Railworks America

Two new models are under construction, the GN X200 series wood/steel rear cupola cabooses. Of course with dynamic (roster number dependent) Safety Slogans.

Looks great, I love seeing more GN stuff!

Also since we are on topic about GN cabooses, possibly one of these pictures you will find of interest.

GN X100, which was built from an old 50ft boxcar and caboose.

GN X181 "The Hutch"


GN Transfer Cabooses, interesting trucks that are on these, they also carry the varying slogan on the bottom.
GN X178 "Whats Your Safety Score Today?"

GN X325(?) "Think Safety Work Safely"

Those cabs look terrific!

thecanadianrail wrote:Also since we are on topic about GN cabooses, possibly one of these pictures you will find of interest.
GN Transfer Cabooses, interesting trucks that are on these, they also carry the varying slogan on the bottom.
GN X178 "Whats Your Safety Score Today?"

GN X325(?) "Think Safety Work Safely"

These look like gutted SC switchers. Since the SC had one piece cast underframes with pilots and stepwells included. Also they retained their AAR type A switcher trucks.

PS: I noticed the GN caboose comes with leaf sprung trucks, as it should be. But do the couplers stick out a little too far?

Hack wrote:Those cabs look terrific!

You mean "cabeese", Marc.

They stick fairly far.

arizonachris wrote:You mean "cabeese", Marc.

Yeah, or "hacks".

buzz456 wrote:They stick fairly far.

gn caboose.jpg

Is that a cushioned underframe extending the coupler pockets? Makes sense to have a cushioned underframe on a caboose.

The transfer caboose was rebuilt from a retired Baldwin VO1000 switcher by GN's St. Cloud shops round 1966.

http://www.greatnorthernempire.net/index2.htm?GNEGNDieselRosterVO1000.htm

Hi,

Thanks for your replies and the many kind comments!

I'll check the couplers and compare with my photo collection. Most likely you're right and they do extend too far out. Thanks!

I had my eyes on those GN transfer cabooses too, though as I don't have the Baldwin underframe I decided to put them off for a while. Maybe I can do them both at some point, Baldwin VO and the transfer caboose (no promises though).

The combined caboose + boxcar looks very interesting, I hadn't seen those before. Should be easy to build too with my existing models. I wonder what these cars were used for. Could it have been for baggage and LCL transport in passenger or mixed passenger/freight operations on GN's small branches (for example around Great Falls)?

Thanks,
Michael

I am sure you know your Great Northern better than I do, but here I go:

X-181 was a "one-of-a-kind" caboose. It was originally built in April 1953 by GN's Waite Park shops as X-100. It was renumbered to X-181 in 1966. It spent most of it's life near and around St. Cloud, MN and later GN's Hutchinson branch, pulled by an equally unique NW-5 locomotive.

I came across picture of a GN home built caboose with two cupola's while browsing, but cannot find it back.