Drumhead

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A few years back there was talk of drumheads being put on the starlight. There are a couple of older videos on youtube that show a CS with a drumhead and I managed to find a photo (not mine) of one, but I've never seen an Amtrak train with one. Anybody know what happened? It seems like it would be a classy touch.
 
I like it, but it does look a little odd on the business end of a generic function-centric Superliner car. Outside of a few grand old stations that have backed-in trains I don't think most folks would ever notice these things. I wish Amtrak could give us classy observation cars to put these things on and actual domes that could somehow see over all these Superliners.
 
I like it, but it does look a little odd on the business end of a generic function-centric Superliner car. Outside of a few grand old stations that have backed-in trains I don't think most folks would ever notice these things. I wish Amtrak could give us classy observation cars to put these things on and actual domes that could somehow see over all these Superliners.
It is pure fantasy on my part, but I've thought that WAS could be a "dome city" - and not because of The Capitol - though there might be a marketing ploy in there somewhere. What I've thought about is having all southbound LDs pick up a dome at WAS and drop off their domes northbound. The CL could have one at all times, like it once did. They wouldn't let you go up until you were clear of the catanery, but that also gave them time to collect tickets from WAS.
 
Drumheads were neat. As I recall they were mostly on the better trains and mostly just on observation lounge cars, more so than on rear end coaches or sleepers.

Both stations in my native Chattanooga were stub end stations, so I saw it a lot.

Also some times a drumhead was at the end of the track and all trains merited that, even nameless trains (it would show the number). That type of sign usually showed the destination city and one or two of the larger stops.

Keep in mind that us railfans enjoy these things for themselves. But in the distant past, when a greater percentage of the people rode trains, they may have served a legitimate function of actually helping the traveling public know which train to board.

A problem we know little about today, for LD that is.
 
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The National Railroad Museum in Green Bay has a nice collection of old drumheads. Here are a few that I saw a couple of years ago.

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One of the non-Amtrak trains that I know of running a plethora of drumheads is the Long Island Rail Road. They run drumheads for they're summer-Friday only Cannonball, a holiday train in November, the 175th Anniversary train, a breast-cancer survivors train, and possibly even more! They love drumheads! I'll post pictures if anyone wants to see later..
 
One of the non-Amtrak trains that I know of running a plethora of drumheads is the Long Island Rail Road. They run drumheads for they're summer-Friday only Cannonball, a holiday train in November, the 175th Anniversary train, a breast-cancer survivors train, and possibly even more! They love drumheads! I'll post pictures if anyone wants to see later..
Does a pig like the mud? Would enjoy seeing them. Thanks!
 
The National Railroad Museum in Green Bay has a nice collection of old drumheads. Here are a few that I saw a couple of years ago.

167934965_0039.jpg


167934942_0037.jpg


167934931_0035.jpg


167934905_0027.jpg


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167934899_0025.jpg
Beautiful, Tom, beautiful. I would be interested to know which Cardinal that was, since I sort of think two or three trains around the country were so named. Cannot think of them now and I am on my way out to lunch.
 
Here's the drumhead on the locomotives (the train is so long its pull-pull) on the Cannonball: (the photo is a bit old, took it back in 2006), bypassing Lynbrook:

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I think perhaps they could have potential with the Amtrak America livery as a way to try and get more branding out for Long Distance trains, particular those along the Northeast Corridor that bypass so many local stations that could be the perfect advertisement to take Amtrak for long distance journeys.

Yesterday for example I took the Adirondack down from Montreal, I was seated in the Amfleet-I (didn't really care, it was empty most of the way, until it got quite full in Albany, but had library silence without being a Quiet Car, and I was on the train to enjoy Ocean View) because I was getting off in Yonkers. I got a seat mate somewhere between Hudson and Croton-Harmon, I don't actually know where because I was sitting the terrible Amfleet-I cafe car chatting. I returned to my seat to pack up and chatted briefly with my seat mate who had no idea the train had originated in Montreal or what a dome car was as I quickly tried to describe it.

I feel like there is a bit potential for Amtrak to advertise itself simply on the long distance trains that use corridors and are seen by many commuters waiting for both Amtrak local trains and the commuter railroads. It's the same way that I love hearing the announcer at Penn (was there for both the Silver Meteor and the Lake Shore Limited) list every single stop on a long distance route. A tradition I'm very glad is still kept at many stations.
 
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I like it, but it does look a little odd on the business end of a generic function-centric Superliner car. Outside of a few grand old stations that have backed-in trains I don't think most folks would ever notice these things.
If Chicago didn't do the "Kindergarten walk", it would provide a straightforward way of making sure people got on the right train at Chicago!
 
Also some times a drumhead was at the end of the track and all trains merited that, even nameless trains (it would show the number). That type of sign usually showed the destination city and one or two of the larger stops.

Keep in mind that us railfans enjoy these things for themselves. But in the distant past, when a greater percentage of the people rode trains, they may have served a legitimate function of actually helping the traveling public know which train to board.
Ha! I just mentioned that in the context of Chicago Union Station!

I actually think this would be a sensible thing to do. Good Signage Is Good, and Keeping It Simple is good too.
 
It's the same way that I love hearing the announcer at Penn (was there for both the Silver Meteor and the Lake Shore Limited) list every single stop on a long distance route. A tradition I'm very glad is still kept at many stations.
Indeed, even Sacramento has a 21st Century version of this. A computerized "Julie" announces all stops across the public address for the Coast Starlight and California Zephyr when they pull into the station much in the same way!
 
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