Having not read ANY of this thread....
I though I would ad a couple photos, since there are not nearly enough!
I though I would ad a couple photos, since there are not nearly enough!
A Train Thread
- Thread starter rp2813
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Another....
And another
whirlcool
Well-known member
Amtrak's reservation center was on the top floor of the Santa Fe building on Michigan avenue at the time. I believe they also had a res center in Washington, DC and just before I left they opened one in the Los Angeles, Ca area.
What was Johns mothers last name? Who knows, I may have met her at one time or another.
A few years ago I visited CUS. It certainly has changed. The location in the station where our ticket office used to be is now where the baggage claim carousels are located. I barely recognised the place it had been remodeled so much. When I worked there the station was not air conditioned. It made for pretty harsh working conditions in the summertime.
When we finally got the ARTS III Res system computers (CDC 3000 terminals) they went down for a week. Nobody could figure out why they weren't working. Washington computer said they should be working and just bear with them. In the back office was a rather large box that said "Control Data" on it. I opened the door to see a bunch of flashing lights. Some of the lights were stuck "on" instead of flashing. There was also a rather large red button what said "RESET". So I pushed it, and in about a minute all the terminals came back online! I found it amazing that somebody from the computer department didn't call to have someone push the reset button! But that was how Amtrak was run in those days.
Oh, and one last think about Amtrak. You had to put money into the Railroad Retirement fund. And they took out QUITE a chunk of money out of each of your paychecks. When I left I asked how do I get my contibutions back since I won't be staying with Amttak to retire. I was told that unless I stay long enough to become vested, I would lose all my money that was taken out! It probably came to about $5K over two summmers. But I will admit for those times Amtrak did pay good. If I remember my salary was about $900.00 per month. For 1971 that was pretty good!
What was Johns mothers last name? Who knows, I may have met her at one time or another.
A few years ago I visited CUS. It certainly has changed. The location in the station where our ticket office used to be is now where the baggage claim carousels are located. I barely recognised the place it had been remodeled so much. When I worked there the station was not air conditioned. It made for pretty harsh working conditions in the summertime.
When we finally got the ARTS III Res system computers (CDC 3000 terminals) they went down for a week. Nobody could figure out why they weren't working. Washington computer said they should be working and just bear with them. In the back office was a rather large box that said "Control Data" on it. I opened the door to see a bunch of flashing lights. Some of the lights were stuck "on" instead of flashing. There was also a rather large red button what said "RESET". So I pushed it, and in about a minute all the terminals came back online! I found it amazing that somebody from the computer department didn't call to have someone push the reset button! But that was how Amtrak was run in those days.
Oh, and one last think about Amtrak. You had to put money into the Railroad Retirement fund. And they took out QUITE a chunk of money out of each of your paychecks. When I left I asked how do I get my contibutions back since I won't be staying with Amttak to retire. I was told that unless I stay long enough to become vested, I would lose all my money that was taken out! It probably came to about $5K over two summmers. But I will admit for those times Amtrak did pay good. If I remember my salary was about $900.00 per month. For 1971 that was pretty good!
I remember CUS as a kid. I really liked the train shed scene, dark and filled with the sounds of idling locomotives, the coaches all lit up inside in the darkness as the various trains sat side by side either having just arrived or ready to depart almost for as far as the eye could see, there were so many tracks. I guess it's still sort of like that during commute hours these days.
A fun photo!
Allen, John's mother's name was Jackie Kukec. Maybe you did meet her. By all accounts, she was quite a gal.
whirlcool
Well-known member
Ralph:
And let's not forget the smell of diesel on those tracks! I commuted in on the BN Commuter (now Metra) from the Hinsdale station when I worked at Amtrak. During rush hour, that was a very bustling station! I imagine it still is these days.
They had a "to go" bar in the area as the track entrances were. I always ordered a "Tangeray & Tonic" to go for the ride home. I wonder if they even allow drinks on the commuter trains now?
And let's not forget the smell of diesel on those tracks! I commuted in on the BN Commuter (now Metra) from the Hinsdale station when I worked at Amtrak. During rush hour, that was a very bustling station! I imagine it still is these days.
They had a "to go" bar in the area as the track entrances were. I always ordered a "Tangeray & Tonic" to go for the ride home. I wonder if they even allow drinks on the commuter trains now?
