I am have a difficult time painting a number of CN models (F7, C424, GP9, GP40) with the pre 1970 black, orange, and grey? colour scheme.
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Does anyone know where to get the zebra stripe decals on a 30 degree angle all sloping up and back for a F7? That means the decals for the left and right side are opposite to each other. Microscale apparently only makes the 45 degree strip all going in the same direction, for later units. I would also like to get the white/grey stripe that goes along the edge of the walkway, but all of Microscales stripes are yellow.
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I am using a book called Rail Canada volume 1, by Donald Lewis. It has a paint chip for Grey No. 17 which it says it is the colour used for the CN logo and stripes until at least 1976. It is very grey (medium) with a greenish tone. I do not see any models or pictures that have this grey. Any pictures of CN engines that I see in the book, or on the internet, the so called grey looks white to me. The least I could do would be to call it off-white.
Can anyone clarify this grey / white colour for me and does anyone make the correct decals?
Thanks
I wasn’t aware that any locos had the stripes sloping the same direction on both sides. Was this done on the B-units too? Obviously, this must’ve looked pretty hap-hazard if one of the locos in the consist was facing the “wrong” way. [:)] As for the grey, I agree: it looked white, especially in contrast with the black. Here are a couple of shots of an Atlas C-425 (CN didn’t own any of this prototype) that I did. The orange is SMP Accupaint, the rest is Floquil. I added a very slight amount of black to tone down the starkness of the Reefer White. Lettering is dry transfers from C-D-S, and the set also included the stripes and the yellow sill stripe, but I thought it easier to use paint.
In my opinion, this was one of the most attractive paint schemes ever applied to a hood unit, and would look great on any of the current crop of monsters coming out of GE or EMD, certainly much better than CN’s current paint scheme, which looks like it belongs on a running shoe. [V]
Wayne
Thanks for the responses. Not that you made my life any simpler. Yes, it appears that I will have to mask and paint to get the stripes. Frustrating trying to get three stripes equal size, equally spaced, and at 30 degrees. And then paint them with the wrong dirty white, oops, grey which does not match the Microscale lettering.
Wayne; My understanding is that prior to about 1972 all cab units had the 30 degree stripes sloping up and back, including B units. If you look around you will find photos of B units going backward, ie with the stripes going the opposite way to the A unit. Hood units did not use stripes until about 1972 and then they were all 45 degree up and to the left.
Thanks again.
The method that I used to paint the C-425 may be a help in doing your loco. I first painted the entire loco white. For the stripes, I used regular masking tape (I find that the green stuff doesn’t stick very well when using solvent-based paints), starting with tape that is wider than the maximum height of the stripes. Apply a piece, longer than the side of the locomotive, onto a piece of glass, keeping it parallel to the edge. For my loco, where the stripes all slope the same direction, I applied two layers of tape, allowing me to measure and cut stripes for both sides at the same time. You’ll need to do this separately for each side. Using a caliper or set of dividers, mark off both edges of the tape parallel to the edge of the glass, leaving the centre piece of tape the same exact height as is required for the loco. Basically, all that you’re doing here is removing both factory edges from the tape as you trim it to the proper height. Based on a photo of the prototype, decide where to begin the first stripe, and based on the model that you’re going to paint, determine the corecct width for both the white/grey stripes and the black space between them. Set your dividers accordingly, then use them to “walk off” the measurement along the lower edge of the tape. Now, butt the thick part of a machinist’s square against the edge of the glass, then butt a draughtsman’s 30 degree try-square against the machinist’s square, and mark-off the stripes and spaces accordingly, using a fresh blade to make the cuts. Trim the length to match the length that you need for your loco, making sure to include any part stripes or part spaces at either end. Now, apply the tape to the loco: on my hood unit, the right side started with a partial black space, and the leading edge of the first stripe cut off. Apply the piece of tape that covers the black “space” area first, using a squa
If you can find the stripes on a decal in one direction you might be able to install one side by flipping the decal upside down so what is the paper side is out. Today the decal setting solution is what seals it to the carbody anyway.
Hi,
the stripes and lettering do seem white, but they are indeed grey…I learned the hard way after painting the stripes on a GP38-2 white and I actually think that CN grey #17 is really light, better for the post 1992 units. As far as the decals go you should probably check with SMP industries for your hood units 5828H would be perfect and includes the stipe along the bottom though they might be discontinued. Maybe highball graphics have something. hopefully this helps.
Hello,
I just checked my model railroaders and found an article about constructing, painting, and detailing a CN F7 A and B set. It was in the March 2001 issue of Model Railroader. It was an interesting article, but I’m not sure if the colour scheme is exactly the one you are referring to by the Pre 1970. In terms of the colours, http://www.cnlines.com/ has a large assortment of colours and the specific uses under their Products section. It looks like you are looking for an Orange No. 11 for the nose and perhaps a Grey No. 11 for the stripes and the Wet Noodle logo on the front of the locomotive. CN Lines is a great website with lots of photos and information. Even more info can be found through their forums on their Yahoo Group, CNLines-CNet.
Ghonz
Here’s a shot of my 3 F7 units in the scheme you describe. As for the grey, it turns out that the “correct” grey looks too dark on models. I use white and when weathered lightly, the colours look fine (to me anyway[:)]). I make my own dry transfers but I believe CDS makes the appropriate transfers for this scheme. As for the stripes, in this scheme they all leaned toward the rear of the loco.
Nice job on your F-units, Colin.
Wayne