This caboose recently went through some work, and is now in the back lot of a grain/feed/trailer outfit in Olympia, WA.
I tried looking it up but couldn't find any real caboose that matches it. I've heard various rumors of this, that it was actually a full replica made by someone in the general area. Someone said the builder also made a 3-foot passenger coach. Nobody seems to know who made this, when it was made, or what happened to that coach. The people at the business where it is now all swear it's an original caboose, but a search of surviving D&RGW hacks doesn't seem to bear this out.
The handrails, ladder and the rest of the parts were lying nearby, waiting to be painted and installed. I was shocked to find most of a shay locomotive in pieces in the same parts pile to the extreme right of this photo, and I couldn’t find anything about that, at all.
Does anyone have any further info on this? If it's a replica, it sure looks like a lot of real NG hardware went into making it.

From NGDF:

I think we talked about this caboose on this forum before. Isn't that the 7/8 scale one?

http://ngdiscussion.net/phorum/read.php ... msg-294407

If it'd been discussed here, I don't recall either way.
Funny how it's local and nobody around here seems to have any clue about it.

He's referring to a discussion on the NGDF regarding this caboose; this is the first time someone's mentioned it here.

One sure giveaway that this is not one of the DRGW NG hacks are the couplers; DRGW used full-size couplers on its NG equipment after WW I (if not earlier) and any surviving cabooses would have them instead of the half-size couplers that this has. That's not the only discrepancy, of course, but I'm not going to repeat what's been posted elsewhere. It is a pretty good replica, though, and whoever built it did at least use NG hardware instead of trying to cobble something up that wouldn't have looked right.

HI,

My first clue was the trucks were too big. Then I noticed the incorrect couplers. Also notice there are no steps under the end platforms on the side sills.

Lots of clues IF you are familiar with D&RGW practices.

The same sort of thing can be said if you are focused on PRR or CRI&P, or any other railroad.

Doug vV

I should post some of the photos I took of the Shay parts, when I get back to my computer with the photos I took. There were parts scattered all over the place, but one complete truck and the fuel bunker (with West Side Lumber painted on one side and some tourist type name on the other that I can't recall right now) were next to each other. Huge stacks of various parts were beyond that. Looks like they might have had most of the stuff, but I couldn't see any frame, boiler shell or cab parts. I wish I knew more about what it was before it was taken apart.
It's so funny that all this is here and I had no idea until recently. I still can't believe how many times I drove past it and missed the restored semaphore sitting almost next to the road and various mining and amusement park RR parts next to that.
FYI, here is where it's all at: http://kipertsfeed.com/

Is this the source of the Shay parts pile?

http://www.steamlocomotive.info/vlocomotive.cfm?Display=875

Wesley

That's the marking I saw for sure. Gotta be it.
Funny how the notes say it's going to be restored for operation in CA. I really can't imagine that there are any steam restoration people there. It's just the owner's person eclectic collection.

So this is the same Shay that was near McKenna, correct? Is this the same owner or has it been sold?

I visited the fellow with the 3 foot gauge coach many years ago. I seem to recall he had a full size UP caboose. I don't recall seeing this caboose, but it's been many years ago.

I also seem to recall that the coach was an actual OR & WA Railroad & Navigation Co. coach, that he was extensively restoring. What ever happened to it? All the stuff was moved, I don't know where.

As for the Shay fellow, I never managed to connect with him, though admittedly I didn't try very hard. I did stop by his house one day but he had a closed gate across the driveway and I didn't want to end up on the business end of a gun, so I didn't push my luck by entering. I never really found a good way to get in touch with him.