This is an old thread, but perhaps other folks are interested in the evolution of paint. The real expert on this is David Fletcher, so perhaps he will chime in.
Skip (in a post above) wanted the loco painted green. Well, he could have gotten a green 8-18C.
If one compares the D&RG roster to the Baldwin order forms (at the DeGolyer collection) it appears that the early D&RG 4-4-0s [1876 ff.] (mostly 8-16Cs) were “Lake [very dark red] and Gold” up through #26 ‘Rio Bravo’ which—as best I can tell--was the first 8-18C the Rio Grande ordered [1878]. The next 8-18C was #35, the ‘Culebra’ [1879] which was “Olive green and gold.” Soon after the Culebra there were several more 8-18Cs, some 8-18 ½ and even larger 4-4-0s. Presumably all were green and gold.
This appears to agree with David's meticulous research on the PacificNG.com site. That is a wonderful essay to visit, even if it is sometime challenging to fins/get to. Very highly recommended.
Hope this helps someone.
Bob
Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 06/26/2014 04:11PM by RCW.