I have an Athearn 4-Window Eastern Caboose
https://www.athearn.com/Products/Default.aspx?ProdID=RND74249
After putting on the layout and next to several other cabooses that I own this one seems grossly out of proportion and loks to be several scale feet taller than the prototype. Anyone know of a product review that was done on these or some scale dimensions that are avaiable...?
It's the caboose on the left...
Thanks,
Ben
Ben,
I just checked the Western Maryland equipment diagram for their "northeastern" cabooses on www.alphabetroute.com and came up with the following dimensions for WM 1801-1905:
Coupled length: 35' 2"
Height over running board: 11' 2 1/4"
Height over cupola roof: 13' 7 1/16"
Extreme width: 9' 10 1/4"
The alphabet site has equipment diagrams from the roads that used that type of caboose (CNJ, RDG, and WM). Some, such as RDG were homebuilt but, the dimensions between RRs vary very little. Cabooses are generally narrower than standard freight cars but then each road had their own requirements, restrictions and needs, therefore slight variation in what seems to be the same car. Oversized models are not unheard of either. Scale ruler time!
d
As far as reviews, note that these are Roundhouse cars that have been around for many decades, long before Athearn took over Model Die Casting's Roundhouse line of products. So you would need to search for MDC reviews...maybe as far back as the 1960's or '70's.
Eastern cabooses were based on the c.1918 USRA wood caboose. It's possible there were later steel cars built to the same general outline but a bit higher? Boxcar height jumped from 8'-6" to 10'-6" in the late thirties. Early caboose roofs matched the height of the then-standard boxcars, so maybe when cars got higher some railroads built cabooses that were higher to compensate?
Geezer moment here - still trying to wrap what I laughingly call my "mind" around the current prices for old Model Die Casting tooling that used to be so cheap and so plentiful.
Are you certain that you have an Athearn/MDC eastern caboose? I ask that only because I do believe the old Hobbyline eastern caboose was oversized - and they too were plentiful (and even less expensive than cheap!) at one time. There were many versions available back when I started including Penn Line, Varney, and perhaps others.
Dave Nelson