PRR Loco Restoration : To paint the cab roof or not?

The PRR used "red" ("oxide"; "freight car color" - i.e, boxcar red, but that had varieties) as their standard steamer roof color; it was also used on tender decks. It was a rust-resistant paint, I believe, and the top of the cabs and tenders would get showered with hot and acidic cinders and ash. The PRR, like all major and even minor RR's had "standards and practices", and the red roof was a standard. But - later, I think that it became less so; I have never noticed a T-1 4-4-4-4 with a red roof, for example.

Most RR's did not use red steamer roofs (the NYC had standards, too - and roofs were loco color - can you imagine a gray Century Hudson with a red roof? Yikes!), so I guess that the oxide red was not universally felt to be worthwhile.

Your loco roof/tender tank deck should probably be oxide red or the like.

The striping on the cab sides, drivers, rods and tender sides was used on passenger locos only into the late 1920s or early 30s.    I think some of the first built M1s had the striping as aimed for dual service.     the practice ended probably mainly as a cost savings issue.     So if you have a Mikado (L1), it would never have had the striping.    A K4, G5, D16, or E6 (or other Ks and Es) would probably have had the stripes early on.  

Also, the cab roofs and tender decks are specified as being painted other than black.   It was a mix of Freight Car Red and black.    And actually different specs for the cab roof as the tender deck.    I have attached a  write-up from the PRRT&HS Journal that is a reprint of the routine maintenance and painting instructions for Steam.    Now in service, most people think the cab roofs got to looking black pretty quick because of soot from the stack.    

I'm not that much of a PRR "historian" but, didn't the PRR stop painting tender decks and cab roofs red, after WWII? Thus, I would think that how you paint/detail your model should depend on the era you are attempting to model.

Pinstripes were a feature of PRR steam passenger power up until the Great Depression.  They were not applied to freight locomotives so would not be appropriate for your L1s.  Paint standards until after WWII called for oxide red on the tender deck and on the back plate of the coal bunker.  The cab roof standard was a different color: 50% oxide red and 50% black, resulting in a brown appearance.  Cab roofs were not oxide red, despite what many of the 3-rail manufacturers put out.

By the 1950's the cab roofs were DGLE when new and black tar-like gooped when shopped later.  Modern power like the T1, J1/J1a, Q1 and Q2 did not have red or brown roofs, again despite what the model manufacturers put out.  1950's tender decks also mostly lost the oxide red color.  Maybe the dark paint had become more durable by then.

Picking a nit, your L1s should have a round black number plate on the smokebox, not the red keystone plate.  Keystone number plates were used on passenger power (and on the ex-N&W Y3 2-8-8-2's for some reason).

H10,  Weaver Model 

B6, K-Line Model

M1a Weaver

C1 Weaver 

K4 Lionel 

I1 decapod, top shelf Sunset Thirdrail model

E6 Sunset Thirdrail model 

L1s Weaver model

G5 Weaver Model

A5 Weaver Model

There have been discussions about the color of red, if my foggy head is working correctly today.  Another slow day of lock-down on the internet.  

@Bob posted:

Picking a nit, your L1s should have a round black number plate on the smokebox, not the red keystone plate.  Keystone number plates were used on passenger power (and on the ex-N&W Y3 2-8-8-2's for some reason).

@Bob, so I've been told. But I'm not really willing to buy an entire new smoke box cover, not for this one anyway. My intention was to keep overall investment in this engine to less than 50 bucks, and I had to buy decals, a rear truck (that hasn't shown up yet) and some paint. Also bought a steam PS1 chip and paid shipping for a tender that was donated, so I'm over my limit already. The cover is in good enough shape to keep it as-is. My dad or kids will never know the difference!

I'll skip the pinstriping, but I suppose I'll mix up some red/black/brown for the cab roof. And I'll probably paint the tender deck the same, don't really want to mix two different kinds of red rust color.

@Mike CT: thanks for all the helpful photos! I like the L1s by Weaver and it's close to what I think I'm going to end up with. I like the more Rusty brown looking shade than the bright red shade, I'm going to try for that. You have quite a collection!

Thanks for all the help, guys! 

I have an 8 MM color film of a Pennsylvania E6 and a K4 double headed light leaving Baltimore station heading to Orangeville for servicing and turning taken in about 1949-51 by my grandfather and me.  The K4 has a black cab roof and tender deck. The E6 has a black cab roof and a red tender deck.

PRR Freight Car Red, was much more of a rusty color than Red.    It was their version of Boxcar red.   And according to historians, it gradually became darker and more brown over the years as more and more artificial pigments were used vs natural ones.    It tends to be much more brownish in the 50s than the 30s, when it is said to be more orangish.   

A point, freight equipment, including cabins (cabooses),  was never painted a tuscan red which is a very maroon color.

Mike - thanks for sharing those photos.  You have a very nice collection.

Photo of completed unit: