Metra roll call!!!!

Oh no, ding goes the credit card.  I have the older set of cars, and the newer ones on order.......

Nice cars and equally nice layout!!

City of Joliet heading into Chicago on the Rock Island line.

franktrain 

I like the Metra models but don't have any.

My bride rides the UPN most days to OTC and then back in the evening.

I noticed that at least on the UPN they have at least a couple of engines 'wrapped' with advertising.

I just wish they made the electric line, I rode the IC to Chicago for 10 years. 

Frank you must be a North sider, no White sox CTA cars.  I have the cubs, sox and the Bears.  Now with Cutler gone, the Bears may shine. 

I have no METRA stuff, but I enjoy seeing it on others' layouts. I have ridden METRA and its predecessors for over 50 years, so I suppose I am suffering "familiarity breeds contempt" syndrome. Those METRA F40PH's are very attractive.

By the way, METRA has revamped its video site, and has included whole-route cab-view videos of some of the routes.

https://www.youtube.com/user/MetraCommuterRail/videos

Fellow Chicagoan here.

Love my City of West Chicago F40PH, and I'm going to pick up my Silver Metra Passenger cars later on tonight to complete the set.

No offense to those who have Metra motive power in their fleet but those scale engines are WAY too clean. LOL

So, growing up in the Chicago area, I have to ask... Do you guys run them with the cars first and the engine in the rear? I would love to add some Metra equipment to my collection, I just don't have any yet.

Yes, you can run them in push-pull operation as the MTH control car has a switch to enable those specific lighting functions. Engine is always first outbound and control car is first inbound.

BNSF-MATT, Thanks for the info on the lighting function I will check to see if I have that feature on mine.

Here's a night shot with a BRC freight and a Metra running in push mode. Hopefully its not to dark.

franktrain

rboatertoo posted:

Frank you must be a North sider, no White sox CTA cars.  I have the cubs, sox and the Bears.  Now with Cutler gone, the Bears may shine. 

Actually the White Sox train was behind the Cubs I'm hoping for a cross town series some day!  I'm definitely partial for the White Sox. No Bears though.

I am a Chicago Fan!!!  

So strange how this stuff works- just now a friend sent me this photo....

MG Brown posted:

No offense to those who have Metra motive power in their fleet but those scale engines are WAY too clean. LOL

Metra keeps their stuff pretty clean...

Rusty

Yes, they do....

I uploaded a short video of my new Metra F40PH and the Bi-Level Passenger Car Set. I plan on adding additional content, perhaps some detailed reviews and other videos of my layout (work in progress) in the near future.

Please enjoy and all feedback is welcome!

MTH Metra F40PH with an MTH 4-Car Metra Bi-Level Passenger Set

Rusty Traque posted:

MG Brown posted:

No offense to those who have Metra motive power in their fleet but those scale engines are WAY too clean. LOL

Metra keeps their stuff pretty clean...

Rusty

Perhaps it's the fact that it's winter here at the moment?

MG Brown posted:

Rusty Traque posted:

MG Brown posted:

No offense to those who have Metra motive power in their fleet but those scale engines are WAY too clean. LOL

Metra keeps their stuff pretty clean...

Rusty

Perhaps it's the fact that it's winter here at the moment?

Don't see what winter has to do with METRA maintaining pretty clean units. They still wash everything.

OK let me re-phrase that; when I see them, they are near the end of their line (UP-N Outbound). Unless they wash them just before they pull into the station, they aren't going to be pristine. See what I'm saying?

MG Brown posted:

OK let me re-phrase that; when I see them, they are near the end of their line (UP-N Outbound). Unless they wash them just before they pull into the station, they aren't going to be pristine. See what I'm saying?

Not really.

BNSF-Matt posted:

Yes, you can run them in push-pull operation as the MTH control car has a switch to enable those specific lighting functions. Engine is always first outbound and control car is first inbound.

In 1975, I was riding what is now the SW CHIEF into Union Station.  We were passing in the same direction this bilevel BN commuter train going "BACKWARDS".  I thought at first it was out of control.  Then we passed the cab car, and my blood pressure dropped 200 points.  My first look at push-pull railroading.  BTW, BN E units and BN and Burlington on the cars!

MG Brown posted:

OK let me re-phrase that; when I see them, they are near the end of their line (UP-N Outbound). Unless they wash them just before they pull into the station, they aren't going to be pristine. See what I'm saying?

Does your car stay pristine when driving in winter?

A friend of mine recently retired from Metra and he told me they wash the trains daily, except when the weather is so bad the wash racks freeze up.

Rusty

MG Brown posted:

OK let me re-phrase that; when I see them, they are near the end of their line (UP-N Outbound). Unless they wash them just before they pull into the station, they aren't going to be pristine. See what I'm saying?

I get what you're saying....overall tho compared to most, their equipment is rather clean the majority of the time.

Nice to see several pictures of Metra. I do have Metra F40. Thought to show my video of PRE Metra! 

Actually, I would love to have as a model a rare duck I saw at Union:  F40C.  Odd, that thing stayed ON the rails while the SDP40F did not.  Guess the trains on the MILW at the time did not have baggage cars?

CGWforever posted:

Nice to see several pictures of Metra. I do have Metra F40. Thought to show my video of PRE Metra! 

Love those Chicago @ North Western Cars!

Dominic Mazoch posted:

Actually, I would love to have as a model a rare duck I saw at Union:  F40C.  Odd, that thing stayed ON the rails while the SDP40F did not.

As usual, you don't have the facts and thus don't know what you are talking about.

Guess the trains on the MILW at the time did not have baggage cars?

Great videos guys. I'll be picking up my cars this weekend if all goes as planned and then I'll post a video as well. It would be great if they would make the cars with fluted sides at some point. 

Did everyone get a snow plow with this latest run of locos?

bigtruckpete posted:

Great videos guys. I'll be picking up my cars this weekend if all goes as planned and then I'll post a video as well. It would be great if they would make the cars with fluted sides at some point. 

Did everyone get a snow plow with this latest run of locos?

Yes, the snow plow is in the foam in one of the holes you need to install it. The hoses do have some play to them so you need to fit the hoses through the holes of the plow as you position it.

CGWforever posted:

Nice to see several pictures of Metra. I do have Metra F40. Thought to show my video of PRE Metra! 

That is a good looking commuter train in your video. Thanks for sharing.

MG Brown posted:

CGWforever posted:

Nice to see several pictures of Metra. I do have Metra F40. Thought to show my video of PRE Metra! 

That is a good looking commuter train in your video. Thanks for sharing.

Thanks!

Just caught a glimpse of the new paint scheme and refreshed loco on the ride home today. Man, they look real sharp  

I had time today to pick up my Metra cars. Wow they are nice! I like how the doors open. 

All of my trains are boxed up right now but here is a 2012 photo of some of my then new Metra cars being test run with an older PS1 loco.

I finally got my set of metra cars. I have the older set with the proto 2 engine and the new City of Chicago engine with proto 3 and the blue striped cars.  The dealer got them last Friday and they didn't drop it off at the shopper till Tuesday, then Fedex was running late so I didn't get them till today.  

Now for the pictures old meets new!!!!

Jim, Your two train sets are looking sharp! I would like to have several sets also so I can run my own version of the triple track when I get some more space.