As many of you are aware I have had an ongoing fascination with the Doodlebug! I finally broke down and bought one primarily because
they are no longer manufactured and I don't know how much longer they may be available. They are pretty darned scarce right now, as it is!
Awhile ago I even had a thread devoted to one in its Santa Fe War Bonnet paint scheme: Santa Fe Doodlebug in its War Bonnet!
This one is undecorated and is basic and drab olive green! So, it needs a custom paint job to recreate the war bonnet! I will most likely be entrusting it to Doug at Emperor of the North. However, I do have one more local option to check out but I don't expect much from it. (The first option was a definite no-go).
I will update this blog entry with progress reports but don't expect anything soon. Doug's turn around time is 6-8 weeks!
Congratulations!
They are getting rather scarce. I was fortunate to pick up a couple a few years ago. Painted them up in Boston and Maine and Bangor and Aroostook colors. The slow speed action is realy nice.
It's always nice...
to finally get something you have been longing for. I have seen the doodlebug thread(s) here, as well as other pictures of them in other railroad sites, but I have to confess to limited knowledge of them. They appear to be the predecessor to the Budd liner (RDC) and perhaps a latter-day railbus. One article I read pointed out that they were valued because they could negotiate tight turns, like those found on winding mountain lines. The "War Bonnet" thread referred to above shows one pulling several coaches, something I never saw a Budd car, or a railbus do.
Any further education you can provide about doodlebugs would be appreciated.
Al
Although I like the
Although I like the paint scheme in the picture, I'll be looking forward to seeing it in war bonnet colors.
See ya