American & Canadian Passenger Train Operations on your model railroad

[Anonymous]

Passenger trains have never done anything for me, so I have no passenger models. I don't know why I've never cared for passenger trains, but perhaps because they just appear so bland to my eyes. I've always been a freight guy.

That, and as a prototype modeler whose prototype line has had no passenger trains on it since 1929, it is rather hard to justify having Amtrak or whatever on it.

[CBQ_Guy]

I will be modeling part of the CB&Q double track mainline between Galesburg and Chicago in late 1969, so some of the name trains - Zephyrs and a couple locals - will be plying the rails. Some of these will be carrying head end cars, some of which will be dropped and picked on the layout at my city area freight house and REA facility.

The rest of the basement is to be a fictional, proto-lanced Burlington, rural brancline. I am toying with using a Burlington "Doodlebug" pulling a heavyweight coach possibly, as a "commuter" run for workers at the mine at the end of the branch. I will also have an accomondation/commuter type train consisting of a Chinese Red and Gray SD-7/9 pulling an Athearn too short passenger car or two with maybe a shortie heavyweight combine or coach. Haven't worked all this out to finally say for sure, yet.

[Anonymous]

I am deaf student
I come from New Zealand (Auckland)
My vote is passenger (pre-Amtrak) & Frieght Trains
I just start new layout 4 feet & 9 feet n scale

any body know about tehachapi pass which company they use BNSF or UP or other company railroad ?


I would like to share information
Thank you
cheer
dxr8007

[Anonymous]

I personally enjoy running mainly Amtrak passenger operations on my work in progress layout. Mine is set so the Amtrak equipment is very much like that of 1997-2000 eastern operations, and the freight on the line is Conrail. I mainly run the Lake Shore Limited, and at times my consists can reach 14 cars in length, making a quite impressive train in my opinion. Gotta love the looks of the Athearn AMD-103s, they look awesome at the head of my Amtrak trains.

[Anonymous]

I do not have a layout yet, but when I do I'd like to have a set of Rivarossi or Branchline heavyweights pulled by a steamer. Once I get the money, I think I will also detail a set of WAlthers Budd cars to look like the Denver Zephyr.

[Anonymous]

Amtrak for me

DOGGY

[Anonymous]

Well, as I model the Rio Grande, I have the RG Zypher, and the Prospector. I also have a KCS bussiness train. No AMTRAK.

[joseph2]

dxr8007,the UP and BNSF share the Tehachapi Loop and the Cajon Pass as far as I know anyhow. Unsure who was there first the Southern Pacific or the Santa Fe.But the SP was bought by the UP and the ATSF merged with the BN.

[CP5415]

Ok, so I'm expanding passenger service by adding a 3 car GO train consist to go help with my Walthers D&H + VIA Dome Cars, my IHC CPR Coaches & my Kato Obs car.

Gordon

[AntonioFP45]

Does anyone run "Operation Lifesaver" excursion trains?

What's really neat about this is that for the past twenty years these "specials" have been pulled by steamers and diesels. So modelers with 1st, 2nd 3rd generation diesels as well as steamers like the C&O 4-8-4 #614 or the Nickel Plate #765, could run a passenger Operation LIfesaver special on their layout if the theme is dated from the 1980s to today. Streamlined and Heavyweight cars are used depending on the host railroad, sponsers, private car owners, etc. Worth the research. [;)][8D][:)]

Just a thought exploring some neat possibilities. For as long as I've been a modeler, I've never seen pictures of anyone modeling an OLS train.[swg][tup]

Happy Easter!

[Anonymous]

For video clips--some including sound--of passenger trains on a large HO scale club layout go to:

http://www.napmltd.org/napmlttf03.htm

[AntonioFP45]

Fiverings,[:D]

Those Trainsfest videos were outstanding!

Thanks![:)][:D][8D][;)][8)]

Happy Easter!

[douginut]

I run TROLLEYS!
a little trolley freight at times and package express but TROLLEYS.
everything I do in MRRing is PASSENGER first.


Doug In Utah

[Anonymous]

Antonio--

Glad you liked them! Happy Easter to you as well!

