I’m gonna paint the undercarriage of the Proto 1000 RDC. I’m not gonna prime it because it’s metal. Which metallic spray paint would be recommended? Can Permanent markers be used to paint the vents?
I’d probably prime it, for better paint adhesion. However, I’ve painted metal Roundhouse underframes flat black using the cheap flat black from Wal Mart. It covers well and sticks without priming. I use it to paint the weights for all my other cars as well, and I have lots of open hoppers where the weights are visible. It’s less than 2 bucks for a giant can, compared to typically overpriced model paints.
–Randy
Ok then. Thanks
I beg to differ… If you want that paint to stick well to metal… Best thing to use a metal prep…its a wash to clean metal with…I’ve used it with a red scotch bright pad… then use acetone to wash off the metal prep… then use a ETCH primer on it… You can use dupi-color rattle can etch prime…then lighty used a red scotch bright pad to scuff the primer and whipe it down and your ready to paint.
Don’t use metallic paint, it will look strange…
Automotive primer would work for this (I had it recommended for brass), just use a grey. Then a flat black or flat dark grey would work.
For this application model paints would be a waste, as there isn’t a lot of fine detail. General purpose spray paints would work just fine.
Well, I don’t know if I’m replying to just one post or to the whole thread.
At any rate, instead of black or gray - which may be suitable for motive power or passenger cars - aren’t freightcar underframes generally the same color as the car itself? Or is flat black or flat dark grey the rule??
JACK,
He’s painting the under carriage, of an RDC car,which is a Rail Diesel Car,self propelled,passenger car.
Cheers, [D]
Frank
I understood that.
It’s a message forum, you’re always replying to the whole thread. If there are specific items in someone else’s post you want to respond to, there is the option to quote the message you are replying to - that also means you need to click the Reply button on the message you want to quote. You can add more quote and end quote tags to break the original message up into pieces if you want to say reply to specific questions one at a time.
Mailing lists can be different, sometimes replying to a message only gets sent to the originator and not the whole list, other times any reply you make goes to the entire list unless you alter the recipients.
–Randy
As for the question of color, there’s no hard and fast rule. Even the same railroad did it differently at different times. Same with the trucks, sometimes they are black, regardless of the car body color, other times they match the car color. I’m sure you cna even find photos where one truck is the car color and the other is black, or some different color, most likely around a car shop where it was set temporarily on shop trucks but I am sure you can find a car in a train looking like that somewhere.
Only way to be sure is to find prototype photos of what you are workign with and try to match that. No guarantees unless you find a photo of the car number you are modeling - cars 100110 and 100240 might be the exact same clas, built the same year, but one might have a body color underframe and one might be black.
For plain black things, I usually forego model paints and use a 99 cent (might be $1.19 now) can of flat black paint from WalMart. It actually doesn’t go on overly thick at all and we’re talking a big tall can for a fraction of the price of one of those small model spray cans.
–Randy
Guess that I am confused?? This is a Electronics/ DCC problem?
The OP,left out,‘‘Plus Paint’’. [:D]
Cheers, [D]
Frank