HARTFORD PRODUCTS, INC.
Quality kits and parts for
#1 (G) Gauge

This kit is a faithful reproduction of the No. 3 caboose used on the Sierra Nevada Wood and Lumber Company (later renamed the Hobart Estates Co. in 1894) from some time prior to 1894 until cessation of operations in 1937. Originally built by Carter Brothers of San Francisco (or perhaps Hammond) as a four-wheel "bobber" with link and pin couplers, swing motion trucks and knuckle couplers were substituted later on. The only photographs we have been able to locate of the Hobart cabooses are of Nos. 2 and 3; we do not know if there ever was a No. 1. The No. 2 caboose is very similar to the No. 3, the primary difference being in the construction of the underframe and the cupola windows. As a result, No. 2 was some 4" - 6" taller than No. 3. Also, the cupola of No. 2 was replaced at some time with one with vertical sides. This kit includes Carter Bros. Trucks.

This model is of the D&RG Class 2 Caboose built between 1886 and 1890 at the D&RG shops. This was the first eight wheel Caboose on the D&RG. The last two Class 2 Cabooses were removed from service between 1951 and 1953. This kit uses extensive Laser cut wood, including mortise and tendon joinery. Leaf spring 3'7" Caboose trucks and lettering set are included as well as AccuCraft® knuckle couplers. A construction jig, Product ID HP-J024, which greatly simplifies construction and ensures accurate alignment of parts, is available separately.
(Also available with Kadee 835 Couplers as item K024-K)

The D&RGW rebuilt five of these elegant cabooses from both the orginal 4-wheel cabooses and the second generation, 8-wheel short cabboses, the latter being the subject of HP-K024. While the body length of these round roofed cabooses was the same as the peaked roof version -- 25 feet -- the platforms were each 6" longer. All five still exist -- either on excursion railroads or at museums.

This kit is a model of a 4-wheel car used by the Denver, South Park and Pacific (DSP&P) from the late 1870s well into the 20th Century. Precursors of the caboose, these were called "waycars" by the DSP&P. At least 18 of these cars were built for the DSP&P between 1878 or 1879 and 1884. The first were built by the DSP&P itself and the rest by the parent company, the Union Pacific (UP). The UP built an additional two for another subsidiary, the Central Colorado Railroad.