Green Boiler on 1500s?

Discussion in '1500 Class Mountains' started by skyraider, Mar 4, 2018.

  1. skyraider

    skyraider Member

    After looking through the forum for the answer to this and not finding it...is there any record or knowledge of which 1500 class locomotives had green boilers at some time in their history?

    Thanks,

    Paul Moore
     
  2. frisco1522

    frisco1522 Staff Member Staff Member

    The only steam engines on the Frisco that I know of were the 182-187 class back in the 20s. Every now and then, somebody starts the green 1500 thing going. I would want to see photo proof.
     
  3. TAG1014 (Tom Galbraith RIP 7/15/2020)

    TAG1014 (Tom Galbraith RIP 7/15/2020) Passed Away July 15, 2020 Frisco.org Supporter

    On page 26 of Frisco Southwest there's a brief reference to a "green livery" in the caption to a 1923 photo of 1501. I think that's where the whole green idea came from. But hey it's a black and white photo so who knows???

    Tom G.
     
  4. skyraider

    skyraider Member

    There's been talk of it off and on for years. Most photos from the steam era were obviously black and white, and it's difficult, if not impossible, to really tell color differentiation from b & w photos. With all the discussion of green boilered Frisco passenger steam locomotives I've heard, I thought there might be some truth to it. There's such a tremendous knowledge base on this forum, I thought it would be worth asking to see if anyone knows of any records regarding the apparently-fictitious green boilers on 1500's.

    There is similar debate on the D&RGW side of things regarding green boiler jackets. What color of green was it; did they exist in narrow gauge or not; etc. There have been several articles written, but who knows what the truth really is. After one article about a particular b & w photo that supposedly demonstrated a green boiler due to the apparent color difference between the cab and boiler jacket, one extremely knowledgeable person pointed out that the cab or cab and tender could have been repainted for some reason, but the boiler left the way it was ( renumbered, new lettering style, damage repaired, etc).

    Thanks for the responses. I'm hoping to paint an HO Toby 1500 fairly soon and wondered if there was any factual evidence supporting boiler color. It will probably end up being black!
     
  5. Karl

    Karl 2008 Engineer of the Year Frisco.org Supporter

    Last edited: Mar 5, 2018
    modeltruckshop likes this.
  6. frisco1522

    frisco1522 Staff Member Staff Member

    I think you're right about the 183 and 187 being the only two. They are also referenced in the Baldwin magazines from the 20s, two of which had a thorough writeup of the Frisco.
    I did manage to finally find a photo of 187 with the Coffin FWH showing where the pump was. 183 1920s.jpg 187 1200 dpir.jpg
     
  7. skyraider

    skyraider Member

    Thanks, Don and Karl, for the info. The one to be painted will definitely be black. My painted Toby 1500 is #1527. I bought it already painted, and lots of people apparently like to do the one on display in Alabama. The next one I do will probably be 1522. Are there a couple of detail differences that set it apart? It would be nice to not just duplicate my existing 1500 with a different number.

    Thanks,

    Paul Moore
     
    Ozarktraveler likes this.
  8. yardmaster

    yardmaster Administrator Staff Member Administrator Frisco.org Supporter

    Interesting thread and great photos. I'd never read or heard of the green boiler-jacketed 1500s, and I figure if neither Don nor Karl are familiar with it, then it's urban legend.

    Neither here nor there but the airhorns on the cab of 183 are a bit ludicrous looking.

    Lest I start more rumors , it seems like I'd read somewhere that one of the 4-4-0s kept its boiler jacket until scrapping, but that it was ultimately painted in a standard gloss black?

    Best Regards,
     
    modeltruckshop likes this.
  9. Steamnut

    Steamnut cinder sniffer

    I've never noticed/seen/paid attention to the Coffin feed water system on that engine. It looks like you could dump a lot of water into that small boiler in a hurry. Those are great pictures Don.
     
  10. Karl

    Karl 2008 Engineer of the Year Frisco.org Supporter

    The smokebox on 183 and 187 was 5" longer than that of their sisters.
     
  11. frisco1522

    frisco1522 Staff Member Staff Member

    183 and 187 kept their lagged/jacketed smokeboxes.
     
  12. wpmoreland719

    wpmoreland719 Member Frisco.org Supporter

    Boy, those are some pretty little 4-4-0s.
     
    WindsorSpring likes this.

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