A few things happened in 2000 which led to my purchasing 1146.
First, Bob Moen moved 1146 to Randolph, Minnesota, where other cars of his were stored.
Second, I learned that summer that he was looking to sell it. The price? He wanted to get out what he had into it.
Third, my employer had given me a retention bonus - in the form of American Standard stock - which I got to keep if I stayed with the company for a period of time. This was because I knew the infrastructure side of their new SAP R/3 computer system.
Fourth, in 2000 W. David Randall published "The Passenger Car Library - Volume 3 - Western Railroads". In the first section it contained a floor plan and some builders photos of every car lot ACF built for GN's "International", "Red River", and 1951 "Empire Builder". 1146 had floor plan and side elevations on page 10, exterior builder's photos on page 11, and a builder's photo of the dining room on page 12. In some ways I can blame my owning 1146 on this book, because that photo of the dining room, in all its brand-new glory, got into my imagination. In my mind I could "see" it looking like that again some day.
The final factor, which actually started in early 1997, was that I had gotten deeply involved with passenger car maintenance and restoration at the Minnesota Transportation Museum, and discovered I really enjoyed it. Seven of their passenger cars hailed from the Great Northern, so I got a real initimate introduction to that railroad's equipment. Four were operable - three coaches and an open-platform business car. All were painted in GN's orange and green. The biz car they used (and still do) for fairly lucrative first class service, dinner trains, and special events.
By year end, I hadn't yet purchased 1146, but I was giving it serious thought.