Hey Everyone, here's some news that'll make your smokebox spin, recently, through a website called Ozark Mountain Railcar, a Website that sells Railroad equipment online, recently sold the famed “California Zephyr” Train. And It went to the Cuyahoga Valley Railroad! What are your thoughts on all this?

I think it is none of your business. Why should your opinion matter in this at all???

T7

Let's try to keep it positive here...
I would have liked to see them stay in excursion service as opposed to a tourist railroad, but given Amtrak's recent policy concerning private cars, maybe this was the best option. Perhaps it's a good thing that they will be open for the general public to ride.

It's very on topic to ask "what is preservation?"

I would personally rather see these cars go into a museum collection where they would be kept in tact and historically correct, with the hope they could operate again as they were intended to operate... on the mainline and out west.

But this is the real world.. in the real world cars like these will go to the highest bidder and they can do whatever they want with them... hopefully the people in Ohio won't destroy them too much.

CVSR could start a new name train. How does "Akron Zephyr" or "Rubber City Zephyr" sound?

I'd go with Goodyear Zephyr, but that is probably too similar to Goodyear-Zeppelin...

I think you are way out of line. This is literally a "discussion board" on railway preservation. The point of this board is to discuss, aka share opinions, on railroad restoration and preservation news.

I'm disapointed that the cars are ending up where they are ending up, and I think it's a shame their owners were so hard up for cash they sold them to be used in this way. California State Railroad Museum, colorado state Railroad museum, and IRM would have both been lovely and appropriate homes for these cars. 2 of the 3 would have connections to mainline if / when that opportunity would prevent itself.

We, as a preservation community, need to be able to be vocal about the negatives.

I just love it when you guys "decide" what museum should get pieces of equipment. Well let me tell you something...those cars were for sale for long enough that said museums (or this board's arm chair directors) could have bought them and moved them to said museum. The owner obviously had another idea...and the buyer was looking for useable equipment. So Mr. Tweetsie 12 (or whomever) decides he is going to publicly lynch the 1. seller, 2. Buyer and 3. Broker just because it does not fit into his railfan fantasy?

Mr. Tweetsie should have bought that equipment and positioned it wherever he liked. But he didn't. So let's discuss that. Or...let's discuss how all of these museums are bursting at the seams with cars, tenders, cranes and locomotives that nobody works on, nobody needs and nobody cares about. Let's discuss the fact that seemingly every 4-8-4 in North America will be "saved" and/or restored but nobody wants to restore a coach to pull behind them.

Ok...maybe we could discuss the Tennessee Central Rwy Museum in Nashville...they had a fine TC office car that they gave absolutly NO care to for the past...40? years. Whenever they were asked about fixing it they alway said "we are going to raise some money and have it completely restored"...but they didn't and recently they had the car scrapped. So let's discuss that. OK??? Or is that considered flaming?

Oceans of Love,
T7

Let me repeat... we as a preservation community need to be able to discuss the negatives without being called names such as "arm chair directors."

I said I was disappointed and I thought it was a shame how things have ended up for these cars. Why is that wrong for me to share those feelings on a discussion board on preservation?

Not to be picking fights on anybody, but I don't recall Tweetsie12 being aggressive in any capacity to the extent described by Termite7.
He merely asked for others' opinion on the destination. I inferred from his post an innocent invitation for discussion along the lines of "Oh, wouldn't it have been great if the CZ set went to Organization X?".

Termite7, I, as well as I believe most of the ladies and gentlemen who frequent this forum, understand your beef about the "armchairs" who publicly and aggressively voice their opinions regarding all matters rail preservation without active contributions to back up their opinions and claims. However, your assessment on Tweetsie12's casual "let me float this one out there" approach seems unnecessarily aggressive to me, even if Tweetsie has (no offense) repeatedly been making not-exactly-realistic posts over the past few months, thus inadvertently stepping on some toes in the US rail preservation community (I wouldn't know, I'm based in Japan).

As the popular phrase I believe goes, "Can't you all just get along"?

All the best,

ST

Well...I think everybody misses the point. Mr.Tweetsie was trying to get everybodies dander up over the sell of that equipment. And I think my response was spot on...it's none of his business. Period. It was others who wanted to escalete the dscussion and jump on the boo-hoo wagon. And I will say the same to them...if you think this new private buyer is such a problem..then get a loan and buy those cars. Otherwise...what piece of equipment at your museum needs a patch on the roof or a coat of paint? Anybody...?

T7

Why should I need to get a loan and personally buy cars to have an opinion on where I would like to see them end up?

Why should I need to paint a roof on a coach in my hometown to have an opinion on which railroads would make the best home for some unique pieces of equipment?

Moderators - maybe this discussion should be moved to railfanning?

Since this thread seems to be nothing but unconstructive opinion and negativity, my opinion is that it should be locked or deleted since another thread of the same topic was created 11 days prior to this one.