Large Scale Central

New color scheme for coaches?

Modeling Rolling stock
#1

Here’s the deal. My gf Kimmee is the owner of all the AV’s passenger cars. She has decided that solid royal blue was just too drab,

and so, I came up with an 1880’s inspired paint scheme. (first coat, will fix bobbles later)

The large blue panels below the windows are the bone of contention. It was done to avoid the need to renumber… Kim likes it, BUT a railroad historian buddy of mine insists that they are contrary to “US railroad practice ANY where at ANY time” and would only be found in amusement parks – and says they should be painted out and the cars renumbered in RED…(For the record, he didn’t like the solid blue either) Yes, I know, Rule 8 should be strictly enforced here, and probably will be. BUT what are you fellows’ opinions? And does anyone have a North American prototype pic with contrasting panels like that? Thanks

#2

Mik,
Looks good to me. Why worry about it.
And why does your friend think the numbers should be red?
Ralph

#3

He says red or dark orange numbers were used with pale yellow and blue. He sent me some documentation, but I didn’t save it.

Yes, he’s a pain in the butt. But he’s also spent hundreds of hours on researching early paint schemes for several projects.
http://www.pacificng.com/template.php?page=ref/color/index.htm

#4

Mik you could leave the blue at the top with the Allegheny name plates paint over the blue on the bottom and do a blue pin stripe around the boxes. For the numbers you can use the stick on numbers from a Office Max or such place and do them in blue as well. Just a I deal but I think they look good now as they are and I like the blue by they way.

#5

Mik,
The Royal Blue cars you started with didn’t have red numbers. Did it bother you?
Did the AV have short coaches ? Were they blue and white?
Unless you’re strictly adhering to the proto railroad, why worry about it :wink:
Ralph

#6
Ralph Berg said:
..... Unless you're strictly adhering to the proto railroad, why worry about it ;) Ralph
Only because he grumbled every time I showed a pic of my 2-8-0 build when it had green dome rings. You've never considered doing something just to shut somebody up?

Seriously, I just wanted to know if they looked ‘silly’. Yes, I realize most railroads went to one solid color before 1880, because color matching for touch ups was a pain in the butt… or more precisely, wallet

I also sort of hoped somebody had a photo for me to shove under his nose, and prove him wrong – just once. :wink:

#7
Mik said:
You've never considered doing something just to shut somebody up?

I also sort of hoped somebody had a photo for me to shove under his nose, and prove him wrong – just once. :wink:


Wish I had a photo to help you out.
The cars look fine.
As for your friend…I’d probably paint a locomotive boiler orange and have the cab chromed :wink:
Ralph

#8
Mik said:
Ralph Berg said:
..... Unless you're strictly adhering to the proto railroad, why worry about it ;) Ralph
Only because he grumbled every time I showed a pic of my 2-8-0 build when it had green dome rings. You've never considered doing something just to shut somebody up?
Mik the answer is yes but it invalves duck tape most of the time and not repainting my rolling stock. :)
Quote:
Seriously, I just wanted to know if they looked 'silly'. Yes, I realize most railroads went to one solid color before 1880, because color matching for touch ups was a pain in the butt... or more precisely, wallet

I also sort of hoped somebody had a photo for me to shove under his nose, and prove him wrong – just once. :wink:


There is a picture in a book I just read but the bad thing is its black and white pictures and can’t tell the colors. The other part of that is the car is a personal coach and not a everyday peice of rolling stock so that could be the reason.

#9

Obviously he’s never been to the Pa RR Museum…or the Ca RR Museum, or looked at stuff on early Ca NG RRs. Then again… I build Narrow Gauge 4-8-0s and 4 truck Shays…and I paint reefers purple…send him my way MWUAHAHAHAHAHAH

#10

Can you find a nice black & white photo of a passenger car? It is very difficult to argue color in a B&W picture.
And what about the Jersey Central Lines “Blue Comet”?
And I thought most numbers were white, gold, or that yellow imitation gold (I can’t think of the color name right now), it was used as a less expensive “gold”.

#11

Hay Bart it was a book on the “South Pacific Coast RR” that I was reading so your right it was a Ca nerrow gauge RR and it was a picture of Mr. Fairs personal Coach car.

