Been working on some pasenger cars, thought i had parts on order but didnt will have to re order them. Went to paint the primer coat of krylon gloss light grey on one the other day, after drying the paint was very rough, so back to the paint stripper it goes. should i try another brand of spray paint or just stick to airbrushing it? going to paint them with alcad2 after i get them primed.
Tamiya makes a number of “metalic” paints that yield an extremely smooth and realistic finish. You may want to look at them for painting your passenger cars. I’m sure their primer is excellent, as well.
Tom
There have been some threads in recent years here in this forum about using Alclad. … If you google “alclad model railroader” you should be able to find information that will help.
Alternatively, there are some good choices of spray paint (rattle can) in a well stocked hooby shop. Tom mentioned Tamiya, and that is a good choice… I experimented with automtove metalic paints and had some decent results. … Next time, I will try Alclad.
Were you using Krylon Fusion, which is a plastic compatible paint? That is a primer recommended by Antoniofp45 who is the Alclad expert around here. I have used Krylon Fusion as a primer on a number of stainless passenger cars with no problems.
The only thing I can think of is you may have been holding the can too far from the car, and some of the paint mist dried before it hit the surface. That can happen in a low humidity situation like we get indoors during cold winter days.
I’m in the process of building an N-Scale VIA Rail Park Car. I considered Alclad paints, but instead took a chance on Vallejo Metal Color Chrome, which is an acrylic. The results look great and significantly cheaper than Alclad.
Cheers
Steve
NZ
Hello all,
I’ve had good luck with Do it Best brand (True Value Hardware house brand); Rust Coat Enamel, Aluminum #780131 or Rust-Oleum; Bright Coat, Metallic Finish, #7715 Aluminum.
These have produced good results adhering to plastic shells while giving a smooth metalic finish with no priming, which can obscure fine details.
Each of them have a different finished result. The Do it Best having more of a silver finish while the Rust-Oleum gives more of a brushed Aluminum, grey-ish finish.
I used the Do it Best on my warbonnet silver and red Santa Fe Gp’s and it match the factory applied colors. (I also discovered that Rust-Oleum; Professional High Performance Enamel, Safety Red 7564, is a good match for the warbonnet red.)
As has been suggested, I warm the rattle cans in hot water before spraying. I also apply in several light passes so as not obscure fine details
Hope this helps.
Hi,
I always enjoy seeing passenger car topics; especially regarding stainless steel!
There area a variety of products modelers can use to realistically simulate natural metal finishes.
So far I’ve enjoyed success with Alclad2 because of how very smoothly it lays. Plus it offers the added flexibility of enabling modelers to produce various tones of stainless steel, including the Budd #300 series stainless steel in varying conditions: (new, slightly aged, well aged, and “Penn Central neglect”).
The key to a realistic finish is the basecoat (primer or foundation). A smooth, high gloss foundation is critical for the metalizer’s appearance. I often recommend Scale Coat 2. When thinned 50% to 60%, it lays down incredibly smooth as seen in this photo:
If your foundation is rough, your finish will be rough. Another key factor is air pressure. For Scale Coat II, 20-25 psi is fine, however, for Alclad2 the airbrush should be set at 12 to 15 psi for a very fine mist. That’s why one bottle can be stretched for multiple jobs.
If this helps, here are a few Alclad2 related threads:
Antoniofp45, I have enjoyed reading your posts on other forums. They are among the most detailed and informative posts anywhere. Your work is stunning. I have only 2 cars painted to represent stainless steel finish, the Park Car above, and Laura’s Bridal Train below. These have been photographed in bright sunlight, so not the best to show the actual finish.
The RDC was on our wedding day in Morristown NJ, the Park Car ride was our 20th Anniversary treat.
Cheers
Steve
NZ
Can try spraying it on a scrap peice of plastic, dont think i had it to far away. I can try the kryon fusion paint, have used it in the past differnt color though. Had a can of testers gloss glull grey i used it up though, the stores here only have it in flat, would have to order it.
