Western Railroad Discussion > Flags being dropped off UP locomotives

Just spotted a repainted locomotive without the flag on its hood...UP 4973...personally some were looking really bad and I always felt it was a disgrace to display the flag in such a manner......anybody else observe a repainted unit sans flag ?

Posted from Android

i never liked the flags on all the units, should have only put them on a dozen or so.

        Flags are not okay when used in that manner and not kept presentable. Peeling paint, burned paint etc, NO! not allowed

dcfbalcoS1 Wrote:
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>         Flags are not okay when used in that
> manner and not kept presentable. Peeling paint,
> burned paint etc, NO! not allowed

Which is exactly what many of us said was going to happen when they first started putting them on the units.

I was just reading on another forum this weekend that someone employed in UP maintenance posted that all repaints and rebuilds will no longer have a flag applied. However, I wasn't sure how reliable that information was.

Fresh repaint AC44 sans flag was leading a NB baretable on the Valley sub this morning

Another Davidson disaster. Any one with an ounce of common sense  could have predicted that a decal exposed to various weather elements plus being placed on the hood of the diesel engine  of a heavy duty locomotive with all the extremes of heat and cold,would never last.Little by little Union Pacific continues to shedd the illefects of the MoPac management domination whose  missteps extended from this comparatively mild error to the meltdowns and botched mergers which damn near tanked the company earlier.

I seem to remember them announcing a few years back that they were going to only use the flag on new power and repainted power would receive standard UP lettering. Then a few months later there were SD60Ms, C40-8s, C40-8Ws and even an SD9043MAC out and about with fresh paint including flag decals on the side.

Wonder if it is going to stay that way for a while. As much as I love the flags on the side, if they can't be maintained, they shouldn't be there to begin with. Also, I think SD70ACes and ES44ACs look nice with regular UP lettering. 

They are not flags. They are decals. No different than an image of the flag in a photo. How many images of the flag, that have been used as advertising on packaging, have you thrown away in the trash.
An image of the flag is not a flag, just a image.

Posted from Android

Even trainorders have reruns I see. I started this same topic yesterday.

Posted from Android

I think it was discussed a few months ago also.

Posted from Android

Doug Wetherhold
Macungie, PA

Exactly the truth!

kalthoff Wrote:
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> Another Davidson disaster. Any one with an ounce
> of common sense  could have predicted that a
> decal exposed to various weather elements plus
> being placed on the hood of the diesel engine  of
> a heavy duty locomotive with all the extremes of
> heat and cold,would never last.Little by little
> Union Pacific continues to shedd the illefects of
> the MoPac management domination whose  missteps
> extended from this comparatively mild error to the
> meltdowns and botched mergers which damn near
> tanked the company earlier.

kalthoff Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Another Davidson disaster.

> Union Pacific continues to shedd the illefects of
> the MoPac management domination whose  missteps
> extended from this comparatively mild error to the
> meltdowns and botched mergers which damn near
> tanked the company earlier.

Not to start a thread drift or an argument. But how many Mopac era managers are still around. And furthermore how many SP or CNW managers are there?

A very similar question could be asked about NS with how many Southern, N&W and Conrail. But I’m on the wrong side of the Mississippi for that.

Posted from iPhone

The real point is how long have Drew Lewis and Mike Walsh been gone.  That’s when everything changed and the UP had to become a real business or die.

Off-pending
>
> A very similar question could be asked about NS
> with how many Southern, N&W and Conrail. But I’m
> on the wrong side of the Mississippi for that.
>
> Posted from iPhone

Bob Wilcox
Charlottesville, VA
My Flickr Shots



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 08/13/19 10:50 by bobwilcox.

needles_sub Wrote:
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> They are not flags. They are decals. No different
> than an image of the flag in a photo. How many
> images of the flag, that have been used as
> advertising on packaging, have you thrown away in
> the trash.
> An image of the flag is not a flag, just a image.
>
> Posted from Android

That's a very refreshing way of looking at it. Now that you say it I would agree!

Are all the repaints taking place at NLR?
If not perhaps the other places just have decals to use up?
I seen a half dozen or so ac4460's roll through a few weeks with consecutive numbers with brand new paint with the flag.

Posted from Android

Just getting a clean slate for the next time a patriotic display is needed.

What is BeanSF going to do now with all the flags they bought to adore their long hoods?

bankshotone Wrote:
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> Are all the repaints taking place at NLR?

UP's in house painting only takes place at NLR Jenks. Currently painting it is pretty much limited to those being overhauled/modernized or those with accident/fire damage.

> I seen a half dozen or so ac4460's roll through a
> few weeks with consecutive numbers with brand new
> paint with the flag.

Those sound like fresh C44ACM rebuilds from GE/Wabtec at Erie or Ft Worth.

IIRC North Little Rock has UP's only paint booth.