Hello everyone. I was just wondering if any of you model Amtrak. So far I’ve managed to collect the Kato phase III, phase IV and phase IVb car sets. I also have the phase III F-40s and phase V P-42s locos. The locos all run very well and the train looks great on my layout.
Sounds great, is this HO or N ? There are a couple of members in here that do Amtrak, I’m sure they will catch up to your thread.
I could never keep up with all the phases, so any trains I run with an Amtrak loco, are pretty much a mixture of phases, kind of rag-tag, and will make any serious Amtrak modeler laugh.
Please post some pictures.
Mike.
I’ve got a full set of Phase IVb Superliners for the Capitol Limited. The locomotives are Athearns and all the rolling stock are Walthers. Couldn’t find a 1700 series Phase IVb baggage car and there’s no decals for exactly that, so I kinda kludged it together.
It’s kind of hard not to model Amtrak.
Those are the trains that are mixed in with the real trains–the ones that make money.
I’ve got Amtrak trains for my layout from its inception to today, missing only the proper SDP40F’s.
Ed
Maybe — just a little.
Amtrak Lineup by Edmund, on Flickr
IMG_1602_fix by Edmund, on Flickr
Amtrak_SDP2 by Edmund, on Flickr
Lots of fond memories with Amtrak. Can’t believe they’ve been around forty-seven years! I remember “Amtrak Day 1”.
I agree with Ed — kind of hard to not model Amtrak, for U.S. modelers, anyway. Although I do have a bit of CN and CP, no VIA that I recall, though.
Cheers, Ed
Yep. Early Superliner CZ in phase II paint pulled by phase III paint F40PH’s. Waiting on Jason Shron to offer the common type of F40PH.
I’m also interested in modeling the 1970’s San Francisco Zephyr but so far in 3 separate announcements, Athearn has failed to announce the SDP40F’s that pulled it. Looks like it’s gonna be a long wait.
Even though I do enjoy Amtrak and have some equipment, I think the opposite. It is pretty easy to ignore Amtrak. There aren’t a lot of routes or trains, and even in a city or town with a station, you can avoid them.
Does Amtrak connect to any Canadian cities? It could be an excuse for me to get some for my (Canadian) layout.
Simon
Amtrak connects to a few Canadian destinations. The Adirondack connects to Montreal from NY. The Maple Leaft to Toronto and the Amtrak Cascades to Vancouver.
https://www.amtrak.com/train-schedules-timetables
I model Amtrak and have a little of each era and will run them in between operating sessions.
Interesting question. Many folks have Amtrak equipment and run some Amtrak trains, but I wonder how many people have layouts with Amtrak as the only or primary railroad?
On my layout Amtrak’s Southwest Chief just passes through with one stop in Berdoo. I have phase 3 locomotives pulling phase 4 cars, because that is what I have. There are other passenger trains on my layout. Metrolink has a large presence here. On rare occasions Amtrak’s Coast Starlight has to be rerouted and it passes through town, just because I used to ride it and wanted to model it.
Anyone who models the NEC, or any other amtrak corridor, like Pacific Surfliners and such.
I have a small amtrak service on my layout, have yet to decide a name for it.
Talk to me when Rapido or Athearn Genesis does the P30CH in HO. Sunset Ltd!
I model Amtrak also, I’m trying to model every era from 1971- present day.
I have Kato P42s (Phase III-Vb), F40PH (Phase III with and without ditch lights) MHC cars, Superliners, Amfleet I and II. I also have the El Capitan and Southwest Limited set. The list is long, and etc, etc.
I’m also getting late to get the Atlas 8-40BHW, and MP15DC.
Some videos from my layout showing my Amtrak fleet.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0jrA6N-yndw
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SdsQu8yUx-M
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B6GoacG2GrE
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4l5TEr0xpQs
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YnHPPiKY7Kc
Kevin
But what about THESE, which are within your era:
Ed
I have a BLI E8 A-B set and one Kato E8 in Phase I. I also planned on getting leased power for the rainbow era from PC, UP, IC, others. I do have the new Phase I SDP40Fs.
I’m sorry. I forgot to mention that my trains are N scale…
I can be easy, if you are modeling a route that has or had no passenger service. I am interested in D&RGW at Grande Junction CO and west into Utah - that route had and still has passenger service so I’d need an alternate reality layout to ignore passenger trains.
Of course anyone can protolance a RR and choose to have or not have passenger trains.
I do a little Amtrak, I have an Athearn RTR P40 in the Phase III Scheme, Four Walthers Superliners in the Phase IV Scheme and an Atlas Dash 8-32BWH also in Phase IV.
The Superliners and Dash 8 are my “New Amsterdam Limited” and the P40 pulls that Walthers NMRA Beach Train.
I plan to model an Amtrak 1990’s San Diegan at some point as well.