Lionel's New York Central System cabooses

[Deputy]

I spotted a nice Lionel smoking NYC Bay Window on E-Bay, but I have a bunch of cabeese now, and my VISA can't justify that much $$. Even though it's $20 than list price...

http://cgi.ebay.com/Lionel-6-17669-New-York-Central-Bay-Window-Caboose-NIB_W0QQitemZ160216511790QQihZ006QQcategoryZ4148QQssPageNameZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem

[johnandjulie13]

For those looking for old K-Line cabooses, check out the following:

www.legacykline.com

This archive was referenced about a month ago.  You can track down pieces that you have an interest in and then keep your eyes open...

Regards,

John

[Jumijo]

   A REALLY NICE caboose that I haven't seen mentioned here yet is K Line's High End Cabeese, they are the nicest cabeese that I have seen yet, with incredible detail, and working smoke units.

  Watch for these at shows or on ebay, I know that they did at least a Jade Green bay window, and a brown wood-sided off set cupola, in NYC, both are very good looking cars, that I would reccomend to anyone looking for a nice scale size caboose.

                               Doug

I agree. They are great looking. There was one at a LHS for the longest time. Super nice.

Jim 

[challenger3980]

   A REALLY NICE caboose that I haven't seen mentioned here yet is K Line's High End Cabeese, they are the nicest cabeese that I have seen yet, with incredible detail, and working smoke units.

  Watch for these at shows or on ebay, I know that they did at least a Jade Green bay window, and a brown wood-sided off set cupola, in NYC, both are very good looking cars, that I would reccomend to anyone looking for a nice scale size caboose.

                               Doug

[Deputy]

WOW!!! Talk about a blast from the past!
Good timing, though. I just recently received an MTH 20-91037 NYC Pacemaker Bay Window Caboose from Roundhouse South and thay had a heck of a time finding one. Now I have a question...what locos would be appropriate with the Pacemaker cabeese and boxcars? Would they be mostly diesel with the black/grey lightning bolt or would they be steam? I know eventually the whole Pacemaker idea slipped by the wayside and Pacemaker boxcars were used on all kinds of NYC trains. I found out Pacemaker service started in 1946. And as far as I can tell the Pacemaker service ended around late 1959. So what were the locos that pulled these express freight cars???

Dep

[Bob Keller]

I think it is just AMAZING how much of this great old STUFF is still out there!

[rtraincollector]

Bob and DEP not NYC but check this book my wife got me

 

[Bob Keller]

Its tough to shoot a white pocket protector on a white lab coat ...

[Deputy]

Bob: You really know how to torture someone!!!   I scored a scale MTH center cupola Pacemaker caboose on E-Bay (20-91030). Also picked up two scale cabeese from Roundhouse South...New York Central Bay Window Caboose 20-91037 and 20-91174 New York Central Steel Sided Caboose. That should put me in good shape for cabeese. But I'd still like to get the center cupola all gray MTH caboose.

James: I wasn't aware that Lionel colors for Pacemaker are that much different than MTH. I don't own any Lionel Pacemaker stuff that I can remember, but I'll keep that in mind.

[sir james I]

Take note that Lionel and MTH use different shades of red and gray. it is very noticeable side by side.

[Bob Keller]

BTW I recently scored a New York Central "Safe in '63" pocket protector, which has been added to my white lab coat for the online videos.

Eat your heart out, Dep!

[Deputy]

Check my Oct 17, 2006 comment.

Nice pic.

LOL...I saw that Bob!!!! But I like your comment on 10/17 much better:

"As for the red/gray, the book only showed the one style (represented by the MTH no. 7802 body) that was painted for Pacemaker. But don't get too wrapped around the axle about it - literally, anything is possible to have been done."

I'm betting the MTH 20-91030 with center cupola existed too.  Not sure about the Pacemaker colors in a bay window version, though. MTH also has a scale-sized center cupola in an all-grey version (20-19076?). I wouldn't be surprised if that is a real deal paint job too.

Dep

[Bob Keller]

Check my Oct 17, 2006 comment.

Nice pic.

[Deputy]

Had to resurrect this thread because there was a statement that the red/grey Pacemaker caboose was never used. I did some checking and they WERE used!!! Here's a website that describes their useage:

http://caboosenut.com/Cab_New_York_Central_Caboose.htm

Little History

The NYC's "Pacemaker" cabooses were from a group of 50 wood cabeese
with steel underframes that came from scrapped boxcars. The cars were
rebuilt around 1944. The five cars which carried the Pacemaker paint
scheme were resheathed with plywood sides after WW2 when the
Pacemaker service started and painted in the red and gray scheme,
but without the "Pacemaker" lettering.

And here's a pic of a Pacemaker-painted caboose:

Dep 

 

 

[csxt30]

Dep : Keep us informed on this if you get one !! Another thing with me was, I didn't want to send it to Lionel cause I would have been without it for a while and I really liked it !! Hope you get one & it is OK !! Boy, the Westerm Pacific one is really sharp too, according to the catalog !!

Thanks, John

PS !! Maybe you can come on over to The Coffee Pot if you're still retired & have more time !! We have a lot of fun over there & get to know each other real well !!

[Deputy]

John: Sounds like a good plan as far as checking the size of the wiring. I put in a request for one at SVCtrains. Keeping my fingers crossed

Dep

 

[csxt30]

Dep : I would take it apart & see for yourself if the wires are still very tiny in diameter & then decide if you can rewire it with bigger wires. Maybe this was just a few that came through like that or something. It sure is a highly detailed caboose & I was going to get a Western Pacific one for my articulated steam engine, but they are even harder to find now !! I like the trucks on it as they have the little roller brg. that goes around with the wheels like the real ones !!

Thanks, John

[Deputy]

John,
    Good grief! I think I would freak out to see a $90 caboose do a meltdown!!!!

