Ever since I went to the Cass RR I have been in love with Shays. I have a Bachmann Shay, converted to DCC, which serves well enough, but I can't stop thinking about buying a brass Shay.
I assume you might have to soda blast some of them, but what next? How do you get the paint down into all the crevices. I don't even know what it's called but behind the driving levers?
Henry
COB Potomac & Northern
Shenandoah Valley
BigDaddyI assume you might have to soda blast some of them
I can't imagine why that would be necessary....simply remove the motor, along with anything else that might be damaged by water, then put it in the sink or a tub filled with hot water with some dish detergent added. Use a toothbrush to scrub any areas that merit attention, then rinse thoroughly and allow it to air-dry.
Once it's dry, wear nitrile gloves when handling it, as you don't want skin oils ruining the paint job.
Well, you might have to do a partial disassembly, but using a brush for some of the hard-to-get-at places will help, and once they're done, airbrushing the rest should get it covered.
I'd suggest a coat of primer of some sort - Tamiya offers a nice grey primer in a very-nice spray can...about as close to an airbrush as any spray can you'll ever find.Another option would be Alclad II Lacquer-based Grey Primer, which is airbrush-ready (pre-thinned). It's also an excellent product, and now my go-to choice for primer.After that, the rest is pretty-well just another exercise in airbrushing.
Wayne
doctorwayneUsing a brush for some of the hard-to-get-at places will help, and once they're done, airbrushing the rest should get it covered.
This does not get mentioned enough, but yes, every brass model (and most plastic models) I have painted do require some brush touch-up work after all finishing is done.
I don't know if I would ever attempt to disassemble a Shay for painting. Washing the whole thing as Wayne suggested sound like a great way to tackle this one.
-Kevin
Living the dream.
I have done this on two brass says. The PFM's are the most popular out there, and they are solid little beasts. Removing the boiler and tender is quite easy - I think there are 3 or 4 screws underneath. So that component can be easily removed and blasted (if necessary - see other thread about priming brass), or cleaned and primed. The other components (pistons, motor, gears, frame) are fairly complicated to take appart. I've done it, but it's not really necessary to take these components appart for painting purposes. I manually clean and brush primer/paint these components using high quality paint. It's also a good time to upgrade the motor while you are at it and if you feel comfortable doing that. If you run DC, you can absolutely keep the old motor if it runs well. The old motor can also run on DCC, but upgrading with a can motor with a flywell makes a huge difference.
Simon