Hello, This is my very first post on this site. I am 23 and have been a model train fan since I was young, but only really get into the hobby around Christmas (so far). I am an HO scale guy, and started with some freight cars that I found in boxes two years ago. I have been adding some every year, and this year e-bay led me to a set of three PRR Congressional Cars that I would like to use to start a passenger track. Pictured above are the cars. They are the silver streamlines with the tuscan trim and yellow lettering (I have been doing alot of research on the cars themselves.) The trouble is, these are a definite restoration project. Alot of broken couplers and burnt out lights, but that is no big deal. I'm good with little tools and soldering. My concern is the paint; its in rough shape. I know I could just spray on the silver base with no issue, but matching the tuscan, painting the trim, and getting the lettering is my concern at this point. Plainly, what is the best option? Is there a place that will sell the color matched tuscan paint? Are there decals I can get for the lettering? If so, where should I start looking. My internet searches have turned up very little information. On a side note...I am currently trying to get a tuscan painted diesel to pull these cars. I know the GG-1 was the workhorse for the Congressional, but to be honest I like the look of the diesels better, I think they match the streamlined flow of the cars. Was the congressional ever pulled by diesels, even in the later years? Thanks for any and all help!
This is also my first post on the site, and on a year and a half later! I'm going to guess that you've already found your answer, but I'm gonna answer anyway. The Congressional was a Washington-New York train that was only ever pulled by electrics (GG1s). There was another daily train that used the same equipment, the Senator. The Senator was operated jointly by the PRR and the New Haven and ran from Washington to Boston. The New Haven had some lines electrified, but not all the way to Boston. I'm not sure what they used for power, but it the later days, it would have been diesel electrics. Of course, it's your railroad, so you do what you want! My version of the PRR is transcontinental, so anything is possible. I'm sure that many would say running a GG2 (Challenger) is a far bigger sin than running Congo equipment behind a couple of E8's.
During late winter 1958 a severe snow storm hit the east coast. GG-1s began dropping like flys due to grounded traction motors. Diesels had to sub for them on all lines and in some cases steam was pulled off the dead line. So I'm sure the Congo ran with E-8s or PA-1s until the weather improved.
