Traction Caboose

[hudsonelectric]

I bought a couple of LaBelle wood HO scale kits with the idea of making a pair of cabooses for my Hudson Electric RR. Traction roads had all kinds of cabooses and these side door Soo Line cabooses looked just right. Well, I didn't like the early period cupola, so I designed it right out and built a cupola-less roof. Well, the plain scribed siding was pretty plain, so I decided to have a sheathed lower and tongue 'n groove upper. That needed something to break up the contrast, so what better than outside bracing? The steps that came with the kit were too small, so I put on Bethlehem Car works caboose steps and BCW metal passenger car trucks. On a small car, they give it a unique 'big caboose' look. I was looking at a photo of a D&H crummy with crash bars on the end platforms and that gave the platforms a more substantial look, so I added them. In the end, about 1/2 of the kit as designed, the rest was all bashed up. It's about 75% complete.

 

[Catt]

Looking gooid from here.

 

[Lighthorseman]

Love That Outside Braced Equipment!

What a superb looking model! :thumb: Will it be run "as delivered", or weathered? Seems almost a shame to dirty it up!

 

[sumpter250]

Neat lookin' caboose! :thumb: :thumb:

 

[jon-monon]

Nice indeed! Hey... that's Richardo! He's moonlighting! Doh!

 

[Ralph]

Oh that's nice! The outside bracing adds a lot of character. A very interesting model!
Ralph

 

[hudsonelectric]

Hey, Crew!

Thanks for the compliments. The flourescent lighting screws up the digital camera, but you get the idea. After the AAR 1938 car design, small cabooses with cupolas just weren't high enough for the crew to look out over the top of the train. This little crummy is still in use, but the lack of cupola reflects the change in the need for cupolas. Eventally, roads went to bay window cabeese and there were many wood variations, too. Electric roads such as the Illinois Terminal System and the Sacremento Northern (owned by the Western Pacific) had wood bay window cabeese and outside braced crummies, too. I wanted to build an identical pair, but this project developed as I went along and it took much longer than I thought it should. I have to move on to my GE 40T electric switcher and leave cabeese behind for the time being. I have a steel bay window hack that I'm scratchbashing from an MDC NE caboose in the 'partial stage' somewhere. I REALLY want to complete that one!

Russ

 

[jmarksbery]

Great job Russ, I want to see it when it is finished. I think those side door cabeese were called widow makers because of some stepping out into oncoming trains. :thumb:

 

[jetrock]

Nice use of the LaBelle kit...one of my upcoming "Real Soon Now" projects is a literal "traction caboose", an electric box motor owned by Central California Traction that was converted to a last-ditch caboose when CCT switched to diesel power in 1946! All they did was rip off panto, motors, trolley pole and controls and add a set of caboose lamps...I figure it will be a good way to try out scratchbuilding trolley bodies from wood without having to worry about powering it...