Airbrushing Some Passenger Cars: Tamiya or Vallejo

[richhotrain]

SeeYou190

Rich, it might be worth your time to call both Dana's Railroad Supply in Spring Hill, Florida and Gulf Coast Model Railroading in Sarasota, Florida.

The last time I visited these stores they still had a selection of Scalecoat on the shelves.

-Kevin 

Kevin, thanks for that heads up on possible Scalecoat II availability. There was a point where I thought that Scalecoat II was the way to go, but once it was discontinued, I started to research acrylic spray paints and decided to go that route.

Rich

[richhotrain]

tstage

Rich,

I mentioned this to you before.  Although neither airbrushing nor acrylic, I've been very happy with the Tamiya "TS" (lacquer) spray paints.  It goes on thin and I've had zero issues with covering up fine detailing.  I would expect the same with their acrylics and with using an airbrush. 

FWIW,

Tom 

Tom, thanks for that reminder.

Rich

[SeeYou190]

Rich, it might be worth your time to call both Dana's Railroad Supply in Spring Hill, Florida and Gulf Coast Model Railroading in Sarasota, Florida.

The last time I visited these stores they still had a selection of Scalecoat on the shelves.

-Kevin

[gmpullman]

Since the bare plastic already has a coat of aluminum paint I would skip the primer step. One process I've used for the 'stainless-steel' look is the Alclad II product and that does require a base coat ofgray but in the case of your already painted cars I would try the Alclad II directly over the Walthers paint.

I don't use Alclad any more since I've found what I consider a superior product and that's the Molotow chrome paint. It is a little tricky to shoot just right. You have to keep the leading edge wet and the stuff dries almost instantaneously.

Stainless-paint by Edmund, on Flickr

NKP_P-S_coach-1 by Edmund, on Flickr

In the case of this brass 21 roomette car I DID use primer since I was going over bare metal. I used Tamiya rattle-can primer and the Molotow chrome over that:

Budd_PRR_Inn-end by Edmund, on Flickr

Budd_PRR_Inn by Edmund, on Flickr

My experience with Vallejo is that the paint, while it looks great, does not have very good adhesion and would not hold up well to even moderate handling of the rolling stock.

Therefore, between the two brands you mention, I'd experiment with the Tamiya.

Good Luck, Ed

[tstage]

Rich,

I mentioned this to you before.  Although neither airbrushing nor acrylic, I've been very happy with the Tamiya "TS" (lacquer) spray paints.  It goes on thin and I've had zero issues with covering up fine detailing.  I would expect the same with their acrylics and with using an airbrush.

Rich,

I mentioned this to you before.  Although neither airbrushing nor acrylic, I've been very happy with the Tamiya "TS" (lacquer) spray paints.  It goes on thin and I've had zero issues with covering up fine detailing.  I would expect the same with their acrylics and with using an airbrush.  I've only brushpainted with Vallejo.

FWIW,

Tom

 

FWIW,

Tom

[richhotrain]

At long last I have built a spray booth and equipped it with an air filter and exhaust fan to vent the fumes. So, now I am ready to paint a series of 12 Walthers Mainline passenger cars. These are brand new painted and unlettered cars.

My original intent was to paint these cars with Scalecoat II, but since it has been discontinued, I decided to choose a high quality acrylic paint. I have narrowed my search down to Tamiya and Vallejo. I am interested in your opinions and experience with each brand.

My plan is to wash the cars, then prime them, and then spray paint them with an airbrush. I do have questions about primers, thinners, and flow improvers. 

I look forward to your comments and suggestions.

Rich