GGD El Capitan - Second Chance

Thanks Jim for the update. I will end Scott an e-mail.

I think I did an advanceorder is it the "3RGGDMHWCSF - SF MODERN HW 4 COACH SET"?  That's what my email said.  

How much was your set?  Looks like you ordered a set of heavyweight cars at $600 for the 4-car set.

The El Capitan hi-level cars are an entirely different offering... Aluminum hi-level cars in an 8-car set ($2k), and optional add-on cars as ala carte offerings.

David

Rboatertoo, in the recent thread you started, you talked about acquiring the great passenger trains. The Hi-Level El Capitan would be a must have in this category. I wound run, not walk, if you haven't yet ordered this one.

Thanks I just sent a email to Scott.  I thought it was too cheap.

I am running as fast as my fingers can type!!  Run Forest Run!!!

Run Forest Run!!!

They are still too outside my era. 1956 is approaching the 60's. I cutoff at 1953- however I think the cars are so cool I can forget about my era!

I've been having the same problem.  For the Santa Fe in 1956, it brings about a lot of modifications.  However, running the El Cap/Super Chief would be spectacular. 

Perhaps Scott can come up with something else to appease me in the not to distant future.  I sure would like a streamlined 1949 Chief with the NYC, Pennsy, and B&O transcon cars.   

We need Scott to make a "Big Dome"

But I would take a couple extra El Capitan cars if he is going to run more singles as well.

Man Jim,

You're killing me!!

One good thing can come out of all the people buying these beautiful 21" passenger car sets. All those nice 18" sets that just might be coming up for sale from people making room ... a good thing for guys with smaller layouts.

Rich,

I'm not killing you.  But I might be helping you to get "FAT" of all the good deals that may become available on the Sants Fe 18" passenger cars.  I sold fifteen MTH 18" cars to a forum member in March last year.  I put them up for sale a few days after I placed my order for the El Cap with Scott.  The buyer didn't want all 15 cars, but the post I put on the For Sale/Trade forum was ALL of nothing. I did not want to piece-meal the cars.  If you remember I had installed over 300 people on my Super Chief.

But I'm guessing that you would not have been interested since there were not produced by your favorite manufacturer.  If that is true let me know because I might be able to locate a 7-car set of MTH from a friend in California. 

You always gotta tease don't ya Erik?  

Big Dome means the earlier version of the El Capitan, or the Chief or even the San Francisco Chief.   I'd be up for all or any of those.  It would mean streamlined Budd coaches.

The Big Dome never ran with the Hi-Level El Capitan did it?  I thought they re-assigned it when the Hi Level cars went into service.

Those cars are off the chart, you guys will be so happy with these!

I'd jump all over the second run if I had missed the first one.  Small price to pay for a high end model at that price point.

Hope you all enjoy!

Having seen the actually samples a little over a week ago, I can say the photos do not do this train justice.  No, it is not inexpensive, however, it is as far as I have seen the best train set ever produced that is not brass.  The lounge car and the transition / dorm are standouts for sure, but overall this train is simply outstanding. 

It is so well detailed, I'm probably going to rebuild my FP45s to be more prototypical that I picked up to pull it with. 

No it didn't, but with an assortment of different cars, you could make a lot of different trains with them. Though not exactly correct, especially for 3R guys, no one would no the difference anyway

San Diegans, San Francisco, etc etc There is a lot of options to throw a Big Dome in there. 

and I plan on running an executive/officer train so I really really could use a BIG DOME

 but overall this train is simply outstanding. 

This is painful.

You just need to convince Scott like I have been trying to.... to build some FP45s for us. They would be a big hit for sure!

Those cars shouldn't even be on the same layout as my E1's.  That would be a pretty cool consist though

__________________________________________________________________________

I've never seen the Super Chief / El Capitan run with the big dome, just the Pleasure Dome.  I'll have to look through some of my books.

Did they run the Big Dome and Pleasure Domes in the same train?

No..not in the same train... sorry my fingers were going faster than my thought process Howard. I went back and edited my previous post to what it was supposed to say

Now when I run a private excursion train with 3751, 844, or S3 #261 it will have all the top dogs of passenger cars

I can't find evidence the Big Domes ran on the Hi-Level El Capitan/Super Chief, only the Pleasure Dome.  

Can anyone point me in that direction?

I don't have any pix of it either..... I will go through my library again when Im at work, but I have not seen the Big Dome in that train.

In the train or not, we do need the Big Dome!

YES!

More pic's from Scott's response on the 3RS Forum.

That is mine on the second row,  Can you spot yours?

Reservations for 2nd El Capitan run are now being accepted on the GGD website.

Before it was "reservations closed".  Website below.

http://www.goldengatedepot.com/reservation.htm

As I understand it, the RPO is not in the 8-car set.  So that's a natural to order as an extra add-on.  In addition, I see that the lounge car is also being offered as an extra add-on which is really SWEET!

There are folks here that are far more familiar with this train than I am,  but I think the typical 1956 El Capitan train had 12 cars as follows:

• RPO
• Baggage [*]
• Baggage/Dorm Transition Car [*]
• 68-seater Hi-Level Step Down Chair Car [*]
• 72-seater Hi-Level Chair Car [*]
• 72-seater Hi-Level Chair Car
• Hi-Level Diner [*]
• Hi-Level Lounge [*]
• 72-seater Hi-Level Chair Car
• 72-seater Hi-Level Chair Car
• 72-seater Hi-Level Chair Car [*]
• 68-seater Hi-Level Step Down Chair Car [*]

I've marked the cars contained in the 8-car set with [*].  My set was confirmed for the first production run, but I had a couple of add-on cars on standby.  Now that the second production run may become a reality, I've up'd my standby order to be:  1 RPO, 1 extra lounge, and 2 extra 72-seat coaches. 

