Chinese QJ No. 6988
Mainline steam built late in the twentieth century.
Bring the engine
to life.
Start with the suggested palette or choose your own colours. Build gentle layers around the engine's distinctive shapes.
Suggested pencil shades and approximate screen swatches. These are not historical paint specifications.
Start lightly and build the darker surfaces gradually. Preserve the printed details.
Leave fine white highlights to separate the moving parts.
Keep the surroundings quieter than the locomotive. Retain light sky areas.
Look a little closer.
QJ 6988 in its Iowa Interstate preservation appearance, with black bodywork, yellow lining and red-and-yellow side stripes. This is not its former Chinese railway livery. Read each caption before using it as a colour or configuration reference.
QJ 6988 in its Iowa Interstate preservation appearance, with black bodywork, yellow lining and red-and-yellow side stripes. This is not its former Chinese railway livery. Photograph of the named locomotive. Preserved appearance may differ from its original working condition.
Tyler Silvest · CC BY 2.0 · Source photograph. Resized and converted to WebP.
Front view of Iowa Interstate No. 6988 with a bright headlight, black deflectors and yellow lining in its American preservation appearance. Photograph of the named locomotive. Preserved appearance may differ from its original working condition.
Tyler Silvest · CC BY 2.0 · Source photograph. Resized and converted to WebP.
Head-on view of QJ 6988 in Iowa Interstate preservation service, with a black front, pale lining and prominent central headlight. Photograph of the named locomotive. Preserved appearance may differ from its original working condition.
Feddacheenee · CC BY-SA 3.0 · Source photograph. Resized and converted to WebP.
Know the version.
The source below supports the locomotive identity and history. The photographs record the finish visible when each image was taken. A preserved or replica finish does not establish the original paint specification. Exact original paint shades and all period marking details have not been established for this guide.
The pencil example uses black and warm dark grey. Its palette is interpretive. The gallery records the particular appearances described in its captions; preserved engines, replicas and monochrome photographs cannot establish every original shade or marking.
Central States Steam Preservation Association; US regulatory filingDid you know?
No. 6988 was built in 1985 and later shipped to the United States, where it became part of an American steam-preservation programme.
Make the details count.
Work across the five driving axles in small sections.
Reserve thin highlights on the pipes and numberplate edges.