PRCo Paint

[Dietrich, Robert J.]

Folks:

I'm looking at Traction Heritage Vol. 1 No. 6 "Selections from 1925 Electric
Railway Journal".  The article is titled "Standardizing Rolling Stock in
Pittsburgh" - yea, right.  I quote:

"Commencing with the first of these new cars received last year a change was
made in the exterior color from red to orange.  Use of the new color scheme
is being extended, and eventually all the low-floor cars will be orange and
the old types red."

The cars shown were 5400s.  This seems to correspond with Fred's and Ed's
statements.

Regards.

Bob

 -----Original Message-----
From: 	Jim Holland [mailto:pghpcc at pacbell.net] 
Sent:	Monday, August 14, 2000 2:56 PM
To:	pittsburgh-railways at dementia.org
Subject:	Re: PRCo  Paint

Greetings!

	Thanks, Fred, very interesting information!  Glad you were around to
record the colors!!!!!!!

	From the few photos I have seen it *seems* that the Brill and St.
Louis
red was deeper and darker - but as you say, I never saw a fresh paint
job.  I don't even remember seeing one of these cars!

Fred W. Schneider III wrote:

> Somewhere in this house is a copy of the Pittsburgh Railways paint book
... the
> car-by-car record of all paint work, inside, outside, partial, complete,
colors.
> But it is a very large document (meaning 14x17) and I can never remember
where I
> hide it from one use to the next.  Cars were maroon in the earlier years
of PRC
> but I don't know if that goes all the way back to 1902.  Just like West
Penn
> changed from green to orange as a result of an accident, PRC determined
that
> orange might also prevent accidents.  I believe that all cars through the
4900s
> came in maroon, certainly the 4200s, 4300s, 4700s, some 4800s, and the
6000s were
> maroon.  The low-floor trailers were maroon.  The builder's photos of 5200
show an
> orange car.  Interestingly, the builder's photo of 5200 also depicts how
weak
> those cars were ... the diagonal crease across the front body plate behind
the
> door was already evident; the front platform was sagging even before it
was loaded
> on a flat car for shipment to Pittsburgh.  Some service cars may have
never
> received orange paint ... I think 3487 at Arden, which had been the
Charleroi line
> car, may never have gotten to the paint shop during the orange car era.
For
> certain, it was photographed outside Charleroi car house during the 1940
NRHS
> convention trip and it was in maroon paint then.  The trim color on it is
silver
> but I cannot vouch for its authenticity.

> My suspicion is that the orange or yellow paint began with the 5000s.

> I believe that all the interurbans got red and gray (note that the low
3700s were
> originally maroon) with some getting cream later in life if gray wasn't
available.

> The PCC red was, by the way, Mountain Ash Scarlet.  I don't know off hand
if the
> PCC red and the interurban car red were the same ... I've seen both but I
never
> saw a 3700 or 3800 in fresh paint.  And I was 12 the last time I saw an
> interurban.

> > Jim Holland wrote:

> > Greetings!

> >         Just looking at a photo from the Ed Lybarger collection used in
the
> > 1992 PTM calendar of an 3700 series Brill interurban in downtown
> > Washington shortly after delivery.  The photo caption indicates that the
> > car was painted *maroon.*
> >         Apparently this was the *standard paint scheme* for all
equipment very
> > early in the 1900s.  I would assume the equipment had a black roof and
> > this photo shows a little gold trim on the front dash.  Were other
> > colors used for trim and how?
> >         How long did this paint scheme last and when did the
> > *PRCo--"Yellow"-(Orange)* debut?

> >         From all current indications, the interurbans (3700--3714 and
> > 3800--3814) were not painted in *Yellow.*  Possibly just before the
> > debut of the 3800s, the 37s were painted red with cream/white window
> > area and black roof while the 38s came with red and gray window area.
> >         Does this sound correct?

James B. Holland

        Pittsburgh  Railways  Company  (PRCo),   1930  --  1950
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