Wright Trak KO&G International Caboose kit

[John Garavaglia]

Beautiful work, Nate!

[John Garavaglia]

Getting ready to get back on my kits…The MP installed battery box looks very similar to boxes under Sedalia-welded and T & P cabooses…as rebuilt by MP in Sedalia…in the early 1970’s…

I was going to measure the KO&G caboose in Chicago a couple of weeks ago…only to find out it had been scrapped recently…and removed.

There are two MP cabooses in the area around Centralia…a T&P car is at Mascoutah, IL…and there is an MP Home-built Sedalia caboose near the Pinckneyville IL subdivision tracks in Scheller, IL.

Both still have the battery boxes under them. I am going to attempt to photograph both or one of these cars…to get accurate measurements of the battery boxes…as I want to do the KO&G cars like Nate is doing…after rebuilding by MP.

[John Garavaglia]

Got out to the Scheller car today.

The battery boxes are as follows:

28″ long;
20″ wide;
18″ tall;

They have 3 steel straps on them…each is 12″ long from the top of the box…extending 4″ below the box…and are bolted together with the bottom strap that goes across the bottom of the box.

These straps are steel that is 2″ wide; and they are placed as follows:

1st: at the very end of the box; (looking under the car) (might be a couple of inches from the end)…
2nd: 6.5″ inset from the end strap.
3rd: 6.5″ inset from the second strap.

These are the boxes put under Sedalia, KO&G, and T&P steel cabooses put through Sedalia in the 1970’s…and the car I measured today was last shopped in 4-84.

[John Garavaglia]

Been a while for me on the board. I went down to McGehee AR over Labor Day. I measured the KO&G caboose that sits near the MP Depot there. There are a few things to report regarding the Wright Trak model.

The cupola (as supplied) with the kit is incorrect. The cabooses cupola did NOT line up with the edge of the roof as the kit shows. Instead the cupola side walls are flush with the raised diagonal bracing of the roof. The Moloco 1501 cupola will fix this…and it’s a much better looking part.

I did complete measurements of the car and will provide them with photos to anyone interested.

I will use the roof (which is very nicely done) and the underframe; etched parts; and perhaps the brake rigging on the last car I have. I will build the car body out of styrene and use either Archer rivets; or make my own via the NWSL riveter…The car would be a really nice kit…especially if someone else like Yarmouth Model works did it.

[alexortiz25]

Posting this question for a friend in Lacrosse WI…

“Picked up a Wrighttrax KO&G cupola caboose kit and was wondering why the previous owner had included a Moloco standard cupola kit in addition to the one supplied by Wrighttrax – something wrong with the original?”

I am going to suggest he join mopac.org/bb and read all of Tom and Nate’s previous posts on this model.

[madonnasuffolk30]

Thomas Austin measured a preserved KOG caboose and the Moloco standard Cupola is accurate where the Wrightrak one is not. I’m debating on picking up a Moloco cupola to improve mine or message Athearn about producing a KOG model for their Genesis line of ICC caboose. The kit needs some work…

Nate

@rdlavoise wrote:

Posting this question for a friend in Lacrosse WI…

“Picked up a Wrighttrax KO&G cupola caboose kit and was wondering why the previous owner had included a Moloco standard cupola kit in addition to the one supplied by Wrighttrax – something wrong with the original?”

I am going to suggest he join mopac.org/bb and read all of Tom and Nate’s previous posts on this model.

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