I'm new to the hobby and I see all these books and articles about weathering your locomotives to make them look more realistic. Am I wrong that I have a hard time "mucking" up a $250+ model? I really don't want to have to weather my locomotives, but many people, especially Tony Koester's books, make it sound like that's a criminal offense. Are there any of you that have not weathered your locos?
Thanks,
Mike Brubaker
I would be interested in other oopinions. I myself can go both ways, but i like the way alot of them come from the manufacturer.
love any kind of train
Mike,
First of all, it's your railroad, do what you want to do. If you don't want to weather your locos, then don't. Simple.
I hear what you're saying. I have some beautiful MTH SD70Aces that I can't bring myself to weather. At least not now, maybe down the road (rails?) some time.
I might just do some light weathering, like trucks/wheels get dusty. There are many levels of weathering. From rust bucket to a light dusting.
Michael
CEO- Mile-HI-RailroadPrototype: D&RGW Moffat Line 1989
I have only weathered one of mine as an experiement.
But other than that, the only "weathering" is dust.
With the prices of locos as they are here in Germany, I am very reluctant to give my loco a weathering job. Imagine mucking up a $ 600 loco! I´d rather spend an additional, say $ 50 - 80 to get a professional weathering job done by an expert.
I myself do not weather any of my models, and never intend to.
A friend of mine who was a custom painter refused to weather any engine he painted. A customer especially wanted an engine weathered and he refused. The engine was painted in gloss and eventually it was sent to Mr. Weather for weathering.
Rick
Rule 1: This is my railroad.
Rule 2: I make the rules.
Rule 3: Illuminating discussion of prototype history, equipment and operating practices is always welcome, but in the event of visitor-perceived anacronisms, detail descrepancies or operating errors, consult RULE 1!
Short answer is that you don't have to weather your RR equipment.
I am funny about weathering.
I will weather buildings to make them look more realistic.
But I do NOT weather my locos or RRcars. I prefer to think my RR keeps 'em clean and shiney.
I, too, have a hard time even weathering a $50 loco or a $4.99 RR car, let alone a $250.00 loco.I am affraid I will "muck it up" and if I do on a building I can always strip it and start over, but loco,,,it's hard to get that factory-like new look back again.
Now maybe if I could do a great weather job like Robby P. ,,,,
-G .
Just my thoughts, ideas, opinions and experiences. Others may vary.
HO and N Scale.
After long and careful thought, they have convinced me. I have come to the conclusion that they are right. The aliens did it.
mike_brubaker I'm new to the hobby and I see all these books and articles about weathering your locomotives to make them look more realistic. Am I wrong that I have a hard time "mucking" up a $250+ model? I really don't want to have to weather my locomotives, but many people, especially Tony Koester's books, make it sound like that's a criminal offense. Are there any of you that have not weathered your locos? Thanks, Mike Brubaker
Mike,No its not necessary to weather your locomotives or cars and with today's limited production I highly advise against it.
Whys that?
Glad you ask..Being a horse trader I have found unweather locomotives brings a better cash return.
You see the majority of the modelers that do weather prefers a unweathered locomotive over one that was weathered by the previous owner since weathering is a personal touch.
Larry
Conductor.
Summerset Ry.
"Stay Alert, Don't get hurt Safety First!"
My biggest problem with weathering is not whether to do it (sorry about the pun), but whether I'll do it right. There are so many techniques out there, and every modeler who actively weathers his rolling stock swears by his (or her) method. What if I try a particular technique I saw in the magazine and it doesn't work, or I screw it up? What if I weather it too heavily? What if I follow all the techniques exactly, and it still doesn't look right?
I know the answer to my concerns is to try several techniques on less important models, and as I master some or all of those techniques, I can judiciously apply them to my more important models. Still, getting over the hump of caution and indecision is tough at times. I keep telling myself I'll throw myself a weathering party - fire up the airbrush and weather a large batch of models at once - but there's always something else I want to do first.
It'll happen one day, but I'm in no rush.