Here in the Bay Area the old Southern Pacific Peninsula line between San Jose and San Francisco is now operated by "CalTrain" but I think a holdover from the SP days when they still had 1920's vintage coaches is that on Friday afternoons, one southbound train becomes a party with drinks and food that people bring aboard.
You can still buy remarkably cheap liquor to bring on the train at the downtown Caltrain station. 
(We would never, ever, ever think of allowing that here in the NW. We're far too uptight when it comes to booze. But that's another story.)
Back east, Metro North (and maybe LIRR?) were thinking of getting rid of the bar cars, but I think there was a passenger rebellion, and they are still running.
(We would never, ever, ever think of allowing that here in the NW. We're far too uptight when it comes to booze. But that's another story.)
Back east, Metro North (and maybe LIRR?) were thinking of getting rid of the bar cars, but I think there was a passenger rebellion, and they are still running.
filter-flo_rob
Well-known member
- Joined
- Aug 7, 2008
- Messages
- 184
KEVIN ...
Where is that picture taken? Now, this is my idea of complete and total FUN!
Rob.
Where is that picture taken? Now, this is my idea of complete and total FUN!
Rob.
ROB...
I took that photo a number of years ago (10? 12? 15?) at the L.A.L.S (Los Angeles Live Steamers) annual spring meet, at Travel Town in Griffith Park (L.A.). The link below is for their web page.
This photo: The boy (10 years old, 2 - 3 years ago?) is the one that runs, operates, cleans and otherwise takes care of this little steam locomotive. Unlike many others, this little engine actually burns coal to make the steam! (in the metal tray - far right) Back to the boy, I was completely floored and amazed by the amount of knowledge relating to steam locomotives he had stuffed in his head! This photo was taken at O.C.M.E... Orange County Mechanical Engineers... in Costa Mesa, California.
www.lals.org
I took that photo a number of years ago (10? 12? 15?) at the L.A.L.S (Los Angeles Live Steamers) annual spring meet, at Travel Town in Griffith Park (L.A.). The link below is for their web page.
This photo: The boy (10 years old, 2 - 3 years ago?) is the one that runs, operates, cleans and otherwise takes care of this little steam locomotive. Unlike many others, this little engine actually burns coal to make the steam! (in the metal tray - far right) Back to the boy, I was completely floored and amazed by the amount of knowledge relating to steam locomotives he had stuffed in his head! This photo was taken at O.C.M.E... Orange County Mechanical Engineers... in Costa Mesa, California.
M98 เวอร์ชั่นใหม่ ทางเข้าล่าสุด 2025 M98ทางเข้ามือถือ อัปเดทใหม่ทุกเดือน
เวอร์ชั่นใหม่ M98 อัปเดทแล้ว ณ วันที่ 05/05/2025 กรุณาดูข้อมูลด้านล่างเพื่อตรวจสอบทางเข้า มือถือm98 ล่าสุดของเดือนนี้ เพื่อความสะดวกในการใช้งาน หรือเข้า
www.lals.org
Correction......
It's Orange County Model Engineers (well, no ones perfect... blush) Their web site is below.
This photo is also at O.C.M.E. They "haul public" (give free rides) the 3rd weekend each month (for those in Southern Cal).
www.ocmetrains.org
It's Orange County Model Engineers (well, no ones perfect... blush) Their web site is below.
This photo is also at O.C.M.E. They "haul public" (give free rides) the 3rd weekend each month (for those in Southern Cal).
Orange County Model Engineers – RAILROAD FUN FOR EVERYONE
www.ocmetrains.org
Another from L.A.L.S (however I cannot take the photo credit)
Heritage Railway
Several local retired railway employees got together and have created a miniature railroad here in the city of North Bay, ON which operates daily during the summer. They operate both a steam engine and diesel engine.
Several local retired railway employees got together and have created a miniature railroad here in the city of North Bay, ON which operates daily during the summer. They operate both a steam engine and diesel engine.
filter-flo_rob
Well-known member
- Joined
- Aug 7, 2008
- Messages
- 184
Gauge and Scale
Kevin and Gary [and others interested].
Firstly, thank you for posting those pix and the URLs!
Ok, ok ... after creaming myself looking at those pix, etc., I found a great URL that actually explains gauge and scale in plain English. This person's website (the main page) also has info. on model railroading as well.
I remember as a kid going to the amusement parks and riding on those trains. I believe they were 1/12th scale. Unfortunately, they were usually gas driven, and there was no live steam; however, I would not mind setting up such as scale in my yard!
