I just received my SP Trainline, Fall 2008 with the 1964 photo of the caboose and the flat cars on the cover. Check the caboose...the frog eye light is on the same side as the smoke jack. It looks like the lights might be obscured if the caboose was turned around. This leads to the following question(s): 1. Was the antenna, frog eye light and smoke jack always in a standard position on the caboose? 2. Were the frog eye lights even used during the day? 3. Did you always just make sure the frog eye lights were to the rear? 4. Was the smoke jack always shorter than the frog eye lights anyway? IMHO, Bob Morris' photo on the cover is great! Caption: "A MUG train makes its way around Cantara Loop between Dunsmir and Mott, California, on the Black Butte Subdivision of the Shasta Division in June, 1964."
Caboose "Frog Eyes" From the cabooses I saw some years ago now the frog eye lights were located as close ti the centre of the roof area as possible on the bay window cabooses. The lights could and did vary from one caboose to another. Richard percy's site "My Espee Modelers Homepage" has a section on Espee cabooses you might check. The lights on the coupola cabooses were located at teh end of the coupola roof next to the long end. In the late 1970's the lights were relocated from the roof to just above the doors on the ends of the cabooses. The Athearn bay window caboose has the locations for the lights in the correct location but now the detail parts are not included in the kit. Tomar makes them and they can be purchaced seperately through them. Hopefully the photos of the models will help.
1. Was the antenna, frog eye light and smoke jack always in a standard position on the caboose? As of what I have seen...yes. 2. Were the frog eye lights even used during the day? Yes 3. Did you always just make sure the frog eye lights were to the rear? The lights had a lens facing both ways. Some had separate light housings face both ways. 4. Was the smoke jack always shorter than the frog eye lights anyway? No, I have seen extensions on the jacks making them alittle higher than the frog. 4759 here shows the jack extension...
Thanks, guys. It's a detail I will install correctly in the future but I am probably not going to retrofit.
