New UP caboose.

Very nice but, why is it yellow? In the early steam era of UP, the cabooses were brown.

I ordered one also.  They look nice.

However, I prefer the Ca1 in brown, MTH or 3rd Rail.

I have no clue about the color choice. I'm just happy to have it after all this wait. It was supposed to ship last November.

I have one of the earlier issues of the CA-4 caboose, cat # 6-17690.  

During an attempt to 2-rail it the wheel bearings were drilled out, which then proved to have been totally unnecessary.    Now I'm four wheel bearings short.

Is there a forumite out there that knows the part number of these bearings, or how to locate it?   I have had no success in finding anything about them on Lionel's website.

Thanking you in anticipation.

From Utah Rails:

In June 1947, instructions were issued to change UP's cabooses from freight car red bodies with white letters, to yellow bodies with red letters. The roofs remained freight car red, and the underframe and trucks became black. The repainting of the remaining wooden cabooses (including the transfer cabooses) and the CA-3 and CA-4 classes of steel cabooses began soon thereafter. The two classes of new steel cabooses were just five years old, for the CA-3s, and, three years old, for the CA-4s.

The Painting, Lettering & Numbering drawing for CA-3 and CA-4 cabooses (303-C-8037) was changed to the new color scheme on June 13, 1947. For unknown reasons, the drawing for the CA and CA-1 classes (303-C-7412) was not changed until January 29, 1948. It took at least three years to repaint the caboose fleet. A newspaper article in the Greeley (Colorado) Tribune of November 28, 1947 mentioned the new yellow color, and that several cabooses in the new color scheme had been seen in the Denver yards alongside several new high-speed stockcars, also in the new scheme.

A steel CA-3, UP 3763, was the first caboose repainted from red to yellow at East Los Angeles, Calif. It was completed in early July 1947. An aerial photo of the Repair-In-Place (RIP) track at Ogden, Utah, in February 1950 shows nine cabooses just recently painted yellow, and two others partially completed.

Rusty

1947!  That means the brass side door (by 3rd Rail) I have in yellow is no good and

I need the red (brown?) one, they also offered at the time!

Depends on what era you are modeling. Thus, since the Vision Line "Big Boy" is in the as delivered 1941 configuration, it should thus have a freight car red body with white road numbers & lettering.

Very nice! I have to have a caboose at the end of my train no matter what the era!

The back row give you other Lionel and MTH choices of UP cabooses.

Ron

I actually study these things.  Then I go away for a week, and could not tell you the difference between a 1941 Big Boy and a 1947 Big Boy.  I can tell the difference between a giant coupler and a Kadee.  And I have a yellow side door Sunset UP caboose.

Here is how seriously I study Big Boys:

For me, even if there were minor configuration changes among various engines at various times, in this case it's a distinction without a difference. Since Big Boys ran throughout the 50's, they pulled yellow cabooses for years. Plenty good enough. (Personally, I much prefer the yellow UP cabooses.)

Just my opinions.

Sharp looking!

A train with a Big Boy along with that caboose ...... you have one of THE very nicest trains in all of model railroading!

Enjoy it.

I do wish it was brown (Or freight red as it seems to be called.) but yellow is okay too.  It'll match the aux tender that way (Which I wish was black.).  I got my tracking number yesterday, and I should have it tomorrow.  At last my VL BB set will be complete.  I can't wait!

Is it glossy paint?

You might check out the MTH Premier UP CA-1 wood caboose models. They have offered them in both yellow and brown (boxcar red) on and off for a number of years, and the current catalog has them listed again in brown.

Looks great, as for the color, I prefer red as well. But I did order this one to match the VL reefer... even though neither caboose nor freight matches the VL BB timeframe exactly. I'll suck it up. But I agree the inaccuracies need to be pointed out. By all means continue to enjoy though.

BTW the two big radiators on the pilot are a dead giveaway of the 1941 (first 20) - 1947 (post war conversion to match yellow caboose) BBs.

No it is not glossy

Those who want red: Lionel 27633 and 17690 and 27667:

I ordered one from Train Express when they were first announced.  I do remember that Train Express sent out a notice that their pre-orders were being transferred to another dealer.  Claiming old age, I cannot remember who the dealer was.  Any memory jogs would be much appreciated.

Thanks,

Allan

Charles Ro

Thanks! (My 2R friends are allergic to high gloss:-)

I like it...a lot!

I like it as well - although a bit brighter, it reminds me of 2 yellow Chessie cabooses that I have.  And as Chris Lonero mentioned, I also always run a caboose with every freight train - it doesn't look right without them.

86TA

Many thanks,

Allan