It all depends on what you want to restore it to. I would argue that it should be preserved as is as it would tell the nearly 100 year story of the car, both in and out of rail serve. Specifically, it shows how widely the image of the Zephyr was recognized and how a small business copied it to increase their business. Moreover, it is also appears that enough of the car's original fabric remains to interpret the car's construction and function as a rail vehicle. While it this may seem like an odd concept to the US preservation community, it is something that the National Railway Museum in York and others in the UK have done successfully for years.
Tom Cornillie
> I just looked at it and the starting price
> has been reduced to $950,000.00. What a
> joke. They have about three zero's too many
> if they think anyone is going to restore it.
> Does it have trucks, draft gear, brake
> system? I doubt it. It looks like all there
> is left of the original car is the windows
> and some of the woodwork. Maybe someone can
> acquire them for some other restoration. If
> someone really wanted to restore this car
> they better be related to Bill Gates.
> Along the same lines of thinking, railfan
> groups grab all kinds of equipment to
> restore that really should be passed up.
> Just because something exists doesn't mean
> it is worth restoring. The rarity should be
> considered but even if something is
> extreamly rare the question has to be asked
> if it's worth spending the time and money to
> do a restoration. If a majority of the
> original equipment on the car/locomotive is
> missing then why take the project on?
> Preserve what's left if you want but spend
> your resources on something that can be
> restored.
> If anyone wants to do a car restoration go
> to DF Barnhardt, Illinois Transit Assy Corp
> or other railroad equipment traders on line
> and jump on some of the cars for sale there.
> At least you are starting with a car that is
> mostly complete.
rrhistorian@hotmail.com
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