Tom
Well, I'm glad you all are on my side! HA HA HA! Good, I think I'll leave them alone, too much investment to "weather" it up.
Mike
anything i weather is done with pastels , chalks. If i am not happy with it it is real ez to undo. Any weathering i do on engines is very very light. my railroad , unlike the old SP , takes pride in having clean engines.
Me.........It has to be weathered!! Every bit of my rolling stock is either a mild weathered job, or a rust bucket. Just having a engine on my layout shiny....Just won't work.
I agree it's your layout, and maybe down the road you can do as someone said, and just dust it up a bit.
Here's some engines I've done.
[View:http://cs.trains.com/TRCCS/themes/trc/utility/:550:0]
This was a N-scale
"Rust, whats not to love?"
Like most folks said, the short answer is NO. Do what makes you happy. I personally like filthy steam so nothing runs on my layout that hasn't seen gouache weathering and an airbrush.
Chris
First you sould understand that is a very diverse hobby with lots of different "views' on how to go about doing it.
Don't let the Tony K's of the world dictate to you how to buid a model railroad or what to do or not do.
Now a few thoughts on weathering, and on the hobby in general.
IF your goal is to build a realistic, possibly photo-genic layout with realistic scenery, etc, like many you see in MR and RMC, than you most likely want to get into some level of weathering. How much is another question intirely.
For some weathering is a model art form within itself, especailly for many modelers of the current era since there is little or no pride of ownership on todays railroads and stuff is allowed to get in very poor cosmetic condition.
While railroading has always been a dirty business, in many eras past railroads did much more to keep things clean and looking as good as was practical.
Many of us who model these other eras are less likely to weather to extreme degrees, at least not on every piece of equipment. On most lines, the early 50's was a relatively clean and shinny period, diesels were new, freight cars new or freshly rebuilt with profits from the war, passenger cars too were new or rebuilt/repainted in one last ditch effort to save passenger business.
Back to modeling style and interest for a moment - Many people, some who have responded to your question so far, are more the "collector/runner" type rather than the "scene builder/modeler" type. And that's fine, everyone should take from this hobby what they enjoy. These folks we tell you not to weather or modify because it will hurt resale value - and they are right! So the question goes to you - do you ever think you would sell your stuff and does "collecting" interest you?
I (and other scene builder/modeler types) generally don't buy and then resell - I basicly have every model train I ever bought since I was 12, in 1969, when I started buying model trains with my own money. So I repaint them, weather them, kitbash them, modifiy them, with no regard for its effect on their value - and, yes, over the years when learning I have distroyed a few.
And nothing short of complete personal economic collapse would prompt me to sell anything other than a stray piece here or there that was once thought to be needed for the layout but now does not fit in.
I don't see my model railroad purchases as any kind of investment - they are my toys, entertainment like a going to a movie or out to dinner - try getting any return on those investments. The kids (all grown now) will have to have a big Ebay sale to collect their inheritance.
Back to weathering - should you decide to weather, definately start small and work into it, and generally, "less is more". If you are in HO, consider this, at 3 actually feet away, you are 261 scale feet away. How do trains look at that distance? That is the effect I strive for and would recommend.
Noted and well published modeler Howard Zane, who sells custom weathered cars, goes into some detail about this on his web site http://www.zanestructures.com/aboutrs.htm
You may want to explore the various aspects of the hobby for a while before you comment a lot of resources in one direction. Do you own an airbrush? Have you built any kits? Are you interesting in building structures and rolling stock? These may all be questions you would want to answer yes to before getting too deep into weathering.
Light weatherng and simply "dull coating" models makes them more realistic looking in a scene without necessarily making them look old, run down, or beat up. This isa choice I make for a large number of my models.
Welcome to the worlds greatest (and likely mosts diverse) hobby,
Sheldon
I didn't want to have to weather my loco's so I modeled Canadian Pacific. Their engines always looked as pristine as the day they rolled out of the shop.
It's your Railroad. How Pristine you keep your fleet is up to you.
Brent
"All of the world's problems are the result of the difference between how we think and how the world works."
