Your Photoshopped/paint liveries

[LE Greys]

On the Fictitious Liveries website (fictitiousliveries.fotopic.net), there's an image of a yellow-less Virgin HST: It looks sunburnt in my opinion!

I've actually seen that, and posted a comment that it looks like an XPT (imagine the red being orange instead). I really meant the old yellow/blue. The front would then be in prototype-style grey/blue as far as the zig-zag, then normal blue/grey from then on.

 

[Burkitt]

Good idea LE Greys, I wasn't sure which HST livery you meant originally, there've been so many.

You can bet that Network Southeast, with it's flair for style, would have come up with something flashy for the front end if there was no need for yellow fronts: Maybe a really big version of the NSE tri-colour "flash" between the headlight clusters. Always interesting to see pictures like that, of "what if" scenarios.

Yellow ends having dominated the front of our trains for so long, it's difficult to know what livery designers would have done differently given the chance, other than just continuing the side colour around the front.
therailwaycentre.com's Artists Impressions pages feature quite a few pre-production models and drawings without yellow ends, including classes 319, 317, 442, 91, and 159. Either black or white fronts seem to be a common choice. The Thameslink 319 actually takes a similar approach to what you suggested, with large NSE flashes on a black front panel.

Paul

 

[LE Greys]

Looks good, I really can imagine that running in service.

 

[Burkitt]

Another look at more interesting ways to handle the front end of a train without the need for any yellow.

Paul

 

[Bittern]

Now it looks angry.

 

[CarterUSM]

Now it looks angry.

To me, it actually looks as if it is taking a beamer!

 

[Peter Mugridge]

Interesting looking at that site how the concepts for the Pendolino were all radically different ( and better ) than what we ended up with!

Excellent site; very interesting.

 

[Burkitt]

To me, it actually looks as if it is taking a beamer!

I'm lost - what does that mean?



Yellowless class 158.

 

[Bittern]

I admit, I quite like the 314 interior shown. But I disagree with the above - I think the Pendolino is far prettier than anything displayed on that site.

Oh, and the 'Gas Turbine DMU APT' is an ugly arse. Litterly.

 

[Peter Mugridge]

I'd consider the ETR470 front end design by far the best of any Pendolino variant; I'd like to see a Photoshopping of what that might look like in VT livery.

 

[CarterUSM]

I'm lost - what does that mean?

Red face due to embarrassment.

 

[sprinterguy]

Oh wow, I really, really like the look of the yellow-less HST: I know the original livery they wore was iconic as it was, but I really wish they could have been painted like that!

The "more black" Networker is nice as well. Honestly, the quality of these images is amazing, quite a talent!

I admit, I quite like the 314 interior shown. But I disagree with the above - I think the Pendolino is far prettier than anything displayed on that site.

Oh, and the 'Gas Turbine DMU APT' is an ugly arse. Litterly.

I agree that the actual Pendolino design decided on is better looking than the other designs considered, although the lower down ones on that site might have been interesting to see.

If you're on about the APT-E as it actually is, then OI! Leave it alone! The APT-E is a phenomenal looking train. Agreed that the mock-up on the site is an ugly beast though.

 

[The 158 Man]

I'm lost - what does that mean?



Yellowless class 158.

Oh dear...

 

[Burkitt]

Without the statutory yellow warning panel, EWS could have used the same front end design as its parent company Wisconsin Central.

 

[Bittern]

Yeah, I'm kinda glad we got the warning panels. I always thought diesel and electric locos and units suited them.

Thankfully Steam has been the exception to the rule.

 

[The 158 Man]

Without the statutory yellow warning panel, EWS could have used the same front end design as its parent company Wisconsin Central.

I think that looks quite good!

 

[sprinterguy]

Without the statutory yellow warning panel, EWS could have used the same front end design as its parent company Wisconsin Central.

I think it looks really good on the class 37: And it looks to me as if that would comply with the minimum yellow area dimensions on the front of the loco. Not so keen on how it looks on the 66 in the background though.

