SCRM is nearly finished restoring SAL #5246, a class 5CC (I think) caboose. This car was originally wood with a steel frame. Steel sheathing was added over the original wood siding at some point, and we've left this feature intact.

I'm currently hunting for a pair of caboose whistles for the car. I'm assuming she had the type that includes the whistle and conductor's valve in one unit. Anybody got any leads? I've done a couple eBay searches with no success.

BTW, SCRM will be having Caboose Day this weekend. We'll be running SW8 #2015 with CN coach 6746 and four cabooses -- B&O 903878 (BW), SCL/Family Lines 01063 (cupola), NKP 465 (BW), and SAL 5246 (cupola). Check the Museum website for more info on the cars, or email me privately.

The 5246 isn't really fiished -- one side still needs to be painted outside, and the short end is still pretty rough inside. Otherwise, however, the car's a real showpiece. We got impatient to use the thing and put it in the train for Caboose Day. If anybody's going to be in South Carolina this Saturday (Oct 4), stop by and check it out!

The South Carolina Railroad Museum
mconrad@compuzone.net

This sounds like a ludicrous suggestion, but try searching under "steam whistle", "train whistle", and even "wistle". These things turn up on eBay all the time, put up by peole who are ill-informed enough to actually think these things were used on steam locomotives hauling the crack express trains! (Okay, only once have I seen someone *that* deluded, but really, they think it's a steam whistle.....)

Don't believe me? Look at the link below.

Or look at http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?Vi ... tegory=130 , which has what appears to be a damaged Nathan M3 masquerading as a "steam whistle horn" (hmmmmm, can I afford that?)..........

Hmmmm, search under "train whistle" and I come up with http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?Vi ... egory=4124 , a polished Sherburne that some nut thinks is worth a $79.99 starting bid.........

Hmmm, maybe you'd like a Lonergan whistle instead at http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?Vi ... egory=4124 ? Only $24.00, and it might sound nicer.......

Just one of them at eBay now
LNER4472-NOSPAM-@bcpl.net

Do an eBay search in the category, Trains - Railroadiana - Hardware using " SHERBURNE " as a key word. This should get you AT LEAST one Sherburne caboose whistle any time you do it. Price should run from $30 to $50.



jjbx@twcny.rr.com

> SCRM is nearly finished restoring SAL #5246,
> a class 5CC (I think) caboose. This car was
> originally wood with a steel frame. Steel
> sheathing was added over the original wood
> siding at some point, and we've left this
> feature intact.

> I'm currently hunting for a pair of caboose
> whistles for the car. I'm assuming she had
> the type that includes the whistle and
> conductor's valve in one unit. Anybody got
> any leads? I've done a couple eBay searches
> with no success.

Matt: We could use a couple of caboose air whistles for the cabooses that we use on our caboose passenger trains. If you come up with any extras, please let me know.

> BTW, SCRM will be having Caboose Day this
> weekend. We'll be running SW8 #2015 with CN
> coach 6746 and four cabooses -- B&O
> 903878 (BW), SCL/Family Lines 01063
> (cupola), NKP 465 (BW), and SAL 5246
> (cupola). Check the Museum website for more
> info on the cars, or email me privately.

Sounds like a good time. Wish I could be there. Perhaps next year.

> The 5246 isn't really fiished -- one side
> still needs to be painted outside, and the
> short end is still pretty rough inside.
> Otherwise, however, the car's a real
> showpiece. We got impatient to use the thing
> and put it in the train for Caboose Day. If
> anybody's going to be in South Carolina this
> Saturday (Oct 4), stop by and check it out!

We did the same with our NKP bay window caboose at our recent Open House. NKP 471 is not finished BUT we neeeded the extra seating capacity since our Bessemer cupola caboose is currently out of service. We told riders that she was "a restoration in progress" and they seemed to understand. We told them to come back again next year when we plan to have her finished.

Les Beckman (Hoosier Valley Railroad Museum/North Judson, IN)

midlandblb@cs.com

> We did the same with our NKP bay window
> caboose at our recent Open House. NKP 471 is
> not finished BUT we neeeded the extra
> seating capacity since our Bessemer cupola
> caboose is currently out of service. We told
> riders that she was "a restoration in
> progress" and they seemed to
> understand. We told them to come back again
> next year when we plan to have her finished.

