TT-West Artwork & Decals
TT-West prepares artwork for both pad-printed rolling-stock and after-market decals using vector drawing tools (Adobe Illustrator), which permits the clearest possible lettering and heralds, with the final resolution depending on the print process used.
Note that railroad lettering prior to the late 1990's was NOT composed using any 'font'. The letters, numbers and other markings were created as lettering drawings in the railroad's engineering department, sent to the field on paper, and used to cut stencils for application to rolling stock.
Adding to the current confusion about lettering is the fact that there is not 'a' single, uniform, Railroad Roman... there are a number of instances by railroad and era, all done in the Railroad Roman style... with many variations.
TT-West attempts to capture these variations... the shape of the letter 'O' versus the number '0', the foot on the 'R' and the 'K', and the endless variations on the ampersand '&'... Sometimes we succeed!
If YOU know of a good clear photo of a significant car for which you feel decal availability would be of use to modelers in any scale, please forward the information (source and/or photo) to info@tt-west.com to initiate a discussion.