I am detailing some HO scale Walthers Union Pacific passenger cars, both heavy weight and and light weight. I want to put window shades and venitian blinds in them, where appropriate. In the prototype photos most of the time the they are blurry enough that you can not tell which type of window treatment they have.
Does anyone know which cars or eras who have one or the other? I would suspect that venitian blinds would be more likely on light weight cars.
Generally, very generally, heavyweights mostly had roll-up, rubberized canvas shades but usually not on the aisle windows which would have a brass hand hold about half way up across the window.
If it is a lightweight or a modernized heavyweight the Venetian blinds would be in the public seating areas, lounge and dining cars, sometimes a parlor car might have blinds.
In the passenger rooms, berths and coach seats, there would usually be counter-balanced shades with a cable system to keep the shade from getting jammed.
Generally.
In later years of passenger operation, 1960 and beyond, many of the blinds were removed as being too noisy, troublesome, difficult to clean and generally worn out.
Some railroads went to sliding curtains, tied back at the window pillars and/or they installed the Adlake roll-up shades.
There are some good UP publicity stills at Utah Rails:
https://donstrack.smugmug.com/UtahRails/Union-Pacific/UP-Passenger-Cars-UPRR-Photos/
Do you have specific car types you are looking seeking details for? RYPN carried on the Passenger Car Photos site and the particular car you are detailing may be shown there.
Good Luck, Ed
Right now I have two heavy weight consists (one 2 tone gray & one yellow and gray). I also have a light weight consist. All three of them have a couple of couches, several different sleepers and a lounge car. This is some of what I have.
Heavy weights
PS 10-1-2 "Lake..." series
PS 12-1 "Multnoma, Pipestone, etc."
PS 8-1-2 "Centaavon"
36 seat diner
Light weights
PS 6-6-4 "American..." series
Budd 10-6 "Pacific..." series
PS 4-4-2 "Imperial..." series
PS 11 dbl bedrooms "Placid Valley"
PS 5-2-2 "Ocean..." series
ACF #9001 dome lounge
Here's an example of what I was saying about the blinds getting a little worn out. Again, you won't go wrong with using roll-up shades on all the heavyweights, unless they were rebuilt, as some diners were, and the wide roll up shades on most of the sleepers and coaches.
The Venetian blinds were popular in the late 1930 pre-war equipment but generally fell out of favor for the reasons I mentioned.
4-4-2 American Royal, Adlake roll up shades.
Above is a modernized (Betterment) heavyweight coach with blinds. I wish more manufacturers would produce these types of modernized heavyweight.
http://www.rrpicturearchives.net/rsList.aspx?id=UP&cid=7
http://passcarphotos.rypn.org/Indices/UP1a.htm
https://donstrack.smugmug.com/UtahRails/Union-Pacific
Regards, Ed