Nostalgia & History > 1985 "Kodachromes"

This paint scheme may belong in the "don't count your chickens before they hatch" section of the history books, but I sure enjoyed it while it was around.

#1 - Cajon Pass.
#2 - Between Bakersfield and Caliente.
#3 - Coming into Mohave.

All from 1985, I think.

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I just wanted to be first to the punch with the tired old "Shouldn't Paint So Fast" phrase. Very nice photos. ATSF sure got rid of them in a hurry--they'd be screwed now with NO paint shop at all, as opposed to S.B. and Cleburne.

Yeah once the FP45s came out of San Berdoo with the resurrected Warbonnet Paint Scheme the SPSF units on that railroad disappeared like overnight it seemed like back in 89!

ProAmtrak Wrote:

> Yeah once the FP45s came out of San Berdoo with
> the resurrected Warbonnet Paint Scheme the SPSF
> units on that railroad disappeared like overnight
> it seemed like back in 89!

Santa Fe made a concerted effort to repaint all their Kodachromes by the end of 1990. As near as I can tell, they made it, at least so far as the active fleet was concerned. The only Santa Fe Kodachromes I've seen since then were U36C's stored out of service at San Bernardino in 1991, destined for the scrap heap, C30-7's turned back to GE (some of which came back to Santa Fe rails after the BNSF merger), and a few GP20's sold to the new TP&W in 1989.

Photo #2 must be from 1986 or later, as SF30C 9548 wasn't released from rebuilding until June 1986. The ICC rejected the merger the following month, and 9553 would be the last SF30C to come from rebuilding in SPSF paint.

Interesting to see SP 9501 with the clear Gyralight gone and a beacon on the roof, but the red emergency light still in the nose.

9501 was a very short lived number. They were moved from that (former SD45X) number series pretty quickly!

~Steve Sloan