Kato OH painted samples posted to twitter.

[w neal]

My suggestion fellas, "going forward" - (as they say these days  ), start saving your $.

NOW!!

[Roger Holmes]

Probably none.

This isn't the same as unloading some 20 year old PRR brass steam shelf queen.  Those Railway Classic cars hold up fine.


Jason

Actually, I was looking at my Railway Classics brass set this weekend and was thinking I would list it if I could get my original investment back.  I have the same scheme Kato is producing.  At this time there is no way I would ever sell my two RC business cars (1952 scheme and Armour yellow).  I'll hold my Armour yellow Skytop and Superdome until I see if Kato will produce those.

[sirenwerks]

A North Coast Limited, Empire Builder (a proper one), Twin Cities Zephyr, and a Canadian would be on my Wish list from Kato.

First two for me, thanks. I'll sell the kid for those. (Just kidding.) A Canadian would be nice too if I become independently wealthy.

[Ngineer]

Javier:  True, any MILW cars in Amtrak service would have been yellow, but as far as I know, no MILW-lettered cars, in any paint, ran in the EB or NCH.

I have the Pentrex DVD "Empire Builders to Milwaukee".

After 23:30 you can see an Amtrak train (Amtrak 32 from Seattle) with at least one Milwaukee Road lettered sleeper in the consist and an observation in yellow with red stripes. The observation could be a UP car, but the sleeper is definitely a Milwaukee Road sleeper. The rest is the usual GN and NP stuff, i.e. orange-green, BSB, two-tone Loewy, Slumbercoach in silver.

EDIT: The window pattern of the Milwauke Road sleeper (for the experts) is (from left to right)

small window, small window, round small window, 12 windows closely together, small window, round small window, door.

   Javier

[Ed Kapuscinski]

I really hope the observations are eventually sold undec.

I'd love one for the Baconrail OCS.

I also want to find one cheap to paint up pink with a big blue squiggle on the side... lol.

[u18b]

Actually, I was looking at my Railway Classics brass set this weekend and was thinking I would list it if I could get my original investment back.

It is of course hard to tell what will happen.   But generally speaking, selling sooner is better than selling later.

I think we can almost certainly say that the days of Kumata brass Centipedes selling for 1200-2000 dollars is over.   With the Broadway units out, I'd be surprised if those Centipedes went for more than $400.  Words cannot express how thankful I am to have been able to sell two before the BLI units came out.

At present, the jury is probably still out on gas turbines in brass.  Since the scale trains version had some problems for some people, I think some folks have been holding on to their brass units.

In the case of Kato, I think the quality of the Olympian Hiawatha is pretty predictable.   I seriously doubt that there will be serious problems with the Kato cars.

Maybe the one think to think about with your brass set is:  are the extra cars worth it to you to keep it.  For example, the express car, the Tip Top grill car, etc.  It does not appear Kato will be making these any time soon.   Maybe they will add them as a "Set B" or Add-on later.

I might suggest that you go ahead and list them for what you feel you can part with them for (after fees) now.   There may still be some folks out there (you only need one!) who do not know about the Kato set yet.   I'm guessing that whatever you might have gotten for them now will possibly go down after the Kato set actually arrives.

It's a tough decision.

[Dave V]

I really hope the observations are eventually sold undec.

I'd love one for the Baconrail OCS.

I also want to find one cheap to paint up pink with a big blue squiggle on the side... lol.

A lounge car called "Sausage Party?"

[Missaberoad]

Javier:  True, any MILW cars in Amtrak service would have been yellow, but as far as I know, no MILW-lettered cars, in any paint, ran in the EB or NCH.

While former Hill line cars were much more common on the EB and NCH as @Ngineer said the occasional Milw and UP painted car made their way into the consist. a quick search turned up this photo.

http://www.railpictures.net/photo/612432/

Of course once the cars were refurbished and painted Amtrak they seemed to wander more with former ATSF and UP as well as eastern road cars in the consist...

[nkalanaga]

OK, so MILW cars did appear occasionally.  I sit corrected.

If that video shows the Empire Builder as "Amtrak #32", it must be a VERY early one.  BY mid 1972 the EB was #7/8, and in 1978, #32/33 was the "Shenandoah", DC to Cincinnati.  The EB was GN 31/32, and BN kept those numbers until Amtrak.

Ryan:  UP cars were common in the early EB, especially "Pacific" series sleepers.  Amtrak wanted 10-6 sleepers, the GN had none, and the NP very few, so UP cars were almost as common as the ex-GN/NP sleepers in the early years.

Right after Amtrak started, they ran the GN's "Mountain" series observation cars, the prototype for the Con-Cor smoothside obs, on the eastbound EB through Pasco.  One way - all five were going east to be sold or scrapped...  I don't know if they were in revenue service or deadheading.  I suspect service, as the BN could have deadheaded them in a freight train.  Amtrak did NOT buy them.

[skytop35]

I have the Pentrex DVD "Empire Builders to Milwaukee".

After 23:30 you can see an Amtrak train (Amtrak 32 from Seattle) with at least one Milwaukee Road lettered sleeper in the consist and an observation in yellow with red stripes. The observation could be a UP car, but the sleeper is definitely a Milwaukee Road sleeper. The rest is the usual GN and NP stuff, i.e. orange-green, BSB, two-tone Loewy, Slumbercoach in silver.

EDIT: The window pattern of the Milwauke Road sleeper (for the experts) is (from left to right)

small window, small window, round small window, 12 windows closely together, small window, round small window, door.

   Javier

I have the same DVD. The Milwaukee car at the front of the train is definitely a coach. No Milwaukee sleepers in this train. The last car is a UP sleeper but I can't tell which one exactly.

Also I believe the majority of Milwaukee sleepers, if not all, were either sold for scrap or off the roster before Amtrak came about*. If I recall correctly, The Pioneer Limited was the last train with sleepers and it was discontinued in Sept 1970.

Not including the ex UP Pacific series sleepers that Milwaukee bought and ran on the Cities trains.

[nkalanaga]

Bill:  If it's a coach, and on the Twin Cities - Chicago portion of the run, it may not have run west of the Twin Cities.  In 1977 both the EB and NCH had a separate Chicago-Minneapolis coach.  That would explain why I never saw one, yet video evidence shows they existed.

[seusscaboose]

A lounge car called "Sausage Party?"

Cue the music

[Ngineer]

I have the same DVD. The Milwaukee car at the front of the train is definitely a coach.

Thank you!

Bill:  If it's a coach, and on the Twin Cities - Chicago portion of the run,

It's filmed near Duplainville Tower, within 6 miles of it, so it is between Milwaukee and Minneapolis.

   Javier

[nkalanaga]

Javier:  That makes sense.  Probably the best place to film railfan videos, rather than trying to chase a train across North Dakota, or through the forests of the Northwest.

[Blackout]

Looks very high quality