El Capitan - Delivery this Week

Just following up tonight... received my UPS tracking alert this afternoon, so my 8-car set is expected mid next week after traveling cross-country. 

 

Has anyone else here who was on standby cleared the wait-list?

 

David

My dealer in Iowa called and offered me a 10 car set instead of the planned ordering on the 2nd run. I was not originally going to buy a 1st run set that came up after he had an unexpected cancellation. I am kind of broke thanks to Key.

With the number of people canceling and making sets available there is a risk there may not be sufficient reservations for a second run.  Just be warned.

The average cancellation / no show rate for any projects we have brought in is about 10-15%. So I don't see anything unusual here. People have all sorts of reasons to drop their order and we totally understand. We are trying to arrange for a rerun at the factory, but it has not been negotiated yet. Nothing is a sure thing, customer orders or 2nd runs. That's why we don't require deposits.

 

Scott Mann

The reservation for my set was made by a now deceased individual.

This doesn't imply the project was a failure by any measure.

That was the biggest reason I took delivery of a first-run 8-car set when I was notified one became available.  At this point I still have an RPO, extra lounge and 2 extra regular coaches "on standby", which I'm currently thinking will be fulfilled thru the second production run.  And if I had to priortize, I'd rank the RPO as the ala carte car I'd most like to have. 

 

If an RPO becomes available out of the first production run, I'd certainly grab it.  The other "extra cars" on stand-by are pretty much icing on the cake for me.  And if for some reason a second production run doesn't materialize, them's the breaks as they say.  Life will go on.  Although I'd feel bad for folks who were hoping to get a basic 8-car set from the second production run if that doesn't come to fruition.

 

David

In my opinion... After more people have a chance to see tha El Capitan the demand could very weii go up.  Many people do not like to buy sight unseen. 

So sit back, let this train make the rounds at various train shows and we will see what happens.

So the question is, are the the cancellation/no show sets otherwise sold yet?  My assumption would be they are but, if one or more sets sits around unsold...

I got my shipment yesterday. This is my first Golden Gate Depot passenger set & it like it a lot. I plan to add Kadee couplers to them soon. Later I plan to buy & add more passenger figures to the cars. I would like to get the advice of hobbyists who have bought prior passenger cars from Golden Gate Depot. How easy is it to open the cars to install more passenger figures? I did not see any instructions that came with the cars explaining this procedure. Also what brand/ type of glue are recommended for securing the figures to the seats?

Thanks for your help,

Naveen Rajan

The cars are not easy to get apart, not really hard, but it is involved and takes some time. There was a thread showing one of the Super Chief cars being taking apart and I have taken apart the pleasure dome.

I don't use hot glue any more as the figures will eventually pop loose. I use a clear epoxy in a tube called E6000. Craft stores, Lowes and HD carry it. It dries clear, takes about 15 minutes to set, 24 hours to cure, and stays flexible. Figures are different, so buy assorted sizes and brands. Depends on how much you wanna fill each car, I have spent $50-$60 per car on people alone

LOS, you stated: "There was a thread showing one of the Super Chief cars being taking apart and I have taken apart the pleasure dome".  

 

If you have the link, can you please post it in this thread.  Thank You.

 

Ive been searching Jim, when I find it, I'll post it. Maybe someone will beat me to it.

Here:

https://ogrforum.com/t...03#31276247615920903

Also notice the RPO modifications. I had to do that to my RPO as well.

LOS,

Thank you for tracking down that topic and posting the link.  That thread is a wealth of great info for everybody that bought the GGD Super Chief and/or the El Cap.  You can be sure taht I will paint the diaphrams, cut off the thumb tacks, modify the RPO car and add the scale coupler to rear of the trailing step-down coach.

Oh BTW I have 50 little people that will soon become paying passengers on my El Cap.

Gonna bookmark that thread for future ref.


THANKS TO YOU AND CHARLIE.

Jim,

 

Have you unpacked all the cars, and found out what the "rattle" sound was from?

Yes, a loose seat was rattling aroung in one of the coaches.  A small drop of glue fixed it.

