Leaving Virginia at 0300 we made the trek to Georgetown, Delaware for pick up day of the caboose! It was luckily overcast with no rain in sight, the perfect day to watch Chamber's & Sons use two rotators to lift the 72,000 caboose off the ground! Florida George Equipment LLC was hired for the transport and it took us all additional time to get the trailer
just right for the caboose's big move. If you have ever thought about buying a train car or caboose keep in mind that you are going to pay quite a bit to get that sucker from point A to point B. We over-estimated the expense and still under estimated. Unloading we hope will be much easier. We had to unfortunately do some temporary modifications but cutting off the top of a ladder, removing the smoke stack and also unbolting a lot of the parts underneath to make sure she was sitting comfortably for the long haul. This whole process took us from 0300 to 1530, over 12 hours! It was a long day. Enjoy the videos!
The crew from Chamber's & Sons was amazing. They are highly recommended and got the job done right. I have to give a special SHOUT OUT to our friend and train enthusiast, Luther Brefo for all his knowledge of trains and all things trains! He is an amazing person and helped us through the whole process.
It was an all day event fast tracked into 30 seconds of video...you're welcome.
With a combined total of 55,000 pounds, one rotator holding 35,000 pounds and the other holding 20,000 when the caboose was lifted off the trucks (those are what the wheels are called), we decided that 17,200 pounds was too heavy for our personal truck and trailer to transport to Montross...in the rain!
The decision was made to hire Chambers & Sons to transport the trucks separately. Big Mike took the trucks on a tow truck with a tilt bed and met us down in Montross. Best idea ever...Thanks Big Mike! We got him lined up with the tracks and BOOM! Those babies were ready to be reunited with the caboose.
This line up was amazing! We were ecstatic about getting this right the very first time. Big Mike is an excellent driver and his all day smile made our day.
We had to get both sets of trucks from the tow truck bed to the tracks. We were able to use these boards to make our way onto the track with the assist of the winch. Slow and easy was the tempo. The rain was coming down steady. But we got these into place. We felt proud!
It is now 1921 hours and we are exhausted and excited! This is a HUGE accomplishment...in the rain and cold.
A railroad track to nowhere, in a town without trains...the end or the beginning?
Big Mike, Kurt and myself...happy about a job well done!