logo or speed letters for modern reefers?

name says it all. Obviously my modern SP needs modern reefers such as the ARMN ones and im torn between two options. One option is putting the red and yellow sunset logo on them since we put the logo on all our older reefers and another option is putting red or black speed lettering on them so that they match the rest of SP's rolling stick fleet... so what are your thoughts? which should SP have or rather what do you think SP would have done if they had this opportunity? help is much appreciated thanks.

 

Probably their traditional sans-serif Gothic lettering, and maybe a sunset route logo. Espee didn't really use the Speed Lettering that much on frieght cars; outside of a group of PC&F RBLs that were repainted with Speed Lettering, and at least one ex-DRGW coal hopper, they stayed with the more traditional look. Their last order of boxcars from Gunderson right before the merger came with standard lettering and red/yellow sunset route logos. But of course, on a mythical modern-day Espee, anything's possible...

 

what year were thee boxcars purchased? also we painted one gondola, numerous autoracks and stack cars with speed letters. we were going speed lettering we just didnt have the money to do it all

 

also i love the speed letterig too much we have adopted it as our new name style but i like the Red and Yellow logo too

 

If you go with the speed lettering, you may run into an issue looking a lot like the BNSF speed logo. So I'd go Sunset. I'm more fond of the sunbeam style ogo that the Daylights used and was rolled onto the Sunset/Cascade cars than the circle herald in your avvie though.

 

correction you mean BNSF's logo is going to look a lot like OUR speed lettering :tb-wink: ours came first (Grande's even earlier)

 

so i discovered in addition to the boxcars that came with the old lettering in 1996 we also got some gondolas in 1996 that we put the sunset logo on instead of speed lettering. So i ask this... why did we do this when we were trying to display our new image of speed lettering to our customers? why have locomotives with speed lettering but build cars with the old? it makes no sense...

also were these built in the 90s too?
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I don't know but i think the speed lettering would be great on the reefers and you got to remember if your modeling SP as it could have been today it would have been 15 years since up was merged so the new scheme would applicable. The only problem that i see is the white lettering on the white reefer

In the alternate reality that I'm contemplating is that the SP bought out the DRGW and operated it as a separate entity much like the Cotton Belt except that the Rio Grande keeps it's black and orange speed lettering scheme. The SP also when bought out the Rio Grande changed its scheme to speed lettering.

This allows me to have my cake and eat it too with paint schemes

 

I second your opinion here. And wouldn't use the Speed Lettering either.

 

actually UP gets taken over in 1999 in my world and if i use speed lettering itd be the Red intermodal ones or custom black ones so theyd be fine on the reefer

 

Quick thought, but you might consider this: Use the Speed Letter for anything high priority "Express"y, like the Intermodal and Reefers, if that's still a High-Pri thing, and stick to the Gothic/Logo for everything else?

 

well i would but ive allready had pretty much everything speed lettered... ive had coil cars, covered hoppers, boxcars, coal hoppers etc pretty much one of everything

 

Then all freight is of high priority to SP.

 

indeed. I just feel that SP should have a unified image rather than 2 different ones you know?