Gray paint a problem

[steve1946]

Hi,

I have three 2400 series passenger cars; silver cars with the  gray stripes along the car side and matching gray roofs. The gray roofs are why I am writing.  They are moddeled with what looks like mildew or mold.  It is bad enough that I would like to bring them back to the way they were when new.  It appears like the discoloring is below the surface of the paint.  The weird thing about it is that the underside of the car roofs have perfect paint! Is there anything I can do to bring back the original paint finish short of repainting them? If I need to repaint where can I get a spray can of the correct color?  Thanks for your help.  Steve

[rtraincollector]

Steve here's a solution I have used a couple of times, if you have to repaint. Take one of the roofs with you and goto Lowes/Wal-mart/Home-Depot and go to  spraypaint sections and look to see if any of them are close enough to you or not. I have a couple of times found exact matches. Or so close you couldn't tell the difference

[cwburfle]

Before you paint:
Are you certain the "mildew" is not mold release compound?
Mold release compound can be white to gray, and looks like mold or mildew.
Gently heat the area with a hair dryer. You want it hot, but not hot enough to damage the paint or plastic. If it's mold release compound, it will melt, and you can wipe the liquid away with a clean, dry cloth.

This issue is common with early 1950's plastic trains.