Hi all, Could someone tell me a little more about the Amtrak Phase I & II Passenger Cars. I have a few of the cars by ConCor in corrugated and smooth sided. Any info would be greatly appreciated.
What exactly are you looking for? Car numbers? Roads they came from? Most of the baggage fleet was ATSF, with some coming from UP and the like. If you're using Con-Cor cars, the Budd cars would be good. If you model around May 1, 1971, leave some stuff in it's old paint. It took them a little while to get stuff painted.
Hi Art, I was mainly after the period in which these cars were introduced. Phase I - 197? & Phase II - 198? I have both corrugated and smooth sided cars and would like to identify what era there from.
no, phase I cars were EVERYTHING that they got from previous railroads...smooth, corrugated, stainless, painted....
Alright, let's see if we can get this straight for ya: The Con-Cor cars represent the equipment Amtrak inheirited when it tok ver passenger operations. Smooth vs. Fluted was a design asthetic chosen by the original railroad and had no beairing on when the car was built or where it ran or anything else. These cars are usually referred to in Amtrak lterminology as "Heritage" cars, not to be confused with the P42s in special paint, because they are well over 50 years old. Most Heritage cars have been retired, although some Diners were still filling in equipment gaps up until a few years ago. Sleeping cars too, but less so. Most of the baggage cars are rebuilt or revamped Heritage cars, some of the single roll-up door cars still have ghosts of where the old windows were, and I have personally seen one where you could still read the stencil like shadow of Union Pacific on the side of the car. Phase 1 is simply in reference to the paint scheme. It debuted in 1972 and was worn by everything Amtrak got into the paint booths to replace their old owners' schemes and was again worn by any and all types of Passenger cars, smooth, fluted, corrigated, what have you. Phase 2 is the scheme worn by the Superliners and Amfleet cars (The round biscuit dough tube looking things) when they were rolled out in 1977. These new cars did not go far enough, of course, and were still mixed in with the original heritage cars, so the heritages also got the new paint scheme. You can argue Phase 1 into 1978 or 1979 as a car that hadn't made it back to The Grove to get its new paint scheme, if you wanted to.
Phase II paint was introduced by the Superliners (1978) Amfleet I cars were build 1975-1978. Those build before 1978 were painted in at last two different Phase 1 schemes when delivered: Two arrows: http://gelwood.railfan.net/amtk/amtk21004jpa.jpg One arrow: http://gelwood.railfan.net/amtk/amtk21253awb.jpg Happy new Year!!!!! Stephan
"hase 2 is the scheme worn by the Superliners and Amfleet cars (The round biscuit dough tube looking things) when they were rolled out in 1977." Phase 2 paint was the same as the Phase I with the exception of the blunt end Arrow not being used... just the red and blue stripes on a white background. This paint was applied to a number of the Heritage cars that were acquired at start-up as a part of their normal upkeep. Phase 3, which is soon to be reintroduced on the new Viewliner cars as a part of the "Amtrak America} scheme had three equally wide stripes red, white and blue.
"Phase 2 is the scheme worn by the Superliners and Amfleet cars..." As well as a few of the Budd and St. Louis Car Co. cars that had been rebuilt for HEP. Phase II simply dropped the blunt-end arrow. Phase III is the three equal width red, white and blue stripes (well close... a few had wider red and blue stripes than white). http://abpr.railfan.net/abprphoto.cgi?march01/03-04-01/amtrakcoach25077RichmondVaMar01.jpg
