I want to remove the labeling on the Walthers heavyweights and relabel it with my own road name. But I want to preserve the paint underneath (Pullman Green)
How hard is it? Are the road names applied with just decals? (simple eraser) Or are they painted onto the body? (airbrush over the roadname with polyscale pullman green)
Don - Specializing in layout DC->DCC conversions
Modeling C&O transition era and steel industries There's Nothing Like Big Steam!
It's unlikely that the lettering is decals, so it's probably painted-on or pad-printed. If your Pollyscale paint is a good match for the factory paint, simply place a little alcohol (99% if you're in Canada, or 91% in the U.S.) on a clean rag and rub it over the lettering. If it has any effect, you should notice and can proceed accordingly, applying and gently rubbing until the lettering is all gone. It may or may not also effect the underlying paint, so be prepared to repaint once the lettering has been removed.
If the alcohol doesn't touch the lettering at all, I'd suggest using fine sandpaper to remove it - otherwise, painting over the existing lettering will likely leave leave a slightly three-dimensional ghost image which will be noticeable from some viewing angles or under some lighting. I'd suggest #600 or #800 grit wet/dry sandpaper (use it dry), then finish with #1000 or #1200 to give a smooth finish prior to repainting the area.
Wayne
Thanks Dr Wayne
Your advice is useful as always and much appreciated.
-Don