I believe Chicago Great Western’s “Blue Bird” and “Red Bird” trains were painted blue and red, respectively, including not just the cars but the passenger steam engines. I believe GM&O had some maroon and red steam engines - I think one of Don Ball’s books had a pic?
Paint serves two purposes: to protect the equipment and to promote the railroad.
Early on, there were no paints which could handle high temperatures. Boilers were treated to protect them (russian iron, american iron, etc), which made their very pleasant looking. Smokeboxes and fireboxes were also coated in materials which made them look gray or silver. Later on, paint technology progessed to a point at which these components could be painted. Some roads painted their locomotive boilers to resemble the earlier treatments (commonly green boilered locomotives), as did others paint the smokeboxes.
If cost was the primary concern, boxcar red was very cheap (rust is the pigment)…and black was both cheap and durable…so they became common once beauty was no longer considered to be a requirement. When beauty was a requirement…1870s, 1880s…very few builders would paint their locomotives black…Baldwin preferred olive something or another.
Later, some roads did have colorful steam as has been mentioned…green Southern passenger power, gray UP power, and of course the many streamlined locomotives (which were really form over function).
The story (myth?) I heard was that Vanderbilt decreed that all NYC locomotives would be black - possibly in mourning for his wife who had just died. The other railroads followed along because the NYC set the standard.
Enjoy
Paul
To clear up a couple of common misconceptions, the Model T was available only in black from 1913 to 1927. Prior to that, is was also available in green, red, blue, and grey, and in 1909, not in black at all. Ford finally settled on black only because it was cheap and durable - nothing to do with faster drying times, either, as by 1927, Ford was cranking out a Model T every 24 seconds.
And, to keep things train-related, in addition to dabbling in cars and steel, Ford was also became a railroad magnate with his purchase of the DT&I.
Wayne
When I worked at a clothing store, I learned that there were 3 types of black. Brown black, grey black, and black black. Must be just a clothing thing!
Well, that explains the bright orange color of the DT&I.
Rust? They really used rust as an pigment? Wouldn’t that cause the metal cars to rust out prematurely?
All this discussion of locomotve colors leaves out one essential point. Locomotives, even steamers, came out the the erecting and overhaul shops painted in high gloss enamels. They were really shiny until the effects of sunlight, rain, grime and wear flatted them out. As modelers our protocol seems to be to use matte finishes exclusively and I’m wondering where this comes from. I’ve sprayed some of my engines, both steam and diesel, in gloss and find I rather like the look. I have enough heavily weathered engines on the layout so folks can see I do that too, but I really like my “bright boys”. Am I alone in the World?
It wasn’t exactly rust, it was dirt or clay with some iron ore in it - which is common in many areas, even where there isn’t enough iron ore to mine. Think “red clay of Georgia”…mix it with turpentine and slap it on your barn !!
No, not alone, but not in a big crowd, either.[swg]
Below is my procedure for painting steam locos. While I start the weathering process with the colours of paint chosen, it’s continued by using different clear coats over these, then any other weathering effects are added last.
For painting steam locomotives, I use Floquil paints, applied with an airbrush. I like to mix three or four shades of black, starting with Engine Black. For the cab and tender body, I lighten it slightly with the addition of some Reefer White. This “lightened black” is further lightened by the addition of some Grey Primer, used on the boiler, smoke box front, pilot, cylinders, appliances (pumps, compressors, etc.) and tender deck. This colour is further altered with the addition of some Roof Brown to create a “grimy black”, suitable for the running gear and frames of both loco and tender. Finally, for the smoke box and firebox, I add some more brown and, often, some Caboose Red or Reefer Orange.
These colours are applied to the loco (dis-assembled to whatever degree necessary) without masking, although I do use a card or piece of paper to shield adjacent areas, as required.
After the paint has cured for several days, it’s ready for lettering. I general