I want to paint the cab roof of one of my (Broadway Limited) J1’s tuscan, but the model is so darn beautiful, I don’t want to destroy it. I have NEVER painted or weathered any locomotives before and was hoping someone could provide me with tips on what type of brush (size, texture, etc.) to use and how to avoid getting the paint “globbed” on, any special tricks or techniques you would suggest? And is there a particular brand of paint you could recommend?
Here is a pic of one of mine, as it looks now:
I’m trying to make make it look this (another Broadway model, but with the tuscan dog house roof and cab roof):
I have painted a number of passenger cars and a few freight cars over the years - not to mention a plethora of model planes, cars, and ships. The passenger cars were Athearn heavyweights and I used Floquil paint and a Badger airbrush. The cars came out really nice (I was very surprised), but I was spraying them all one color (olive drab) and frankly if I ruined one, it was no big dollar loss.
A steam loco is a very complex model to paint as it has all kinds of protrusions and indentations on the body shell. An “expert” would first remove all the removable parts, and then use a good quality airbrush with the proper quality paint, and then reassemble the model after all is complete.
That being said, it appears that you could mask off the cab roof and that shouldn’t be too hard. On the tender, I’d first remove the doghouse and some other protrusions to get it to the “base”.
As you don’t have an airbrush, I would check out the hobby shop or even Lowes, Home Depot, Michaels for some comparable color spray paint. Something close to the color you want should be available. And, as the pieces to be painted are already painted, I would not worry about necessarily using “paints for plastic”.
The key to a good spray job is patience. Giving the article a couple or three light coats is much better than one thick coat. Also, before you even get near the model, practice your spraying so you wil know the proper distance (1 foot or so), and the speed of your passes.
Secure the model on table or whatever (in a ventilated area - like a garage). Spray paint will go most anywhere, so make sure the model is properly masked and covered.
Start your spray pass a few inches from the left (or right) side of the model, then move over the mod
First: the BLI Pensy J1 is one of Broadway’s best Pennsy models -so dont EVEN THINK about painting it without using an airbrush - if you don’t have one…
A.) scrap the idea.
OR…
B.) Buy a Airbrush.
Second: I’d recommend researching the locomotive for any photos to see what if any road #s were painted with this roof color. Old Kodachrome images would be the best to work from, if you can find any in existance.
Third: Masking the edges ofthe area to be painted is critical - I recommend you visit your local art supply and ask for 3M ‘Drafting Tape’ - this is the very best choice for masking a model - go to your Home Depot and in the Door and Window section, get yourself a 12’x12’ square glass pane(watch the edges) and mount this glass to a flat board or desktop with duct tape around the edge, overlapping about a 1/2".
This is your cutting surface for the tape.
Tear off lengths of about 10" and adhere them to the glass but just enough to get them to stay stationary.
With a metal rule(hobby rule works fine), and an #11 X-acto blade/knife, always cut away the factory tape edge (this is critical and will almost get you a 99.9% chance of a perfect edge).
Forth: once you have the tape edges cut to rough lengths, apply the tape to the area to be masked - run your fingernail firmly along the edge seam of the tape at the edge facing the area to be painted to insure a firm seal.
Fifth: before painting, take a can of compressed air or use the airbrush(no paint jar) to blow away any dust particles. Also, make sure you remove any fingerprints or oily impressions from the paint surface or the paint will not bond properly. Use a surgical glove(knit blend- lint free) or a photographic anti-static cloth(recommended) to wipe the surface clean. You can get the
Or three: There is a Rattlecan of PRR Tuscan, that you can spray if an airbrush is not in your current future.
All other tips apply. Mask EVERYTHING off, if you can, remove the roof, and be sure to flatten the edges of the tape with the lip of the roof. . Then put the model in a cardboard box on a stand, and spray her. About 6in away from the model. You want a light coat that covers the entire roof. You can always add mroe paint more eaisily than you can take it off.
Thanks everyone. I sure wish I could find one like featured on that website, but all are sold out, and apparently the ones with the tuscan cab roof and dog house are VERY rare.
I guess its time to get my hands dirty. Thanks again.
What! Nobody know how to paint with a brush? [%-)] For that small area, you should be able to get a decent finish using a good-quality brush. However, if you’re fazed by that prospect, a rattle can of red automotive primer should do the trick. As suggested, trim away the factory edges of the masking tape. For the cab roof, four short lengths of tape should be sufficient and ditto for the doghouse roof. Cover the balance of the model with newspaper. Remove the tape as soon as the paint is dry to the touch.
Please take his advice as well intentioned as it’s not meant to offend you. After reading your post and your admittedly lack of knowledge and or experience in painting models do yourself a favor and don’t do it/ If it turns out bad which it will more then likely will you will have succeed in turning a beautiful locomotive in to a rolling turd that will irritate the heck out of you every time you look at it. My point is this is not the model to learn how to paint on. God to your LHS or search online for some cheapo pieces of rolling stock and or locomotives. Most shops have the used stuff they try to sell for customers. Pick yourself up a decent airbrush don’t start off with some piece of junk as it will not perform like a good airbrush and it will sour your experience and you will not be learning the right way.
After your confidence level is up there where your confident that you paint your locomotive then give it a try. If this seems like too much for you to handle then search for a model painter.
