How Germany's Steam Locomotives got their Colour!

Germany's steam locomotives are known for their black and red colour scheme. But why use such a light colour like bright red for machinery that is prone to accumulate dirt and grime very quickly? Let me explain!

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Chapters:

00:00 Intro
00:18 Red Brown
02:08 Bright Red
04:05 Outro

[johnoneill]

The contrast between the black and the red makes the Locomotives look so much better.

[Thinginator]

I always assumed red anything on a steam locomotive was because it's pretty. Never thought there was actually logic to the color choices, pretty neat!

[davidkavanagh]

Fascinating! The red and black liveries of the German locomotives are one of the attributes that makes them very unique and attractive in my opinion.

[patricksmodels]

Italian State Railways also painted their steam locomotives black and red, with white wheel rims, another colour that allows instant crack detection. The early electric locomotives followed the same practice, but using brown above the running board.

[forrestrobin]

A question most of us British steam fans have wondered at some time. I'd always figured it was for visibility. (Like rellow warning panels on UK diesels and electrics, or the standard British red buffer beam). I never thought of it for the highlighting of cracks or other damage.

[asteroidrules]

I always found it interesting how different regions developed different trends in liveries. In the UK there were a lot of bright and vibrant color schemes with detailed lining for aesthetic reasons, in the US steam locomotives were overwhelmingly painted black for its durability and to better hide dirt and grime, Germany seems to have gotten somewhere between the two with the red and black combination.

[BobAbc]

See! Red actualy makes Things faster! Granted making the Paint fade faster, but faster non the less😂

[sirrliv]

It's interesting how the OBB, the Austrian State Railways, took the opposite stance, taking considerable pride in painting their locomotives pure black. To imply that an Austrian engine, even one of German origin, was ever painted red, is something of an insult.

[ansonleeXD]

I’ve noticed that many counties starting from Germany and eastwards all have the black and red scheme. The Germans have it, the Poles have it, the countries in the former Soviet Union have it, all the way up with China, where it is the standard for all steam locomotives. Other than painting the loco all black I think it is one of (if not) the most common steam locomotive paint scheme out there.

[danishmorgan]

Our Danish Steam Locomotives were typically painted black with black underframes and wheels, yellow lettering and lining, and the Danish flag around its funnel. We also took over a lot of Swedish locomotives, even the large Pacific-esque Litra E, which drove the last steam-powered train in Denmark before steam was abolished in 1970

[axelk]

Fun fact: the haulage company "FERCAM" in the "EU" used to paint their trailers in this "railway brake dust - grey brown" to save money instead of washing them! You only notice whether the trailers are clean or not when you touch them. The best way to tell is if the tires are black and don't have this dirty coating on them. Nowadays they are just grey, they must have gotten a beating from their customers and the railway companies because they were ALWAYS so dirty.

[bogdanuri]

Another interesting question will be about the classic GREEN color of passenger coaches (used until '70-'80) from different European countries (Germany, France, Switzerland, Austria, Czechoslovakia, Poland, Yugoslavia, Romania, Greece and probably others).

[lukasilskens]

Short and Informative as always
many things i didnt know.

[Thomas-ynqd]

Mein Englisch ist zwar nicht mehr so gut aber was ich verstanden habe war gut erklärt! 👍🏼 Übrigens, dieses Rot wurde nach dem Farbschema als RAL 3000 (Feuerrot) und nach 1952 als RAL 3002 (Karminrot) bezeichnet. (Wir Deutschen sind da ganz genau😂😂😂) Grüße...

[russellday]

I've always loved the look but the question has always been there without answer. I'm so glad I stumbled across this video. Thank you!

[derekrussel-hill]

The Great Northern Railway of Ireland painted the inside of the frames and the inside motion red for similar reasons. Also, industrial equipment with cast iron or steel bodies where there are internal oil baths are always painted red. Again, likely to allow cracks to be seen but also to ensure that any casting debris or porous sections were sealed off.

[mihailcioinica]

Found your channel recently and now I'm stuck here. I like your videos and find them very helpful and educative. I live in Germany for about an year and I've been a train enthusiast my whole life, si your channel is awesome for me. Thanks!

[megatwingo]

Wieder sehr interessantes Thema und toll gemachtes Video. Daumen hoch! :)

[baschdiro]

I just love the German steam locomotive colour scheme. There is something special about black and red I cannot explain.
But maybe I love the colours because I love the locomotives.

[joachim.charleshogg]

The BEST looking steam locomotives in the World and best engineering.