I am finally done molding my canyon for my ho scale layout. The area i am modeling is Glenwood springs canyon. I am now at the painting part of this project and was looking for any advise on how to paint all these hydro-cal rock formations. I think i would like to stain them with an acrylic wash of some sort. Does anyone know what paints work best for this process normally for painting i use the regular acrylic tube paint you find at local art store etc. Windsor & Newton. I have no idea if this is water soluble. If anyone is familiar with this area and has some good ideas on what colors to use to paint this canyon that would be helpful too. I do know that India Ink is a good wash for the finish because it really brings out the details in the rock castings. Thanks ,
I’m from Colorado. I am interested in seeing your progress on this canyon. Glenwood Springs is a very beautiful area.
Most of the rock face cuts are grey in color, with some streaks of light brown and dark brown. Just get some Poylyscale acrylic paint (med grey, dark grey, light brown, dark brown). And dilute it with water to make a wash 75/25 water/paint mixture. Be easy on how much you apply, as the hydrocal can melt if you put too much wash.
Also, there are lots of Aspen trees in the area so make sure you include some of those.
I posted to a thread on scenery painting a few days back here http://cs.trains.com/mrr/f/11/t/214806.aspx. See if any of this helps. The Kalmbach scenery books by Dave Frary offer good advice also, and recent MR issues have had some info on painting rocks.
Wow! That mountain looks great! Some day I hope to build something like that.
How long that take you?
If you have some color photos of the area you are modeling, take them along when choosing your paint. There are both tube type acrylic paints and liquid craft paints. If you h ave a good craft store, you could tell them what you are doing and get a recommendation on which type would work best. Though craft paints are available at discount stores, sometimes a trip to a good store to get you started, pays for the difference in cost of your initial purchase of paints.
Good luck,
Richard
Thanks, from the start of the project glueing cardboad strips to now took me about a month i used bragdons rock castings three diff ones and some of the woodland scenic ones with lots of sculptamold one of the best modeling supplies out there. Hopefully the painting goes as well as the molding. When it comes time for you to build yours let me know if you need any advise.
Like you, I’ve just started working with rocks but at the opposite end of the process–with coloring rather than construction and placement. I’m far from an expert, but since I recently evolved to the system that works for me, my experience is fresh and just might help you by offering some food for thought.
I followed Dave Frary’s DVD and so started with sprays, but I couldn’t control or reproduce them consistently, so I evolved to washes. I, too, normally use Windsor & Newton acrylics but find them overkill in quality and price for rockwork and more difficult to thin with water than less expensive artist or craft acrylics. I use Art Advantage Titanium White artist acrylic for my base color (thinner and twice the quantity for the same price as W&N) and Americana craft acrylic black and brown to blend with white for my accent colors (thinner and the same quantity for half the price of W&N). I’m freelancing the PRR and so am modeling PA/NJ grays and browns, so those colors will probably differ from yours, but yours should perform the same way. And, yes, to answer your second question, the acrylics are water-soluble. I’d advise you to mix small quantities and mix them well before each application, however, as the pigment will settle in storage and the mixture will dry out if stored for a long time.
I’d encourage you to practice before you commit to the layout to assure you can create and reproduce the result you like consistently. I may be in the slow-learner class, but it took me a long time to find the combination that works for me, taking careful notes and plenty of pictures along the way. For my washes, I evolved to 1/4 tsp. of paint diluted with either 30 ML or 50 ML of water, depending on the effect I want. Those are 25:1 and 40:1 dilutions, respectively. I give you those not as “the answer” but as a baseline off of which you can work as you wish.
One other important point–the
Rick - Those rocks look great!
Another fun method is to have a mist-spray handy, and give it a spray with that, either before any paint at all goes on, which helps the paint flow nicely into the cracks and crevices, or afterwards, to make the colours run and merge a bit. The spray can also help in places where you applied paint too thickly. I’ve done my share of that.
Mike
Your canyon looks impressive. I am modeling the southwest for the Atsf. I used the brags on mold. I used hydrocal plaster as well. What I used for color was to get spray pump bottles and mix 4 to 5 colors in different bottles. I use craft paint(apple barrel/folk art) and mix with water and spray as a stain. I start with light colors and end up with black last. Keep up the good work.
A great, and I believe critical, point Mike–I’m sorry I left it out. I always spray wet water on the casting before I apply the color and in my (many) trials confirmed the benefit, which is as you described. It blends and softens the impact. But I never thought of spraying afterwards for the same result, which I’ll try.
As to “before,” I try not to soak the plaster but rather just to dampen it so it accepts color readily–I practiced to get the right amount for me. Plaster is pourous, and I believe the art of the deal is learning how much water or color to apply in the early stages so as to assure the plaster accepts the right amount of color in the latter stages. Did I mention the benefit of practice?
Thanks for your compliment–it means a lot. The one thing I want to avoid is creating rocks that look like Walt Disney threw up.
Rick Krall
Rick they’re beauties . The colour is in the rock, and not caked on so it became the actual surface of the rock.
You nailed it with the "Disney’ comment. It’s a fine balance and I admit I get it wrong at times - hence the ‘afterspray’ [:D]
Mike
BNSF0823 and Rick!
WOW!!!
Excellent work!!
Dave
My goal is to model Ruby Canyon some day on the D&RGW line near Utahline. Thats always been one of my favorite canyons scenically.