I need a caboose to go with my Proto SW-8 locomotive (SP red & gray #1109). I’m considering one of the Athearn RTR cabooses, but not certain which one would best fit my early '70’s switching layout. Does anyone know why some of the cabooses are painted with the yellow bay? Were these used for locals?
Thanks!
The Ath. bay window caaboose is a very accurate model of an SP caboose. I don’t recall the class right off the bat, but it is very good.
I have always heard that they had no prototype. Although they do look similar to the C-40-6s and C-40-7s.
For the 1970s, go with the brown and orange (I don’t know why I originally wrote yellow).
I left SoCal for God’s country in 1975 and at that time the cabs were painted box car red w/ orange ends and bay windows. The lettering would be gothic w/ the S and P larger than the outhern acific ( as opposed to the earlier RR roman style w/ all the letters the same size.
SP began applying orange paint to caboose ends and bay windows in September 1957. In 1964 the practice of soild orange bays was dropped in favor of the bay ends in solid orange. That was the accepted system standard, reality was very different…Depending on the shop, some recieved no orange on the bay but instead two chevron scotchlight decals, others went overboard with the orange, ignoring the 1964 edict.
In the late seventies it transformed yet again, additional orange was applied to the sill and step area and the roof edges on some but not all.
I have never seen yellow used on a SP caboose, true there were some experimental designs roving around that wore a riot of colors, never yellow however…Solid orange or red seemed a favorite with these one offs.
Now, the North Western Pacific did have a former SP CA1 wooden relic that wore yellow ends until 1957, when it too was brought into compliance…
Dave