Locomotive weathering

Model Railroader General Discussion (Model Railroader)
1

I keep hearing about using chalks in the weathering process. Are these some sort of special chalks, or are they just plain old blackboard chalk? Also, if someone could clarify for me how you use them, that would be great! Thanks

Kevin

2

MicroMark sells some weathering powders, which are basically preground chalks. Many use earthtone and lighter chalks that can be purchased from art supply stores and then sanded into a powder. I have not yet been brave enough to use chalks on a locomotive, but have used them on many freight cars and structures. I bru***he chalks on after a coat of dull coat and then follow with dull coat. There was a topic about this earlier this year

http://www.trains.com/community/forum/topic.asp?page=-1&TOPIC_ID=30398&REPLY_ID=301819#301819

3

i use Pastel chalks.

4

I take it that one would mask the running gear on a steamer when using Dullcoat? I can’t imagine that it would be good for the driving rods and wheels/axles. Or am I incorrect?

Please respond, because I have a sweet P2K 0-6-0 that does mine work on my new layout, and it should look the part.

Thanks.

5

There are several firms that sell weathering chalks, they come in small plastic boxes with different colors in solid chunks. These plain chalks will come off on you hand when the model is handled. The normal way to prevent this is to seal in the chalks with a spray of Dullcoat. The problem is the spray greatly reduces the effect of the chalks, so the model may require several applications of chalk and Dullcoat to achieve the desired result.

I recenly tried out some Bragdon Weathering Chalks on several steam engines. These chalks are already powdered, and mine came four colors to a plastic box, separated by dividers. These chalks come with a powdered adhesive mixed in, and rubbing the chalks on the model sets the adhesive. This means it stays on the model better than the plain chalks, and does not require a Dullcoat spray.

Here’s an On30 Climax that I weathered with the Bragdon chalks:

(Click on the photo for a larger version)

I rubbed most of it down with their “Soot”, which dulled down the Bachmann semi gloss finish. I then used “Dark Rust” on the top sides to represent road dust and dirt. The truck sideframes, chassis and pilots received some “Light Rust” color. I was really pleased with the results, and have applied the same effects to other engines.

Bob Boudreau

6

Well, I’ve never had a problem using dullcote over a steamers rods. It’s only a thin mist of flat finish. Not enough to gum up joints or anything. It greatly helps the look of rods and wheels faces.