OK, kinda topic that has enter and exited my mind over the past months, as I painted a slew of HO figures from different manufacturers over that time.
Anyway, check out this images from a coming Woodland Scenics auto-mechanics set: http://www.walthers.com/exec/productinfo/785-1914
OK, so only the mechanic on the lower left is wearing ‘modern era’ coveralls (or a similar looking jumpsuit) while the remainder (excepting the welder, who might be wearing a welding leather/outfit) are wearing the older-looking bib-overalls. Now, not saying this as a hard/fast rule (old = bib overalls, new = coveralls), as I’m sure many workers still wear bib-overalls (such as Jesse James in a recent Monster Garage), but roughly when did the switchover from bib-overalls to coveralls/jumpsuits (trivia: jumpsuits came about in 1913 or so) occur for most tradesmen, including railroad workers (do they even wear coveralls now?).
(Bonus points: how do I make bib overalls on model figures look like coveralls - without earning an art degree [:D] )
i don’t have an answer for your questions , but these http://www.carhartt.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/ProductDisplay?catalogId=10101&storeId=10051&productId=32168&langId=-1&categoryId=10909
are very popular with tradesmen of all types , in fact i rarely see coveralls on anyone other than auto mechanics . no idea what railroad employees wear these days
O.K,
At least since the 1970s, mechanics and other tradesmen in the transportation fields (auto, truck, bus, rail, marine, aviation) generally wear the mechanics paints and shirts provided by uniform companies. I’m referring to the typical uniform that you see in the “Mr. Goodwrench” commercials, however usually a solid dark blue or dark gray color. The one piece jumpsuits are often provided as an option. The bib overalls were most often worn by the “non-vehicle” craftsmen such as carpentars (like my late dad), plumbers, and building electricians.
Though I worked 15 years for a transit company, I made many trips to the huge rail facility in Tampa. The mechanics there were pretty much dressed like us. Some of the older guys were wearing bibs. The welders wore protectives vests and/or aprons when on task.
As I mentioned on another thread, I’m amazed at how many modelers with post-1965 themed layouts still have their locomotive crews wearing the “striped overalls” when in fact many engineers and fireman were wearing jeans, khakis, polo shirts, or button up flannel shirts. Comfortable casual looks that would blend in the general public.
Don’t sweat it too much. The figures shown on the links would work well also. The style of dress varies from company to company. What I mentioned above is here in Florida (SCL and later CSX territory). I’ve seen photos of Santa Fe shop workers in the 60s-70s wearing bibs.
So…go with what you like best.
Industrial plant workers still wear a mix of clothing from blue jeans to complete Dickie uniforms.Construction workers and track maintainers favor bibs and cover alls.
So,IMHO one absolute answer doesn’t cover all classes of workers so, like everything else in the hobby needs to be research…
I work in an Industrial plant and wear both coveralls and pants and shirt, it just depends on the job I’m doing that day.
OK, the answers are all over the place, and probably because of the nature of things that is to be expected. I guess my predujice against bib-overalls was based on a limited view of the tradesmen, repairmen, and municipal employees I see around here.
So, while we have many tradesman (mechanics, municipal employees, repairmen, etc.) wearing either coveralls/jumpsuits OR separate uniform pants/shirts, we also have some tradesmen like carpenters, plumbers, etc. who wear bib-overalls too.
We seem to have no real consensus on railroad employees, but after reviewing many images of (modern era) railroad operating employees on the web and in Railpace, they seem mostly to wear work pants/jeans, a work shirt (often flannel), and some sort of sturdy jacket (if the weather requires it) - in other words, no bib-overalls like the stereotypical image of the golden era railroad operating employee (engineer, fireman, brakeman, etc.). Unfortunately that seems to be the most common uniform that model rr employees are molded with (and I guess for good reason).
Thanks for all the replies, they provide a starting point for further thought
In our rural area, I see very few workmen wearing jumpsuits/coveralls. Lots of bib overalls and jeans/shirts. Farm workers and carpenters like bib overalls because sawdust and grain chaff tend to collect inside clothes if you are wearing a belt, but they fall on through bib overalls. I wear bibs in my wood shop for that reason. They are also cooler in summer [good], but also in winter [bad]. The heavy bibs [like Carhart] have replaced the striped ones in winter.
Actually, I find the bibs easier to get into than a jump suit…just my opinion. but I’m partial to flannel shirts and jeans as well…
chutton01, As a mechanic/driver that has company uniforms I still will put on a pair of coveralls for certain jobs that I know are dirty. Such as changing fluids in the engine and driveline and greasing, and suspension work. And with coveralls you can take them off if you have to go out to get parts or lunch so you don’t crap up your work truck or your car. This is just my personal preference.
die-gressing back more decades then I care to count, heres my input of an x locomotive mechanic ( railroad machinist) with SP and WP.
