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 Acela Express Card Model

To get started, make sure to read these IMPORTANT GENERAL INSTRUCTIONS before you begin. Another excellent resource on how to build paper models is the Card Modeling FAQ by Steve Brown.

If you have any trouble or if something is wrong with the instructions, please contact me.

Prototype		Model

This is a complete scale model of Amtrak's Acela Express high speed train. You can build either of two prototype trainsets: Trainset 5 (with power cars 2009 and 2020) or Trainset 10 (with power cars 2016 and 2038). Select the links below to view and print the parts sheets, making sure to read the corresponding instruction sheet before starting. If you have never built a card model before, this may not be the easiest one to start with-- but remember, you can always just print another one and start over. Each vehicle will take you about 45 minutes to 1 hour to build.

Parts Sheet	Assembly Instructions	Relative Difficulty
Power Car 2009 (trainset 5) Power Car 2020 (trainset 5) Power Car 2016 (trainset 10) Power Car 2038 (trainset 10)	Instructions	More Difficult
Business Class End Car	Instructions	Difficult
Business Class Car (3 required)	Instructions	Difficult
Cafe Car	Instructions	Difficult
First Class End Car	Instructions	Difficult

Trainset assembly

To put your trainset together in the correct sequence, use the order listed below. First, notice that all Acela Express cars have an asymmetrical roof: one end of the roof is long and the other end is short. These are referred to below as "short roof" and "long roof".

Trainset 5:
- Power Car 2009
- Business Class End Car (long roof pointing to 2009, so its doors are next to 2009)
- Business Class Car #1 (short roof pointing to 2009)
- Cafe Car (long roof pointing to 2009)
- Business Class Car #2 (short roof pointing to 2020)
- Business Class Car #3 (short roof pointing to 2020)
- First Class Car (long roof pointing to 2020, so its doors are next to 2020)
- Power Car 2020

Trainset 10:
- Power Car 2038
- Business Class End Car (long roof pointing to 2038, so its doors are next to 2038)
- Business Class Car #1 (short roof pointing to 2038)
- Cafe Car (long roof pointing to 2038)
- Business Class Car #2 (short roof pointing to 2016)
- Business Class Car #3 (short roof pointing to 2016)
- First Class Car (long roof pointing to 2016, so its doors are next to 2016)
- Power Car 2016

Photos of Finished Models

Please Send in your photos!

	Acela Express by Clem Tillier (3 photos)
	Acela Express power car by Clem Tillier (from flatbed scanner)

Last update: June 2001