Pacific Parlour Car Permanently Retired February 2018

[cpotisch]

I was just arriving into Chicago on the TE and happened to spot two PPCs off to the side (Santa Lucia Highlands and Sonoma Valley)!

After I arrived, I walked straight to the train yard to check them out:



A further look around and on the other side of the yard, I see these:



Those are Columbia and Napa Valley!

I was able to get that pic from just outside the (‘Amtrak Personnel Only’) yard. We then asked an Amtrak employee and he said we could walk over and take some close up photos!



AND the second Amtrak employee said we could go in! So here are some pictures of the inside of PPC ‘Columbia Valley’ taken at the Chicago Amtrak Yard:



Even crazier is that apparently, those PPCs arrived in Chicago just one hour before we did!

As someone who had never even seen a PPC before, and who was heartbroken when it was announced they’d be retired, I could not have been happier.

 

[daybeers]

Wow, what a cool experience! Thanks for posting those!

 

[cpotisch]

Wow, what a cool experience! Thanks for posting those!

YOU ARE WELCOME!

 

[cpotisch]

So I'm sort of resurrection this thread from the dead (as I like to do), but where are the PPCs now? Were they scrapped, sold off, or are they just waiting around in Beech Grove?

 

[OBS]

So I'm resurrecting this from the dead, but where are the PPCs? Have any been scrapped or sold off, or are they all at beech grove?

Seaboard92 bought them all........

 

[cpotisch]

So I'm resurrecting this from the dead, but where are the PPCs? Have any been scrapped or sold off, or are they all at beech grove?

Seaboard92 bought them all........

Haha, but does anyone actually know?

 

[MikefromCrete]

If the parlor cars were sold or scrapped, we would have heard about it. I bet they are sitting around a yard in Los Angeles or are at the Grove, although we would have heard about the movement of the cars from the west coast to Indy. So best guess, in L.A.

 

[cpotisch]

If the parlor cars were sold or scrapped, we would have heard about it. I bet they are sitting around a yard in Los Angeles or are at the Grove, although we would have heard about the movement of the cars from the west coast to Indy. So best guess, in L.A.

Thanks. I would note that they did in fact go to Beech Grove on the SWC and Hoosier State in February, so unless they were sent back to LA and no one heard about it, they should just be sitting in Indiana.

 

[wdscott]

I travel past the yard in Los Angeles quite frequently. Since I’ve grown weary of admiring the natural beauty of the Los Angeles River on the east side of the Surfliner I more typically look at the yard. There hasn’t been a Parlour Car there in many months.

 

[railiner]

Nice shots...I didn't see your post when you first posted them, so thanks for reposting!

And...looks like that may be you in that inside shot?

 

[Just-Thinking-51]

There at the Grove. Sitting and rusting away.

 

[jis]

There at the Grove. Sitting and rusting away.

Well, if they are really good quality Stainless Steel ..... hopefully not rusting too much

 

[Seaboard92]

So I'm resurrecting this from the dead, but where are the PPCs? Have any been scrapped or sold off, or are they all at beech grove?

Seaboard92 bought them all........

Nope not me. I bought two other Budd Company Cars. But if Amtrak wanted to sell me one of those heritage Pacific series sleepers in Beech Grove, or some diners I would be all interested in whole cars, and parts.
I have no interest in the PPCs because they would require serious work to be compatible with our other cars. I'm not even sure if the PPCs have any usable parts I could part out either. But the diners I have a non Amtrak use for them and would happily take at least five.

 

[Bob Dylan]

Parts for the PPCs ( ex Santa,Fe High Levels)don't exist and have to be "Custom made",ie Expensive.

 

[trainman74]

Since I’ve grown weary of admiring the natural beauty of the Los Angeles River on the east side of the Surfliner...

*guffaw*

 

[Thirdrail7]

There at the Grove. Sitting and rusting away.

The Acela lounges are being renovated. I hope they grabbed those snazzy, purple chairs for future use.

 

[wdscott]

Since I’ve grown weary of admiring the natural beauty of the Los Angeles River on the east side of the Surfliner...

*guffaw*

It took some number of days, but finally someone admitted to catching that. Good catch!
Presumably the vast majority of forum players won’t get the joke as they’ve not seen the LA River in person. So here’s a brief explanation by example.

Have you seen any movie, car commercial, or anything else that shows an elegant concrete bridge over what appears to be a concrete aqueduct? Well, the lower concrete actually IS the LA River.

Many of the so called rivers in Southern California were paved in concrete many decades ago for flood control. Reason being “It never rains in California, but girl, don't they warn ya? It pours, man, it pours”.

 

[AmtrakBlue]

Since I’ve grown weary of admiring the natural beauty of the Los Angeles River on the east side of the Surfliner...

*guffaw*

It took some number of days, but finally someone admitted to catching that. Good catch!
Presumably the vast majority of forum players won’t get the joke as they’ve not seen the LA River in person. So here’s a brief explanation by example.

Have you seen any movie, car commercial, or anything else that shows an elegant concrete bridge over what appears to be a concrete aqueduct? Well, the lower concrete actually IS the LA River.

Many of the so called rivers in Southern California were paved in concrete many decades ago for flood control. Reason being “It never rains in California, but girl, don't they warn ya? It pours, man, it pours”.

I got it, even though the only time I've been to LA is for connections (Amtrak and airline).

 

[JayPea]

Our little town here in SE Washington was prone to severe flooding until they paved the river for flood control. In fact, up until a couple of years ago, the town had a summer festival called the Concrete River Festival.

 

[NorthShore]

Since Ive grown weary of admiring the natural beauty of the Los Angeles River on the east side of the Surfliner...

*guffaw*

It took some number of days, but finally someone admitted to catching that. Good catch!
Presumably the vast majority of forum players wont get the joke as theyve not seen the LA River in person. So heres a brief explanation by example.

Have you seen any movie, car commercial, or anything else that shows an elegant concrete bridge over what appears to be a concrete aqueduct? Well, the lower concrete actually IS the LA River.

Many of the so called rivers in Southern California were paved in concrete many decades ago for flood control. Reason being It never rains in California, but girl, don't they warn ya? It pours, man, it pours.

My first train trip to Los Angeles, I noted the river on a map and mentioned that I would be looking for it coming up to a fellow passenger. He responded, "River? What river? There's no river in L.A." Still, I spotted it!

 

[railiner]

This? A few seconds in, you can see an Amtrak train pass by, above....

 

[Devil's Advocate]

Our little town here in SE Washington was prone to severe flooding until they paved the river for flood control. In fact, up until a couple of years ago, the town had a summer festival called the Concrete River Festival.

I always wondered what it would be like to live in Mayberry. My own medium sized city turns into a massive concrete river two or three times each year. Although until now it never occurred to us that we should celebrate a hundred years of drownings and other unintended consequences thanks to cowboy engineering and absurdly inefficient zoning laws.

 

[Bob Dylan]

Sounds like you're describing Most Texas Cities Chris!

 

[Cho Cho Charlie]

I always wondered what it would be like to live in Mayberry.

The Parlour Car bartender would be Otis Campbell ?

 

[JayPea]

Our little town here in SE Washington was prone to severe flooding until they paved the river for flood control. In fact, up until a couple of years ago, the town had a summer festival called the Concrete River Festival.

I always wondered what it would be like to live in Mayberry. My own medium sized city turns into a massive concrete river two or three times each year. Although until now it never occurred to us that we should celebrate a hundred years of drownings and other unintended consequences thanks to cowboy engineering and absurdly inefficient zoning laws.

Here in Mayberry there is generally no excitement to speak of. We have to find any excuse possible to create excitement.