I don't know if the El Capitan was ever pulled by Alco PA's but it is my entry for most beautiful train. Golden Gate Depot has produced incomparably beautiful locomotives and cars. Sorry for the quick IPhone video but I am quite excited. Scenery is coming. Watch at the 720 setting.
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It looks like a nice model train set.
Amazing! Very nice, especially getting to see a transition car.
Look good to me!
That is indeed a beautiful set! Thank you for sharing the video.
Happy railroading,
Don
Sweet!
Mike
Eliot;
Like you, I don't know if the El Capitan was ever pulled by PA's, but, based on your video, they look like they were made for each other. Beautiful train.
Apparently, and I am learning all the time, the Alco PA's were very rarely used on the big time signature trains because of concerns with Alco locomotives generally. Someone (Number 90), correct me if I am mistaken. I will run the Alcos with my Super Chief. I have the earlier version with no dome cars.
Scrappy
YES, the El Capitan was pulled by Alco PA’s on a very few and extremely rare occasions. I saw it once around 1959. About four years ago Matt even posted some pictures that his father took clearly showing PA’s on the point of the El Cap.
Maybe he will see this topic and re-post his pics.
Wow! very nice. Now I want an ABA set to pull mine. Thank you. lol!!
Mark
SantaFeJim posted:YES, the El Capitan was pulled by Alco PA’s on a very few and extremely rare occasions. I saw it once around 1959. About four years ago Matt even posted some pictures that his father took clearly showing PA’s on the point of the El Cap.
Maybe he will see this topic and re-post his pics.
Would like to see the images, those had to be very rare occasions for the PA's to be pulling that duty by then.
Very, very rarely on the El Capitan, and it was never assigned power for the train. A fill in for power shortage or F units broke down maybe. Since you also have the Big Dome, you can remove the transition car and make various "other" trains that used the Big Dome and were pulled by a set of PAs on a regular schedule 😉 The San Diegan, San Francisco Chief, Texas Chief etc etc Sure only 6 or 8 cars usually but VERY prototypical.
Great video. Thanks for sharing! I'm glad you are enjoying them. I'll be pulling my El Capitan cars with them as well, but as Doug mentions above, you can have fun with lots of other car configurations to pull a multitude of Santa Fe trains.
Jonathan
Many thanks, fellas !
Hey I like the High Level Cars with my PA’s also!! It is conceivable Alco’s made at least one or two trips with the High Level El Cap.. I’ve been told no by my buddies in the ATSF Historical & Modeling Society but who cares I love it anyway. They did run with Hi Levels routinely on the San Francisco Chief after the upgrade in 1964, (Route Of The Chiefs Greg Stout). In the minds of many the mid 60’s version of the SFC is the most intriguing of all the Chiefs and his tribesman including regularly assigned with those magnificent PA’s by many ATSF aficionados including myself.
OK Erik stop showing off...oh wait, nevermind. Show us more! 
A rare treat in any scale especially O, right down to the Budd pre-war combine, diner, and coaches. Pullman Standard, Budd, and ACF all in train. Some of these cars I’ve searched out for over 10 years and then when Scott built us those beautiful Big Domes it was like a revelation of passion and excitement! Wahoo!
Out of the box, some 745’s Golden Gate Depot’s cars are SPECTACULAR; an absolute miracle. Up next detailing some painting on the ends, diaphragms, window tinting, shades, I still need to put interiors in the brass cars among others to make this consist a reality a childhood dream of sorts. What can I say I just adore what Sunset and Golden Gate Depot has provided us with.
As Erik says, "SPECTACULAR, an absolute miracle . . " Remembering what O scale life was like a good while back -- compared to what we have to choose from now -- and at a price point vs scale fidelity that's -- well, lets see -- how about more inclusive than ever.
Thanks for all the photos and videos above.
Original assignments for Santa Fe Alcos:
1940's - Super Chief, Chief, the Texas Chief in the late 1940's, and possibly, El Cap for a short time. First bumped from the Super Chief by 1948 F3's, then the Chief with 1949 F3's, then the Texas Chief with 1949 F7's. F3's arriving in early 1949, and fall 1949 delivery of F7's knocked them off the big 3 L.A. to Chicago trains for good, except in emergencies.
By 1950, Super Chief, ElCapitan, and Chief were always EMD, while Alcos were in the general transcontinental pool for the Grand Canyon (including the northern, southern, and northern California sections), the Fast Mail, sometimes on the Texas Chief, often on the Clovis to Houston train, occasionally making trips to Tulsa, Carlsbad., and San Diego. San Francisco Chief (started in 1954) had Alcos about 50-60% of the time. They were good engines, but the smoke did not impress the top management. Around 1960, they were regular in pairs on the San Diegans and Golden Gates.
