briman94 Posted May 12, 2014 Report Share Posted May 12, 2014 Considering I've had delays concerning defective equipment every other day in the last week... I'm shocked they haven't done away with the 2600's yet.When I rode the blue line every day last summer, there were weeks where I'd experience the same issue with different trains every day of the week. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BusHunter Posted May 12, 2014 Report Share Posted May 12, 2014 Keep in mind that that implies with the Orange Line also. I saw a slight glimpse of the LEDs last night. Couldn't take advantage by taking some shots because that was last Orange Line train to Midway while I was en route on the Brown Line (no updates of any other cars retrofitted). #3207-08 has the new signs on the Orange line if anyone wants to know. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
briman94 Posted May 12, 2014 Report Share Posted May 12, 2014 Has anybody figured out what they're doing with the motors during the rehab? Are they simply rebuilding the DC ones (if so, please give them PWM...) or are they putting AC motors on them? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BusHunter Posted May 12, 2014 Report Share Posted May 12, 2014 Its upsetting that not just the everyday riders but the visitors flying into Chicago/OHare from other cities and countries are being greeted to our city by riding the CTAs oldest, beat up equipment. Of course these riders wont notice this because the cars all look identical. But many of us rail fans and fellow Chicagoans who follow up on this subject do see this. At the very least if were not due for new equipment, CTA should make at least half the Blue Line roster equipped with 3200 series cars so that its a fair and just equal distribution of equipment. I think CTA is very unfair in its equipment assignment! You have two north/nw side rail lines operating the oldest equipment in the fleet! All of the equipment on the Blue are at or around the 30 to 35 year mark! By adding the oldest 2600 series cars is just insulting!!! The Brown line have the second oldest railcars in the fleet! All other CTA rail lines have less older or the newest equipment! Yeah I hear you. What i don't like about it is you can go from the Red line which is still pretty clean cause the cars are new and go then to the blue line and the cars smell terrible. It's like riding in a toilet!! You know someone said once to not sit in the seats behind the motorcab or inside the enclosed passenger side motorcab area as those are the smelliest areas. They are. That is always where the homeless sit. If they don't want to clean up the cars put an air freshener at least. I totally agree with you that both the Red and Blue lines should be half old and half new equipment. How do they expect Blue line personnel to take care of 340 something antiques? Really if they want to do that and give them all the old cars then they should have more maintenance crews there and more cleanup crews there and maybe they could get a hold of this epidemic of smelly cars. Why do they need excess mechanics on the Red line to take care of new equipment? if it's not a lemon it's not going to have problems for a while. Putting all the old buses out NW also raises eyebrows for me. That whole side of the city is stuck in a 12 years ago time warp. Again I'd send more mechanics to FG and remove some of them from the garages with no novas. It's really nutty when you think about it. You can board either the newest bus and the newest train on the east side of town or the oldest train and oldest bus on the northwest side of town. You can't help but wonder if a certain group of riders are being singled out or being unfairly treated. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Busjack Posted May 12, 2014 Report Share Posted May 12, 2014 ... I totally agree with you that both the Red and Blue lines should be half old and half new equipment. How do they expect Blue line personnel to take care of 340 something antiques? ... Let's see, up to 2013 they took care of ~140 39 year old antiques and ~200 25 year old antiques, and they will get 7000s eventually. In the meantime, maybe someone should figure out how to keep bowels under control. What kind of posts are we going to get in 2017 with the poor Red Line having only 5000s that smell like? And the south side (except maybe 74th, unless the usual More Bus Moves happen) having the decrepit 1000s? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Busjack Posted May 12, 2014 Report Share Posted May 12, 2014 Has anybody figured out what they're doing with the motors during the rehab? Are they simply rebuilding the DC ones (if so, please give them PWM...) or are they putting AC motors on them? There is an update on this one, a solicitation for various rehab kits. There is a "bill of materials" #40 for "Traction Motor Kits." It includes 26 different parts by approved manufacturers' part numbers, not a wholesale "replace motors with....." Thee are similar Bills of Materials for master controller parts, cam rebuild parts, main control hardware kit, etc. So, it doesn't look like any new systems, just rebuilt ones. It also says starting 19 cars, with 8 cars a month after that. Makes it a 30 month (almost 3 year) project. Are we supposed to believe that some 3200s will be around until 2028? BTW, the solicitation is the 257 cars, or 128.5 kits. Is the inference that 3457 is going to haul around a piece of junk, or just that CTA isn't thinking ahead? