Walthers Rolling Stock
Platinum Line(TM) Milwaukee Road Rib Side Caboose w/Oil Stove Ready to Run
Undecorated Kit (Some Assembly Required)
Walthers Part # 932-7670, p. 163 Walthers 2012 HO Scale Reference
HO scale, $44.98, currently in stock at Walthers
This product is on-sale today for $23.98
30s-50s Cabooses Feature Oil Stove Upgrade
* Body Variation Features Oil Stove Detail
* Fully Assembled
* All Grab Irons Installed
* All Detail Parts Added
* RP-25 Metal Wheels
* Proto MAX(TM) Metal Knuckle Couplers
* Superb Paint & Lettering
* Authentic Milwaukee Road Prototype
* Used System-wide through 1980s
In the mid-1930s, new and bigger freight cars created visibility problems
for crews in caboose cupolas. Starting in 1937, the Milwaukee rebuilt some
older wooden cabooses, removing the rooftop cupola and installing new
side-mounted bay windows. This experiment proved successful, reducing
injuries, improving visibility and putting crews where they could spot
problems quickly. By this time, the ever resourceful and cost-conscious
Milwaukee also had welded-steel passenger and freight cars with ribbed
sides (ribs improved strength while reducing overall weight) in regular
service. In 1939, these ideas were combined to create an all-new welded
steel bay window caboose with ribbed sides. Two additional ideas were
borrowed from the passenger department; trucks were a design first used on
some 56' combines built in 1934, and the cars wore the road's signature
orange, maroon and black paint. There were some innovative new ideas too,
including a side-mounted toolbox that made it easier to retrieve repair
parts. Construction began in the Milwaukee's shops in July, with the first
car ready for service by mid-August, and 75 completed by year's end. With
minor changes, modernizations and improvements including the replacement of
the original stove with an oil-burning stove in some cars,
the Milwaukee would build 315 of these cars through 1951. Serving all over
the system in a variety of roles, many of the rugged little cabooses outlived
the Milwaukee Road itself. After the 1985 merger with the Soo Line, many
survivors were sold, and several have been preserved.
Milwaukee Road Rib-Side Caboose w/Oil Stove:
MILW #991909 (orange
Ends)
MILW #991913 (orange
Ends)
MILW #991864 (orange
Ends)
MILW #991903 (Safety
Yellow Ends)
MILW #991915 (Safety
Yellow Ends)
MILW #991825 (Safety
Yellow Ends)
MILW #980502 MW
(Buildings & Bridges Dept. Scheme, Tuscan, black roof)
Undecorated
