Question about UP Passenger car truck color

DGJONES posted:

I have accumulated a UP passenger consist that I like that include a Lionel four car set of aluminum cars, a Lionel Station sounds diner and a 3rd Rail heavyweight RPO car being pulled by set of Lionel E-8's.  /They really look nice together except for the truck colors.  The four pack of cars have silver trucks while the engines, SS diner and and RPO cars have dark gray trucks.  

Did UP have streamlined passenger cars with silver trucks and gray trucks?

Yes to the "silver" trucks, i.e. "bright aluminum", no to the gray trucks, for streamlined cars. Currently, ALL the UP executive passenger cars have "silver", i.e. bright aluminum trucks.

For additional information, you might try a Google search for "UP Passenger Cars". There is a wealth of information from Utah Rails, also.

I am thinking about painting the sliver trucks gray.  Does anyone know of paint color that would match Lionel colors?

Scale-Coat Bright Aluminum.

Look forward to hearing your thoughts,

Don

From the Utah Rails website that Hot Water mentions...

"On June 18, 1958, D. S. Neuhart issued instructions that "whenever passenger equipment is shopped or trucks are removed from cars for any other purpose, present paint should be completely removed and trucks repainted with one coat of Chromate Primer CS-22 No. 38 followed by two coats of aluminum paint CS-22 No. 28."

Prior to 1958 the trucks were grey.

I have pictures in books of early UP streamliners with grey trucks.  They seem to be the same color as the car skirts.  I prefer the look of the grey to the aluminum trucks.  The grey trucks also match the grey paint on the trucks of some of my early UP diesels.  

NH Joe

There are prototype advantages to using silver paint on trucks, and today it is the predominant color for them.  Not only does it project a clean appearance, but it makes any cracks in castings stand out, which aids in inspections.  Car inspectors can more easily examine each truck in detail.

Casey Jones2 posted:

From the Utah Rails website that Hot Water mentions...

"On June 18, 1958, D. S. Neuhart issued instructions that "whenever passenger equipment is shopped or trucks are removed from cars for any other purpose, present paint should be completely removed and trucks repainted with one coat of Chromate Primer CS-22 No. 38 followed by two coats of aluminum paint CS-22 No. 28."

Prior to 1958 the trucks were grey.

New Haven Joe posted:

I have pictures in books of early UP streamliners with grey trucks.  They seem to be the same color as the car skirts.  I prefer the look of the grey to the aluminum trucks.  The grey trucks also match the grey paint on the trucks of some of my early UP diesels.  

NH Joe

The gray trucks do make for a nice flowing and matching train of gray, yellow, and red. I never paid attention to the UP silver trucks aesthetically until Lionel produced their C&NW F units with silver truck sides and realized how garishly they stick out. Of course another story with silver trucks on silver cars.

Paint them gray! 

They started painting the locomotive trucks "Aluminum C.S. 22 no. 26 silver in 1954/1955.  Passenger cars followed and standardized as previously posted by 1958.

Silver trucks were 1955+

E9s were the first locomotives actually delivered with silver trucks.  

I model 1946-1955 so I was happy to see the GGD Harriman's delivered with gray trucks.  I was a little disappointed when my new 3rd rail Alco PAs arrived with silver trucks.  I will be painting them gray to match the passenger trucks.

Number 90 posted:

There are prototype advantages to using silver paint on trucks, and today it is the predominant color for them.  Not only does it project a clean appearance, but it makes any cracks in castings stand out, which aids in inspections.  Car inspectors can more easily examine each truck in detail.

Which is exactly why the PRR in the 60's painted the trucks of the P5as and later the GG1s gloss black prior to inspection.  It hid the cracks!

WITZ 41 posted:

Paint them gray! 

They started painting the locomotive trucks "Aluminum C.S. 22 no. 26 silver in 1954/1955.  Passenger cars followed and standardized as previously posted by 1958.

Silver trucks were 1955+

E9s were the first locomotives actually delivered with silver trucks.  

I model 1946-1955 so I was happy to see the GGD Harriman's delivered with gray trucks.  I was a little disappointed when my new 3rd rail Alco PAs arrived with silver trucks.  I will be painting them gray to match the passenger trucks. 

But,,,,,,,what if the original poster is modeling in the post 1955 era, i.e. the current/modern UP passenger equipment? Why should he then "Paint them gray!"?

I don't know about Lionel, but this is what I used a couple of weeks ago on my MTH cars that came with black trucks on a very early run. The car on the right is one of five I had to repaint.

I think the City trains in the forties and fifties had gray truck for a few years. Check out utahrails.net for info on UP truck colors. They changed a few times over the years.

I have four new never used grey six wheel trucks. Lionel part # 6309070050, that I thought I could use on Polar Express heavy passenger cars to replace ones whose plastic components were broken out of the box; however, the style of these trucks did not match the originals.  Drop me an email if you (anyone) are interested; RickM46@live.com.

Thank you to all who took the time to respond to my question.  Based on the information I gleaned from the postings and the links referenced, I think I will just leave the trucks 1/2 silver and the other 1/2 gray.   

Since I think of my layout as being set in the late fifties, it is entirely feasible that UP passenger consist would have had  a mixture of silver and gray trucks.  

Thanks again for all the wonderful input!

Happy railroading,

Don