Re: Eight wheel Caboose on C&Sng?

Posted by Keith Hayes on Apr 06, 2015; 1:38am
URL: http://c-sng-discussion-forum.254.s1.nabble.com/Eight-wheel-Caboose-on-C-Sng-tp488p1993.html

Studying the fleet pics today,  I see that 1007 appears to have kept it's tip-toe boards on the side of the coupola until the end. I  had not spied this detail before.

I am a hobbyist and sometime historian, and have never worked a train. The diagonals look to me to be thinner than a grab iron. More of a tension member, though I have no idea why. Let's face it, at C&S speeds the coupola was not subjected to onerous forces due to wind. They are a trip hazard, not a safety device. Perhaps it reinforces the break in the roof.

Most coupolas have corner roof grabs, ostensibly to help the crews negotiate their way around the coupola. while the photo shows an operable sash on the end, this seems like an easy way to invite cinders into the interior. While this might be an inviting way to ascend to the roof, I continue to believe the man door and the end ladder are the preferable route.

I can understand that a brakie is on the wrong end of the car when the Hogger whistles for brakes. This would require mounting the ladder and shinning around the coupola. Not sure the rulebook says about this, but it seems to be an issue common to many lines.