Scale Products Co. [Disclaimer: not affiliated with this company at all] has great signals for 1/12 scale, etc.
Check it out: http://www.trainsignals.com/signals.html
Rob.
http:// www.thortrains.net/scale1.htm
Kevin and Gary [and others interested].
Firstly, thank you for posting those pix and the URLs!
Ok, ok ... after creaming myself looking at those pix, etc., I found a great URL that actually explains gauge and scale in plain English. This person's website (the main page) also has info. on model railroading as well.
I remember as a kid going to the amusement parks and riding on those trains. I believe they were 1/12th scale. Unfortunately, they were usually gas driven, and there was no live steam; however, I would not mind setting up such as scale in my yard!
Scale Products Co. [Disclaimer: not affiliated with this company at all] has great signals for 1/12 scale, etc.
Check it out: http://www.trainsignals.com/signals.html
Rob.
http:// www.thortrains.net/scale1.htm
Rob, your link had something wrong with it... below is the corrected link. Also, thanks for the link about the scale model trains up there Ontario way. That's a larger 15" gage (the track rails are 15 inches apart), the track gage for L.A.L.S and O.C.M.E in the LA area is 7.5"gage, half the size of the Heritage Railway.
I really enjoy steam locomotives, both live steam scale models and the full size originals due to their mechanical complexity. I can watch, listen to, play with, tinker and perhaps ride(?) for hours. I'm drawn to them like the preverbal moth to a porch light.
Now here is a little story for you….
Back in 1989 my friend Curt (who is to blame for my interest in steam locomotives) and I went to Union Station in Los Angeles for their 50 year anniversary celebration. There were Amtrak trains and other locomotives, both steam and diesel on display. Aside from some noteworthy vintage 1950's diesels, there was also the Southern Pacific Daylight and Union Pacific's #844. They traveled from Portland, OR and Cheyenne, WY (respectively) for this event.
It was REALLY something to see these vintage steam locomotives actually ALIVE, with fires in the firebox, full steam pressure in their system with steam leaking, hissing and whistling from various places and able to move under their own power! Oh sure I'd seen other steam locomotives up close and personal, but they were ghosts from the past, static displays some a park or museum, dead for many years.
Not long before we left, Curt tells me he overheard a conversation about plans for SP Daylight and the UP 844's departure the following day, heading east up the Cajon pass, about 40 miles east of LA. He then said the UP and SP tracks run side-by-side up the Cajon pass and the two trains were going to pace each other, going side by side up the pass.
Well… THIS was something we could not miss! That following I grabbed my best friend Mike and the 3 of us chased these two vintage steam locomotives up the Cajon Pass for maybe 10 miles, until the SP and UP tracks separated, each going their own direction. This was truly an awesome thing to see… watching these two steam engines actually living and breathing, chuffing their way up the grade!
Now I'll have to dig through the old photos and scan them so I can post a few here.
www.thortrains.net
I really enjoy steam locomotives, both live steam scale models and the full size originals due to their mechanical complexity. I can watch, listen to, play with, tinker and perhaps ride(?) for hours. I'm drawn to them like the preverbal moth to a porch light.
Now here is a little story for you….
Back in 1989 my friend Curt (who is to blame for my interest in steam locomotives) and I went to Union Station in Los Angeles for their 50 year anniversary celebration. There were Amtrak trains and other locomotives, both steam and diesel on display. Aside from some noteworthy vintage 1950's diesels, there was also the Southern Pacific Daylight and Union Pacific's #844. They traveled from Portland, OR and Cheyenne, WY (respectively) for this event.
It was REALLY something to see these vintage steam locomotives actually ALIVE, with fires in the firebox, full steam pressure in their system with steam leaking, hissing and whistling from various places and able to move under their own power! Oh sure I'd seen other steam locomotives up close and personal, but they were ghosts from the past, static displays some a park or museum, dead for many years.
Not long before we left, Curt tells me he overheard a conversation about plans for SP Daylight and the UP 844's departure the following day, heading east up the Cajon pass, about 40 miles east of LA. He then said the UP and SP tracks run side-by-side up the Cajon pass and the two trains were going to pace each other, going side by side up the pass.
