Locomotive Front End Paints

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The locomotive crew was responsible for the maintenance of the locomotive, particularly the front end, as it was simultaneously the most visible part of the machine and the quickest to become dirty. Many railroads included clauses in their labor agreements outlining the duties of engine crews in this regard; for example, article 8 of the 1891 agreement between the Denver & Rio Grande Railroad and the Brotherhood of Locomotive Fireman reads "The company will furnish a man to clean all flues, fire and ash pans at terminal points, but firemen will keep their front ends and stacks well painted, and their engines in good order." In the period that engineers were assigned to specific locomotives, a good amount of liberty was permitted in carrying out this task. The smokebox region of the locomotive is difficult to research for this reason, as it rarely followed the company's standardized paint instructions, and often must be researched on a case-by-case basis.

Plumbago Paint

Graphite is nothing more or less than plumbago or black lead; it is the metal from which pencils and stove polish s made. There are many different grades, and those suitable for pencils and stove polish may not serve the purpose of the paint maker.

Graphite paint is distinctively an American product. It was the American habit of 'nosing around after something new' that turned this metal in the direction of the paint factory, and it was American chemical skill and constructive genius that devised processes and built machinery by which the metal could be converted into a finished article and placed on the market. It has been producted in this country for about twenty years, and increased quantities are consumed as the years speed by, and of late a considerable amount of the paint has been exported, mainly into England. The paint differs from the general line of paints in that is not intended for any and every purpose, the contention being that it has no equal for application to iron and tin exposed to the weather. There is now little or no doubt as to its being a practical paint from every point of view within the scope of its legitimate field; the stages of trial and experiment have been passed. The chief drawback to its wider use is found in its higher cost, which, if experts may be believed, is more than made up by its longevity as a decorator and preservative.

Aside from durability, the cardinal point in favor of graphite paint, it is urged that it covers more surface than ordinary paint, and that it is easier to apply. Its covering power is explained by the statement that graphite is about one-third the weight of white lead, and one-half that of mineral paint. It is estimated that one gallon of graphite paint ready for the brush will cover 700 square feet of surface, one coat, and this is said to be a low estimate. One objection to this paint for roof work is its slippery nature, making it unsafe for persons to walk on flat roofs painted with it. There may be others, but they are unknown to the writer.

Prof. J. Spenrath, Director of the Industrial School at Aixla-Chapelle, France, has made a large number of experiment on the subject of protective paints, and gives it as his opinion that graphite, of all pigments, is the least affected by chemical influences, and is therefore apparently the most suitable for the fullest protection of all iron and other metal surfaces liable to rust.

"Graphite, or Plumbago, as a Paint Material," Paint, Oil and Drug Review vol.24 no.3 21 July 1897.