SP Trailer Train Cabooses

[SP2400]

Does anyone have any pic's of the SP Silver Trailer Train Cabooses? If so please post, thank you

[Enzo Fortuna]

Mar 21, 2011 14:01:30 GMT -5 SP2400 said:

pic's of the SP Silver Trailer Train Cabooses?

About pictures, well, sure is at least a picture in the “SP Caboose Bible”:
Tony Thompson volume 2 ( Signature Press web site www.signaturepress.com/SPF2.html )
I'm at work now, so will check this night.

It's not in color, but here is one photo of Robert Morris:
www.snowcrest.net/photobob/spcc17.html

This page espee.railfan.net/sp_c-40-03.html has info and the numbers of the ones that got silver paint, but unfortunately, no shots of any in silver.

On the '81 SP review... there is a photo of silver #1096 taken in 1954.
There's a colour pic of SP caboose 1097 on page 78 of the Morning Sun book "SP Color guide to freight & passenger equipment" it shows it on the back of a 50's piggyback train.

In 1954-55 eight cabooses received the special 'Trailer Flatcar Service' scheme, of silver paint and red/black billboard lettering. Of these eight, 7 were C-40-3's #1069, 1076, 1096, 1097, 1147, 1181 and 1201, (The other was C-40-1 #1031). These were used on the then new piggyback trains between Los Angeles and San Francisco and lasted into the 1960's.

Found in Internet:
Not silver, but... interesting?
...there is a photo of bay window cab #1342 taken in 1964 in standard Tuscan and Orange, but sporting the Trailer-Flatcar Service lettering on its sides below the road name and number (photo is black and white, but the colors are obviously standard).
The text of the pic says : "Early "hot" piggyback service on SP's coast line between LA & San Francisco was operated under the "Advance Overnight" label, a train leaving an hour before the regular Overnight. The silver trailers provided inspiration for painting eight regular steel cabooses in a matching scheme, as seen here in a posed shot on the Peninsula"

Ernie Fisch
The silver cabooses were steel cabooses that were designated for service on the trailer trains. There was a piggyback "Overnight". The cabooses could have been used on the regular "Overnight". Because of the speed of the train all cars had to be equipped with steel wheels. In the beginning days of the "Overnight" Espee didn't have any cabooses with steel wheels so a passenger coach was used as the caboose.
The "Overnights" were a solid train of "Overnight" cars, see the comment about steel wheels. The trains were typically about 20 cars in length pulled by one of Espee's 4-8-2s. They ran on the coast route between San Francisco and Los Angeles, the same route as the Daylights. There were a couple of bad grades on the route, principally the Cuesta grade between San Luis Obispo and Santa Margarita. Most of the route allowed relatively high speeds. The Daylight speed limit was 79 mph over much of the route. Looking at what schedules I could find it is unlikely that the "Overnight" ran at anything approaching that speed. It was able to travel the 486 railroad miles between SF and LA overnight, probably in about 14
hours.

[SP2400]

OK, great, I am painting a Caboose and have seen pictures of ones made by athearn and other companies. They have black roof walks. I am trying to figure out if that is the way they came or was that artistic license on the manufacturer's part.

[Enzo Fortuna]

Mar 22, 2011 13:58:11 GMT -5 SP2400 said:

They have black roof walks.

Well, notreallysure, but to me it seems silver too.
Here one picture , but you've some other on your mail.
Click on picture to display a better size.
Hope helps?