Mik just do what you like a forget what others have to say. Wont to get your friend ask him how many riviets in a UP bigboy. :slight_smile:

#12
Bart Salmons said:
Obviously he's never been to the Pa RR Museum.....
He saw this thread. He says 1. many of the restorations there are 'incorrect' 2. Rule 8 is what separates 'toys' from 'models' and 3. he finds it amusing that a bunch of 'know nothing garden railroaders' are 'heckling' him.... gotta love it. Now I remember why he can't keep a serious girlfriend... hehehehehe

I’m just gonna go play wid my toys, now. lol

#13

I’m with you Mik, it’s a hobby and we are supposed to have fun playing with trains, that’s it plain and simple.

#14

I left out the part about “Why not just paint them pink and purple and put Barbie on the roof?!?”

One of the things I try to do is maintain a reasonable level of PLAUSIBILITY. My friend is right, a railroad, even a tourist one, probably would not have sprung for such a fancy paint scheme… especially in 1959

BUT…

Hollywood would! So my justification is that these coaches were leased by M-G-M for use in a musical. The musical died in production after the leading lady was killed in a tragic car accident (shades of Jayne Mansfield?). The railroad, loathe to spend money to cover up ‘perfectly good paint’, simply relettered them again.

Think that will fly? or too farfetched? Anyway, that’s my proposed backstory.

#15

I left out the part about “Why not just paint them pink and purple and put Barbie on the roof?!?”

One of the things I try to do is maintain a reasonable level of PLAUSIBILITY. My friend is right, a railroad, even a tourist one, probably would not have sprung for such a fancy paint scheme… especially in 1959

BUT…

Hollywood would

You’re right I’d let’em fly just the way you’ve gottum.

#16

Somewhere I have the carcass of a ‘rider gon’ that I started to build about 10 years ago. I think I’ll finish it, paint it to match, scrounge up a bunch of Japanese tourist figures and a few guys in vests with lots of patches and engineer caps each with about 5 cameras around their necks… and then stick the whole lot behind my 2-4-4-2 logging mallet, just for a pic to frame and send to him…

Nah, nothing like that could ever happen in real life…

The foamers wouldn’t actually BUY tickets to ride, they’d just chase… :wink:

#17
Mik said:
I left out the part about "Why not just paint them pink and purple and put Barbie on the roof?!?"

One of the things I try to do is maintain a reasonable level of PLAUSIBILITY. My friend is right, a railroad, even a tourist one, probably would not have sprung for such a fancy paint scheme… especially in 1959

BUT…

Hollywood would! So my justification is that these coaches were leased by M-G-M for use in a musical. The musical died in production after the leading lady was killed in a tragic car accident (shades of Jayne Mansfield?). The railroad, loathe to spend money to cover up ‘perfectly good paint’, simply relettered them again.

Think that will fly? or too farfetched? Anyway, that’s my proposed backstory.


Mik how about this one.

The railroad compainy got a deal on the cars after MGM was done with them. They started to re-paint them and found out they did not have enought paint on hand to finish the job so a yard boss desided to just pain the centers of the cars and leave the rest the old color and re-number and letter the cars.

Still works and is a bit more plausible maybe?

Now as for your friend. Please tell him or if he reads this I was not heckling him. I respect his resurch and desirer to model stuff as it was or would have been. I’m sure he does great work. I on the other hand am more like you. I play with my trains and I garden. After all 1 of my 4 degrees in in Hordiculcher and I am willing to bet if I went over to his house I would find a non native plant for the area in in yard. Doesn’t make it wrong, it makes it what he likes. If he likes spot on models then that is what he should do. I like you, like something plausible.

Please let your friend know that no disrespect is ment.

Geoff

#18

Around here, everything else is trumped by “What do I want my railroad to look like?”

Build that rider gon!

#19
Mik said:
One of the things I try to do is maintain a reasonable level of PLAUSIBILITY. My friend is right, a railroad, even a tourist one, probably would not have sprung for such a fancy paint scheme..... especially in 1959
Mik, It's plausible even without the back story. Just because something does not follow the "norm", doesn't make it wrong, implausible, or even improbable. Ralph

An orange loco with a chrome cab…improbable.
Your coaches…most certainly not improbable.

#20

One thing is certain, assuming large scale modeling is still a great hobby in 20 years, or so, time in the UK.

Anyone wishing to model the 1990’s or present day British transport scene (buses and trains) will have a wealth of gaudy colours to choose from.