Our caboose rides had proven to be popular so it was deemed necessary to put some new clothes on an old caboose. The car is ex-EJ&E 500 series built in 1956 by International Car Company, one of nine that were leased to the B&LE. We haven't figured out which one yet but we've narrowed it down to four of them. As-built, it had propane heat and a propane generator. We assumed those were removed by B&LE replaced by a coal stove and a Safety AA1500 generator and Spicer drive which we retained to charge the battery.

The inside was sanded and painted and the outside was grit blasted to bare metal with epoxy primer and single stage urethane top coats applied. New window glazing was also installed.

It's not a restoration in the strict sense but it is "preserved".

That looks fantastic. Always good to see a cab getting freshened up.

I doubt you'll hear complaints about fixing up the exterior appearance of any caboose or display railroad equipment.

These EJ&E cars are suddenly everywhere!

Beautiful work.

Thanks for the kind words.

I don’t have my notes handy but if I recall, something like 17 of these 50 cars made it into preservation via donation for static display or outright purchase for use elsewhere. Some cars had lasted in service on The J into the eighties and a few others lasted longer yet as shoving platforms. Sister road B&LE leased nine of them and at least three of those are still around - ours, Hoosier Valley and Greenville RR Park in PA.