Monon Caboose 81532 Update

Update by Les Beckman
September 14, 2024

Photos from Monon caboose 81532 at Hoosier Valley 9/14/24.

Photo 1 - Kaiden Roberts removing window edge rust on Monon 81532's cupola.

Photo 2 - The 81532 is always dirty after work and Joe Crnkovich swept the caboose floor today.

Photo 3 - After applying primer to the 81532 cupola, Kaiden is shown sanding smooth some rough spots.

Monon Caboose 81532 Update

Update by Les Beckman
October 12, 2025

Photos from Monon caboose 81532 at Hoosier Valley 7/25.

Thomas Dyrek and his friend Christian Schluter worked on this section recently.

Here is Thomas's explanation of their work:

"Removed metal and related debris;
Cut a new section to cover the hole; to bend it to shape
We clamped one end to the vertical facing part of the roof component, heated it with a blow torch
Then slowly and carefully bent the other end downward with clamps until it was the correct shape and in the right spot;
Then Christian welded it into place".

Photo 1 - Shows the edge condition of the roof at one spot on Monon 81532.

Photo 2 - Shows Thomas grinding the area..

Photo 3 - Shows Christian welding.

Photo 4 - Shows the result.

A lot of work for one small section, but the work on 81532 does continue to move forward! Christian lives in Tennessee, so trips to North Judson are not frequent.

Les

The Monon projects continue ongoing at Hoosier Valley!

Much more still to do, but we're getting there!

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