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After 37 HO scale caboose builds I am back to O scale again. This is probably the most unique caboose I’ve ever built. I can EB8E20ED-FDF6-4D35-8AC8-ADEFB63F888CEA852616-6F44-4A6B-B9B9-C9A90DC4FE9Aimagine how miserable it would be riding atop this thing in the August southwest. The cinders and dust would have been almost unbearable. In the winter time that smokestack would have been rough too.

 

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coach joe posted:

Very interesting.  I'm sure the originals were the brainchild of some penny pinching RR exec, re-purpose an old freight car into a cabin car on the cheap.  Nice work as always Malcolm.  Good to have you back.

From what I remember reading, these were wartime rebuilds.  Expediency, material shortages and increased traffic are the reason these were built.

Rusty

coach joe posted:

Very interesting.  I'm sure the originals were the brainchild of some penny pinching RR exec, re-purpose an old freight car into a cabin car on the cheap.  Nice work as always Malcolm.  Good to have you back.

Nope, as stated earlier there were plenty of boxcar cabooses/cabins during World War II.   Shortages of materials as well as wartime priorities made for many creative ways to save man hours and materials.   Think of the common NX23 Pennsy boxcar cabin made by adding porthole windows as well as a small bay window to an X23 single sheathed box car.

Interesting concept, it's cupola seating without the protective cupola.  Must have been interesting getting up and down during train movement and I can't imagine being up there with slack action banging that car around. 

Would be great to know what type of service they were used in to make more sense of the Santa Fe's idea.

Brother_Love posted:

Thanks everyone. These are my last ones to build. I have 14 O scale and 17 HO scale cabooses to finish and I am retiring. I have a long list of things I want to build for myself and I need the time to work on my own layout. I would like to get it finished (if you ever really finish a layout) while I am on the right side of the grass. 

Oh no...say it isn't so, Malcolm!  I was hoping to have you build me one more before you called it quits.  Are you sure you can't add just ONE more to your 31-caboose build list...LOL?? 

Regardless, it's really great to see you posting on the Forum again, Malcolm!  I sure hope you share some (or all) of those builds-as well as your future layout construction-with us here.

Brother_Love posted:

Finished! Thanks for all the input. I had 2 more cut out and will finish them after my next surgery and before retirement.8851D49B-0EEB-45CE-8F26-5A2DA424514FB200F44B-E56C-4DF0-88DC-81D0EE3493F8BF7711A2-1490-4DC2-B789-BD226C9D3B1B59DF1269-0DB9-464A-AF48-0FEE4ADA4168

More fantastic craftsmanship!  I am happy and proud of my two cads and the N&W dynamometer car you made for me.

The best with your surgery.  Myself, I am six + weeks PostOp so know how it is.

Ron

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OGR Publishing, Inc., 1310 Eastside Centre Ct, Suite 6, Mountain Home, AR 72653
800-980-OGRR (6477)
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