David

That's not exactly the case Jim but I'm sure you know that but enjoy grinding my stones a bit...

True when it comes to motive power I do stick to my "favorite manufacturer" but rolling stock is a different story... there I am equal opportunity across the board.

You would be surprised at the number of passenger sets I own from the "other" manufacturer including a beautiful DAP 10 car Union Pacific streamline set that I proudly run behind my JLC Challenger.

Point is I don't want to get fat Jim I just want to find a nice set of 18" cars to pull behind those beautiful ABBA's I just bought.... so if you think its the right set and the right deal I don't care who made it.. I trust your judgment when it comes to anything Santa Fe.

RD,

I am selling a 7 car set of 18" Lionel ATSF aluminum passenger cars.  You may be interested, not sure, but here is the link to the For Sale page.

If you have any questions send me an email at time4trains@live.com

take care

Jim, good news all around about the 2nd run. Thanks for staying on top of this for us.

Here is a list of the EL Cap consist when the hi-level cars were introduced in '56:

Overview

This page depicts the typical consist of the Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe's El Capitan when the Hi-Level equipment entered service on 8 July 1956.

Consist

	ATSF 331 (325 class EMD F7A).
	ATSF 19LABC (16 class EMD F3A). Santa Fe's initial five sets of passenger F3s (16LABC - 21LABC), built by EMD in 1946, had a longer warbonnet, which persisted even after the early three-porthole side panels were upgraded to later F-unit designs to improve airflow.  They also had aluminum-painted side panels, rather than the stainless steels panels used on later Santa Fe passenger Fs.
	ATSF 3440 (3432 class), baggage-express car, one of 21 built by Budd in 1942 for general service.
	ATSF 3453 (3453 class), baggage-express car, one of 14 built by American Car & Foundry (ACF) in 1950 for service on the Super Chief, El Capitan, and Kansas City Chief.
	ATSF 3480, transition car, one of two built by Budd in 1938 as baggage-dormitory-chair cars for the original El Capitan and converted at Topeka for assingment to the Hi-Level El Capitan. The other car, ATST 3481, looked slightly different as it retained its skirting.
	ATSF 528-class Hi-Level step-down chair car.
	ATSF 700-class Hi-Level chair cars.
	ATSF 650-class Hi-Level dining car.
	ATSF 575-class Hi-Level lounge car.
	ATSF 700-class Hi-Level chair cars.
	ATSF 528-class Hi-Level step-down chair car.

Bibliography

• Berglund, Lee. "Forty Years of Santa Fe Covered Wagons." <cite>Sante Fe Modeler</cite>, Third Quarter 1991. Also available online from The Santa Fe Railway Historical & Modeling Society and transcribed by Russell Crump.
• Bruce, John. <cite>Santa Fe Warbonnet F7s</cite>. WWW page.
• Clough, Brian. <cite>The 1956 El Capitan Hi-Level cars</cite>. WWW site.
• Flick, Michael W. and Dennis Kogan. "Santa Fe's Hi-Level Passenger Cars." <cite>The Warbonnet</cite>, Third Quarter 1999, pp. 8-24.
• Fuhrman, Jim. <cite>EMD F2/F3/F5 Phase Chart</cite>. WWW page.
• Fuhrman, Jim. <cite>EMD F7 & F9 phases</cite>. WWW page.
• Jolpin, Loren B. "The 325 Class -Sante Fe's Dual-Service Workhorses." <cite>The Warbonnet</cite>, Third Quarter 2000, pp. 22-28.
• Kogan, Flick. "The Characteristics of Fluting." <cite>Southwestern Prototype Modeler</cite>, January-February 1976, pp. 6-10. Also available online.
• McMillan, Joe. <cite>Santa Fe's Diesel Fleet</cite>. Burlingame, California: Chatham Publishing, 1975.
• O'Connor, Tim. <cite>ATSF 2-door Budd baggage car 1967 Colorado Springs</cite>. WWW site: Railfan.net ABPR Archive.
• Priest, Dr. Cinthia. <cite>The Santa Fe Diesel - Volume One: Dieselization - 1960</cite>. Paired Rail Railroad Publications, 1997.
• Randall, W. David and Alan R. Lind. <cite>From Zephyr to Amtrak</cite>. Park Forest, Illinois: Prototype Publications, 1972.
• Sandifer, Steve. <cite>Concor and Athearn LWT Baggage</cite>. WWW page.
• Zimmerman, Karl. <cite>Santa Fe Streamliners - The Chiefs and Their Tribesmen</cite>. New York: Quadrant Press, 1987.
• -. <cite>Santa Fe Links: Passenger Cars</cite>. WWW page: The Santa Fe Railway Historical & Modeling Society.
• -. <cite>Overland Mail</cite>, Issue #128, April-June 2000. Muncie, Indiana: Overland Models, pp. 1570-1571.

EDIT:  Just click on the "HERE" above for the website from which the above information was supplied.