[PRCo] Re: MUNI PAINT JOBS

[Fred W. Schneider III]

Hi Folks.  I like Bob's comment about dozens of other things to get them
ready.  Several weeks before the end of PCC operation, Tom Phillips and
I rode one of those two cars to Drake.  It stopped on the grade at
Washington Junction, and proceeded to roll backwards.  I immediately
made note that the operators foot was on the brake pedal and it was
depressed half way down. Not being one, with bum knees, to get on a car
rolling backwards, I waited until the operator pushed the pedal down far
enough to get track brakes.

I suggested to the operator that the drum brake shoes may be worn down
past condemnation.  His remark was telling ... "Nobody here today knows
how to fix these cars."  Maybe it meant, we don't want to waste the
money.  But it confirms and perhaps amplifies Bob's statement.  Remember
that PAT had three or more 4000s to protect a schedule requiring only
one car, and on many (underscore many) days, a bus was used to Drake
because they failed to muster one car.  



"Dietrich, Robert J." wrote:
> 
> OK I started this, I'll try to finish it!
> 
> To paraphrase an esteemed contributor of this list - thy don't need painted,
> they were painted at the "Factory".  Since MUNI apparently doesn't have the
> money to deal with the cars anyway they should just run them as they are.  I
> know there are a dozed other things that need to be done to get them
> operational but in the spirit of the 'burgh let 'em rust.
> 
> :)
> 
> Bob
> 
>  -----Original Message-----
> From:   Greg King [mailto:tramway at alphalink.com.au]
> Sent:   Sunday, September 23, 2001 8:47 PM
> To:     pittsburgh-railways at dementia.org
> Cc:     sfmunihistory at yahoogroups.com
> Subject:        [PRCo] Re: MUNI PAINT JOBS
> 
> Hey Jim,
> 
> I know you have a different view but even though the two Pgh cars are
> heavily rebuilt, they still have all those characteristics that are so much
> Pittsburgh, at least one of those cars should be in PRCo interurban colours
> (lets live with the rivets) and the other in PAT colours, either the grey or
> final colours, I know PAT was anti trolley but it would be a testiment to
> Pgh's trolleys that they survived (albeit in truncated form) this hostile
> regime!
> 
> To do a SDERy car (I too, would love to see one of those), I believe Karl is
> looking at the genuine article at Tahoe (or was) and there is that complete
> car for sale so, why paint something that never was when you could get the
> real Mc Coy!!!!
> 
> Greg