need help with paint choice

Model Railroader Layouts and layout building
1

hi all ,in short I ordered a air brush ,paaaush H , now I need a shopping list of must have’S for 1. general layout build say paint for rail and such? 2. min. colors for some light weathering say trucks and such example; earth ,gray ,rust . ect? 3. and lets say some building kit colors like, aged concrete ect.

or maybe you lost all you’re paint stash and gave you’re wife a minimal shopping list to get you up and running what colors would be on that list ? or other supplies ,type and brand ? …

remember a minimal gotta have type a list to build and maintain a RR

any advise is good advise ,PS there is nothing close to me ,so internet is my supply line…Jerry

2

LIONS use a paint brush. For really fine work, the tip of their tail works too.

LIONS use cheap latex paints from Walmart or other crafty stores. Him puts a blob of each color on a disposable dish and then paints mudding his brush with paints from each puddle. For trees in the background an array of greens will do, for sky an array of blues. But LIONS model subway tunnels so an array of blacks, grays and browns seems to work well and creates the streaky appearance of aged subway tunnel walls.

But you want one of those air-brush thingies. LIONS know nothing about them and so cannot help you.

3

Do you have a hobby or craft store nearby? My recommendation would be to buy the paints piecemeal as you need them. I use Polly Scale and Testors Model Master Acryl acrylic paints for all my hobby uses (in addition to railroading, I also paint scale soldiers and fantasy figures). I have about 60 colors, mostly hues of green and brown. I mix them when I need something different that doesn’t come in a commercial color. For some reason, Testors (which also manufactures Polly Scale) doesn’t make a color that looks like blond hair, nor anything that’s a true sky blue, just to name some glaring examples.

If you’re going to mix your own, and you think you ever might want to use that color again, WRITE DOWN THE RECIPE!

While you can buy paint containers at an art or craft store, I prefer to go to a party supply place and get the plastic 1 oz or 1.5 oz dressing or sauce cups with lids. They cost about $0.10 each in quantity, and can be reused a few times before they break. When they do, chuck them and use another.

If you’re going to press for a list, here goes:

– 70% isopropyl alcohol, thinned 50% with distilled or filtered water, to use as a thinner.

– MM Acryl colors: Earth Red and Rust for weathering, Flat Black for washes (thinned 1:10), and Steel for shiny metal objects

– Polly Scale colors: Dirty White (really an ivory), Grimy Black, and Dirt for weathering, Roof Brown is a good color for railroad ties (although some prefer RR Tie Brown).

You can go to the Testors website and see all the color patches (Polly Scale paints are listed under the Floquil line): http://www.testors.com/model_and_hobby Most of these acrylic colors have a similar shade in the MM Enamel or Floquil (enamel) lines, if you prefer higher doses of VOC.

For landscape colors, my layout undercoat is Glidden Nutmeg Brown (available at hardware store

4

thanks CTvalley ;good list I can work from ,Thanks Jerry

5

Not exactly a bare minimum list, but I’d go for black, white, brown, grey primer, red, yellow and orange.

While you can make orange from red and yellow, and brown from red and black, I find all of these colours useful enough on their own to not want to waste them for mixing readily-available colours.

This will provide colours enough to do most steam and transition-era freight cars, steam locos (very few of them are just “black”, brick and stone, and weathering for all of the above. You’ll soon learn which ones get used the most, and order accordingly, but I find all of the ones listed to be useful.

If you want to paint passenger cars, vehicles, diesels, or LPBs, you’ll need to expand the list accordingly. The advice to get a brush (or several) is a good one, too.

I counted over 150 jars and bottles of various types and brands of model paint in my paint cupboard - some are multiples of often-used colours, while some were purchased for very specific tasks and may have been used only once. While there’s no law against using colours just as they come (Rail Brown, Engine Black, Boxcar Red, etc.) don’t be afraid to mix your own colours to match what you see in your chosen prototypes. Like any other type of painting, this aspect of the hobby is “art” - don’t be afraid to enjoy it as such.

Wayne

6

And your equipment doe NOT have to match. Paint fades very quickly out there on the road. An exact match may work for new equipment, but once it has been on the road for a while stuff happens to it.

