Brick Mortar Questions. How do I do this?

[tomkat-13]

White & gray chalk

White chalk on the brick bottom.

India ink wash.

[gatrhumpy]

Tomkat, how did you do the white and grey chalk building? That looks fantastic!

[tomkat-13]

Rub, press the chalk into the lines & with a lightly damp cloth whipe the bricks off.

[gatrhumpy]

Rub, press the chalk into the lines & with a lightly damp cloth whipe the bricks off.

OK, so when you seal it with Dullcote, does it go away? I tried the chalk, however, I didn't wipe it off with a damp towel. I will have to try that method.

[rolleiman]

Here is a tutorial I wrote several years ago (with pictures) that'll take you through the steps of painting, assembling, brick mortor, signage, weathering that I often use on buildings.

Enjoy..

http://www.rolleiman.com/trains/clinic1.html

(made active by selector)

 

[ndbprr]

I don't like using paper towells because they seem to wick away more mortar then I want.  I prefer an antique white because with age mortar turns beige.  because of model railroad lighting or lack thereof that seems to be too dark to me.  So I take some acrylic antique white and dip my finger in water and then lightly in the paint and just squeegee it into the mortar joints.  It leaves a little residue on the bricks but it varies their color as in real life.  I do this after painting the wall a solid brick color with an airbrush.  Is this method #17?

[tomkat-13]

Rub, press the chalk into the lines & with a lightly damp cloth whipe the bricks off.

OK, so when you seal it with Dullcote, does it go away? I tried the chalk, however, I didn't wipe it off with a damp towel. I will have to try that method.

I do not use Dullcote.......First I use a flat paint in a brick color.....(sometimes I use a light India ink wash)....then I use a chalk mixture (white with gray, or tan)....rub and/or press some in between the bricks.... some plastic models hold the chalk better than others (if the lines between the brick do not hold the chalk, a paint or ink wash will do better)....after you can whipe the bricks with an old all cotton T-shirt rag....sometimes I get it lightly damp. Rub off the bricks to get the effect you want.....do not do all your buildings the same way.....try different brick & mortar colors.

 

[loathar]

Secondhand-I love that curb/sidewalk in front of those buildings! How did you make that?

[perlaursen]

I bought a can of Roberts Brick Mortar Formula from Caboose Hobbies to try it out, and I will never use anything else anymore. This product is the easiest way I ever did mortar lines, no hassle, no mess, just brush it on, let it dry and wipe the brick faces. It looks really good and works well on both bare plastic walls and painted walls. I can only recommend it.

Per, Summit Customcuts

 

[CNE Runner]

I recently began my first laser-cut craftsman type structure (hang in there as I will get to the point). In an attempt to get some additional information, I emailed FOS structures - attempting to find out if their line of fine structures was suitable for a "craftsman newbie". They recommended a DVD by Scotty Mason called Building Craftsman Structure Kits - Volume One. Honestly, I learned more in the first 15 minutes of this outstanding video than I could ever have gained on my own. Scotty is an excellent instructor and the quality of the production is first rate.

More to the point: Scotty describes how to deal with brick walls. His method is easy and suitable for any modeler. Mr. Mason's DVD's (there are a total of 3 in the set...I only bought the first one - something I will correct ASAP) can be bought from his website www.scottymason.com . I think I paid about $40 for Volume 1...money very well spent. Trust me, you will want to eventually move to laser kits (nothing resembles wood quite like....wood). Many of today's craftsman kits can be assembled by anyone with minimal skills, a willingness to learn, and a dash of adventure. I just finished Northeastern Scale Models "Cheese Factory" and found it to be straight-forward and enjoyable to build. Yes, I built it before I sent for Scotty's DVD - made some mistakes; but resolve to do better on the next kit.

[Packer]

I used thinned white laytex paint. I put it in a cap and added some water to the mix. Brush paint on a side of a building, then wipe it off.

I may have over-did it.

[jbone]

TomKat - I'm so glad you mentioned using chalk. I started to built my first brick model building the other night and decided that I wanted to "weather" the walls before putting it together. I had NO idea how to do it. I did remember someone had mentioned using chalk....soooo I grabbed my daughters box of Pastel Chalks and set to it....being completely cluesless. I tried using a brush and it took forever and the chalk didn't stay. So here's a stupidly simple way that I found worked much better. I used an off-white color and really pressed the end of the chalk into the mortor lines. Then I blew away the excess and rubbed it in with a damp finger. That was it. I then put some streaks of black chalk on the brick faces and again worked it in hard with a damp finger. I highlighted areas under the windows and other places and it looks fantastic. I was shocked. I tried to see how durable it was by wiping it off with a wet finger and it would not come off. I've since completed 3 other building using chalk and it really is simple. Certainly anywhere I used black appears to be permanent. Hopefully the other colors will stay also.

[mikelhh]

 Loads of good ideas on here.

 

 I used artists pastels [chalks] to do  mine :

 Powder the chalk with a blade, rub it on, blow away the excess and gently spray with artists fixative or matt varnish. I like to be a bit hit and miss with the chalk.

 

 

 Mike 

 

[NSlover92]

I use the method you said first I paint the brick all a oxide red, i let that dry good for a day or so, and then I take concrete colored paint, and put it on, then I whip it off, worked good for me, if your bricks dont look good enough to you, you can then use different red tints of colored pencils and color random bricks. Mike

[ChrisNH]

Mike, that looks very convincing. I will definitely try doing that on one of my "test" walls.

Chris

[gatrhumpy]

It seems like I can't win.

I tried to go to Home Depot to get some Window glazing putty, the non-drying kind, and tried rubbing it on the brick face. I even warmed it up by rubbing it in my hands a couple of minutes. No go. The putty was waaay to sticky and would not adhere to the brick surface.

Even tried a wash of diluted off-white paint with water, and then tried wiping off the face of the brick once the wash was applied. The result was crap. The wash was not consistent and when I wiped it took away some of white mortar lines. I was wiping perpendicular to the mortar lines, and then even tried at a 45 degree angle, with horrible results.

Why can't I get a consistent mortar line on N scale brick?

[secondhandmodeler]

If you really want the mortar lines to show up perfectly, you may need to reverse your process.  The reverse involves painting your structure the mortar color then coloring each individual brick.  I believe colored pencils are involved.  When I did my buildings, I didn't want the mortar to show up perfectly.  Before I weathered it, it looked like Packers building.  Then I toned it down with a few dark washes to darken the bricks.  Are you trying to build a 'new' building, or an older one?

[gatrhumpy]

I might have to try the painting using a hard paint pen when I get home. I have to first work on my Master's Degree. Priorities!

I would like a perfectly painted structure, and then I can weather it from there.

[gatrhumpy]

I need to try the hard paint pen. I will first have to work on my Master's Degree.

I want to get a perfectly-painted building, then weather it to my liking.