California Zephyr Equipment
Construction of the Stainless Steel cars, which made up the
California Zephyr, began in 1946 at the BUDD Company Red Lyon plant
in Pennsylvania. Touted by BUDD as the most modern plant in the
world for railway car construction approximately one third of the
nations new railway passenger cars (exclusive of railroad
production) were being produced by BUDD at this plant. Built of 18-8
stainless steel, which had been developed by the Krupp Works in
Germany and assembled with BUDD's patented "shotwelding"
construction method, the cars were constructed with comfort and
durability in the forefront of design criteria. This material and
the construction techniques made these cars almost totally resistant
to corrosion. Ultralite insulation was used throughout the train,
which was also a new newly developed product and was exceptionally
lightweight. For modern trains, such as the California Zephyr, it
reduced insulation weight by about one-half without sacrificing
efficiency. It is composed of soft, inorganic glass fibers, bound
with a thermo-setting binder. To the passenger it meant greater
comfort, which offered the latest in traveling luxury.
Each California Zephyr train consisted of a baggage car, three
Vista-Dome coaches, a Vista-Dome buffet-lounge car, two six-bedroom
and ten-roomette cars, a dining car, one 16-section sleeper, one
six-bedroom and ten-roomette car, and a Vista-Dome
lounge-observation car, with one drawing room and three bedrooms. A
six-double bedroom five compartment car was added in 1952 behind the
diner.
There were 138 regular coach seats and 72 dome seats in the three
coaches. The 19 buffet and seven lounge seats in the buffet-lounge
car were for coach passengers. Sleeping-car berth space was
available for 107 passengers. The Vista-Dome observation car had
seats for 12 in the buffet and 14 in the observation lounge,
including the writing desk, and 24 seats in the Vista Dome. The
Vista-Dome seats in the buffet-lounge car also were for sleeping-ear
passengers only.
The cars were all 85 feet long, coupled, except the baggage car
which was 72 feet 8 inches coupled. The exteriors were unpainted,
except for the lettering which consisted of the name of the train on
the middle of the letter board, the initials of the owning road in
smaller letters at each end of the car at letter board height, and
the name of the car in the middle of the side below the windows.
Each coach, sleeper and observation car had a vestibule, the
buffet-lounge and dining cars were without vestibules.
Each car, including the baggage car, was named, the distinctive name
in each being prefixed with the word "Silver," suggested by the
stainless steel surface of the trains. The baggage cars were named
for wild animals of the western plains and mountains, such as
"Silver Buffalo”, "Silver Antelope”, and “Silver Stag”. The names
for the coaches were suggested by characteristic features of western
life and environment: "Silver Lariat”, "Silver Mustang”, and "Silver
Sage” are examples. The names of the buffet-lounge cars, the diners
and the buffet-observation cars suggested the character of the
service rendered by those cars. Three of them were "Silver Hostel”,
"Silver Banquet”, and "Silver Penthouse”. The room cars were named
from characteristic features of western scenery – “Silver Butte”,
“Silver Pass”, "Silver Surf." The open-section sleepers bore the
names of western trees, such as "Silver Maple”, "Silver Pine”, and
"Silver Palm”.
Interior Decorative Treatment
Eight major color schemes were employed throughout the train. Three
of these were utilized in the vista-domed coaches with each of the
other car types having their own individualized scheme. Certain
features of the decorations where employed to unitize the overall
effect throughout the train. These unifying features included the
original murals of western subjects used throughout the train. The
murals applied in the coaches and buffets were in oil paints, while
those in the diner and bar areas of the vista-domed-buffet-lounge
and vista-domed observation were done in multiple mediums such as
carved and painted linoleum and etched glass. All cars were assigned
a Pullman Company porter. In later years these porters would find
themselves working for the individual railroads when the Pullman
Company went out of business.
Each of the dome coaches had a color scheme all its own – the first
a blending of nut-pine, rust and complementary shades of mocha-gray,
henna and brown; the second in soft shades of turquoise, brown,
beige and green; the third in Indian red, orchid-gray, wood tone and
burgundy.
Beneath the Vista-Dome of the Buffet-Lounge car was the sip and
snack lounge were the walls were mauve-rose adorned with decorative
murals in tones of greens with light ecru Venetian blinds. Lounges
were decorated in grays and greens with complementary shades of
vermilion and gold.
The color harmony in the all-room cars was a restful blending of
rose-tan, petal beige and shades of gray in combination with ashes
of roses and soft greens. In the semi-private section car rose-tan,
Norway blue, gray-blue, petal beige and green predominated.