 

It appears that the seats are painted different colors and then applied to the interiors individually and not part of a single mold like other manufacturers.  

Glad to hear Jim that this was a very simple fix. Enjoy this fabulous set, you have waited a long time for it.

I can't wait to put my MTH Santa Fe FP-45s in front of these beauties and run the full train!

First of all CONGRATS JIM!! I know how excited you are to receive your set.. the offer to borrow the F units is there if you want.. I just want to watch it run.

 

Second I am a little confused... again ... this is the first time I have ordered from Scott and GGD so I am unfamiliar with the process. I placed my order for the second run as soon as it was announced and got a confirmation for an 8 car set and various extras. Now as I understand the thread there might not be a second run??

So if I am not high enough on the list for a cancelled set I may be SOL?

Rich,

The last I heard, Scott was in talks with the builder for the second run.  Much more than that, I can not comment on.  I am sure that Scott will announce on the Forum if the second run is a go or no-go.

For now, keep your eyes on the 3RS forum.  Good luck and hang in there.

Laidoffsick,

Thank you for that link. I will refer to it when I get the passenger figures.

 

Yesterday I picked up some Kadee couplers for my cars from Caboose Stop Hobbies at the annual Galesburg Railroad Days & added them to the cars that I had unpacked so far. I like it that these cars have 2 sets of holes that allow the couplers to be spaced out to negotiate tighter curves or recessed to have the diaphragms touching.

These are just my opinion,

Thanks,

Naveen Rajan

 

JUST SPECTACULAR!

What number kadee's did you use?

I have standardized with Kadee 740 for all my locomotives & cars except for the Lionel Husky cars. But I have read about hobbyists experiencing electrical shorts with Kadee couplers with metal draft gear boxes on metal cars (diecast or brass) on these forums, but I have not experienced it so far on any of my conversions. If I experience shorts with these Hi-Levels, I will get the 817 plastic draft gear boxes from Kadee.

These are just my opinion,

Thanks,

Naveen Rajan

 

The simulated metal air hose on the newer 740 are pre-bent & clear the top of the rail by a few mm, unlike the older 805 required these metal wires to be bent before installing it.

These are just my opinion,

Thanks,

Naveen Rajan

Here is an exploded view of how the cars come apart. I hope this helps those that want to tackle this.

 

Scott Mann

Thanks Scott.

 

 

To quote Perry White (Editor of the Daily Planet) GREAT SCOTT !

Scott,

 

When removing the outer shell (after unplugging the lights) should I lift straight up or slide it off sideways?

 

Thanks.

You'll know right away Jim once you remove the ends of the car. If you see the channels inside on each side of the car, it will slide out. I haven't got mine yet, but I would guess the floor slides into the shell from the ends.

LOS,

 

Thank you.  

Love these things!

 

I am afraid that is a luxury only offered on the 2-rail cars.  No such holes on my cars. 

Hi Jim,

Thanks for all the posts about these cars, I appreciate the info and enthusiasm.  I don't have my cars yet.  To confirm, there is only one set of mounting holes for kadee couplers on the 3 rail El Cap cars, is that right?  

 

It looks like Naveen installed kadees on his 2 rail versions and the diaphragms touch. Has anyone installed Kadees on the 3 rail version of these cars?  I would like to see if the diaphragms will touch. 

 

thanks very much!

I had two full sets on order but had to cancel due to my loss of job and a sell of of some assets in the family that netted a significant loss. If I get back to work before the reservation closes I'll get a set and my uncle got back on the list for 9 cars

 

I'm pretty sure that those Kadee mounting brackets are available from Sunset/3rd Rail/GGD for those 3-Rail SCALE modelers that desire to remove the big couplers and mount Kadee couplers.  I know those brackets were available when the SP Daylight train sets came out, but I elected to stay with the big couplers since the cars couple so nice and close together anyway, it simply wasn't worth damaging the beautiful paint job in order to make the conversion.

I'm totally blown away by these cars.  GGD's best offering yet!

Kadee handled that in the 700 series. The 745's come with the plastic draft boxes.