Never found any trace of brown/red. But those boards could have been entirely replaced over the last 117 years. I did find some red on the backside of the marker lamp brackets.

Siding is going up today. We're using TruExterior poly-ash siding and affixing it with stainless ringshank nails.

We went through all the siding they had in stock. More on order.

I found these items in the caboose before we demo'd it. Any idea as to what they are? The one on the right looks like a socket for large square headed bolts.

Working on recreating the brake piping, valves and gauges. I have the brake valve that was mounted on the rear of the caboose.



This valve was mounted on the forward wall.



I'm assuming the small line fed the brake gauge in the cupola.



Not sure what was connected to this fitting? A brake valve for the cupola?

I can’t tell from the photo but the valve on the end in the first photo is probably the retainer. The small line in the second and third photos is for the air gauge. The ball valve in photo 2 is likely an emergency dump. The mystery fitting may have been for a brake valve. Those are my best guesses. All except maybe the retainer are almost certainly not original.

Thanks Eric. I've got a gauge coming. The retaining valve has 3 positions marked "LP", HP" and "EX".

Door jams are installed and 3 sides are sided.

We got our doors finished and installed today. I think they turned out great!

In your picture the rollers on the left are from truck side bearings. The other item doesn't look familiar to me. I was stationed for a year in Astoria on the Coast Guard buoy tender Iris in engineering and rescue swimmer. It was 1982 and the BN local still came to the plywood mill there. What a beautiful area!

I think you’re right on the rollers - they’re about the right size.

Patrick - In case you or others didn’t know, the retainer markings are for Low Pressure, High Pressure and Exhaust

Found this pressure gauge on eBay. Apparently it came out of the Tacoma steam plant. Took it apart and repainted the numbers. Sand blasted the case and scotchbrited the bezel. Got the case painted and the brass clear coated. Will get everything assembled tomorrow.

Thanks for the ID. I think the bearings will make good paper weights! I think the one on the right is a socket for track joiner nuts.

It is a beautiful area here! We love it. I’ve got a good friend who is currently stationed with the Coast Guard here. I’m a retired Navy CWO.

So low and high brake pressure and exhaust to release the brakes?

I’m going to remount and pipe the valve, but any brakes are long gone.

Retainers would have been used on long, steep descending grades. They’re a kind of check valve. “Turning up” the retainer will hold a certain amount of air in the brake cylinder keeping the brakes on the car applied when the engineer puts the automatic brake valve in release to recharge the brake pipe so he doesn’t run out of air and have a runaway. You’d stop before the down grade, the brakemen will set as many retainers as needed in either low or high pressure and at the bottom, reverse the procedure. It’s labor and time intensive so not used much anymore since the introduction of dynamic braking on diesels.

If you listen carefully, you can hear the brake cylinder air exhausting out of the retainer when the brakes are released.