This was posted today on the Groups.io Espee Group.
Bob Chaparro
Moderator
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John Miller asked, "So I'm getting ready to start
decaling my PFE R-70-9/10 fleet (110 cars total) and have a nagging question
about the SP/UP heralds applied to the sides. I'm sure this question has been
asked, and then answered a BAZILLION TIMES...so please excuse my ignorance, but
is there a rule of thumb about which herald was applied closet to the door or
in which order one was applied over the other? I see photos of heralds in both
SP/UP and UP/SP configurations. Am I worrying way too much over the herald
placement?"
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Tony Thompson responded, "The answer depends on the
time you model. When PFE first adopted placing both medallions on both sides of
the car in 1946, the two sides were identical, with the SP medallion always
nearer the door. The UP medallion was red-white-blue.
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In 1950 the UP medallion was changed to black and white, but
placement remained the same: SP medallion closer to the door. In September
1951, the arrangement was changed, so that the SP medallion was always closer
to the B ends than the UP medallion. This made the two sides different from
each other.
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The further complication is that cars naturally didn't get
repainted immediately upon changes, so all three of the above versions could
certainly be seen in the early 1950s, and SHOULD be seen.
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So no, you are not worrying too much, but without knowing
your modeling year, I can't firmly answer your question."
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Jeff Cauthen suggested, "John, you need a copy of
freight car lettering guide by the SPH&TS.?
Dick Harley covered PFE in detail."
