commuter locomotives such as the MP36. And we all know no one is making this loco in HO scale...perhaps a brass version is coming soon if not already released...but wasn't a main purpose of this post to show that most people can't afford brass
Metro Red Line wrote: dayv wrote: Metro Red Line wrote: Nataraj wrote:Athearn did! Caltrain, coaster, WEST coast express, metrolink, rail runner, and sounder are a few west coast trains they did. Except, not amtrak califonria (cascades, surfliner, san jouqins, capitol corridor). Those are the Bombardier Coaches, not the non-Superliner Amtrak bilevels. The Bombardier coaches have the opposite problem. You can get the ACE train (Altamont Commuter Express) Coaches, in Athearn RTR sets, but you can't get the ACE train f40ph in ACE paint. If you live in the ACE corridor, then sabotage the F40s when they're not in use during the weekends. This will make ACE buy F59PHIs and likewise Athearn will make them...problem solved :)
dayv wrote: Metro Red Line wrote: Nataraj wrote:Athearn did! Caltrain, coaster, WEST coast express, metrolink, rail runner, and sounder are a few west coast trains they did. Except, not amtrak califonria (cascades, surfliner, san jouqins, capitol corridor). Those are the Bombardier Coaches, not the non-Superliner Amtrak bilevels. The Bombardier coaches have the opposite problem. You can get the ACE train (Altamont Commuter Express) Coaches, in Athearn RTR sets, but you can't get the ACE train f40ph in ACE paint.
Metro Red Line wrote: Nataraj wrote:Athearn did! Caltrain, coaster, WEST coast express, metrolink, rail runner, and sounder are a few west coast trains they did. Except, not amtrak califonria (cascades, surfliner, san jouqins, capitol corridor). Those are the Bombardier Coaches, not the non-Superliner Amtrak bilevels.
Nataraj wrote:Athearn did! Caltrain, coaster, WEST coast express, metrolink, rail runner, and sounder are a few west coast trains they did. Except, not amtrak califonria (cascades, surfliner, san jouqins, capitol corridor).
Those are the Bombardier Coaches, not the non-Superliner Amtrak bilevels.
The Bombardier coaches have the opposite problem. You can get the ACE train (Altamont Commuter Express) Coaches, in Athearn RTR sets, but you can't get the ACE train f40ph in ACE paint.
I think maybe just writing Athearn or Atlas and asking them to produce that model, or buying an undecorated and painting it might be a better, safer, and much more legal solution.
Amtrak California is NOT Phase V, neither is Surfliner. The Phase V scheme is the "wave" Scheme found on the AMD-103's.Sean
Amtrak California is NOT Phase V, neither is Surfliner. The Phase V scheme is the "wave" Scheme found on the AMD-103's.
Sean
I was mis-informed. Thank you for clarifying.
dirtyd79 wrote:Great pics all you need now is the decals. Do the Concor superliner cars have an interior in them so you can put in some HO scale passengers?
The cars have really dark tinted windows, I don't think you would be able to see anything inside.
dayv wrote: Santa Fe wrote:Coll looking Cars ya got there Davy,Although yours look different then the Pic Soutwest Chief Posted.Did you get the Correct ones cause the ones ya got don't have 2 Doors on teh Side.I am not putting you down or etc just noticed the difference in yours. Good Luck too ya.uh, you missed something in the first post....."I had to sacrafice a set of doors, as the Phase V have two double doors on each side, and all the cars I had access to only had a single door per car. "I know the doors are missing. Union Station is the only people that make non-brass amtrak Cali. cars. I wasn't going to pay $40 a car for this set. Concor and Walthers only make Phase 1-4 cars. Amtrak Cali is Phase V. My set residents will just have to cram through one door. Fortunately for them, there are only 6 current residents on my set, and 3 of them are heading to the golf course!! Thanks for the compliments all.
Santa Fe wrote:Coll looking Cars ya got there Davy,Although yours look different then the Pic Soutwest Chief Posted.Did you get the Correct ones cause the ones ya got don't have 2 Doors on teh Side.I am not putting you down or etc just noticed the difference in yours. Good Luck too ya.
uh, you missed something in the first post.....
"I had to sacrafice a set of doors, as the Phase V have two double doors on each side, and all the cars I had access to only had a single door per car. "
I know the doors are missing. Union Station is the only people that make non-brass amtrak Cali. cars. I wasn't going to pay $40 a car for this set. Concor and Walthers only make Phase 1-4 cars. Amtrak Cali is Phase V. My set residents will just have to cram through one door. Fortunately for them, there are only 6 current residents on my set, and 3 of them are heading to the golf course!!
Thanks for the compliments all.