Weathering without the Airbrush

[Anonymous]

I'm just curious - how can one weather cars without buying tons of airbrush equipment and without much space (think NYC apartment)? That is, if it's possible.

[Dough]

There are many people on here who weather without airbrushes.  Here are two threads dealing with weathering and chalks:

http://www.trains.com/trccs/forums/496581/ShowPost.aspx

http://www.trains.com/trccs/forums/1/675155/ShowPost.aspx#675155

Hope that helps some...I'm about to do the same in my Athens, GA apartment...

[Dave-the-Train]

Some effects seem as if they can only be done with an air brush... like a misting of sprayed dirt on a car side.

Working in H0 I have found that using an artists brush that is called a "deersfoot" here (with loads of extremely fine bristles packed closely together), an extreme degree of "dry brushing" and a stippling action I can produce this fine mist effect.  It takes some practice and a lot of nerve to begin to work on a new loco.

using water based acrylics helps a lot as you can wash them off if you make a mess.  (Don't wait too long)!

Those deersfoot brushes are high quality bristles.  I have one about 1/4" diameter and some smaller ones.  Some are square ended and some are chamfered/cut at an angle.

Extremely long (2/3") bristles on a small head (few bristles) are good for trailing lines... such as rust lines down the side of external car frame members.

Making up and using washes has been covered in threads by people far better at it than i am.

Powders are several topics covered here.

You can also use combed brushes (alternate groups of 3-6 bristles are shorter)... these are weird.  Main advantage that can be explained is that you can use the body of bristle to hold a resevoir of paint and support the slightly longer ends while getting less paint actually out to the contact area.

Again some really heavy course bristles, even in big brushes, can work magic...

The thing is to experiment.  Old cars that you would bin are really useful as they give you an example of both shape and paint surface to practice on.

One (slighlty unusual) "tool" that I have found useful is a thumb or large finger... I expect that many of us have been carefully working on detailing one side of a car only to find that we have stuck a huge fingerprint on the other side... this can give a very good effect... you just need some good fortune.

Tooth picks, cotton buds, bits of sponge... all sprts of things can be used to get paint from the pot to where you want it as you want it.

Two big aids that I like are good music and good ale.

This is a serious thing really... taking time and relaxing probably help more than any airbrush system or anything else.

Keep going back to add tiny amounts of weathering can build up a really good effect.  Knowing when to stop is important.  Trying to weather everything in one hit isn't usually a good idea.  Building up a "history" of layers of weathering... including weathering over chalk marks, repairs and/or graffitti is a good thing to think about.

A couple more things to think about (I've posted before on these so I'll make them short here)...

1. pay attention to the light you are working in (especially in a small domestic  area - other light and reflected light may influence your work). 
2. Also think about how light works when we look at the real thing with dirt on it... we don't actually see much of the dirt but we see the effect of light coming to our eyes from a mix of the car's paintwork and the speckles of dust on the car.  Those speckles are not only a different colour but add a 3D factor into what the light id doing - being dispersed for one thing.  Light travels in straight lines... just not necesarily the ones we expect it to be travelling in...  Broadly the overall effect is for "weathering" to both mute colours and to be in mutes tones.

Have fun.

[Dave-the-Train]

... without much space (think NYC apartment)? That is, if it's possible.

It's very possible...

to knock paint all over the place

As far as possible have all your materials on a fixed surface away from places anyone walks through... and don't bang it with your knee when you stand up... and don't hook a cable with your foot... got the idea?   Not that I've ever...

Drilling pot sized holes into a piece of wood, foam or whatever is often useful.

Keep the water pot secure!

Don't spill coffee on it!  (Although you can get some terrific effects this way).

There's a whole list.  If we all wrote all the ones we know you'd still find some fresh ones.

Put the cat out...

[rogertra]

I don't use an airbrush, don't own one, don't think I really need one.

You can check out my weathering for yourself and draw your own conclusions as to how successful I've been.  Click on the URL in my address.

 

[fsm1000]

Dough thanks for the links.

Dave thanks for the info.

 

Great work guys :) 

[Robby P.]

The only time I use a airbrush is when I dullcote.  It's all done by hand.  I use to use a airbrush alot, but once you do it enough (weather), you will see how much you are inproving.  You won't have to airbursh everything.

[wjstix]

I use powdered charcoal and a fairly stiff brush. I scrub the charcoal all over the car, then go over it lightly with a paper towel to take some of the charcoal off, so it's left around rivets and in cracks and crevices. Then I spray it with an acrylic flat finish, or dullcote, from a spray can. (The acrylic dries quicker and has less odor.) Then I might add some gray on the trucks and a few rust streaks etc. with chalk.

[jimsrpo]

A combination of dry weathering pigments and drybrushing with acrylic paints can produce good results. 

 The building and boxcar were both weathered with these techniques.

Jim Policastro

[Anonymous]

Thanks a lot for the advice... now to go looking for a finger... oh wait, here's one!