 

[Burkitt]

EWS's parent company Wisconsin Central was purchased by Canadian National in 2001. However, they never transferred their branding across the Atlantic, instead selling the UK freight operator to German state railway DB.




How would NSE's class 321s have looked in the Networker-style livery?

 

[Aictos]

The 321s look quite good with the Networker-style livery,

 

[Electrostar]

Is the main difference a white body instead of a very light grey one and a different angle to the stripes? I seem to recall the 321s in a similar version of NSE to the 319/1s, in contrast to the dark grey of the 319/0s and 456s, but memory might be playing tricks.

 

[Burkitt]

Yes, 321s wore the later light grey NSE livery, like the 319/1s. The Networker-style livery has a white base colour, with white rather than grey roofs and lower body, a curved rather than sharp angle between the upsweep and upper red/white stripes, and different proportions to the blue/white/red/white areas beneath the windows than on either of the previous NSE liveries. For a livery that lasted less than ten years under BR, NSE had a lot of changes, they never seemed to be quite happy with it.

Paul

 

[LE Greys]

How would NSE's class 321s have looked in the Networker-style livery?

Pretty good! Seems to suit them very well. How do you think a Networker would look in the old NSE livery?

 

[Burkitt]

Siemens wanted to bid for the Networker contract, but was put off when BR refused to allow them to test a prototype bogie on a class 455. Had they persevered, the German manufacturer might have entered the UK rolling stock market nearly a decade earlier than it eventually did with the Heathrow Express class 332s.

 

[Aictos]

Very nice,

 

[Burkitt]

South West Trains' first livery, while very similar in appearance to Network SouthEast, still required trains to be completely repainted. How would it have looked applied to their new Siemens Desiros?

Image by Paul Burkitt-Gray, based on a photograph by Jan Derk, published under Creative Commons Attribution License.

 

[MCR247]

Great! I like the LO 313 in the background

 

[LE Greys]

What is it about NSE that it suits almost anything it's painted on?

 

[hairyhandedfool]

Yes, 321s wore the later light grey NSE livery, like the 319/1s. The Networker-style livery has a white base colour, with white rather than grey roofs and lower body, a curved rather than sharp angle between the upsweep and upper red/white stripes, and different proportions to the blue/white/red/white areas beneath the windows than on either of the previous NSE liveries. For a livery that lasted less than ten years under BR, NSE had a lot of changes, they never seemed to be quite happy with it.

Paul

I was really suprised at the number of differences in the liveries, not just colour used, but positioning of the upsweep also varied. I get the feeling the roof colour varied between the Networker classes too (365s having darker roofs).

I found a video of a model NSE 319 on youtube while searching around and don't have the heart to say to them that the livery is wrong!

 

[Broken Viking]

Back in 2005 it was rumoured that SWT's 358s would be transferred to SPT and fitted with pantographs for 25kV AC overhead. Two sets were even said to have been sent to Glasgow for conversion, but in the end nothing came of it.

It's a pity that nothing did come of that, I'd say! Never thought I'd say anything positive about the 458s...But the SPT livery seems to suit 'em rather well!
(Or maybe I'm just a little chuffed at the vision of a "waylaid" SPT unit making it's way into Ascot off of the Camberley branch? )

Actually; Turning this one round, consider if SWT had actually swapped their 458s for SPTs 318's...What would a 318 look like in Juniper livery?

Oh, and the 'Gas Turbine DMU APT' is an ugly arse. Litterly.

If you're on about the APT-E as it actually is, then OI! Leave it alone! The APT-E is a phenomenal looking train. Agreed that the mock-up on the site is an ugly beast though.

I can't find the mock-up that SprinterGuy is referring to, but I agree with what he says about the APT-E. Besides..."Ugly arse" or no, it still pees all over the 373 for top end...

 

[Bittern]

Actually; Turning this one round, consider if SWT had actually swapped their 458s for SPTs 318's...What would a 318 look like in Juniper livery?

The Class 334s are Junipers too. They and the 318 share a similar livery, but to be honest, the 318's livery suits it far better than the 334 one ever could.