Caboose, Which Way Is The Front?

Looks like B&O Bill and John's wife have put it to rest.  Note in Bill's photos that the red light is at the rear (as other posts have noted) regardless of cupola orientation.

To all who have contributed information in keep railroading alive, in actuality and in modeling, I thank you all,

Ralph

The last cabs that the N&W purchased, C32P, had high back bucket push over seats. I hated them. Then all of those "Sidewinder" (Bay Window) cabs that came with the NS merger had bench type push over seats. No one liked liked those cabs either. Mainly because they had no cushion underframe. So, depending which way the cab was facing, one side had a big desk in front of you, offering some support, and the other side had nothing in front of you for any kind of support. They were also cold in winter. The bay window really didn't stick out far enough to have any better look at the train.

Which is the best way to sleep in a caboose - head forward, feet forward, or sitting semi-upright in a chair?   

I remember many years ago the NMRA  bulliten had a story about a CN caboose that caught on fire in the dead of winter.  The two occupants got on a flat car that was in front of the caboose.  They froze their behinds off until the word got out to stop.  Very funny story. No one was no injuries just a burnt caboose.

When I started with the railroad 1965 some conductors had their own cabooses and we lived in the things at the away from home terminal.These were wooden cabooses complete with  fold  down bunks  . Of course the Conductor had his favorite bunk  and then the senior brakeman had second choice,  the remaining 3 rd  bunk.... you had 2 choices,, put your head  right next to the stove or if you chose the other way your head ended up next to the feet of other brakeman...Not nice either. It wasn't long after that through caboose operation took place....Still with wooden cabooses though.

I'm trying to find a good link for our  great extended vision  caboose.. back shortly Yeah Jim, I didn't like the bay side either, sooner work out of a wooded caboose.

Now Bill we never nodded off at work.

http://mile262.railfan.net/gal...oose/cn/cn78102.html

With regard to the comment about cabooses in front of pushers, I have read that

would not be done on some earlier (wooden?) cabooses that did not have strong steel frames, for the potential to turn them into accordions.  Older cabooses would be switched in behind the pusher's tender to avoid that undue pressure, and would be the last item, again, in the train.

The crews did NOT want an empty flat or gon in front of the caboose.  They

complained about the wind blowing the caboose around and coming in the front

door.  I learned this while loading piggyback trains.  One night we left the last

car empty in front of the caboose and the conductor who was #1 in seniority

asked that we please put trailers on the last car to break the wind.  He said there

was not much to see since he had been doing it for 40 years.

Chuck

I think you find most crews would want to be able to inspect their trains as easily as possible . Drafty.. maybe.  Depends on the caboose.

This whole question is like asking which end is the "front" of a box car...

The end that is in the front while the train is going forward  same as a caboose

Hello Wyhog... I'm guessing the helpers were a regular part of the routine and the caboose would be switched behind the helper  engine  before heading out ?

If we were over tonnage we would reduce or double the hill although and  in a very few instances we've  been shoved over by   following train's power.

What are drawbar blocks?

IIRC, drawbar blocks, are inserted beside the drawbar to keep the coupler from pivoting, thus keeping the force exerted on the caboose in line with the frame, rather than pushing it sideways, possibly derailing the caboose.

Doug

Thanks Doug... I get it now.

Impressive!

The only thing that I can add is that the SP did indeed use bay window cabeese behind Cab Forwards in Arizona.  I saw them, and did not like them.

To all who have contributed info., known, somewhat known and unknown beforehand, I thank you all, as all of you have answered my questions and have given me more operating and trade knowledge of great professions involved within railroading.

Ralph

With regard to what type of rr car would not be fun to ride behind in a caboose/ cabin car it might be cattle or pig cars. In July 1979, I and a buddy were sitting on a rock outcrop on the high side of Horseshoe curve near Altoona PA. The temp was in the 90s. A westbound Conrail freight slowly moved up the hill on track 4. As the end of the train approached we saw 3 pig/cattle cars just ahead of the cabin car. We were just above it. The cars were empty but had not been cleaned and were loaded with poop. We nearly passed out from the stench. The poor conductor in the cabin car had his head out the cupola window and looked half dead. He must have been on the wrong side of the crew that put that train together.

The caboose or the cab-forward?