Our NKP car will also be running "half painted." One of our guys and his wife started to repaint the car this past spring, but then they had a baby and that ended that. They're still planning to work on it, but I presume the job will wait until little Dory is at least walking.

You can easily rig a tee and extra valve on the "oh no" pipe on the porch to outfit cabs with alternative noisemakers. I've rigged a old truck horn on the 5246 for this weekend. Sounds terrible, but better than scaring the kiddies in the coach with the engine horn. Use a horn and not a regular whistle, though -- a couple weeks ago I tried a trolley whistle that came with our GE 45-tonner and dumped the air. The skipper was NOT happy!

If I ever get a caboose of my own, I think I'll rig a locomotive horn on the roof for backing moves. Maybe even install a small compressor to power it so I don't have to worry about dumping the train air. Of course by the time I can afford a caboose, we'll have runaround tracks at both ends of the railroad and long backing moves will be a thing of the past.

The South Carolina Railroad Museum
mconrad@copuzone.net

> Our NKP car will also be running "half
> painted." One of our guys and his wife
> started to repaint the car this past spring,
> but then they had a baby and that ended
> that. They're still planning to work on it,
> but I presume the job will wait until little
> Dory is at least walking.

> You can easily rig a tee and extra valve on
> the "oh no" pipe on the porch to
> outfit cabs with alternative noisemakers.
> I've rigged a old truck horn on the 5246 for
> this weekend. Sounds terrible, but better
> than scaring the kiddies in the coach with
> the engine horn. Use a horn and not a
> regular whistle, though -- a couple weeks
> ago I tried a trolley whistle that came with
> our GE 45-tonner and dumped the air. The
> skipper was NOT happy!

> If I ever get a caboose of my own, I think
> I'll rig a locomotive horn on the roof for
> backing moves. Maybe even install a small
> compressor to power it so I don't have to
> worry about dumping the train air. Of course
> by the time I can afford a caboose, we'll
> have runaround tracks at both ends of the
> railroad and long backing moves will be a
> thing of the past.

Hi Matt:

You mentioned that a couple had started painting your NKP bay window caboose. Is that the inside or outside (or both)? HVRM had painted the outside of our # 471 including the VERY light gray band along the top but never got it lettered. Now it needs to be repainted again. We intend to paint the inside with the original light green and brown NKP colors (which are showing through the later N&W gray.) THAT should prove interesting!

Our Bessemer & Lake Erie cupola caboose had horns mounted on the roof for back up moves. It was always interesting seeing the wasps come out of the horns when someone in the cupola "blew" them. Unfortunately, when we actually started using the caboose on our caboose train, it was found that there was a leak in the air line going up to the horns so we took them out of service. One of our projects when we get the caboose back in active service is to get the horns back on line too.

As for dumping the train air, I am familiar with that story. Our past president thought we could use the whistle off of our C&O Kanawha K4 as a substitute air whistle on the back platform of the Bessemer caboose. I was conductor and the first time I blew it....YES, dumped the air on the train!

Good luck in finding a suitable caboose. Owning equipment is so much fun!

Les

midlandblb@cs.com

If you want the old style, keep trying Ebay. If you want a new one call Strato. They manufacture all types of hose assemblies for cars and locomotives, including back-up hoses. My pocket catalog from them shows the whistle only as #S80A and their phone number is 1-800-792-0500. I can't imagine the whistle alone would cost too much and would probably do the job just fine.

> SCRM is nearly finished restoring SAL #5246,
> a class 5CC (I think) caboose. This car was
> originally wood with a steel frame. Steel
> sheathing was added over the original wood
> siding at some point, and we've left this
> feature intact.

> I'm currently hunting for a pair of caboose
> whistles for the car. I'm assuming she had
> the type that includes the whistle and
> conductor's valve in one unit. Anybody got
> any leads? I've done a couple eBay searches
> with no success.

> BTW, SCRM will be having Caboose Day this
> weekend. We'll be running SW8 #2015 with CN
> coach 6746 and four cabooses -- B&O
> 903878 (BW), SCL/Family Lines 01063
> (cupola), NKP 465 (BW), and SAL 5246
> (cupola). Check the Museum website for more
> info on the cars, or email me privately.

> The 5246 isn't really fiished -- one side
> still needs to be painted outside, and the
> short end is still pretty rough inside.
> Otherwise, however, the car's a real
> showpiece. We got impatient to use the thing
> and put it in the train for Caboose Day. If
> anybody's going to be in South Carolina this
> Saturday (Oct 4), stop by and check it out!