$66 is an excellent price for that caboose. I am thinking maybe I will disable the electrics in one if I am able to get a decent price on it.

Dep

[csxt30]

I have the new NYC green Bay Window coboose & I will caution anyone on these cabooses as the wires in them, for lights & flasher & smoke unit, are so thin in diameter that all the wires in mine burnt to a crisp in only a week ! They need to be replaced with a larger diameter wire for sure if running in TMCC. I was not running mine in command at the time & they burned up. The dealer said I must have derailed it & burnt the wires up, but I didn't even have a switch on my layout at the time nor did it ever derail. It is a great looking cab though, just no lights or anything in mine now.

Thanks, John   

 

John,
Have you contacted Lionel about this problem? Seems pretty flakey and definitely a danger for a kid operating one.

Dep

 

Dep : no, after what the dealer said I just figured someday I would try to rewire it myself. Now another friend of mine, Spankybird from the forum here, actually had his burn up to the point where it melted the roof of his caboose ! I got mine on sale at the time for I believe 66 dollars ! Now other than him & I,  I haven't heard of anyone else having a problem with these.

Thanks, John   

[Deputy]

Well I e-mailed MTH and asked them about the paint schemes on their two cabooses:

http://www.trainbarn.com/mth_20-91030.htm

http://www.trainbarn.com/mth_20-91076.htm

 

I asked if they were based on REAL paint schemes used on these cabooses or just fantasy paint schemes. I wonder if maybe MTH has some pics we don't know about that show these colors on these cabooses?

Dep

[Deputy]

I have the new NYC green Bay Window coboose & I will caution anyone on these cabooses as the wires in them, for lights & flasher & smoke unit, are so thin in diameter that all the wires in mine burnt to a crisp in only a week ! They need to be replaced with a larger diameter wire for sure if running in TMCC. I was not running mine in command at the time & they burned up. The dealer said I must have derailed it & burnt the wires up, but I didn't even have a switch on my layout at the time nor did it ever derail. It is a great looking cab though, just no lights or anything in mine now.

Thanks, John   

 

John,
Have you contacted Lionel about this problem? Seems pretty flakey and definitely a danger for a kid operating one.

Dep

 

[Deputy]

Too bad the Lionel jade green is so dang hard to find.  

Is this the one that you are looking for??

http://www.trainfinder.com/traindealers/store.asp?section=trainDetails&id=13433&accountNo=TF1013

- Luther

 

Yep...that's the one. Note his comment under it's description: "(current issue price for the series is $89 and all are sellouts)".

For $89 samolies I can get TWO of the MTH cabooses. I can wait for SVC trains to get one for me at a discount. That's the trick to buying this stuff...finding the lowest price
With these NYC bay windows it seems to be a seller's market.

 

Dep

 

[luther_stanton]

Too bad the Lionel jade green is so dang hard to find.  

Is this the one that you are looking for??

http://www.trainfinder.com/traindealers/store.asp?section=trainDetails&id=13433&accountNo=TF1013

- Luther

[csxt30]

I have the new NYC green Bay Window coboose & I will caution anyone on these cabooses as the wires in them, for lights & flasher & smoke unit, are so thin in diameter that all the wires in mine burnt to a crisp in only a week ! They need to be replaced with a larger diameter wire for sure if running in TMCC. I was not running mine in command at the time & they burned up. The dealer said I must have derailed it & burnt the wires up, but I didn't even have a switch on my layout at the time nor did it ever derail. It is a great looking cab though, just no lights or anything in mine now.

Thanks, John   

[chuck]

The Central steel sided bay window units were either oxide red (first units, early on), or Jade/Century green (majority/later years).  The Lightning Stripe and PaceMaker are very attractive schemes that were not used on the real railroad.   One of the Morning Sun books on NYC rolling stock mentions the oxide red/green schemes.  Photo's of PaceMaker consists usually have the wood sided end cupola cabin cars. 

LS car was an add on to a "combine" set that Lionel did.  Original set had a few freight cars and a combine baggage/passenger coach in the consist.  There were additional freight and passenger cars issued to round out the set.  The caboose was one of these offerings.

[Deputy]

Wow!!! Here's the set those cabooses came from:

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=260040998964

[Deputy]

The lightening striped, while fictitious, would look good with the Lionel F3s.

I just bought a steel side Lionel tuscan for my F3s and a Lionel wood side, again Tuscan, for my Hudson.  I have been contemplating a purchase of a lightening stripe one for the F3s as well.

- Luther

Yep...I have the ABA F3s coming from MTH. That grey lightning stripe WOULD look spectacular with it. From what I've read, those cabooses came with a Lionel set..."It was produced in 1995 as an additional car to go with the #11744 New Yorker service station set."

Here it is on E-Bay:

http://cgi.ebay.com/NEW-Lionel-19726-NYC-Bay-Window-Caboose_W0QQitemZ330039414468QQihZ014QQcategoryZ4148QQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem

 

[Deputy]

Bob,
       I really like the first two MTH cabooses I listed. Price isn't too terrible and they are readily available. I also like the red/grey bay window from MTH that I listed higher up the thread, so I will probably go with that one too. Too bad the Lionel jade green is so dang hard to find. I'll put a standing order in with Bill Oberst at SVC Trains for the Lionel caboose so that if they get one I'll have it reserved. Thanks a ton for all your advice. BTW...I'm also a new subscriber to Classic Toy trains

 

Dep
Mike Bonomo

[luther_stanton]

The lightening striped, while fictitious, would look good with the Lionel F3s.

I just bought a steel side Lionel tuscan for my F3s and a Lionel wood side, again Tuscan, for my Hudson.  I have been contemplating a purchase of a lightening stripe one for the F3s as well.

- Luther