Need color and pinstriping info for Northern Pacific steam locos

[mmagliaro]

In light of my NP 2-8-2 W-5 project, I could sure use some definitive information regarding colors
and pinstriping.

I have scoured the internet, my Shrenk and Frey, and other books, enough to convince myself
that a muted black, with a graphite smokebox and graphite color on the lower firebox section would
probably be right.   I am also reasonably convinced that an oxide red on the cab roof is correct.

My quandry concerns the pinstriping on the drivers, pilot and trailing wheels, and tender wheels.
Builder's photos clearly show that pinstriping, and some "beauty shots" of NP steam show the pinstriping.
But looking at a lot of photos, it sure seems to me that it was not very common for that pinstriping
to really last on an engine while it was in service.  Most of the engines appear to have typical
overall dirt and grime on their lower bodies, and the drivers and other engine wheels do not look like
they have pinstriping -- or if they do, it is so faded and dirty that it may as well not be there.

Anybody have some good color shots of NP steam freight engines in the 1950s?  Anybody here who
was actually there who remembers how those engines really looked in day-to-day service?

How about the cab window shades?  I am guessing they would be a khaki colored canvas of some sort, but probably
very dirty so they would have dirty gray and black grime all over them.

Thank you for whatever information you can provide.

[delamaize]

In the research I have done, I have found that usually they have a maroon-ish cab roofs, and the striping on the walkways is usually present, but faded, and dirty, especially around the air pumps and other places where oil and grime may accumulate. Boilers were usually started life as a glossy black on passenger locos, and matte black on freight, with both fading to a washed out matte grey, almost black over time, and darker graphite for the smoke boxes. as for the wheel pin striping, most of what I have been able to tell shows that passenger locomotives held the striping longer than freights. I didn't get the impression that it was removed, but rather just got dirty, and less prevalent over time. And it seems the passenger locos got a little more attention in the cleanliness department.

As for myself, I have had pretty bad luck with wheel striping. As a matter of fact, recently I replaced all the wheel sets on my GS4 and GS4 based locomotives with new, updated, sets, including my A-4, and I don't plan on repainting the wheels.

I have been using a paint from Games workshops for my black and graphite, its thick and hard to airbrush, but when you can make it work, it produces nice results, even when brushed on. I am at work right now, I'll try to get the color name and see if I have any prototype pictures lying around tomorrow sometime.

[wazzou]

Max -
I tend to subscribe to the theory that on the NP, anyway, Engineers and/or Fireman were more apt to take it upon themselves to spruce up the running boards or wheel rims.
I have seen BW and color photos of NP Steam that depict locomotives in the same classes with no such striping, minimal striping and a full compliment of striping.