Acela Regional Amfleet I

It took a while for me to get used to the (at the time) new phase V Amfleet I coach, known as a "Capstone" coach. The wave designs or bubbles as some like to call them were way different from any other designs Amtrak has had in its paint schemes in the past. It wasn't until the first time I rode in one that I "fell in love with them".

The "Capstones" are Amfleet I coaches that underwent a heavy refurbishment program in which noticeable changes were seats, electrical sockets at each seat, brighter lighting and ceiling mounted, digital displays at each end of the car. This program was started back in 1999/2000 when Amtrak's Northeast Corridor was gearing up for the debut of the Acela Express. It was also an attempt to change its image. Although a number of them have been re-painted into phase VI (or phase IVB as some like to call it), the interior changes remain. These cars are numbered in the 82000 series.

This is the third method that I used in modeling these cars. The first method used all paint and no accurate decals. Although people were able to tell what they were looking at, I personally was unsatisfied. It wasn't until the spring of 2002 that I stumbled on to Highball Graphics decals. They had the waves, stripes and numbers for the "Capstones" and they were very well done. I quickly acquired a few and applied them to the car that I had "experimented with. They really did it justice. This was what I would like to call the "second method". I used this on another Amfleet I that I had as well. Both the first and second methods involved painting the blue background by hand. The third method is still in progress. I am experimenting with airbrushing techniques and sealing the decals with a clear coat.

I will try to update this page as frequently as possible to keep viewers up to date as to the progress I'm making. Wish me luck! Thanks for your interest.

Step

Date

Saturday 1/16/04

Sunday 1/17/04

Saturday 2/20/04

Sunday 3/7/04

Tuesday 3/9/04

Wednesday 3/10/04

Photo

Notes

This is what I started with. A scratch build phase II amfleet I coach.

I attempted to strip the factory paint entirely using 91% Isopropyl alcohol. It looked as if I was better off just spray painting over the model and the factory paint. I wanted to do this because the factory paint runs onto areas where there shouldn't be any. Using Testors silver spray paint, I covered the model with it.

This is the model after being spray painted with Testors "Metalic Silver" spray paint. After letting the paint dry, I then used gloss coat over the model however here are some important measures that I took.

1) I covered the area that I would eventually paint light blue with masking tape of some sort so that the paint would hold when it came time to airbrush.

2) The reason for the first coat of clear coat is to protect the paint from being lifted off the model by the tape when masking the body for painting on the light blue band. This won't completely protect the paint but little will be lifted off by the tape as opposed to not having any clear coat at all.

This was the most challenging part of the whole project and the cause of all the delays. This was my first time using an airbrush and every attempt I made to use the airbrush failed. What it came down to was a lack of preassure in the spray can that I was using. Thanks to great feedback on model railroad forums, I was prompted to place the spray can in a bucket of warm (not hot) water. The water should be warm enough where you can comfortably put your finger in it. I used a mixture of Badger's D&H blue and Reefer White. To slightly darken the mixture of paint (if necessary) I used a few drops of Badger's CSX Blue. Badger paint is airbrush ready and therefore does not need to be thinned although some will recommend that you thin the paint just a little to prevent the airbrush from being clogged.

After the paint dried, I took the liberty painting the window sils silver. Don't worry if the paint runs over a bit. It will even resemble the way the paint on the prototype peals off a bit (at that point it's a judgement call).

I hope the paint job mentioned in this step is visible. (This photo was taken after decals were placed but before the windows were installed)

The next step was to decal the car. The decals were provided by highball graphics decals. The website provides some good reference photos to know exactly where and how to position the decals.

After all the decals were applied, the entire car body was again sprayed with clear gloss coat. This helps protect the decals when the model is being handled. The clear coat was applied on Monday 3/8/04

The windows were installed. The installation of the windows is pretty straight forward. I also used diaphragms provided by Train Station Products. I used silver paint to paint the rims of the diaphragms.

After that the rest of the car was assembled and the models was finally completed by Wednesday 3/10/04.

The finished product. I was very happy with the way the car came out. I will say that the application of the clear gloss coat really helps bring out the appearance of color variations in the blue paint. If you look at various photos of the prototype, the shades of blue vary. When the car is lit with natural light it is a close match to the prototype. So don't let the shade of blue fool you indoors.

Note: The photograph was updated on 6/10/05. This is a photo of the 4th and most recent car to be painted in this phase.

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