weathering items

[talon104]

Has anyone heard of weathering cars ,and locomotives with chalk? i was looking at ebay and they have a nice engine that the seller says looks like it was weathered with chalk? since i am new to this does this make sense to anyone with experiance? the loco looks really nice so, was wondering , this might be a cool opion on weathign if it is true?
Thanks for your help
Chris

[Janafam]

Pastel chalk powder is a weathering technique frequently used. You will still need to seal the completed model with a clearcote application to maintain the work of art.

[Adelie]

Using chalks or weathering powders is fairly common. I've seen some pretty good results using them.

[talon104]

thanks, i was just curious about it. Nevre heard of weathering with chaulk and, the train i was looking at really looks great.. i wonder how hard it is to do? I would like to weather my tai but am afraid of messing it up with paint. i can draw pictures alright but, when it comes to paint i get it everywhere and it looks like a 2 year old did it ( this is my experiance with model cars anyway) so i am kinda afraid to experiment on the train , if tha makes sense but .
Anyhow thanks for both your inputs.
C.C.

[Janafam]

MR and others publish books on weathering techniques, they are worth it. This books go through chalk and painting methods. Spraying paint with an airbrush sounds more terrifying than it realy is. I use this method and am quite satisfied with the results. If you are lucky enough to have a good library system where you live, try them, my library caries several of these books. Reading up on "how to" will give you the confidence to try.

[rolleiman]

QUOTE: Originally posted by talon104

thanks, i was just curious about it. Nevre heard of weathering with chaulk and, the train i was looking at really looks great.. i wonder how hard it is to do? I would like to weather my tai but am afraid of messing it up with paint. i can draw pictures alright but, when it comes to paint i get it everywhere and it looks like a 2 year old did it ( this is my experiance with model cars anyway) so i am kinda afraid to experiment on the train , if tha makes sense but .
Anyhow thanks for both your inputs.
C.C.

You Really Can't screw it up.. That's the beauty of it.. It isn't perminant until you apply the fixative (some use a generic clear coat others use Testors Dullcoat).. If you don't like your results you can simply wipe it off with a damp cloth. MOST of it will come off.. A word of caution though, err on the heavy side when doing it.. That's because once you apply the fixative, Most of it will actually disappear.. It does with Dullcoat anyway..

The suggestion to grab a book or two is a good one.. Painting and Weathering Railroad Models by Jeff Wilson is an excellent rerfernce on the subject.. Worth every penny of the (then) $14 I paid for it..

Good luck,
Jeff

[talon104]

It's great to have insperation from people to give you the confidence to try it. I will definately look into this , by reading books and stuff. i never really thought chalk would be a feazable way of weatherin ,but to me it seems like a way to go cause of the error fixability of it( wiping off etc. Thanks for the information and pu***hat i needed.
\ C.C.