Former American Model Builders Caboose

The Southern Pacific C-30-1 Caboose represented the standard design for the SP Cabooses for many years. Most of the cars in the C-30-1 class were built between 1917 and 1928. Records indicate that over 240 were built as Southern Pacific cars, with at least an additional 100 cars built for the Texas & New Orleans. The 18 surviving T & NO cars were renumbered into the Southern Pacific roster in 1961. Thus, there were representatives of the C-30-1 on the rails for almost fifty years. It is known that caboose #600 spent a period of time in the 40’s on the Visalia Electric as their #53; and at least one C-30-1 was painted in the “Golden State” red and silver scheme and used for safety promotions. As originally built, the C-30-1 cars had a “narrow, slant-sided” cupola, with running boards all around. As the years went by, the cupolas were replaced with “full-width” slant-sided and straight-sided cupolas. Kit 876 depicts a C-30-1 with the later full-width straight-sided cupola.

Although minor variations developed from car to car, we chose to base our model primarily on SP #196, as this C-30-1 class car appeared in 1961. This particular car seemed to exhibit the most common characteristics of the class, which included steel channel end beams and power brake wheel stands. The kit features these details as well as an option that allows the modeler to build the cupola with either two different styles of crash bar glazed end windows or model the cupola without. A laser-cut steel style underframe is provided along with cast resin steps and several fixtures are also included to aid the modeler in creating all the handholds and ladders appropriate for the prototype.

Kit #876 features 100% laser-cut components with custom laser-scribed side and end walls, Tab & Slot and Peel & Stick construction, laser-cut underframe, end platforms, ladders, end railing, and brake wheels, cast resin platform steps, white metal SP style smokejack, and fully illustrated instructions that provide information on painting and decaling the assembled model. We recommend the purchase of Microscale decal set #87-227, Tichy’s #3051 Bettendorf Trucks, and Kadee No. 5 couplers with draft gear boxes for completing our SP caboose.

HO Scale 877 $49.98

Key Words:  Southern Pacific SP Espee Caboose Way Car