Railroad Forums 

  • Metro to install vinyl wrapping on 3K/6K, look more like 7Ks

  • Discussion related to DC area passenger rail services from Northern Virginia to Baltimore, MD. Includes Light Rail and Baltimore Subway.
Discussion related to DC area passenger rail services from Northern Virginia to Baltimore, MD. Includes Light Rail and Baltimore Subway.

Moderators: mtuandrew, therock, Robert Paniagua

 #1466187  by Sand Box John
 
"MACTRAXX"
To me a "wrap" is something meant to be temporary - a clear coat to protect the aluminum body
makes good sense and would further protect the car from deterioration or vandalism (graffiti for
one) and perhaps extend a car's life span.


Aluminum needs no coating to protect it from deterioration, It naturally forms an oxide coating to protect itself in much the same way red metals do.

The wraps are a low cost method that eliminates the use of environmentally unfriendly detergents and solvents to keep the exterior of the aluminum car bodies brightly clean. Those detergents and solvents removed the dirt and grime not the naturally formed oxide coating.
 #1466292  by smallfire85
 
From what I remember, Metro would have had to treat the dirty water if they wanted to use detergents to wash the railcars. That means a treatment plant at each wash location that would have to comply with the local jurisdiction's environmental effluent codes. That becomes expensive and cumbersome to manage.

The wraps are only for the sides of the cars; the ends and roofs are not covered. I remember reading a while back in one of Metro's long term plans to change the livery of the legacy fleet to reflect that of the 7000 series cars.

I remember some people giving the wraps a lifetime of few months, max. We're still in that window, but the wraps appear to be holding up well.
 #1466341  by Sand Box John
 
"smallfire85"
I remember some people giving the wraps a lifetime of few months, max. We're still in that window, but the wraps appear to be holding up well.


There are wraps and then there are wraps. The new look vinyl wraps on the rail cars is basically the same as the livery on the Metrobus fleet that also is done using vinyl. Advertising wraps typically include inkjet printed artwork that will degrade when exposed to weather and sunlight.
 #1480896  by KTHW
 
Caught a 6 car 3000 series Silver Line train at Rosslyn this morning. First time I had seen more than two of the old cars wrapped in Vinyl (Last 4 were). Of note cars 3070 and 3071 had Vinyl wrapping and all New Blue seats, but cars 3096 and 3097 only had the wrapping. Are cars just refitted as they undergo repairs or inspections in the yards?
 #1481011  by mtuandrew
 
KTHW wrote:Are cars just refitted as they undergo repairs or inspections in the yards?
Was wondering that myself. Guessing yes, or that this is a pilot project only and depends on them testing the wraps a while.
 #1484716  by JDC
 
davinp wrote:Also, has anyone noticed that Metro has put the car number on the roof of the railcar - all series old and new.
I've noticed this more and more, along with the number of the car being changed from black decals on metal to white numbers on black background.
 #1484829  by R36 Combine Coach
 
MACTRAXX wrote:Another comparison to mention will be to the CTA's Budd-built 2600 car fleet - which originally had a distinct color scheme when they were new. In more recent years the colors were removed from their stainless steel car bodies leaving only one CTA logo on each side.
This was during the Alstom rebuild, 1999-2002. The 2600s now appear as 3200s without corrugations.