When railroads patch locos, what do they patch. I know they patch the number but is it common practice to patch the logo also? I have a BNSF unit that i’m going to patch for Southern.
Thanks,
dekruif
Depends.
Typically, a railroad will paint out any reporting marking, logos and other lettering of the previous owner. Usually, they will use paint that is close to the base color. But, if all else fails a basic black patch and white lettering will do.
Note this normally isn’t the case when units are aquired by merger. Merger aquired units can run in the previous owner’s paint and marking for years.
Leasing companies will often just paint out the reporting markings, and renumber the unit, leaving the previous railroad’s logo untouched.
Nick
At the time of the BN merger, the railroad left the logos but changed the unit numbers and painted the numbers with a small BN underneath the new number.
I am a bit confused. Why would you take a train that only existed after 1996 and patch it for a railroad that hasnt existed since 1982… doesnt really make sense to me…
I want to have a railroad like this only for Southern.
ahhh… makes so much more sense now 
one of those if only the railroad never ended themes good luck, southern would be a nice railroad to do that with!
Dekruif!
So who exactly has Southern swallowed up on your layout? If BNSF is on the list, it’d have to be a pretty long list.
Matt
I still see locomotives decorated for the Southern Pacific running on the Union Pacific Sunset Route through southern Arizona. The UP just drew a line through the Southern Pacific lettering on the sides and patched the road number under the cab windows with a UP number.
I think they’re going to continue running them that way until they are scrapped.
It hasn’t swallowed up anybody yet. I’m trying to bould up my bank account so I can have a bigger fleet when I do start swallowing people up.[:D]
-dekruif
Here’s an idea that might explain your patched BN loco in a modern Southern / surviving scenario.
My favourite Class 1, CNW bought in all sorts of power from whoever was selling at one stage. (Seem to be mostly SD40-2s and SD45s - correct me if I’m wrong please). Anyway, I have so far seen locos with CNW numbers and heralds applied over CR, BN, NW and at least 2 other roads… but who they were has gone clean out of my head… they were Eastern roads… PC???
How much patching out varies a lot and the CNW herald waasn’t always applied. The NW locos simply had a big “C” added in front of the “NW” in white on the black side. I bet someone in the shops just loved that little money saver! I’ve also seen this on freight cars the CNW bought from NW and have one model of it.
If you are saying that the Southern survived there’s no reason other bits of history shouldn’t be adapted. Maybe BN/BNSF didn’t get on with a particular modern loco or decided to rationalise its fleet and got rid of some modern stuff? Who knows?
[8D]