PRCo PCC Colors

[Jim Holland]

Greetings!

> > On Mon, 11 Sep 2000, Jim Holland wrote:

> >       All the color photos I have of PRCo PCC equipment when relatively new
> > show the red to have a definite orange bias.  The color is red but it is
> > a soft red, not deep and hard.  Also, if you have the video
> > *PCC-Triolgy* there are color photos of 1200s from 1940 when  NEW!
> > These were shot quite professionally on 16mm film on tripod and are
> > excellent in color rendition.

Derrick J Brashear wrote:
 
> FWS3 if he were here would probably have good comments

	The email that I received from Fred indicated that he was quite
ecstatic about the model he received - he did *not-specifically* comment
on the paint except to say that PRCo cars did not remain in that
pristine condition for long - they were battered and worn mighty fast!

> How much can you count on color of shots that old to
> not have shifted over the years?

	But I find it interesting that my prints from slides  AND  the video
*PCC-Trilogy* indicate a strong bias for an orange-red, or rather,
red-orange!  Interesting how they faded identically!

> The thing that brings this to mind is the
> comment on the photo of, I believe, the 4 aces in PCC From Coast To Coast
> about the orthochromatic film being responsible for the dark rendering of
> the car in that shot.

	Excellent observation.  Who here can remember the exact paint scheme of
anything 51-years old?!:>)  Our recent memories of the paint schemes
tend to color our *original* memories and the B&W prints and their lack
of grayscale renderings (golly-gee, didn't computers and printers have
that problem at one time?!?!) made the red seem super extra dark!  That
could definitely *color* our perception of the original paint.
	I can't exactly remember the original paint schemes but definitely
remember thinking that repainted cars were *darker* than the originals
when I first saw the repaints!
	And as was mentioned by Ed in another post, there were four different
mfgrs. of Scarlet-Ash-Red (someone describe the color to me  *without* 
using PRCo as an example!!:>)) and who is to say that their mixes were
identical.  It is said that if a paint job is going to take more than
one bottle/can of paint that 2-3 should be pre-mixed, even from the same
batch, to produce repeatable results for the project.

	I am sticking with the orange bias on the red, thank you!
	
> And even having a look at weathered paint on a surviving piece wouldn't
> necessarily help, at least I think artificial pigment paints only came
> into widespread use in the mid-late '50s.

	True - everything changes with age, whether exposed or covered.

> -D
> -has pondered questions of color perception far more than a
> non-color-blind-civil-engineering-trained-computer-programmer should have

James B. Holland

        Pittsburgh  Railways  Company  (PRCo),   1930  --  1950
    To e-mail privately, please click here: mailto:pghpcc at pacbell.net
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