Since you say you lack painting experience, it would be less nerve wracking for you to gain some experience painting a few old junker cars from a train show or a yard sale. This way mistakes don’t cost you so much.
As I understand it, the locomotive is already painted and decaled and you just want to paint the cab roof and tender deck red, with messing up the rest of the factory paint. There are several steps to a good paint job.
Surface preparation. Any trace of oil, grease, mold parting compound, or finger prints and the paint won’t stick. The best surface prep is a wash in hot soapy water followed by a clean water rinse and dry. If you don’t feel like taking the locomotive far enough apart to dip it into the water, you can wipe down the cab roof and tender deck with a rag or a paper towel moistened in alcohol.
Masking. Paint is attracted to masking tape and makes every attempt to slide under the tape. Probably it fears sunburn. Press the tape down well and burnish it with something like a ball point pen to make sure the edge of the tape is down good and fast. Spray paint travels everywhere, so mask the rest of the locomotive, even if you don’t plan on getting close. The adhesive in masking tape can pull off paint underneath it. So make the time the masking is on the locomotive as short as possible. Mask it, spray it, and peel of the masking tape as soon as the paint is dry.
Brushing vs spraying. Brushing tends to leave brush marks on plastic. It is possible to do a good brush paint job with Floquil (and probably other paints too). I’d want to practice brushing a couple of times. To avoid brush marks I use spray cans on plastic models. These take practice too. If you hold the can too close the paint goes on too thick. If too far away, the paint dries in the air and goes on rough (orange peel they call it). Avoid sags and runs. Mo
The locomotive in the picture is not the one he wants to paint. It’s what he wants his to look like. So far the OP has not stated what loco he wants to paint, whether it’s brass or plastic or whether it is already painted.
Yes he has. He has an engine LIKE the one pictured, except his engine does not have the cab roof or the doghouse roof, painted. I’ll hit up BLI’s website so you can see the engine he has.
My next question, does anyone know how to disassemble the engine? If it’s like the Light Mike, dissasembly is a piece of cake. It would make things a LOT easier to paint. But since I do not have a BLI J1, I cannot tell him how to do it.
Can we avoid calling him out? Advise to practice first is good. (Done to show influence on my point to the other posters) Telling him his first production WILL be a piece of junk, is a bit of the reason a lot of people buy RTR. Too many critics.
For that matter, all you need to do is practice on cardboard. Save yourself some cash. Really, what your practicing for is coating the model with enough paint, without making it thick. You don’t need to be able to match color. Cardboard won’t look like the right color, but it will allow you to get a handle on painting distances.
Also, if your too worried, keep a small glass jar of Easy Lift Off nearby. ELO Will take paint off of models. But, I have found that if your careful, it will take the wet paint and leave the dry underneath. Dip a paer towel corner in it, swipe the wet paint with it once or twice, and wipe up with a dry corner of a paper towl. Like anything, it’s moderation. Too much ELO will take the existing paint off the roof as well. But you want enough to concvicne the wet paint to leave.
I know, it’s saved my butt once or twice when I discovered tape coming up.
Good ideas everyone, I will practice on cardboard and some cheap rolling stock first. I will buy an airbrush, I don’t have one and its about time I change that.
QUOTE: “The locomotive in the picture is not the one he wants to paint. It’s what he wants his to look like. So far the OP has not stated what loco he wants to paint, whether it’s brass or plastic or whether it is already painted.”
It says right here in the quote, “I want to paint one of my J1’s…” and shows a photo of the BLI J1.
QUOTE: “I want to paint the cab roof of one of my J1’s tuscan, but the model is so darn beautiful…”
Jake…the airbrush is really the best way to handle this. Since you’re only painting a small area on the tender and the tender body is very easy to remove on the BLI’s , I’d go ahead and remove it, for ease of masking the desired area and to ease the painting process.
I’d have to go back and check but I don’t recall of hand how the boiler/cab comes off on these- its either two screws thru the bottom of the cab and one at just aft of the pilot truck, or a location very similar to that.
The airbrush is also going to benefit you long after you complete this one- I wish you the best of luck on it and know that you’ll be glad you made the investment in it.
You’ll need a compressor too. Without sounding too bias here, I would recommend you shop around for a little larger capacity compressor - something that will ofer you enough PSI to do finishing work with clears and satins, which require a little higher application pressure for best results.
But, for this small job, you may want to just get the basic starter set. with propellent. I prefer the control of the compressor.
Humidity is a big factor when airbrushing so practice as suggested until you get the feel of the tool and whe nyour confident to attack the job, you’ll be more at ease tackling the painting the J1 details.
If you need any help or have more questions, don’t hesitate to contact me off site using the Contact button on the topic browser toolbar.
You can do it and before you know it, you’ll be airbrushing for weathering cars and structures too!
That’s what the Light Mike was, but the cab is also tabbed into the boiler on the Mike, and the cab itself will come off. I was hoping his would do the same. So all he really has to do is get the tape (by the way, we’re reffering to Painter’s tape, usualyy blue, not true masking tape) under a flat edge of the roof, and wrap it around the cab one piece, maybe two for the lower half.
EDIT: also, the top picture of the J1 he added after my last Page 1 post.