It was a matter of personal choice since the employee bought his own uniform. I liked the coveralls and wore levis and a tee shirt under them. Being sure to wear the new one to break in over the winter so that they would be cooler in the summer as they wore out… Some of my friends wore the bibs, mostly from the old schoooolll (ex steamers). It really depended on the type of job. If I knew I would be working in the air room repairing air brake equipment, I wore old street clothes. If I was pulling head, liners and pistons or general running repair and or inspecting locomotives, it was coveralls.
Usually the coveralls and shirt and pants one wore underneath them were washed at a laundrymat in the washing machine marked "for greasers only"as the creater compound ( traction motor lube) was a tad gooie and stickey. It stuck to the inside of our washing machine. Of which my mind can still hear my late wife screeming as she was removing the white sheets, with those black creater poka-dots on them, seems I ran a load of coveralls beforhand…LOL.
Train crews wore street clothes as a general rule, however a few wore the nicer jumpsuits and a few of the old timer engeneers wore bibs.
Depending on the railroad, they swiched to plastic saftey hats. WP was in the Mid 70s.
Each craft (machinist, electricians, boilermaker, pipe fitters, laborers and of course the white hats, formen.) Painting your workers hats will give a bit of purpos to them
we really thought at the time those plastic hats were a pain to live with. We all wore the old tall railroad hats ( like a baseball hat, but the top was taller) Reason being the roundhouse was poorley lit, we stuck our flashlight under the brim of the hat so as we worked the light would shine on the work area. Really handy when working inside a F3 or F7 during maintaince and setting e
Here in Tn. brown bib overalls (and blue denim) are pretty common. A lot of folks here wear the Mosey Oaks camouflage ones too. (even the women) [:I] Almost all the RR workers I see just wear blue jeans, T shirts and a bright yellow or bright red safety vest.
As I recall from my railroad days (late '50’s-early '60’s) Those engineers who came up the ranks from firing and driving steam wore pinstripe bib overalls and traditional engineer’s hats, even into the diesel era. The carmen and engine shop folks wore blue denim bib overalls. later came the coveralls for the service folks. Later engineers often wore slacks or jeans with a print cotton or flannel shirts, depending on weather, and windbreaker jackets with fedoras, the ball caps came even later. jc5729 John Colley, Port Townsend, WA
When I work as a brakeman it’s Carhartt bibs in fall,winter and spring,denim jeans only in summer.Bibs keep the wind off plus allow good arm movement,also good padding when you trip. Joe
Back when I was an Auto Tech, I never saw anyone wearing the bibs. All the metal and buttons would scratch up a car exterior and could damage the interior as well. We always wore shirts and matching pants or the one-piece coveralls.
Jim
Jump suits and coveralls aren’t the same thing of course, Jump suits are the uniforms used in bad 1950’s-60’s Sci-Fi movies. I always assumed they came from the military, i.e. suits for parachute jumps(?) Coveralls were around and common in the steam era, I’ve seen c.1940 pics of RR guys wearing them.
To change a worker’s clothes, scrape or file off the edge of, say, of bib and straps. Add clothing by painting on a 50/50 mix of white glue and powdered chalk. Rub a stick of chalk on a coarse file to make powdered chalk. Once dry, the new clothes can be filed and scraped to exact shape.
This technique is especially useful for dressing workers for cold weather. It seems most of us prefer to model an endless summer but the light shirts and short sleves on many available figures don’t fit in a snow scene.
Good car mechanics who work on good cars don’t wear anything with any metal buttons, buckles, or anything else that might mar the paint on their clothing.
Industrial mechanics are much more likely to wear uniforms, either regular looking pants and shirts, or coveralls, or shirts and bib overalls, and that is usually a matter of personal choice. I’d say we are about 40% pants and shirts, 30% coveralls, and 30% bib overalls here.
Well I will mention my attire as a forklift operator…Summer I worn blue jeans and pocket T-Shirts…In the winter I wore jeans,pocket t-shirts and coveralls due to the cold and wind chill on the receiving dock then later the rail dock-usually just the cold…Spring and fall I wore jeans,pocket t-shirt and jacket.This was the normal dress for all dock workers including the checkers.I also wore safety tread steel toe cowboy boots.
As a option we could wear blue jean or dress shorts in the summer.These shorts could not be more then 3" from the knee-about mid-thigh
I usually wear bibs year-round. Since going into engine service, I have expanded, and do not have any pants that fit.[#oops] Brown bibs (“duck”-type fabric) when colder, and demin when warmer. We have to wear a safety reflective vest. In daylight, an orange or lime green T-shirt is acceptable. When colder, sweatshirts and hoodies. Carhartt coats are a little too bulky for me, so layers is the way to go.
John Allen used to modify his figures with a glued-on overlay of tissue; this was good for removing seams etc. where he didn’t want 'em. When he had his figures the way he wanted 'em he painted 'em.