NCTM

shaymech@hotmail.com

>I have a few in a box in my collection. If they are worth that much, I may put them on EBay soon to generate some revenue. They are GM&O/ICG.

This sounds like a ludicrous suggestion, but
> try searching under "steam
> whistle", "train whistle",
> and even "wistle". These things
> turn up on eBay all the time, put up by
> peole who are ill-informed enough to
> actually think these things were used on
> steam locomotives hauling the crack express
> trains! (Okay, only once have I seen someone
> *that* deluded, but really, they think it's
> a steam whistle.....)

> Don't believe me? Look at the link below.

> Or look at
> http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?Vi ... tegory=130
> , which has what appears to be a damaged
> Nathan M3 masquerading as a "steam
> whistle horn" (hmmmmm, can I afford
> that?)..........

> Hmmmm, search under "train
> whistle" and I come up with
> http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?Vi ... egory=4124
> , a polished Sherburne that some nut thinks
> is worth a $79.99 starting bid.........

> Hmmm, maybe you'd like a Lonergan whistle
> instead at
> http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?Vi ... egory=4124
> ? Only $24.00, and it might sound
> nicer.......


sbs5cats@kc.rr.com

> Our NKP car will also be running "half
> painted." One of our guys and his wife
> started to repaint the car this past spring,
> but then they had a baby and that ended
> that. They're still planning to work on it,
> but I presume the job will wait until little
> Dory is at least walking.

> You can easily rig a tee and extra valve on
> the "oh no" pipe on the porch to
> outfit cabs with alternative noisemakers.
> I've rigged a old truck horn on the 5246 for
> this weekend. Sounds terrible, but better
> than scaring the kiddies in the coach with
> the engine horn. Use a horn and not a
> regular whistle, though -- a couple weeks
> ago I tried a trolley whistle that came with
> our GE 45-tonner and dumped the air. The
> skipper was NOT happy!

> If I ever get a caboose of my own, I think
> I'll rig a locomotive horn on the roof for
> backing moves. Maybe even install a small
> compressor to power it so I don't have to
> worry about dumping the train air. Of course
> by the time I can afford a caboose, we'll
> have runaround tracks at both ends of the
> railroad and long backing moves will be a
> thing of the past.

The Wilmington & Western in Delaware (now closed due to flooding) uses air horns on the several cabooses in operation. One is straight off the brake pipe, but only has the value crack open. But the other cars had an extra air tank added (small sized), for blowing the horns, the tanks are piped into the brake pipe but a restricing value is used so the tanks charges (fills) slowly -- not affecting train operating, even when the loco is in lap (expect for short trains). This way you can have your horns and blow them loud!

Good Luck!
Ed Feathers

railspast@aol.com

> You mentioned that a couple had started
> painting your NKP bay window caboose. Is
> that the inside or outside (or both)? HVRM
> had painted the outside of our # 471
> including the VERY light gray band along the
> top but never got it lettered. Now it needs
> to be repainted again. We intend to paint
> the inside with the original light green and
> brown NKP colors (which are showing through
> the later N&W gray.) THAT should prove
> interesting!

The interior is still gray and is in decent shape, although the generator is gone. I was referring to the outside. The car got a coat of red in the early '90s when it arrived ('91?), but cheap paint was used and it had faded to pink. We never did get the light gray stripe on her, she was solid red. This time I think Bill and Gena are planning to do the complete job, gray stripe and all.

The South Carolina Railroad Museum
mconrad@copuzone.net

> If you want the old style, keep trying Ebay.
> If you want a new one call Strato. They
> manufacture all types of hose assemblies for
> cars and locomotives, including back-up
> hoses. My pocket catalog from them shows the
> whistle only as #S80A and their phone number
> is 1-800-792-0500. I can't imagine the
> whistle alone would cost too much and would
> probably do the job just fine.

Do they have a website?

The South Carolina Railroad Museum
mconrad@copuzone.net

Matt,

See link below. I assume this is the company. I found it through a Google search on Strato railroad.

If you contact them, please let us know what you find out. We have several cabooses that could use whistles as well.

Until later,
Chris Hauf
Rochester & Genesee Valley Railroad Museum

> Do they have a website?


Strato Mfg.
crhauf@frontiernet.net