ERIE & DL&W E-8 MERGER PAINT SCHEMES, LETTERING ETC.?

I can answer a few questions…sort of…

The port holes were eliminated as the panels rusted out. The solid panel was cheaper to install. Pretty much the case with Most E units in the rail industry.

The Mars light was used mainly for road crossings. Their use in general was at the discretion of the Engineer. There weren’t any hard and fast rules about the use of the Mars light at that point…

The E8s had an Engineer side and a Fireman’s side. The presence of oil fired steam generators required the presence of a Fireman to keep them running during the trip. The Conductor was back in the passenger cars with the patrons.

The Lackawanna E8 paint schemes were slightly different from the EL scheme. I believe they were all eventually repainted into EL paint specs..

Tom

Also note that the DL&W E8s were numbered 810 - 820.  DL&W unit 820 was renumbered to EL 809 after the merger.

It looks like #809 had it's porthole side panels replaced with the Erie Lackawanna logo moved between the maroon stripe in the photo below which dates 12/21/1968.

http://www.rrpicturearchives.n...ture.aspx?id=5241480

In the photo in the link below from 06/18/1972 it shows #817 retaining it's porthole side panels along with the transition EL lettering below the maroon stripe.

http://www.rrpicturearchives.n...ture.aspx?id=4548823

So I am guessing the ones that had at least one side porthole side panel replaced with solid one got the EL lettering between the maroon stripe as shown on #826 in the 1966 picture below?

https://www.flickr.com/photos/gmpullman/48122179833/

Great looking engines!

I think a lot of your questions could be answered by contacting the Erie Lackawanna Railroad Historical Society.I know the E8’s lost their portholes gradually, with one retaining them until retirement. I vividly recall waiting for the Phoebe Snow at the East Stroudsburg station, and seeing the Mars light just before pulling in, as there was a street crossing just before the station. Sometimes the shops painted Erie Lackawanna in yellow on the maroon band, and sometimes in maroon on the gray. Eventually, all the Erie units were painted in the gray, maroon and yellow of the DL&W.

Chas, when I was modeling in HO, and more involved with prototype accuracy, I acquired some Erie Lackawanna employee timetables. Unlike the public timetables, these set out rules and regulations on just about any move train crews were supposed to abide by, including horn, light, and Mars light usage. These were periodically updated as time went by. You can sometimes pick these up at train shows. They also show signal aspects and rules for picking up and dropping off at various industries along the roadway.

As far as the modeling of specific units, you’re on the right path by researching date-specific units as to what the paint scheme was at that time.

One of the reasons I got back into three rail trains, was to get away from all that, and just have fun!