I Want My Cars Back

F40CFan wrote:

Illinifan wrote:If I recall correctly, cars 7836 and 7840 have orange seats, while 7848 and 7825 have the dark blue ones.

The orange seats are the original seats, I believe. Are the dark blue seats the same kind as are in the 8500s?

Actually, the only difference between the two types is the color itself. The design of the blue seats echoes the orginal seats of the ex-CNW cars. The 7848 and 7825 got the blue ones when they went through rehab in the mid 1990s. For the moment, it appears Metra has decided not to update the interior of those cars to match the 8500/6000 series.

Thanks, I was curious about that. I've been meaning to try and get on one of them to check it out.

Illinifan wrote:

F40CFan wrote:

Illinifan wrote:If I recall correctly, cars 7836 and 7840 have orange seats, while 7848 and 7825 have the dark blue ones.

The orange seats are the original seats, I believe. Are the dark blue seats the same kind as are in the 8500s?

Actually, the only difference between the two types is the color itself. The design of the blue seats echoes the orginal seats of the ex-CNW cars. The 7848 and 7825 got the blue ones when they went through rehab in the mid 1990s. For the moment, it appears Metra has decided not to update the interior of those cars to match the 8500/6000 series.

So far, the only cars to get upgrades to newer seats are the 700/800 ex-CB&Q cars. Gotta keep the BNSF folks happy ya know...

doepack wrote:So far, the only cars to get upgrades to newer seats are the 700/800 ex-CB&Q cars. Gotta keep the BNSF folks happy ya know...

Can't forget about SWS, which has its fair share of rehabbed CB&Q cars.

Some of the Milwaukee Road 7200 and 8200 cars have received the newer seats as well.

Illinifan wrote:Some of the Milwaukee Road 7200 and 8200 cars have received the newer seats as well.

I rode home Friday night on rehabbed 7240. The whole interior has been redone. It looks like the inside of an 8500 except for the window size.

F40CFan wrote:

Illinifan wrote:Some of the Milwaukee Road 7200 and 8200 cars have received the newer seats as well.

I rode home Friday night on rehabbed 7240. The whole interior has been redone. It looks like the inside of an 8500 except for the window size.

Not too many rehabbed MILW 7200 cars on the Milwaukee District. The only ones currently running on the MILW are cars 7217, 7226, and 7240.

The interiors of the rebuilds are very nice. I just wish Metra would spend the money to add seats in the former cab spaces of the 8200s and the 790/800s.

That wouldn't be such a bad idea. Kinda beats that process of eliminating the non-ADA bathrooms in the older cars. It would probably cost more, though, as the old (forward facing) cab windows would need to be plated over, and then a plethora of wiring, piping and equipment would need to be removed from the cab itself.

byte wrote:That wouldn't be such a bad idea. Kinda beats that process of eliminating the non-ADA bathrooms in the older cars. It would probably cost more, though, as the old (forward facing) cab windows would need to be plated over, and then a plethora of wiring, piping and equipment would need to be removed from the cab itself.

On 7240, the bathroom is still there. I don't know if anything is in it, but the walls and door are still there. The cab windows are already sheathed on these cars, but you're right, they would have to gut all of the pipes and stuff. When they eliminate the bathrooms, they will have plumbing to remove also.

Tadman wrote:I remember seeing their yard from the interstate in Nashville - beware to all those driving through, it's a fleeting vista of lots of random old passenger cars. I seem to recall seeing some single-level legacy cars too - not sure who owns them.

Did you see some low level ex-ATSF stainless cars? They form the backbone of the Tennessee Central Ry museum fleet. The TCry yard is just N of I-40 near I-24. Just around the river bend from downtown Nashville. The TCry shop was used to repaint most of the ex-Metra & Amtrak F40's to the MCS scheme. F40's are also used on the TCry's excursion runs to Lebanon, Watertown & back.

The last time I was on our MCS, the interior looked almost exactly as it was under C&NW service. Guess it's hard to beat the old leather seats, rubber floor mats, etc. The biggest change may be the smallness of the new electrical stuff used to control lights & etc.

Got a chance to ride in one of the Pullmans today, and though I wasn't wild about the seats (think someone on this board once referred to them as "schoolbus seats"), the car's interior was in pretty good shape, although the lighting in the vestibule could be better, it was pretty dim. Speaking of which, I've never noticed how small the vestibule is, especially compared to the other equipment. While riding, I noticed minor harmonic vibrations whenever the train began slowing down, there's a very slight lateral movement from side to side as if the car was being tilted a bit. Might have been an isolated issue, don't know if that's going on with the other cars; could also be due to age, not sure. Also, unlike the newer equipment, these cars aren't quite as smooth coming to a complete stop, it's a bit more sudden with a slight bump; they stop on a dime. Which means that if you're ever riding in these when an engineer puts the train into emergency, you'd be in for a pretty nasty jolt. Nevertheless, It's a pretty smooth ride at track speed (and again, could be more comfortable if the seats were better) although I think the fact that the track is continuous welded rail certainly has a lot to do with that, I'm sure you'd be feeling the bumps a bit more on jointed rail. But overall, I'd say the cars are in decent, serviceable shape, and seem to be functioning pretty well in the role for which they were intended...

Seen at CUS-North Side before I left on Amtrak #3(16).

I saw 7848 in Glen Ellen last Saturday.

Saw Pullman 7848 on Tran 351 heading up north.

Has anyone else noticed that, on the UP lines at least, they're placing these cars as the first one behind the engine? Is it coincidence, or is there an actual reason?