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BusHunter Posted May 12, 2014 Report Share Posted May 12, 2014 There is an update on this one, a solicitation for various rehab kits. There is a "bill of materials" #40 for "Traction Motor Kits." It includes 26 different parts by approved manufacturers' part numbers, not a wholesale "replace motors with....." Thee are similar Bills of Materials for master controller parts, cam rebuild parts, main control hardware kit, etc. So, it doesn't look like any new systems, just rebuilt ones. It also says starting 19 cars, with 8 cars a month after that. Makes it a 30 month (almost 3 year) project. Are we supposed to believe that some 3200s will be around until 2028? BTW, the solicitation is the 257 cars, or 128.5 kits. Is the inference that 3457 is going to haul around a piece of junk, or just that CTA isn't thinking ahead? I'm pretty sure it's just the signs being fixed. Someone I talked to said #3207-08 have the same controller, so what does that sound like? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BusHunter Posted May 12, 2014 Report Share Posted May 12, 2014 Let's see, up to 2013 they took care of ~140 39 year old antiques and ~200 25 year old antiques, and they will get 7000s eventually. In the meantime, maybe someone should figure out how to keep bowels under control. What kind of posts are we going to get in 2017 with the poor Red Line having only 5000s that smell like? And the south side (except maybe 74th, unless the usual More Bus Moves happen) having the decrepit 1000s? Well if they were smart the #5000's would be half blue and half red and when 2017 comes around then the red and blue line gets #7000's and no one has all one year equipment. Man these #6400 seat inserts look terrible at fg. They must have never replaced them at 77th. When the seat insert breaks down it gets this grime shiny look to it like gum that has turned black from sweat or whatever. That is nasty!! A few #1000's are starting to look like that but they are still better than the #6400's. I bet they throw those out. Heck they need to stick those in the #6400's Lol!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ChicagoNova Posted May 12, 2014 Report Share Posted May 12, 2014 #3207-08 has the new signs on the Orange line if anyone wants to know. Can I see? 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Busjack Posted May 12, 2014 Report Share Posted May 12, 2014 I'm pretty sure it's just the signs being fixed. Someone I talked to said #3207-08 have the same controller, so what does that sound like? What's the basis of this solicitation*, then, or CTA saying that they were spending about $648K/car**? I mentioned before that a few prototype signs were being tested before going ahead with the order, but somehow instead of reading this thread, you took that as on the topic of being off topic, generally. ____________ *Somehow, you quoting me resulted in an error in the link; the correct one, which was in my post, is here. **See here. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MTRSP1900-CTA3200 Posted May 12, 2014 Report Share Posted May 12, 2014 #3207-08 has the new signs on the Orange line if anyone wants to know. Can I see? I second the request. Please? 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BusHunter Posted May 13, 2014 Report Share Posted May 13, 2014 What's the basis of this solicitation*, then, or CTA saying that they were spending about $648K/car**? I mentioned before that a few prototype signs were being tested before going ahead with the order, but somehow instead of reading this thread, you took that as on the topic of being off topic, generally. ____________ *Somehow, you quoting me resulted in an error in the link; the correct one, which was in my post, is here. **See here. Again you have totally lost what I am saying. I'm not saying there will be no rehab just that it's not happening yet. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BusHunter Posted May 13, 2014 Report Share Posted May 13, 2014 I second the request. Please? Who said I had pictures? What I need to be saying is can I see? Lol!! No sweat I'll see if I can get pictures tomorrow unless my contact has some then you will see some tonight. I'm surprised Garmon doesn't have pictures. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MTRSP1900-CTA3200 Posted May 13, 2014 Report Share Posted May 13, 2014 Who said I had pictures? What I need to be saying is can I see? Lol!! No sweat I'll see if I can get pictures tomorrow unless my contact has some then you will see some tonight. I'm surprised Garmon doesn't have pictures. No rush, just thought you did. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted May 13, 2014 Report Share Posted May 13, 2014 Yeah I hear you. What i don't like about it is you can go from the Red line which is still pretty clean cause the cars are new and go then to the blue line and the cars smell terrible. It's like riding in a toilet!! You know someone said once to not sit in the seats behind the motorcab or inside the enclosed passenger side motorcab area as those are the smelliest areas. They are. That is always where the homeless sit. If they don't want to clean up the cars put an air freshener at least. I totally agree with you that both the Red and Blue lines should be half old and half new equipment. How do they expect Blue line personnel to take care of 340 something antiques? Really if they want to do that and give them all the old cars then they should have more maintenance crews there and more cleanup crews there and maybe they could get a hold of this epidemic of smelly cars. Why do they need excess mechanics on the Red line to take care of new equipment? if it's not a lemon it's not going to have problems for a while. Putting all the old buses out NW also raises eyebrows for me. That whole side of the city is stuck in a 12 years ago time warp. Again I'd send more mechanics to FG and remove some of them from the garages with no novas. It's really nutty when you think about it. You can board either the newest bus and the newest train on the east side of town or the oldest train and oldest bus on the northwest side of town. You can't help but wonder if a certain group of riders are being singled out or being unfairly treated. Sorry but I avoid the 2600 series cars whenever I ride the Blue Line. Ill ride 2700s and up. I recall many times riding down to South Shops to pick up a bus that meant having to ride in cars that smelled like urine and homeless people begging for money! Not a very pleasant riding experience! Now those very same cars are now operating to OHare airport! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
