Bluford Shops December Announcement.

[Bluford Craig]

Hi guys,

A new run of N scale cabooses was announced today. Some of these were due to vociferous requests. See them here: http://bluford-shops.com/index.html

Enjoy,
Craig
Bluford Shops LLC.

[daniel_leavitt2000]

Oooo the ex Erie N7D with long logo!

You need to do 21165 next.

I love my N21s. They are fantastic models. I'll buy anything you make in big blue.

[CBQ Fan]

Cool stuff!

[GhengisKong]

Next thing we know is that Craig will do outside braced wood cabeese next...

[southernman]

Well there goes a C note...
Keep em coming.

[thomasjmdavis]

Next thing we know is that Craig will do outside braced wood cabeese next...

It would not shock me if that were to happen.  It would make sense to have a caboose to go with the USRA hoppers. etc.  If I were to choose, I would also ne a customer for a couple variations of drop bottom gondolas.

My first Bluford purchase was a GTW wood caboose (double sheathed rather than outside braced).  From the days when they were custom painting other companies cars- I think the model they started with was an MDC. 

I really like the way that Bluford markets their products.  First, they don't advertise anything they don't intend to make.  And the cars are produced and on our layouts in a rational timeframe.  I don't recall any cancellations (but maybe that just means nothing I wanted has been cancelled).  But pretty clearly they order the injection molding done in fairly large quantities, and then paint each run into many regional paint schemes.

Other manufacturers want the Santa Fe, SP, PRR and other high demand roads.  Bluford's cars fill the need for everybody else (along with some Santa Fe, PRR, etc for those who recognize the quality of Bluford's products).  Who else makes hoppers for large public service companies?  Or C&EI hoppers in multiple body styles and paint schemes? (a string of which say "Chicago rail yard" more effectively than anything I can think of).  At this point, most of my hoppers are Bluford hoppers.  I literally standardized. Since I bought my first ones, I haven't bought any from anyone else other than a Hart ballast car from Atlas.  I will no doubt buy more from future runs and on the second hand market. 

[Philip H]

not for nothing (I hope ) but KCS had several outside braced bay window cabeese built from upcycled boxcars.  Even made it into the white era.  Just sayin @Bluford Craig

[Bluford Craig]

It would not shock me if that were to happen.  It would make sense to have a caboose to go with the USRA hoppers. etc.  If I were to choose, I would also ne a customer for a couple variations of drop bottom gondolas.

My first Bluford purchase was a GTW wood caboose (double sheathed rather than outside braced).  From the days when they were custom painting other companies cars- I think the model they started with was an MDC. 

I really like the way that Bluford markets their products.  First, they don't advertise anything they don't intend to make.  And the cars are produced and on our layouts in a rational timeframe.  I don't recall any cancellations (but maybe that just means nothing I wanted has been cancelled).  But pretty clearly they order the injection molding done in fairly large quantities, and then paint each run into many regional paint schemes.

Other manufacturers want the Santa Fe, SP, PRR and other high demand roads.  Bluford's cars fill the need for everybody else (along with some Santa Fe, PRR, etc for those who recognize the quality of Bluford's products).  Who else makes hoppers for large public service companies?  Or C&EI hoppers in multiple body styles and paint schemes? (a string of which say "Chicago rail yard" more effectively than anything I can think of).  At this point, most of my hoppers are Bluford hoppers.  I literally standardized. Since I bought my first ones, I haven't bought any from anyone else other than a Hart ballast car from Atlas.  I will no doubt buy more from future runs and on the second hand market.

Thanks Tom. We do love to do shortlines and regionals along with the Class Ones. We do have a rule on cabooses though. There must be a locomotive for that railroad available in N for us to do the caboose. Thankfully, the guys at Atlas have been doing some nice regional and shortline diesel runs over the years.

As for cancellations, there have only been 2 that I can think of in 12 years. One was a data only run on the 2-bay offset hopper and the other was recent, the Detroit & Mackinac 3-bay offset hoppers. See the note at the bottom of this page: http://bluford-shops.com/bluford_93_041.htm

The very first Bluford Shops runs were a trio of special run paint schemes on the Atlas International coupola caboose: Monon, Atlantic Coast Line and Central Of Georgia. These were followed up with Atlas NE-6 cabooses in Boston & Maine and Southern (former S&A cars.) The Athearn/MDC wood cabooses came third in GTW and Central Vermont. By the time those came out, our own tooling for the 86' boxcars was ready to go and we were off and running.

Craig
Bluford Shops

[H Lee]

Hi guys,

A new run of N scale cabooses was announced today. Some of these were due to vociferous requests. See them here: http://bluford-shops.com/index.html

Enjoy,
Craig
Bluford Shops LLC.

Hope to see the two red and white D&H schemes soon!!!!!!!!!!!

Vociferous enough??

[daniel_leavitt2000]

@Bluford Craig

Will you be doing more cabooses in the future (I mean new tooling)? These clearly are a strength for Bluford Shops and a good market niche.

I personally can't think of any other caboose type I could want that is not on the market - maybe a PRR N8 series.

I do like the idea of an outside brace wood van.

[EspeeGoldenState]

Safe for another announcement I guess.

Keep hoping for a UPP 24567. Anything would be better than the Athearn version.

Though UPP 400 and 401 would be cool too.

Chris

[High Hood]

Thanks for all the Southern Railway love! @Bluford Craig 

[jpwisc]

@Bluford Craig  have you ever thought of doing a CA-11 caboose?

[Bluford Craig]

@Bluford Craig  have you ever thought of doing a CA-11 caboose?

The CA-11 was one we looked at before settling on the ICC Bay Window cars. It turned out to be too unlike everything else to use for much other than UP. I wouldn't hold your breath on that one. We also looked at a number of wooden cabooses but the ICC cars won out by a large margin...

Craig
Bluford Shops

[C855B]

The CA-11 was one we looked at before settling on the ICC Bay Window cars. It turned out to be too unlike everything else to use for much other than UP. ...

Nor were there very many (100) and they were not that long-lived, from 1979 to most off the roster in '89 and '90, some hanging on until '95, all obviously well into the FRED era. And they were ugly. (GD&R!!!)

HOWEVER  , if we want to talk UP's unique designs, doing the CA-8, -9 and maybe the -10 would be greatly appreciated by the hundreds of thousands... uh, OK, maybe hundreds... or a goodly few dozens... of classic-era UP fans. The Centralia Car Shops CA-3-ish, -4-ish have their place as do the Hallmark and Overland models of later designs, but something up-to-date model-wise, NOT brass and RTR would be really, really nice. I could justify 15-20, easily.