7

i definitely agree about not mixing your own if there’s a commercial equivalent out there. As I said in my post, sky blue (which I make from Cobalt Blue and White), one for blond hair (Insignia Yellow and Wood), and one for tree bark (made from Flat Gull Gray and Lichtgrun RLM), most of what I use is straight out of the bottle.

Also, although I didn’t mention it earlier, while an airbrush is great for many applications, it’s not a universal solution. I would invest in some good brushes in a variety of sizes. Expect to pay about $5 each, and buy some commercial brush cleaner and conditioner (I use Mona Lisa Pink Soap) and take care of them.

I see that I also didn’t mention primers. I use Testors Model Master in the rattle can, both gray (under dark colors) and white (under light ones). For wood, I use a base coat of Liquitex wood sealer.

8

Don’t forget Walmart! In their crafts department you will find cheap acylic craft paints that can be used on buildings and scenery. These can be thinned with water. They have large bottles of white, black, yellows browns and greens.

9

I find the paint colors I use most often are Grimy Black, Earth, Rust, Concrete, L&N Gray, Boxcar Red, Steam Power Black, Roof Brown, Reefer White, Depot Buff, Depot Olive, and Reefer Yellow. The railroad and time period you model will influence other choices, but that’s my basic dozen.

10

thanks Guys ;I think I got my starter list…Jerry

11

Jerry, for my weathering, I use the acrylic paints from Wal-Mart. For weathering trucks, I use sand color, for weathering railroad ties, I use their black. This replicates the oil stains locomotives leave behind. Acrylic paints are not very durable, by themselves, so I seal it with a coat of matte finish. I use the rattle can from Wal-Mart; Testors Dullcote is to expensive to seal all the rail. DO NOT SPRAY ANY KIND OF PAINT, SEALER, ETC. ON THE MOVING PARTS OF TURNOUTS, THOUGH! Don’t ask me how I know. Although a drop of Labelle’s oil on the pivot points before painting helps.

12

Medina, there are two kinds of modelers: those who will admit to having screwed up the turnout points with something sticky, and liars. I myself fall into the former category! [:D]

13

Raising hand sheepishly… me too…[banghead]

14

Dear readers,

I have posted many articles here and on FSM and several other forums about the advantages of using acrylic craft paints, far from expensive they are available through WalMart, Hobby Lobby and Michaels. These are high gloss and flat, come in most every color imaginable and airbrush on as well as hand brush. I have used them since about ten years ago and found many tricks that I will share here.

Brand names aside, they are are acrylic and were first used for ceramics. They mix with about 50/50 Blue tinted windshield wiper fluid to airbrush with as the alcohol dries the paint as it goes on the model, in my case HO scenery, locos, etc. as well as 1/35th scale armor and 1/48th scale WW2 aircraft. By using color charts the matching of the colors is near perfect and the advantage is 2oz squeeze bottles for under $3.00 per brand, if not less. Another trick I learned to dry the paint, I use a hand held hairdryer set on LOW heat and pass it over the model to slowly dry the paint, this works wonders.

Additionally this paint mixes with acrylic caulk to make a batter like substance that when thinned with water coats basic scenery material such as thin wrapping paper that can go over extruded foam shapes to form landscapes.

Last but not least try another acrylic based product, waterproofing Polycrylic. This is great for water scenes, poured in several layers this product dries clear after a few hours and is great for shallow ponds and rivers. I have many photos on line through Amazon.com where I have reviewed many products and written numerous articles about models as well as several right here.

Best of luck, John Staehle

15

John,

I have tried using very cheap artists acrylics over the years, and although I favor them for some projects, I have in general found them too thick for modeling applications (except model rockets). Maybe it’s just how I’m trying to thin them, but after several unsatisfactory tries, I went back to the much more expensive “model” or “hobby” acrylics (Model Master Acryl and PollyScale – I’ve also tried Taimya, with less than satisfactory results as well). I find the hobby acrylics can be used either with a brush or an airbrush, as appropriate.

When I want thicker paints (like for ground cover), I use cheap interior latex from the hardware store.