Well… THIS was something we could not miss! That following I grabbed my best friend Mike and the 3 of us chased these two vintage steam locomotives up the Cajon Pass for maybe 10 miles, until the SP and UP tracks separated, each going their own direction. This was truly an awesome thing to see… watching these two steam engines actually living and breathing, chuffing their way up the grade!
Now I'll have to dig through the old photos and scan them so I can post a few here.
สมัครบาคาร่า ไม่มีขั้นต่ำ บาคาร่า ออนไลน์ เว็บตรง ไม่ผ่านเอเย่นต์
สมัครบาคาร่าเว็บตรง TT789 บาคาร่าออนไลน์ เว็บตรง ไม่ผ่านเอเย่นต์ อันดับ 1 สมัครบาคาร่า เว็บบาคาร่า ฝาก-ถอน ไม่มีขั้นต่ำ พร้อมโปรโมชั่นพิเศษ
www.thortrains.net
I like trains too.
I'm most fortunate to have experienced riding the old California Zephyr on the Western Pacific in 1969 as well as The Super Chief and a few other carriers. But it was a good thing Amtrak did come along when it did, otherwise I don't think we wouldn't even have a skeletal system that we have today.
I hope the states of Oklahoma and Kansas can get the Heartland Flyer up to Kansas City. If there was ever a grassroots train, the Heartland flyer is it. The state of Ok. really did save up for many years to purchase and refurbash the cars needed for the train, and have money to pick up the cost of operating it.
Here in Texas we have the very late triweekly Sunset Limited and late daily Texas Eagle, thanks to Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchinson to saved that train a few years ago. It runs too late to really count on it for real transportation though.
I'm most fortunate to have experienced riding the old California Zephyr on the Western Pacific in 1969 as well as The Super Chief and a few other carriers. But it was a good thing Amtrak did come along when it did, otherwise I don't think we wouldn't even have a skeletal system that we have today.
I hope the states of Oklahoma and Kansas can get the Heartland Flyer up to Kansas City. If there was ever a grassroots train, the Heartland flyer is it. The state of Ok. really did save up for many years to purchase and refurbash the cars needed for the train, and have money to pick up the cost of operating it.
Here in Texas we have the very late triweekly Sunset Limited and late daily Texas Eagle, thanks to Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchinson to saved that train a few years ago. It runs too late to really count on it for real transportation though.
It runs too late to really count on for real transportation.
This could be one of the reasons train travel has faded to almost non-existence over the last bunch of years.
But the bigger reasons are:
#2 the creation of the interstate highway system and the convenience that came with it...
#3 People are always in a too much of a hurry to get wherever they are going. This is why many drive at 75 - 85 MPH rather then the posted limits of 55 or 65 MPH. And yes, I have been guilty of this too!
#4 Air travel and the convenience and SPEED it offers.
A few years ago my mother traveled from Southern California to Fort Worth, Texas for my brothers wedding. She opted to take a train rather then fly due to the lower cost, but it took her 2 days to get there. Driving could take less and flying is only about 5-6 hours, one way (getting to and waiting in the airports, etc.)
This could be one of the reasons train travel has faded to almost non-existence over the last bunch of years.
But the bigger reasons are:
#2 the creation of the interstate highway system and the convenience that came with it...
#3 People are always in a too much of a hurry to get wherever they are going. This is why many drive at 75 - 85 MPH rather then the posted limits of 55 or 65 MPH. And yes, I have been guilty of this too!
#4 Air travel and the convenience and SPEED it offers.
A few years ago my mother traveled from Southern California to Fort Worth, Texas for my brothers wedding. She opted to take a train rather then fly due to the lower cost, but it took her 2 days to get there. Driving could take less and flying is only about 5-6 hours, one way (getting to and waiting in the airports, etc.)
Yeah, if you really need to get somewhere, it's best not to rely on the train. And there's a different kind of "late" than being behind schedule. I believe Salt Lake City is a good example, but you experts correct me if I'm wrong. For a town of it's size, I think Amtrak's eastbound Zephyr gets in there at around midnight. Not the most convenient time for most people. And if the train is running late, which I expect is the rule rather than the exception, then what? 4 AM?
If we ever get high speed rail going between the SF Bay Area and greater L.A., I expect those trains will run on time and be reliable, and who knows, maybe they will set the trend for the future of passenger rail service in this country.
If we ever get high speed rail going between the SF Bay Area and greater L.A., I expect those trains will run on time and be reliable, and who knows, maybe they will set the trend for the future of passenger rail service in this country.