artthouwill Posted May 13, 2014 Report Share Posted May 13, 2014 Sorry but I avoid the 2600 series cars whenever I ride the Blue Line. Ill ride 2700s and up. I recall many times riding down to South Shops to pick up a bus that meant having to ride in cars that smelled like urine and homeless people begging for money! Not a very pleasant riding experience! Now those very same cars are now operating to OHare airport! It seems as though CTA could staff a mopper at the end of most lines, especially both ends of the Blue. Since O'Hare and Midway can berth three trains, the last train in would be the third train out, which means someone could mop the train while the first train loads and leaves, then a second train loads and leaves. By that time, the train should be mopped and ready for service. ( I suppose you would need at least 3 moppers, one for each berthing location). I think it may be harder to pull off at Howard because of the frequency of trains and how tahe turnaround is built. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BusHunter Posted May 13, 2014 Report Share Posted May 13, 2014 When i worked in the transportation industry at O'Hare the company I was with would spray Febreze all over it seats. It actually gave the vehicle a fresher smell. Too bad CTA wouldn't do that. It would freshen up the stink. You know what would be a trip. To have a febreze wrapped train. If it passes the smell test they could actually show the toughness of the product and sell a few bottles, but probably that would look bad for CTA as that is saying they run smelly service. BTW 5750, it doesn't matter what number cars you ride, all blue line cars can stink if the right person rides them. It definitely is the worst offender in my book. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Busjack Posted May 13, 2014 Report Share Posted May 13, 2014 When i worked in the transportation industry at O'Hare the company I was with would spray Febreze all over it seats. It actually gave the vehicle a fresher smell. Too bad CTA wouldn't do that. It would freshen up the stink. ... CTA at least claimed that they used all sorts of heavy duty industrial cleaners. However, that could have been several administrations ago. From the way people are talking, there are some stinks that Febreze doesn't mask. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
briman94 Posted May 13, 2014 Report Share Posted May 13, 2014 Can I see? Got a distant picture at Adams/Wabash for ya: 7 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BusHunter Posted May 13, 2014 Report Share Posted May 13, 2014 Hey that looks good im on it right now coming into halsted Nb fifth and sixth car This is some of what I got. first a loop picture Then my flyby video at Adams/Wabash https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vmFRa1ibpDo For some reason my camera was having a problem picking up the lettering. Maybe the sign was too bright for it. 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
garmon757 Posted May 14, 2014 Report Share Posted May 14, 2014 Yeah, I'm like really pissed off that I couldn't get any quality shots of #3207-08 about an half hour ago. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BusHunter Posted May 14, 2014 Report Share Posted May 14, 2014 A friend gave me a few shots of #5000's with Orange, Brown and Blue line destinations. You can compare them with the #3200's and see how they look. (FYI, I mislabled the orange loop that should be brown loop, the colors look so close they almost look the same but you can go by the run numbers) 5 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
briman94 Posted May 14, 2014 Report Share Posted May 14, 2014 A friend gave me a few shots of #5000's with Orange, Brown and Blue line destinations. You can compare them with the #3200's and see how they look. (FYI, I mislabled the orange loop that should be brown loop, the colors look so close they almost look the same but you can go by the run numbers) midway 5000's picture.jpg 5000's orange loop.jpg kimball 5000's.jpg forest park blue line picture.jpg 5000's jefferson park.jpgCool! How easy is it to change the sign? I'd like to see one scrolling through every destination stored in there...I'm curious how many they can hold and how many we haven't even seen before. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BusHunter Posted May 14, 2014 Report Share Posted May 14, 2014 Cool! How easy is it to change the sign? I'd like to see one scrolling through every destination stored in there...I'm curious how many they can hold and how many we haven't even seen before. Well the rehabbed #3200 signs can only hold 15 selections, what the #3200's currently hold which sounds to me like it's just a sign test so far. I'll ask someone about the #5000's, from what I've heard it's more than 15. I believe someone mentioned it on here. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Busjack Posted May 14, 2014 Report Share Posted May 14, 2014 Well the rehabbed #3200 signs can only hold 15 selections, what the #3200's currently hold which sounds to me like it's just a sign test so far. I'll ask someone about the #5000's, from what I've heard it's more than 15. I believe someone mentioned it on here. Yes I did. There are 45 signs, and on the 3200s, there is a switch on the master controller that can be flipped for 3 sets of 15. The ones on the 3200s are controlled by the same two dials that control the comparable roll signs, while those on the 5000s are presumably controlled by the operator's panel and gps. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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