Made Antonio’s links clickable
http://cs.trains.com/mrr/f/88/t/198137.aspx
http://cs.trains.com/mrr/f/88/p/195132/2131266.aspx
Beautiful work guys!
Dave
Dave, thanks for making the links clickable. I’ll have to look up that thread again on how to do that.
[Y]WOW Steve, sweet job on that RDC! My eyes were immediately drawn to the smooth surface of the front end. That’s the “effect” that we’re all trying to target. When you can, please take a few shots of both cars in low sunlight conditions and post them.
Congratulations on your wedding anniversary! 20 years? That’s something to be proud of; especially considering the tumultuous times we’re living in.
We can get very nice results with spray cans as well, as long as the gloss basecoats go on ultra smooth. Some products, like Tamiya, do lay down nicely. Any slight orange peel can be easily sanded with 800 to 1500 grit wetsand paper and re-sprayed or buffed out.
Alclad was available in rattle cans up until a few years ago. Due to more stringent regulations that our government enacted in the mid-2000’s, the costs to produce Alclacd2 in rattle cans shot up. Unfortunately, being a small company, Alclad’s owner was “economically forced” to stop production in that line. For a while
“new-old-stock” Alclad in rattle cans kept popping up on ebay at good prices but now that is rare.
Tested the can on a scrap peice of plastic first pass was rough, second and fourth a bit closer in where better, the third pass was rough also, so thinking the can is bad. Still have to strip the model yet, maybe today after i wake up.
Going to take a picture of it this weekend and post it.
On a good note I was able to figure out how to mount a Athearn passenger truck to a AHM underframe, just need to get 2 washers now.
Here is a couple pics of the bad paint job. The rpo has been soaking in 91% isoprofal alcohol for some time now and noething is coming off, hope i can get it off the model.
Hello all,
Have you tried 100% PineSol to strip the paint off?
Take a look at this thread: http://cs.trains.com/mrr/f/88/t/253870.aspx (You will need to paste this link into your browser.)
Hope this helps.
I can try that, have some luck with oven cleaner also. Was able to get some of the paint off, but like 99% of it is still on the model. Have the model drying right now before i try any thing else.
Fourt,
thanks for posting the photos. In viewing the initial photo the finish didn’t look very rough until I clicked and enlarged it. I see what you mean.
That is a tough solvent finish, especially if both, the 91% iso-alcohol and oven cleaner are producing little effect.
Other options are the 100% pine sol, as mentioned by JJ and “Super Clean”. Super Clean (available at most Walmarts) is well recommended by talented modeler Cedarwoodron who’s posted photos of his beautifully painted rolling stock in the photo gallery. It has been effective in some stubborn cases.
Not trying to cloud your project, but consider that if this paint is well etched on to your car’s plastic surface you may reach a point where any chemical or mechanical effort you utilize may either remove very little paint or damage the surface. You might get enough of it off to where you can carefully wet-sand the surface with 600-800 grit sandpaper (be careful with the fluting) and finish smoothing it with a gray 3M Scotch pad (safe for use over fluting). But that is going to be a lot of work (been there, done that).
Respectfully, consider that if paint removal becomes a “bear” this may wind up becomeing a potential “write off”. Since it’s an Athearn unit, replacements on the market are plentiful and not expensive.
I’ve painted a good number of passenger cars and have ruined at least two. After grumbling at myself, like Fred Flinstone, for a short time I moved on and purchased replacements on ebay.
Again, not trying to discourage you but just suggesting that you evaluate your work and efforts thoughtfully.
Have used castro super clean before in the past. Going to bye some of it and and pine sol. Dont want to write the RPO off yet. Will be posting a picture of the other cars with frist pass of grey from differnt can. Going to wait till a semi warm day to paint the other coats as the paint stunk up the hours for hours after i did it inside on saturday.
Here is all them that i am working on, with the RPO to be stripped yet in frount.
Fourt,
I see some discoloration on the observation car and on the car next to it (Bagg-Combine?). Are you wet-sanding and recoating those units?