I started weathering these N Scale Alco FAs as part of a how-to clinic I conducted at the railroad museum I volunteer at. That was Saturday.
Since then I've been upping the weathering ante on these things. I took the fuel tank and truck side frames off and painted them Floquil Grimey Black. But now I'm noticing the power pickups stick out like sore thumbs. even from across the room they are visibil. Since they are not contacting the wheels where they are showing, can I paint them? If so what color would your guys recomend? At first I was thinking Grimy black but that might make the trucks look like one big, black block. Perhaps engine Black would hide the contacts and yet allow the truck side frams to stand out a bit.
Also, what else can I do to imprive the looks of the trucks and fuel tanks?
Tahnks for your help.
Modeling the Pennsylvania Railroad in N Scale.
www.prr-nscale.blogspot.com
By all means, paint the pick-ups - straight black will make them disappear, but still allow the lighter-coloured sideframes to show their shape.To enhance the detail of the sideframes, I like to paint the springs, both coil- and leaf-type, with some sort of rust colour. Use a light touch so that only the coils of the springs are coloured, not the spaces between them. For leaf springs, dry-brushing works well, as it hits only the high spots. I also like to paint the brake shoes (the part that rubs against the wheel treads, not the entire brake assembly. For these, grey works well. To tone down these contrasting colours, I like to add an overspray of road dust/grime. For this, thin your paint severely (about 90% thinner) and apply it while the wheels are turning. Make sure to clean the wheel treads after you're finished weathering.While the models shown are HO, the same techniques can be used in any scale. (Click on the photos for an enlargement, and then on the enlargement for a bigger view.)
In addition to blending the disparate colours of the brush-painted details into the overall colour of the sideframes, the well-thinned overspray catches the high points of the moulded-on detail, with its lighter colour making the details appear more well-pronounced.
Wayne
Wayne,
Did you also use Grimy Black for your base color? I attempted some weathering of my trucks a few weekends ago and I think I used Dust, and they came out too tan-ish looking. In retrospect, I think I should have used a different color to start with and, as you said, come back with a light coating of Dust.
Scott
sschnabl Did you also use Grimy Black for your base color?....
Did you also use Grimy Black for your base color?....
No, I may have used a black which I had on hand, or the trucks may have simply been weathered over the bare plastic. I usually have a lot of pre-mixed and thinned colours on-hand, and when there's only a small amount left in a bottle, I dump the odds 'n' ends into one larger bottle. Usually, it ends up being suitable for painting underbodies, trucks, or wheels. If necessary, I can adjust the colour to make it more suitable for a particular use, and I might end up with two or three very different weathering colours from the same batch of leftovers. It's a good way to use paint which has been mixed for a specific paint job, but the remainder no longer needed. Floquil here is now $7.00 a bottle, and PollyScale not too much less, so I try to get the most mileage possible out of what's on hand.
I also don't use ready-mixed weathering colours. For dust, I might use some of the left-over white from this reefer:
...and a little yellow from this one:
...and perhaps some brown from this car:
...and then add a little grey primer and a whole lot of lacquer thinner to get a very well-thinned shade of "dust". Whatever batch of cars or locos that's being painted at the time will likely get weathered, to varying degrees, with it. If there are a lot of cars involved, I'll likely alter the original "dust" colour once or twice during that lot, as cars don't all get dirty to the same degree or under the same local conditions.
The point which I'm trying to make is to not let the name of the colour influence you unduly as to its intended use.
Well, I went ahead and painted the power contacts Floquil Engine Black. What and Improvement! The contacts vanished.
I still feel like the fuel tank needs to have some streaks running down the sides though. I also liked the look of the Grimy Black on the trucks that I did this FM too: