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"Powdered Chalk"

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  • Member since
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  • From: S.E. Adirondacks, NY
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Posted by modelmaker51 on Thursday, July 22, 2010 9:24 PM

JoeinPA

 Jay:

Those trucks are really nice!  How did you get the "oily" look on the journals and brake cylinders?

Joe

 On the trucks, I started by adding a drop of water to some brown powder and sorta painting that on, then followed with different shades of rust and gray powders and finished off highlighting the journals and stuff with black powder. Interestingly, with the Bragdon powders you can get different effects by varying the pressure while rubbing the powder in. 

Jay 

C-415 Build: https://imageshack.com/a/tShC/1 

Other builds: https://imageshack.com/my/albums 

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Posted by cudaken on Thursday, July 22, 2010 5:14 PM

markpierce

cudaken

 

 

I use vertical strokes when applying weathering to vertical surfaces.  "Weather" runs downhill.

Mark

 

 Mark, so did the coal car, it ran down a hill on its sides. That is why the weathering / collision marks runs the way they do.

 Few none wrecked coal cars.

             Cuda Ken

I hate Rust

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Posted by R. T. POTEET on Thursday, July 22, 2010 12:27 PM

stix, you raise a good point about oil-bassed chalk as opposed to the type used on chalkboards. I have always felt that chalkboard-type chalk is what I got back in the early '90s and it is much too dry to use without some sort of moisture to assist in it adhering to surfaces; this is why that I have found it necessaary to make a paste before applying weathering to structures.

From the far, far reaches of the wild, wild west I am: rtpoteet

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Posted by wjstix on Thursday, July 22, 2010 10:07 AM

You can get powdered charcoal at the local art supply shop, but generally the chalks used for weathering are either in stick form at the art shop, or in little plastic cubes at the local hobby shop. (You want to use a oil-based chalk...not the chalk you use on a chalkboard.) A lot of times a fairly stiff brush will be able to get the color off without having to scrape it. Powdered charcoal is good for giving an overall dirty patina to a model, then you can use chalks of red, gray etc. for weathering specific to the car (like say rusty red on an iron ore car).

Stix
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Posted by JoeinPA on Thursday, July 22, 2010 8:48 AM

 Jay:

Those trucks are really nice!  How did you get the "oily" look on the journals and brake cylinders?

Joe

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Posted by modelmaker51 on Wednesday, July 21, 2010 8:05 PM

Here's some pics of my first attempt at using the Bragdon powders (only powders):

 

Jay 

C-415 Build: https://imageshack.com/a/tShC/1 

Other builds: https://imageshack.com/my/albums 

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Posted by Driline on Wednesday, July 21, 2010 7:55 PM

gmcrail

 I doubt if it is available ready-made.  Everybody I know that uses it makes their own.  I use a coarse file to shave pastels down.  Try a craft store for pastel chalks, and make your own.  Less messy to handle and store.

Ken, try "Burnt Sienna" for a nice rust color.

 

Wrong!

Do yourself a favor and buy the ready made pack from A.I.M. or Bragdon powders. I bought an 8 pack A.I.M. from walthers catalog. It is superior to the chalk sticks you buy at the hobby store and have to shave with a file. I know from experience.

Modeling the Davenport Rock Island & Northwestern 1995 in HO
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Posted by R. T. POTEET on Wednesday, July 21, 2010 7:48 PM

I use a brand of chalk manufactured by the Nobody Remembers My Name Chalk Company.

About fifteen years ago a local art supply store which had been in the same location for about 35 years was in the process of relocating. Someone found two boxes of chalk in the storeroom; this chalk was obviously not of the currently carried brands and no one employed there at the time could remember where they had come from. The labels were obliterated with age hence the Nobody Remembers My Name label.

They were just putting them out on the discount table for four bits a box; I had never used chalk for weathering before but I sure couldn't pass up the price. I ground them up in a brand-spankin'-new electric pencil sharpener and stored the powder in small jars. They have served me well over the years although obviously I have used some colors more readily than others. I took one stick each of red, yellow, and blue to render a brown which I use as a dirt and rust base. Before use I grind them into a very, very fine powder in a mortar pestal(sic) and make a paste with alcohol which I drybrush onto my stock. I have found it necessary to seal my cars and structures with a clear coating to avoid smearing.  

From the far, far reaches of the wild, wild west I am: rtpoteet

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Posted by jeffrey-wimberly on Wednesday, July 21, 2010 7:10 PM

 I used to use powered chalk but the supply here is so poor that getting the right colors is hit and miss, so now I use AIM weathering powder that I get from Walthers.

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Posted by markpierce on Wednesday, July 21, 2010 6:48 PM

cudaken

 

 

I use vertical strokes when applying weathering to vertical surfaces.  "Weather" runs downhill.

Mark

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Posted by markpierce on Wednesday, July 21, 2010 6:45 PM

Left Coast Rail

Try these guys Bragdon Enterprises

I prefer/use "sticky" chalks like Bragdon makes.  Unless the model is frequently handled, the chalk holds well without applying a clear coat and the resulting near disappearance of the chalk.

Mark

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Posted by dbduck on Wednesday, July 21, 2010 5:51 PM

Another source for pastels is a full service art supply store..the one I shop at has pastels in over a hundred colors. Once you have "powdered" them you can mix powders. Also most will mix with water to make washes

 I too, use the hobby knife scrapping to make my powder

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Posted by Kyle_Y on Wednesday, July 21, 2010 5:44 PM

Thanks for the replies gents.

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Posted by Left Coast Rail on Wednesday, July 21, 2010 5:25 PM

Try these guys Bragdon Enterprises

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Posted by gmcrail on Wednesday, July 21, 2010 5:23 PM

 I doubt if it is available ready-made.  Everybody I know that uses it makes their own.  I use a coarse file to shave pastels down.  Try a craft store for pastel chalks, and make your own.  Less messy to handle and store.

Ken, try "Burnt Sienna" for a nice rust color.

---

Gary M. Collins gmcrailgNOSPAM@gmail.com

===================================

"Common Sense, Ain't!" -- G. M. Collins

===================================

http://fhn.site90.net

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Posted by mononguy63 on Wednesday, July 21, 2010 5:18 PM

Do a search for "weathering chalk" and you should have more success. The chalks typically come in sticks - I drag a hobby knife blade along the stick and collect the dust on a piece of card.

"I am lapidary but not eristic when I use big words." - William F. Buckley

I haven't been sleeping. I'm afraid I'll dream I'm in a coma and then wake up unconscious.  -Stephen Wright

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Posted by cudaken on Wednesday, July 21, 2010 5:06 PM

  I went to a craft store and bought normal pastel chalk. I use 150 grit sand paper to turn it into a fine dust and go from there. It works pretty good, but I cannot get the rust color I was looking for.

 

     Cuda Ken

I hate Rust

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"Powdered Chalk"
Posted by Kyle_Y on Wednesday, July 21, 2010 4:58 PM

Hey guys-

 I recently read "Done In a Day" by Pele Solleberg. He mentions using powdered chalk as part of his weathing techniques. I've done a Google search, and have had no luck. If someone could point me in the right direction, I'd be most greatful. Thanks

 

kyle

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