I know there have been many weathering posts on this forum but i need more help. I have never weathered anything so i have no idea what to use. I have an air brush but my LHS (aka. Hobbytown) they dont have what i need. So what paints are good for the job, what colors do i need, do i have to mix them, would it be better to use chalks, and can i get them some where else besides a hobby shop? Thanks for the help.
-Kade
You need to be real good with an air brush to weather with it. If i were you, and just starting your first weathering job, I’d go with the pastel chalks. You can get them from wal-mart for about $3.00 or you can get the chalks sold at an LHS for a few dollars more. I use mostly the brown, red, and yellow chaulk sticks and a combination of the three will make really realistic rust colors. Take a hobby knife and lightly scrape the chalk from the stick onto a sheet of note book paper (or anything else that won’t mess up momma’s kitchen table) until you have a pile of chalk dust. Then take a firm bristled paint brush, dip it in the chalk, and brush it in vertical streaks along the sides of the model. It’s really simple to do and looks great when you’re done. a lot of folks will spray it with dull coat when they are done, but i find it hides the chalk work you just completed if too much is sprayed on, so i leave the chalk just as it was brushed on the model. For the wheels and trucks, i’ll use Floquil’s grimy black and rust paint and some paint thinner. i’ll dip my brush into the grimy black and then in the paint thinner and paint the entire truck and just before it dries, i’ll do the same with the rust colored paint right over the grimy black. Be sure you don’t get the paint inside the wheel bearing journals as it will dry and the wheels won’t turn unless you take the truck apart and clean off the paint…chuck
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Here. Much better than chalks.
I use whatever colors look good to me. As for applying it, I’ll use a brush or an airbrush or both, depending on how I feel at the time.
If you want to basic weather with your brush…use these three paints
1.) Accu-Flex Rust
2.) Accu-Flex Concrete Grey
3.) Accu-Flex Grimy Black
Mix the paint with 1/4 paint and 3/4 alcohol. Use the thinnest or fine nozzle. Take the cheapest, POS frieght car and hit it with rust first, grimy black second and concrete grey only on the bottom sides. Do this as a test, then move onto your fleet. You can do a few cars in an hour. If you don’t have a spray booth, use a cardboard box and a coffee can to hold the rolling stock. I also have an old lazy susan that turns the can. I have used this process for years then use powders or chalks for detailed weathering. Aggro Jones who posts here is the master. Here’s some of my projects from the past. (These cars are now all over the country and Larry in Ohio has most of them).
I like working with artist’s oil paints. Stick to the natural colors like burnt & raw sienna and umber. Add some black and white for highlighting and shading. Use mineral spirits to thin and create streaking. The slow drying time allows you plenty of time to work. After I get the oils to where I like them then lightly airbrush with some thinned weathered black, dust, mud etc to even out and give a overall dusty, grimy look.
Freely mix the oil paints together so no two weathering jobs are the same. Time to get out that old, junky rolling stock you’ve saving and test and experiment.
jktrains
I use oil’s, misc. paint’s, and a various of powder’s. I also put a layer of dullcote before I start and after each layer of the weather job. On the oil’s, you might wanna let the first layer dry and then hit it with a different color paint (oil). Also hairspray is a good cheap way to get a protection on the weather job until you can dullcote. You might wanna get a variety of paint brushe’s, foam sponge’s, and some PATIENCE. It will take awhile but you will be amazed on how you will improve your weather job on each car you do. Remeber Less is More…
Have a variety of paint types available, both water- and thinner-based. You don’t want one application messing up another when doing washes and layers.
A lot of people use india ink and alcohol washes, but I’ve alwasy found the results to be somewhat inconsistent. I prefer to do black washes with Testors Model Master Flat Black.
A great color for a rust wash is Tamiya Red Brown.
Airbrushing is also important for dust – use whatever shade of earth color that is appropriate for your layout setting. Rust streaks are also something the airbrush does well.
Weathering powders and pastels are great too, but not if you plan to handle the cars a lot. My rule is, once a piece of rolling stock is committed to the layout, it’s hands off - only locos are allowed to move it. I only touch a car if it’s in need of coupler repair or whatever.
If you can, go to a train show and find vendor that’s selling some cheap-o $2 freight cars. Use those as your test beds until you find colors and techniques that work for you.
c
Is dullcoat like a primer or what? If it is i have some primer that i got with my air brush package at walmart.The primer dries shiney so it cant be the same can it? I have no idea!
That is one beautilful job.
Regards,
It’s more for a protection and it’s a dull look. Some people use it first before the do any weathering on a car. After you are done with your car you can spray it with dullcote. Also it give’s you a protection that won’t smear your weather job so you can handle it. Here’s a picture of my lastest work. This was all covered in dullcote.
Fantastic photography; absolutely fantastic!!
My first impulse when I read this topic was to shoot back to the poster, SD60M a question: are you weathering rolling stock or scenery/structures? When we mention weathering the impulse is to automatically think of locomotives and rolling stock; but those structures stand out in the sun and wind and dust and rain and snow twenty four seven and take a beating from the elements and weather just as surely as does that immaculately detailed F7. I do very little weathering of rolling stock using an airbrush; I do quite a bit of weathering of scenery/structures using an airbrush.
I do basically the same thing as you; the only place I use an airbrush in weathering rolling stock/locomotives is putting an initial coat on to dull the finish. I have only been using a very diluted grimy black for this step before proceeding with putting on the fine weathering details; your photograph, however, tells me I should probably add an airbrush step or two with some additional color. Right now I apply all of my rust
