In the summer of 1988 a friend and I caught the Zeyphr from Glenwood Springs to Oakland. The train was delayed by a derailment - by a day from memory. The result was a gigantically long train the diner / lounge at the rear of which was on six wheel trucks and although high level I’m sure it was not just quite as tall as the Superliner cars.
Does anyone know if this was from the old El Cap’ or what?
I wouder if it could have been the last remaining Great Northern super dome car from the old Empire Builder, which survived into Amtrak service and in fact was run just a couple of years ago on a special Amtrak version of the Empire Builder commemorating the 75th anniversary of the builder. We saw it come through Milwaukee.
http://www.trainweb.org/DOMEmain/picMILW53y.jpg
Dave Nelson
It wasn’t that one it had windows just like a regular Superliner.
If it was similar to a Superliner but with a different interior, a more conventional and regular arrangement of tables, it was one of the ex-El Capitan dining cars or lounge cars. These were compatible with Superliners, and outside the roof was just slightly, an inch or two, lower. Amtrak initially took nearly all of them and I believe they were still all in Amtrak service when you rode. Some still are, I believe.
That was one of the ex-El Capitan dining cars (the only Hi-Levels that had six-wheel trucks) that were converted to diner-lounges. They ran on the Desert Wind, normally Los Angeles to Salt Lake City, but in summer would run thru to Denver to relieve pressure on the CalZephyr dining car and lounge car.