They became very reliable after being retrofitted with water-cooled turbochargers, starting in about 1950. Before that, they had too many road failures to be trusted with the big 3. Failures did not occur daily, but management was very, very fussy about the big 3. And they smoked. They probably made an emergency trip or two on the Hi-Level El Capitan, but were never regularly assigned for it. Most of the photos of them pulling Hi-Level cars are on the San Francisco Chief.
Always be suspect about self-appointed experts who are critical of Santa Fe's PA and PB units. These units did a lot of heavy lifting at 100 MPH for 20 years. The Santa Fe passenger diesel fleet was uniquely managed and well-maintained. and the Alcos were reliable high-performers.
Erik,
I swear on one of those videos I was shocked to see it was a model railroad. I thought it was the real thing !
Scrapiron Scher posted:I swear on one of those videos I was shocked to see it was a model railroad. I thought it was the real thing !
Erik, I love your San Francisco Chief. Makes me ready to head downtown here in Amarillo and climb aboard. I'll have the French toast for breakfast, naturally.
Your personal record has been awarded ten merits for faithful recreation the premiere Santa Fe passenger train of the southern transcon, and for producing realistic video of it en route .
Scrapiron Scher posted:I will run the Alcos with my Super Chief. I have the earlier version with no dome cars.
Scrappy
Eliot, you and I are among the luckiest people alive. We both operate A-B-A consists of Santa Fe Alcos, and can assign them to any train we wish.
I've got the 1937 Super Chief also, and the Alcos will do a great job there. Or on the single-unit, 4-car West Texas Express. Or on the Fast Mail. Or the Lionel heavyweight Chief. Or, perhaps, on the next Super Chief to be produced by Scott. And then, maybe being double-headed by a 4-8-4, or assisted by a pair of RSD5's, as often done on Raton. And there will someday be a zebra RSD7 from Atlas.
A Santa Fe Superintendent is unchallenged on his Division. Feel free to send Alcos out with the Hi-Level El Capitan.
Can we construct a scenario where the SP surreptitiously borrowed a set of SF Alco PAs to pull their Sunset Limited. It would seem that would be the most perfect color coordination possible. Everything the Chiefs had along with the red pin striping decoration. It pleases my fancy even more than the solid red/orange color of the SP Alcos. Am I missing something here, or was it just a dark, stormy evening when no one was out with a camera.
I am thrilled you guys enjoyed the footage. A little #8 Fast Mail action ;-)
Number 90 posted:Scrapiron Scher posted:I swear on one of those videos I was shocked to see it was a model railroad. I thought it was the real thing !
Erik, I love your San Francisco Chief. Makes me ready to head downtown here in Amarillo and climb aboard. I'll have the French toast for breakfast, naturally.
Your personal record has been awarded ten merits for faithful recreation the premiere Santa Fe passenger train of the southern transcon, and for producing realistic video of it en route .
This is a neat train with the unique array of equipment. A little past my era but still worth running. It only took 4 different sets to acquire all those cars over the last 20 years. Insane thinking about it; I don’t think I would want to do it again.
Pecos River Brass 1939 El Cap
Pecos River Brass 1951 Super Chief
Golden Gate Depot 1951 Super Chief
Golden Gate Depot 1956 Hi Level El Cap
Pulling cars from each made it possible. Dan Pantera AKA Calumet Model Works is building me a Valley series and Indian series sleepers that will make the sleeping cars just about perfect.
An earlier version with no Hi Level cars
And the 1947-48 The Chief
You guys are having waaay too much fun. God bless ya!
Would that ALCo had skipped over the 241 and 244 prime movers and developed the 251 earlier. The 251 is still in production and ALCo would, in all probability, still be in business. The PA/B is what I consider to be the most beautiful locomotive of any variety, followed by the racy EMC/EMD EA through E6.
ENJOY!
Erik C Lindgren posted:
I am thrilled you guys enjoyed the footage. A little #8 Fast Mail action ;-)
I regret that Company policy prevents awarding merits more than once on any day. But I would do it if I could!
This is slightly off-topic, but I know of several Santa Fe passenger train wrecks where the F3's and F7's were derailed and wrecked, but only two involving Alcos. In 1953, the north mail train overshot the clearance point in the Planada, California, siding, and was immediately struck by the freight train for which it took siding. And, a better-known wreck occurred in 1964 (65?). A San Diegan struck a truck loaded with rock in Anaheim, California. In both wrecks, the Alcos were turned onto their sides.
The Planada Alcos wer repaired and re-entered service. The Anaheim Alcos were repairable, but the railroad decided to let them go, due to their age.
The Planada Alcos wer repaired and re-entered service. The Anaheim Alcos were repairable, but the railroad decided
to let them go, due to their age.
Tom
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