--John

[Anonymous]

I model Swiss narrow gauge - passenger trains are the rule not the exception. On the RhB (Rhatische Bahn) the rails are kept busy all day long in well into the night with hourly expresses and local services. In the summer season the Glacier Express often runs to 10 or more cars. As I only have a smallish Om scale layout I have to limit mine to 6 cars, but this is also a common length, so I am happy. I do run some freights, but my main love is the Passenger service, so my prototype fits my desires exactly.

[Anonymous]

Mostly heavyweight varnish on my line (B&O, Southern, Blue Goose, Blue comet, UP Portland Rose, Rio Grande, Burlington Northern,

[METRO]

It's ALL about moving people on my line. I model two competing commuter lines (GO Transit and the freelance Selenian Lines Commission), Amtrak, VIA, Ontario Northland, Canadian Pacific, and the Toronto Transit Commission! They all run some kind of passenger. Freight really plays seccond string to my streamliners.

I'm also starting a small N-scale shelf layout and it will be purely passenger, based upon Japan's JR West line.

[Dayliner]

I voted "pre-Amtrak", although since I model a Canadian road (E&N, mid-1970's) it should really be "non-Amtrak" (also "pre-VIA"). The passenger service is a local RDC, nothing fancy in operational terms, but it does serve to provide interference for the freight crews--one more thing for them to worry about as they try to complete their run.

[AntonioFP45]

For those of you that haven't check it out yet, look above on Fiverings response and check out the website that he listed.

The Southern Pacific Daylight locomotive is sound equipped. Suspect that it's a BLI unit. Very nice looking streamliner with 13 passenger cars. Now that's a passenger train!

Not meaning to be overly critical as the videos are outstanding, but proper Rolling Stock Weight makes the difference. You can see that some of the other passenger train cars vibrate and shake as they cross bridges. Plastic passenger cars that are weighed down, even slightly heavier than the NMRA standard, along with metal wheels tend to "hug" the rails better and shake less.

[Anonymous]

I didn't vote as not all the category combinations are listed and as a Canadian, what has Amtrak got to do with anything.

So I will be running the Via Canadian, The Rocky Mountaineer and West Coast Express on my layout. The Canadian is passenger service, the Rocky Mountaineer is excursion and West Coast Express is commuter.

[FThunder11]

I have the Acela Express going, and my own version of the current California Zephyr!

[Anonymous]

I am going to model a suburban/semi-rual branchline so passanger service will be more intense than a regular rual branch line, but there will be alot of freight .

[AntonioFP45]

Train Boy,

Could you tell us a little more?

Will this be a freelanced line, or will you be modeling trains from a prototype commuter transit agency? What types of cars and locos do you plan to run?

[Fergmiester]

As the MESS is a scavenger's haven I run anything and everything. Predominently CN, CP but Pennsy and Reading are also in the mix.

[Anonymous]

When I get this layout finished , I will be running a 10 car Amtrak on the outer loop.

[AntonioFP45]

Madhouse,

What type of Amtrak train? Will it be modern or from the past? Amfleet cars, Superliner cars, or the Heritage Cars? Locomotives: EMD F40s or Genesis units?

Will it be a particular train like the Hiawatha, Yankee Clipper, Panama Limited?

Just curious![:)][:D][8D][8)]

[Anonymous]

Just a couple of RDCs on my layout, but then again it is quite small, so hardly has room for a E8 with ten coaches!

[tatans]

Just some old retired C.P.R. heavyweights hauling the loggers out to the bush.

[tatans]

Is there anyone out there that runs Passenger trains only? that means they don't even own a boxcar---strictly passenger cars, I would love to see some photos of a completly coach layout, does one exist?? remember, nothing but passenger cars ONLY. lets have a look.

[Anonymous]

I do plan on running versions of the C&Os sportsman and george washington,Also a Broadway limited K4 pulling the Broadway limited.I have a ten car set of old Herkimer metal streamliners that i don't want to paint or decal,so still trying to work them into some sort of express,or run through,pulled by whatever is available.Probably NYC hudson.Although mostly dominated by freight,and modeling the 40's -mid 50's it would be hard not to have some sort of pass. ops. considering all the great trains of that era.