Weathering Walthers' Built-Ups

[Anonymous]

Has anyone weathered any of the Walthers built-ups? I have the firehouse, "Fire Company No. 4", and without having to take it apart, what's the best way to weather it as is? Cover the windows with masking tape and Dullcote it? Forget the Dullcote and just weather it with an India Ink and alcohol wash??? I want to get rid of that plastic sheen and make it look weathered as it is on the box.

I bought a combo box of white/gray/black pastel chalks yesterday at the hobby shop and tried brushing it on the firehouse but it didn't do much good at all to weather it, so I took the chalk off, thinking I need a different approach??? [?]

[2021]

I weathered a number of these. I don't know if it's the best way but it turned out good. The first thing I did was paint the entire thing with Pollyscale Flat Finish - this seems to be equivalent to spraying Dullcote but is brushed on and dries clear and dull. You can then apply the weathering chalks as desired and end up with a nice looking product. I am sold on the Flat Finish and use it exclusively on all models I don't want to change colors on. A good practice is to paint all parts prior to assembly (can't do with built-ups).
Ron K.

[rexhea]

I would first give the brick a very diluted wash with old concrete colored paint to fill in the lines of the brick to look like mortar. Lightly wipe off the brick with a damp cloth to remove excess paint on the brick face.

Use your alcohol/india ink wash sparingly unless you want a really nasty looking building. If the alcohol mix doesn't take very well, then you need to Dullcote first.

Touch off the building with varying stains for roof, window, or gutter run-offs.

REX

[CNJ831]

While the structure's walls can be aged nicely with chalks or washes, the window frames will be very difficult to age affectively and will likely remain looking out of place and unrealistically shiny on the finished model. Incidentally, I've had the chance to examine several of these built-up fire stations and in general I found the quality of the workmanship mediocre, at best. These are reasons why you buy kits instead of built-ups!

CNJ831

[Anonymous]

All good info! Thanks!

I like the Pollyscale Flat Finish idea. I'll attempt to fill in the mortar first, as this combo seems to be my best bet.

[dano99a]

Just wanted to say thank all for these posts, I'm gonna give it a shot the week.

CNJ831 - I hear ya about the kits versus the built ups, though it is kinda nice to just stick it on the layout right outta the box [:)] I like both though I agree kits are more fun.

[Anonymous]

Actually I don't think the craftsmanship of the Walthers "Fire Co. No. 4" firehouse that I bought was mediocre at all. Yes, I think that assembling the kits is half the fun sometimes, but like dano99a says, sometimes it's nice to just stick it on the layout and be done with it. I plan on adding some more Walthers built-ups to my layout. A little weathering and they'll be fine.

BTW, I finished late this afternoon filling in the mortar of the Walthers Fire Co. No. 4 by watering down some gray Pollyscale paint and it didn't turn out too bad. Now I just need to finish it off by adding some pastel chalk to weather it up a bit and then paint a coat of Pollyscale Flat Finish onto it and then I'll be done. Looks much better without that plastic sheen!