Yes, you have too! Just kidding.. I am a light weather, I use 59 cent Jo-Anns acrylic paint and lightly dry brush my dirty mix of colors, bit more on my rolling stock and less on the engines. I believe the paint is water based as it does wash right off if I find I might have over done it. My Dash-7 has bit more since it is an "older" engine while my Dash-9 is just dull coted to get ride of the plastic shine since it is a newer engine. I have one of the new Atlas Genset on order (should be here tomorrow) and I dont plan on doing anything to it since the those are very new to the rail world all the photos I have seen they look shiny new.
If you wish to model and show something one ought to expect in a modelled context, then I would say at least some judicious weathering would be more convincing. But no one has to do anything only one way in this hobby.
Let's be realistic...how many of us would tackle the job of painting their own backdrop? Not many a t'all. They decline because they understand themselves and what they want to do about their own enjoyment of their purchases and construction(s). So, if one is not very handy with an artist's brush, with powders, or with an airbrush, one is probably wise to accept that his/her items are not going to look very used or weathered over the long haul.
I used to feel squeamish about mucking up a pricey engine. I got over it, and was determined to make it a goal to weather engines decently...as I define decently. Some of my photos make me think I have done a passable job on some of my projects, while my early efforts were....uh....interesting....yeah, interesting.
My first two serious attempts, where I stuck to it and got ideas about fixes as I went along, were, in order, these two, each costing me over $350:
-Crandell
This is a "To each his own" bromide, I guess. Me? well, I don't really regard my (model) railroad purchases--even if they were two hundred and fifty smacker models--as an investment so I'm not averse to weathering my equipment. I would much rather have my locomotives convey the impression that they are working, and hence, earning revenue, rather than my whole fleet giving the appearance that they just emerged from the erection shop in London, Ontario, Canada or Erie, Pennsylvania . . . . . . . . . . or maybe just having come out of the paint shop as part of an overhaul.
For me locomotives . . . . . . . . . . and rolling stock also for that matter . . . . . . . . . . look more appropriate when at least lightly weathered. They should become part of the illusion of the layout's scenery. Unfortunately weathering is sometimes applied with too heavy a hand! . . . . . . . . . . GUILTY!!!!! On more than one occassion I have had to go through a stripping and repainting process because I came out with a weathered locomotive that looked more like a T-34 that had just spent a week mucking through a Russian winter offensive.
A vignette if I may:
About thirty years ago a group of us railfans were on an excursion up on the Santa Fe mainline. We caught a freight departing westbound from Winslow with a freshly painted GE on the headend. I was informed by an individual heavily into modeling the Santa Fe, and therefore in the know about such things, that this unit was fresh off the erection floor at Erie and was on its first trip westward.
Roll the calendar forward six or seven months. I'm shooting an eastbound from atop the old Route 66 bridge out at Rimmy Jims . . . . . . . . . . it is now known as Winona, Rimmy Jim's being a somewhat vulgar expression which is why this location is no longer known as that. There was a GE unit on the point of this train, dirty and muddy, badly in need of a trip through a washrack somewhere; and it even appeared that the unit's paintjob was beginning to show a few signs of fading. It wasn't until some time later that I discovered that I had photographed the same unit as I had done the previous summer.
From the far, far reaches of the wild, wild west I am: rtpoteet
You don't have to, someone else may want to weather tham for you .
I weather my cars, but I'm trying to get a bit more experience before tackling more engines. Let's just say my last loco got botched.
Vincent
Wants: 1. high-quality, sound equipped, SD40-2s, C636s, C30-7s, and F-units in BN. As for ones that don't cost an arm and a leg, that's out of the question....
2. An end to the limited-production and other crap that makes models harder to get and more expensive.
Dear Mike: I weather all my buildings, cars and locomotives, eventually, unless I desire to make a piece of equipment appear new. More that one person has commented that my layout is Grungy, not in a negative way ,but as a compliment on the realism. One thing I have found out, though, is that my structures sold on Ebay, go quicker if they are not weathered!