So, I forget who mentioned it, but how expensive are these "deerfoot" brushes?

Sorry, I'm not much good at art, but if you don't have water acryllics, what acryllics can you use?  (Can you use the same paints as the airbrush paints?)

[Dave-the-Train]

Brush price depends on your LHS/craft store/artists store.

I would guess that the total cost of all the brushes I have - accumulated over 10 or so years - doesn't add up to the cost of a good airbrush.

I also use spatulas, tooth picks kitchen paper, hard tissue paper, cotton wool... all sorts of stuff.

Windsor and Newton (I think you can get them) go very high quality brushes... going up to about $20 each... but they start at about $2.  There's a huge range of choice.  I can't tell you what to spend on what because it's a matter of experimenting and finding out what works for you.

If you want you can spend money on one of those smart compartmentalised tool boxes... or do what I do and rummage in the heap of stuff in an old shoe box.  Personally I think my way works best (for me at least) as I can never remember what I did with what brush (exactly) last time.  I have a general idea but have never replicated an effect.  this is good as every car is unique.

[wedudler]

I've started - following my friend Pete's suggestion - weathering with felt tip pen:

 

Wolfgang 

[Cox 47]

I have a air brush but I to live in a small apartment..I weather with a cheap set of artist chalk and cheap brush all from Wally World..use a Xacto and  shave some calk dust into a box that once had a N scale car in it then have at it..If you don't like it wash off and try again  Some folks seal with Dull Coat but if you don't handle your rolling stock that much it shouldn't be a problem...Some times the tip of your finger works depending on what your looking on....Cox 47

[Ibflattop]

I use pastel chalks to weather along with I/A washes. I have Iso Alcohol that is about 70% that I use. I think you can pick up a bottle at Wally World for less than a $1.00.

 I have mixed the alcohol in a couple of ways. One bottle is just dirty brush wash; a bottle that I clean my brushes out in.

 The next one, I have 1 bottle of Polly S grimey black mixed in the bottle.

When I use my pastel chalks I only have paint brushes that I use for the chalks. You can get sets of decent brushes for a couple of bucks at Michaels or Hobby Lobby.   Kevin

[Robby P.]

Here's my latest car I did for Ebay, and it's done by hand.  I only airbrush the dullcote. As far as felt tip pen's, I would be worried that if you mess up, How would you fix it? 

[Anonymous]

When painting my wooden buildings with waterbased paints; I will use watercolor techniques.

 Some parts will never see sun (under the eaves) and they will get undiluted color.

 Some parts see sun all year long (the base of walls) and they will be extremely faded.

Some parts will get seasonal sun (up toward the eaves) and this will blend from opaque to faded.

If you know which way is north, that side won't get much sun at all.

-rrick

[wedudler]

!I would be worried that if you mess up, How would you fix it? "

If you don't wait for the next day... with water. If you use a paint brush nearly dry you can distribute the color. If you use too much water you will remove the paint.

Wolfgang 

[tatans]

I started weathering with a small brush and a small tube of acrylic grey paint (watered down) and a light rust coloured pastel stick, go to an artists supply store, they can be very helpful. One hint is to be light on the application of colours, people tend to overdue the weathering effect,    What's an air brush????

[CPRail modeler]

I read something in a book in which this person used a technique called "drybrushing" for weathering freight cars. This guy dipped the paintbrush in some rust coloured paint with a drybrush and then rubbed some paint off the brush. He did this to weather almost the entire car. There are more better ways to do it out there though...

[tatans]

I read something in a book in which this person used a technique called "drybrushing" for weathering freight cars. This guy dipped the paintbrush in some rust coloured paint with a drybrush and then rubbed some paint off the brush. He did this to weather almost the entire car. There are more better ways to do it out there though...

Now hold on there guy, "drybrushing"??? I would say it's one of the prime methods of weathering, how else would you achieve the effect? dare I ask just what methods you have been using ? ? please quote some of your "more better ways" to do it, there will be a lot of people intersted.

[Fortkentdad]

Here a a couple of "before and after" pictures, or more appropriately aged and not yet aged pictures of two box cars and below two gondolas. I aged (weathered) both without an airbrush,  just brushed on powders.  

I have not yet tried to use my airbrush for weathering (or "aging" as my wife likes to call it),  because I'm still learning how to use the airbrush well.  But I have had great fun with Bragdon powders.  They are not really all that expensive, I think I paid about $24 (CDN) for a plastic tray with a dozen different colours (there was a smaller box of 6 for around $15).  They say they include some sort of adhesive in the powder to improve adhesion.  Whatever,  they work good for me.  http://www.bragdonent.com/weather.htm (does not open in new window, but goes directly there if you click).  

As a total amateur at this I was able to brush on a good dose of rust, dust or grime, or whatever to the box car or other item.

Sometimes you just want to take that plastic sheen off of the model, other times you want it too look old and beat up.