Custom paint job costs?


R

Railphotog

Railroad Photographer
Anyone have an idea what a custom painter would charge to do an HO scale diesel in a simple and in a complicated scheme? I'm mostly curious, don't need to have any such work done myself.

Thanks!
 
I've seen Josh Baakko's (jbaakko on the forums) work and it's very good. His prices are on his website here, and are very reasonable. (He hasn't updated the gallery in a while though). I currently have a loco with him getting superdetailing done.

Jerome Wheeler (wheeler1963 on the forums) does amazing work. I sent him an undecorated kit with photos and instructions and he sent me a finished loco that's beyond factory-quality. His prices are very reasonable. His site is here. He gives a pricing quote for every job based on the complexity and parts used.

There are other people here on the forums who also offer custom services, but I haven't tried them yet so I can't comment on them.
 
Some painters, like I used to do, charge by the color, some charge by the job. I've seen some charge $400-500 for a simple job with light weathering, and I've seen some that will go $30 on basically the same job. But the guys that charge $400 are the true artists of the field, and their work is worth the premium.

There are currently several online here that do good work. One of the best would be Espeefan, (Alan).

Best bet for finding a painter is to:
1. See samples of their work.
2. Find out what time frame the painter can have yours finished in.
3. Get a set price BEFORE agreeing to have the work done.
4. Don't pay until satisfied. This was my policy. In almost 30 yrs of painting, I have had only one guy be dissatisfied. He got his loco back, stripped.
 
Last edited by a moderator:
Cjcrescent said:
Some painters, like I used to do, charge by the color, some charge by the job. I've seen some charge $400-500 for a simple job with light weathering, and I've seen some that will go $30 on basically the same job. But the guys that charge $400 are the true artists of the field, and their work is worth the premium.

There are currently several online here that do good work. One of the best would be Espeefan, (Alan).

Best bet for finding a painter is to:
1. See samples of their work.
2. Find out what time frame the painter can have yours finished in.
3. Get a set price BEFORE agreeing to have the work done.
4. Don't pay until satisfied. This was my policy. In almost 30 yrs of painting, I have had only one guy be dissatisfied. He got his loco back, stripped.
Click to expand...

Thanks Carey :D And good advice BTW!

Carey got me into painting. I specialize in steam. I don't do much diesel, and I do mostly brass. Prices are all over the place from painters. My work runs from $80.00-$115.00 for a two color passenger car including decaling and window installation. Prices average around $40.00 per color. On steamers there is a strip down & re-asembly charge because the whole mechanism is taken apart. Grit blasting & ultrasonic cleaning are included. Detailing work is $20.00 per hour. Decals and misc. parts and supplies are extra. Lead times vary due to my day job, but a 6-9 month turnaround is not uncommon. Pricing is plus or minus 20%. Shipping is not included. Elaborate steam engine paint jobs from me can cost as much as $600.00. I don't advertise on this list or anywhere else. I don't use the forums I belong to to generate business. Not because I feel that this would be unethical, it's just that I'm doing all the work I care to at the moment. This information is given only to answer the original poster's question.

It's been said that good custom painters are like good handymen. The typically don't advertise, because they don't have to. ;):D

Hope this helps!
 
giving me bad ideas now :) I've got a big stash of Superliners that need repainted to TX&GC...
 
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