Lettering color on early steam

[NW Mailing List]

Please reference the Arrow, Jan-Mar 2007 (volume 23, number 1) Pg 17. Charlie Schlotthober's article should end this debate. He used company inter-office letters. The collection of letters is at the Archives should anyone want or need more information. Here are quotes from the article, as excerpted from a letter from then General Supt. R. G. Henley in reply to Mr. R. H. Smith who was VP- General Manager  and later became President of the company.


"Prior to 1903 we used gold leaf for stenciling and stripping our locomotive cabs and tenders." He then added "I'm told by some of the older employees, although we have nothing in the record, that during that year (1903) it was decided on account of the expense of the gold leaf, to use gold enamel on the freight locomotives and silver leaf on the passenger locomotives. That practice has been followed since that time, except aluminum paint has been substituted for the silver leaf."

Check the link below and you  will see that the price of 22.5 caret gold leaf in a 3.25 inch by 3.25 inch square or 10.5 sq. in.) is about $1.30. Not cheap but not all that bad either. In any case, gold and silver leaf was used and used rather extensively on the N&W. I would imagine this was widely practiced but that would be speculation. 

http://www.lagoldleaf.com/product_info.php?products_id=44



Larry Evans
Kenova,WV
  ----- Original Message ----- 
  From: NW Mailing List 
  To: NW Mailing List 
  Sent: Thursday, September 10, 2009 7:20 PM
  Subject: Re: Lettering color on early steam


  Gary

     " This was not used on locomotives" 

  What do you base this statement on? I do not have any first hand knowledge about Locomotive lettering with gold leaf.
  But I do know for fact the N&W and C&O used real gold leaf in passenger applications. And would think it would
  be in the realm of possibility that in the day they may have use it on passenger locomotives as the drawing suggest.

  Larry



  ----- Original Message ----- 
    From: NW Mailing List 
    To: 'NW Mailing List' 
    Sent: Wednesday, September 09, 2009 5:50 PM
    Subject: RE: Lettering color on early steam


    Strictly speaking gold leaf is gold beaten extensively between two sheets of leather so that it forms an extremely thin sheet, about 0.001" thick and thinner. Gold is a very soft, plastic metal in pure form.  This thin sheet would be cut up adhesively applied to jewelry and furniture.  This technology goes back centuries.  This was not used on locomotives.  Too expensive.

     

    Gold leaf paint is paint that has actual 'ground-up' powder of actual gold metal in it as the pigment.  Thus, it is costly.

     

    "Gold" paint today has some other ground up mineral as the powder that mimics the color and reflectivity of gold (Au) but doesn't cost that much.  Iron Pyrite (all that glitters is not gold) used to be part of the pigment but that too became too costly.

     

    DULUX gold paint is a yellow pigmented paint that is not based on a metallic pigment.  But, it looks gold-like.  Cheaper.

     

    Gary Rolih

    Cincinnati

     

     


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    From: nw-mailing-list-bounces at nwhs.org [mailto:nw-mailing-list-bounces at nwhs.org] On Behalf Of NW Mailing List
    Sent: Wednesday, September 09, 2009 12:00 PM
    To: Norfolk Western Mailing List
    Subject: RE: Lettering color on early steam

     

    In generic terms, what is gold leaf comprised of? and how is it applied to the prototypes?
     
    Thanks,
    Dave Willis
    (blt 1962, c/n 4)
     
    > To: nw-mailing-list at nwhs.org
    > Subject: Re: Lettering color on early steam
    > Date: Wed, 9 Sep 2009 06:20:27 -0400
    > From: nw-mailing-list at nwhs.org
    > 
    > It appears to me, that in VERY early photos of N&W locomotives (perhaps 
    > freight only) that the lettering is white rather than gold, for example the 
    > picture of the first loco produced by Roanoke. Anyone else have data?
    > Jim Cochran
    > dcochran116 at roadrunner.com
    > 
    > ----- Original Message ----- 
    > From: "NW Mailing List" <nw-mailing-list at nwhs.org>
    > To: "NW Mailing List" <nw-mailing-list at nwhs.org>
    > Sent: Tuesday, September 08, 2009 9:20 PM
    > Subject: Re: Lettering color on early steam
    > 
    > 
    > > Joe
    > >
    > > I have drawing F1154 Oct 24 1884 shows gold leaf on passenger tenders 
    > > and gold paint on
    > > fright locomotive tenders
    > >
    > > Larry Evans
    > > Kenova, WV
    > >
    > >
    > > ----- Original Message ----- 
    > > From: "NW Mailing List" <nw-mailing-list at nwhs.org>
    > > To: <nw-mailing-list at nwhs.org>
    > > Sent: Tuesday, September 08, 2009 5:04 PM
    > > Subject: Lettering color on early steam
    > >
    > >
    > >> Gentlemen,
    > >> I've been asked by a model company to supply info about the lettering on 
    > >> early N&W steam. My information is that the lettering color on both 
    > >> passenger and freight pre-1900 steam was gold leaf. Can anyone confirm 
    > >> or deny that?
    > >> Thanks
    > >> Joe Giannovario
    > >> O Scale Trains Magazine
    > >> ________________________________________
    > >> NW-Mailing-List at nwhs.org
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    > >> Browse the NW-Mailing-List archives at
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