In the diner lending enchantment to the blended pastels of the walls
and ceiling was restful fluorescent lighting. Green Venetian blinds
and contrasting red, green and cream drapes blended with the
over-all color motif of gray-green, rose and ecru in the walls and
ceiling. Carpeting was a pale green while the chairs were
upholstered in rose-red leather.
The lounge of the vista-domed observation featured deeply cushioned
chairs and settees in shades of sandalwood and brown in a setting of
rose-tan and petal beige. The vista-dome itself was tastefully
decorated in tones of sandalwood and the rooms harmonious shades of
rose-tan, petal beige, taupe and ashes of roses. Venetian blinds in
the observation-lounge had drapes of gold and white.
Communications
For the passengers listening pleasure two two-wire spool reproducers were installed which allowed up to twelve hours of continuous musical entertainment throughout the train. Controlled from a master panel adjacent to the steward’s desk were also two Western Electric receiving sets each equipped with seventeen pre-tuned crystal receivers. This allowed for a total availability of thirty-four broadcasting radio stations with two available throughout the train at all times. Also operated from this control panel, which measured six-foot by eighteen inches, was the trains public address system. Utilizing a handset with a push button when activated the radio or wire-recorded programs were interrupted allowing announcements to be made to all passengers. A separate handset was also available at the conductors’ alcove in the second dome coach. Dome coaches were equipped with a selector switch, which controlled the available program for the entire car. Volume controls for the dome and main floor were separate however. All sleeping cars employed individual speakers that were placed in or near the ceiling for better sound distribution. Individual volume controls and a five-position selector switch allowed the room occupant to select either of the available radio broadcasts, a wire recorded program or train announcements only. The system could also be turned off entirely in the room. Individual radios were installed in the buffet-lounge and the lounge observation car. Available for crew use was a telephone system for communication between certain points within the train.
Lighting and Air Conditioning
Lighting in all passenger areas, with the exception of the diner,
buffet-lounge, and the observation lounge was of the fluorescent
type with the exception of the reading lights under the luggage
racks in the coaches and the reading light in each roomette which
were incandescent type lights. Lamps under the luggage racks, one
per seat used for reading, were individually controlled.
Incandescent lamps were also used in the lavatory areas, vestibules,
passageways, kitchen, crew's quarters, and porters' areas. Lighting
fixtures mounted in the ceiling along the aisle ways of the coaches
were designed with a cylindrical magnifying lens, which focused the
light on the aisle floor, produced a soft low level of light in the
seat area without glare. Lighting in the domes was designed and laid
out in such a fashion so that illumination progressed from a high
intensity at the lower level to an extremely low level as you
ascended the stairs at night. This was to eliminate interior glare
on the dome glass and allow night viewing of the passing scenery by
passenger so inclined. Two small lights were concealed on the sides
of each stairwell tread with smaller units of a similar design used
to illuminate the leading edge of the elevated-seating platform.
Lensed glassware mounted in a continuous row and built into the
ceiling of the dome on each side of the air duct drew attention to
the dome while in the station.
Mounted in the coves at the sides of the ceiling in the diner a
continuous row of Luminator lensed glassware provided a high level
of soft glareless light for dining car patrons. This arrangement
also provided ceiling illumination from the enameled panel just
above the clear lenses. A ceiling light in the foyer provided
illumination, which accented the semicircular steward’s desk.
Illumination in the buffets of the lounge cars was similar to that
in the dining car, which provided a high level of light for reading
but did not cause glare in the unit across the car. A small cornice
light was used in the double seat section at the end of the car with
the light directed over the passenger’s shoulder. Individual
fluorescent ceiling units directly over the tables and seats were
used in the lounge. Lighting in the observation-lounge came from a
continuous row of lensed glassware mounted in the soffit over the
windows and directed the light to the reading area. Lights over the
seats provided illumination for the ceiling. With various types of
seating arrangements the ceiling units in the buffet were arranged
to properly illuminate the area.
General illumination in the 10-6 sleeper longitudinal bedrooms came
from a large unit mounted in the ceiling. Additional illumination
was provided by fluorescent berth lights in pier panels on either
side of the window. One at the head of the bed also served as a
reading light. Directed forward so as to illuminate the reading
material the reading light in the upper berth was mounted parallel
to the berth. Transverse bedrooms had two sofa lights mounted as
well as the overhead-ceiling unit. A lensed reading light located
just back of the passenger provided light for reading in the upper
berth while the sofa light nearest the head did the same for the
lower berth.
Two florescent tubes were placed one on each side of the mirror in
each roomette with the lensed glassware diffusing the light in such
a way as to not disturb the passenger when sitting beside or using
the mirror. The main light source was in the ceiling over the
reading area. Available for use either day or night was an
incandescent berth light at the side. Florescent ceiling units
located opposite each section provided general illumination in the
open section sleeper with additional ceiling illumination being
provided by large prisms pressed into the sidewalls of the
controlled lens. The resultant down lighting flooded the car with
sufficient light for reading or relaxing. Incandescent lights were
located for use in the upper and lower berths.
Cool air was supplied by use of ten-ton Frigidaire
electro-mechanical air conditioning systems during the hot summer
months in all cars with the exception of the sleepers, which had
seven-ton capacity units. Dome cars had split systems with one unit
with a capacity of six tons cooling the two main passenger areas and
the other four-ton unit for the dome and under dome area. Cooling in
the diner, although supplied by a single unit, was split with the
equivalent of six tons of cooling air being directed into the dining
area and the remaining four being applied in the kitchen area.
Electrostatic filters and Dorex purifiers were used in all cars as
part of the air circulating system with cool air admitted into the
passenger space through Multi-Vent ceiling panels. Refrigeration
equipment in the diner and the buffets of the buffet-lounge and
observation car was supplied by a Frididaire electro-mechanical
unit, which also allowed for the making of ice.
Heating during cooler weather was accomplished with a Vapor Zone
Control system on each car, which regulated the steam heat produced
by the steam generators, located in the locomotives. Lavatories in
each car were supplied with hot water by a Vapor water heater, with
heat supplied from the steam generators, and a Westinghouse
water-raising system. System water was treated with a National
Aluminate water softener while a Lundy circulating water-cooling
system supplied drinking water for the bedrooms. Each car was
equipped with a 500-gallon capacity underbody water tank with the
diner having an additional 100-gallon capacity tank in the kitchen
for the hot water heater. Copper tubing with Walseal fittings was
used on all cars for the brake, steam, and water pipes. Propane
connections in the diner were made with brass piping with threaded
fittings. Air brake piping on the trucks was extra heavy-duty
wrought iron.
Mechanical Equipment
All of the passenger carrying cars with the exception of the diner
received electrical power from 25-kw Safety genemotors with Spicer
drives. Exide storage batteries with a 1,294 amp-hour capacity
provided power while stopped. The diner was equipped with a 30-kw
Safety genemotor and 2,588 amp-hour Exide storage batteries. Motor
alternators of 2-kw capacity were used to convert the 32 volts
direct current power produced by the alternators to 110-volt
alternating current power. Cars having heavy AC electrical loads
were fitted with two of the motor alternators, which operated on a
split load concept, which allowed for one to shutdown at night when
the load was light. These alternators supplied power for the
fluorescent lighting, razor outlets, vacuum cleaner outlets,
electrostatic air filters, radios and the public-address system.
Direct current from the alternators was used to power the air
conditioning systems, incandescent lighting, and the water coolers.
Riding on trucks with coil bolster springs and Houde vertical shock
absorbers of General Steel Casting equalizer design and cast from
alloy steel, 36” machine balanced rolled steel wheels were mounted
on 6-inch by 11-inch axles and equipped with Timken roller bearings.
To help reduce vibration rubber pads were placed under the
equalizers over each journal box, under the center plates, and at
the end of the bolsters. Budd model CF disk brakes were installed on
each side of the axle inboard of the wheel. Because these brakes
could sustain longer braking applications and did not contact the
wheels they eliminated heat checking, which could affect braking
efficiency and had a weight savings of about 1000 pounds per car
over conventional clasp type brakes. Air brakes on each car was of
the Westinghouse HSC type with an American Brake Shoe
anti-wheel-slide device. Beginning in 1959 the electro-pneumatic
portion of the HSC brake system was being disconnected and no longer
used. A lever operated type handbrake was accessible at one end of
each car inside the diaphragm, which controlled the disk brakes on
one axle of the car. National tight-lock couplers were mounted in
Waughmat draft gears.
| Scale Weights of the California Zephyr Cars in pounds. | |||
| Light Weight | Ready to Run | Maximum Load | |
| Baggage | 103,900 | 120,500 | 167,350 |
| Dome Coaches | 148,700 | 154,300 | 165,700 |
| Dome-Buffet-Lounge | 155,620 | 163,520 | 171,620 |
| 16-Section Sleeper | 136,410 | 143,000 | 148,300 |
| Diner | 148,150 | 160,300 | 169,400 |
| 10-6 Sleeper | 142,350 | 149,150 | 152,850 |
| 6-5 Sleeper | |||
| Dome-Bedroom-Observation | 151,030 | 159,250 | 168,550 |
| Note: The average weight of trucks per pair is 40,500 pounds. | |||