ionel produced four main types of caboose during the Post War years. All of these cabooses except the Bay Window Type experienced some kind of detail degradation as the Post War period progressed.

Lionel printed their production numbers on the side of these cars. We’ve listed these cars by this number in order in the Numerical Index below. In some cases, especially with the Porthole Type, this production number was different than the number that was printed on the car. In such instances, we’ve listed the actual number that is on the car in parenthesis in the numerical listing. If the car has no number refer to our No Number listing below.

The SP Type Caboose is the most prolific of the cabooses produced by Lionel during the Post War period. This caboose is based on a prototype that was used by the Southern Pacific railroad and first appeared in 1947. A wide variety of these cabooses were available, from elaborately detailed versions with ladders and tool boxes, to stripped down versions, some of which towards the end of the post war era were not even lettered.

See the Numerical Index for additional details about the individual cars in this class.

The N5C Porthole Caboose began to be available in 1953. It is based upon a prototype that was used by the Pennsylvania Railroad. Lionel would produce this caboose with the Lionel Lines, Lehigh Valley and Virginian road names applied to this caboose, even though the Pennsylvania Railroad was the only prototype railroad that used this style of caboose. See the Numerical Index for additional details about the individual cars in this class.

The Bay Window Caboose was first available in 1955 with the "Lionel Lines" designation on the side. It was equipped with deluxe passenger die-cast metal trucks and they had couplers at both ends. All of these cabooses are highly prised by collectors.

See the Numerical Index for additional details about the individual cars in this class.

Readers who need more information are respectively urged to seek outside sources.

The Work Caboose followed the same pattern as the other cabooses that Lionel produced over the Post War period. Initially produced on a die-cast flat car frame with tool boxes and a roof ladder, these cabooses would, toward the end of the post war period, have a stamped sheet metal frame, no ladder, and in most cases a single bin instead of tool boxes. See the Numerical Index for additional details about the individual cars in this class.