The Ferroequinologist layoutconcepts@yahoo.com eBay store: Backshop Train & China Store Facebook: Model Trains, Train Sets, Buildings & Layout Concepts
Crandell, you sure do take terrific photos of a beautiful layout. Just like your Seneca Gorge bridge shot from another post. Thanks!
Robby
If you want a realistic layout: Then look at your protoype cues. I was in Crwfordsvill last week, and the engines and even a few of the cars from CSX ranged from "Looks like it's been washed" to "Just came out of the box". I couldn't believe the shine on some of them, so you don't have to. Me? I doubt I'll be weathering many engines. The ones I use are either shortline, Lease engines that'll look nicve going to the customer, or parked in a museum. trucks maybe. We'll see about freightcars as I get to them, but judgng by my current experience, Odds aren't great. And it's even less likely they will see an airbrush, like never. Chalks though...
-Morgan
Here's a few pictures. You can have some clean engines, and then some used looking ones!!
If you'll forgive a play on words, weathering isn't hard to do, but it's easy to overdo.
If you're new to the hobby, I wouldn't worry about weathering at this point. I weather all my cars and engines, but I didn't start doing it until I had been in the hobby many years. Nothing wrong with leaving your equipment in "like new" condition until you feel like you want to try weathering.
BTW if/when you do start weathering, you can always start with something like powdered charcoal and chalks rather than paint or stain washes. That way, if you don't like the result, you can wash it off and start over.
Mike, it's yes and no. If you really want to make everything look blended even new locos should have some dullcoat.
However, no one will arrest you for not weathering your locos. If you really like the paint or don't want to mess it up that's fine.
If you want to but are afraid of messing anything up, practice on some freight cars instead...they're much cheaper and also easier to repaint if you want to.
Sawyer Berry
Clemson University c/o 2018
Building a protolanced industrial park layout
I am planning to weather my freight cars, after practicing on some junkers that I still have floating around from my first train set. Having said that, I probably won't be weathering my locomotives beyond a spray with dullcote, just to take the sheen off.
The Location: Forests of the Pacific Northwest, OregonThe Year: 1948The Scale: On30The Blog: http://bvlcorr.tumblr.com
Of course you don't have to - as most here have said.
Myself? I'm modeling a railroad, not a collection of rolling stock. As railroads operate in the weather, i feel mine need to be weathered. I used to build military models, where I "learned" some things to do and not do, and on relatively inexpensive plastic kits. Though sometimes I look at a pristine boxcar and think - that looks too cool to get dirty. But I get over it, and when I place it in a train it looks GREAT.
That said, I haven't weathered my only steam locomotive yet. However, i am going to, eventually. Really, I swear...
Sean
HO Scale CSX Modeler
Mr. Mikado (Robby), thanks very much...I sincerely appreciate your fondness for my layout and photos.
Well, Mike, they are not trying to imply that not wethering a locomotive is a "criminal offence", but rather, that almost all locomotives would do good with some wethering.
Are you wrong about having a hard time starting the wethering process? No, not at all. I normally get really cheep locomotives, and I have to force myself to think about wethering them.
Wetheirng is optional, some people like it, some people don't. It's just personal prefrence. What I do is run the locomotives un-wethered for a few years, and then hit them with a black wash (at least on the grilles) and mabe some dry-brushed rust and dirt. Then, after that, I give the locomotive a heavy wethering, and never take a brush to it again (with few exceptions)
But, the best way to sum it all up is:
It's your layout. Do what you want. JUST HAVE FUN!
Unlike the majority of you SCARETY CATS I choose to weather all of my rollingstock including engines. I strive for realism and you DO NOT achieve that with a good looking layout and shiny plastic models. I say people SHOULD either weather them if they are decent at it or pay to have them done by a professional. The professional weathered models sell for more money than they are worth so it is not a bad deal to weather the models. plus there is a couple of guys on youtube that make HOW TO videos with Weathering taht make it so easy to learn and be good at it.
I SAY WEATHER IT!!!