Re: Locomotive cab interior color

Oh yeah, zinc chromate. I was first introduced to that odd substance on my first job out of high school working for an FBO at the local municipal airport. Besides pumping gas into aeroplanes [sic] in the dead of the Iowa winters, one of my other duties was to assist the aircraft mechanics that worked in the hanger. Most of you are probably aware that aircraft, just like railroad equipment, are required to be inspected on a regular basis, which sometimes required replacement of aluminum parts that have stress cracks etc. I remember well the zinc chromate primer that was sprayed on every surface inside and out of the Pipers, Mooneys, and Cessnas that inhabited the hanger. Of course the outside surfaces were then painted with a finish coat of whatever color was desired. Open inspection covers on wings and fuselages revealed the funky green ZC primer on the inside surfaces. Why paint all of the aluminum? Well, as it turns out, AL oxidizes when exposed to the elements when it is not protected. Especially the purer Al alloys. So the ZC retards/prevents oxidation and turns out that it adheres quite well to the aluminum surface better than traditional primers for ferrous materials most likely due to the interaction atomically between Zinc and Aluminum (Zinc is a common alloying material in the production of aluminum). I was so intrigued by this green stuff that I actually painted the interior surfaces of a plastic model airplane that I was building. Sheesh, talk about anal, after assembly of the model, all that showed of the ZC was a few tiny places in cockpit. BUT, I knew it was there.