Weathering Rolling Stock, a Continous thread

[RC Perspective]

No matter how I try, getting a decent rusty look still eludes me.

Like on the Shoprite and Old Spice TYCO cars I just posted, here is my rundown on that;

With a fine tipped brush and some Burnt Umber oil paint, dab some small spots here and there randomly. Vary the size of the dots, and use multiple fresh dots to make lines, larger patches, ETC.

Next up, use a clean, wide brush to lightly drag down on the oil paint. Some people wet the brush, I personally, do not. I just make sure to wipe the brush off regularly.

Once you are happy with the streaks, not necessarily the texture or color, you can use dark and lighter rust weathering powders to bring the color and texture. What I do, is use the brush applicator that comes in the Tamiya weathering powder kits, and after using an exacto blade to scrape some "powder" from the weathering kit, I lightly dab the brush into the powder, and also lightly dab it onto the oil paint. Alternate the rust colors, don't cover all the oil paint with one weathering powder color.

You can repeat the steps as many times as necessary, however keep in mind, you are building up layers, so don't use too many or it may appear "odd".

As far as other rust applications; Like that Erie Lackwanna gondola I posted before. What is in the gondola, is straight from the bottle, Tamiya Brown Panel Liner. It actually winds up being a fantastic rust color once dried. I use it frequently to highlight details, and build up heavy rust. Multiple applications will layer, as shown inside that gondola.

Another method you can try, just involves using Acrylic paint with water. Wet the model in the area you are working, and randomly apply thinned rust colors to the surface that is level. Once dried, you can achieve multiple rust colors with a random pattern. Then use weathering powders for variation.

-RC

 

[TLOC]

Like on the Shoprite and Old Spice TYCO cars I just posted, here is my rundown on that;

With a fine tipped brush and some Burnt Umber oil paint, dab some small spots here and there randomly. Vary the size of the dots, and use multiple fresh dots to make lines, larger patches, ETC.

Next up, use a clean, wide brush to lightly drag down on the oil paint. Some people wet the brush, I personally, do not. I just make sure to wipe the brush off regularly.

Once you are happy with the streaks, not necessarily the texture or color, you can use dark and lighter rust weathering powders to bring the color and texture. What I do, is use the brush applicator that comes in the Tamiya weathering powder kits, and after using an exacto blade to scrape some "powder" from the weathering kit, I lightly dab the brush into the powder, and also lightly dab it onto the oil paint. Alternate the rust colors, don't cover all the oil paint with one weathering powder color.

You can repeat the steps as many times as necessary, however keep in mind, you are building up layers, so don't use too many or it may appear "odd".

As far as other rust applications; Like that Erie Lackwanna gondola I posted before. What is in the gondola, is straight from the bottle, Tamiya Brown Panel Liner. It actually winds up being a fantastic rust color once dried. I use it frequently to highlight details, and build up heavy rust. Multiple applications will layer, as shown inside that gondola.

Another method you can try, just involves using Acrylic paint with water. Wet the model in the area you are working, and randomly apply thinned rust colors to the surface that is level. Once dried, you can achieve multiple rust colors with a random pattern. Then use weathering powders for variation.

-RC

Thank you.

 

[CambriaArea51]

What wheelsets are those in the 3rd picture?

-RC

Scale Trains. Off their bulkhead flatcar.

 

[TLOC]

On 9/3/2024 I visited a brief 90 minutes (alarm set) to get I was hoping 4-5 trains at the Rochelle Railroad Park in Illinois. Somewhat disappointing as I specifically was hoping for UP trains stack trains with Sd70aces doing the hauling. Got 1 UP train, a coal train with minimal graffiti and tags but got some nice shots of the wheels and truck frame weathering.

2 BNSF trains went through the diamonds and one was a local. 1 car but with 2 engines and a caboose. Nice graffiti and good weathering patterns on the diesels. The grain train was very useful for my next batch of covered hoppers. I’ve exhausted the graffiti decal supplies and am tired of repeating the same graffiti. I can do custom graffiti but since my imagination runs to boxes and circles it’s not very creative. So I headed to the Park

Nice thumb! I took 87 shots of this grain train.

Real graffiti some modelers forget is not always good art. Some of it including many shots I took yesterday prove that. What’s struck both Terry and me yesterday but more her was how little graffiti there was on what we were told was a 150 car train. (A defect detector voice was broadcast in the shelter) Many had nothing at all and many others just had 2 or 3 small tags but no graffiti pieces. It was an interesting train for my needs.

While I was looking for intermodal stack trains and diesels from the UP’s Global 3 intermodal yard a couple miles away the grain train will be helpful. Terry noticed how clean and lack of rust appeared on these cars. I will check the car numbers and see when these cars were built. But looking at the pictures there’s dirt and grime but not as much as I would have expected.

It was an interesting time.

 

[TLOC]

While I prefer diesels not be in this thread when showing a train it cannot be avoided sometimes. (I will put those pictures in the locomotive weathering thread) This was a 1 car local that the natives sitting at the Rochelle Railroad Park told me was going to the Del Monte plant just beyond the diamonds.

I was surprised by the caboose leading the train into the local siding and did not get any good shots of it. Look again at how relatively clean this car is. The graffiti does not even cover the conspicuously safety stripes and some of the data has not been covered on this car. A respectful artist/vandal!!!

The trains were of course on the wrong side of the sun yesterday morning, sorry about that

Track weathering!

 

[Rico]

Nice to see the BN cab still around! Looks like the graffiti got interrupted and never finished?
One thing I find with graffiti is if the color doesn’t complement the color of the car it can look terrible.
Although I don’t condone tagging it certainly is a part of the real world.

 

[TLOC]

Nice to see the BN cab still around! Looks like the graffiti got interrupted and never finished?
One thing I find with graffiti is if the color doesn’t complement the color of the car it can look terrible.
Although I don’t condone tagging it certainly is a part of the real world.

I know a few graffiti vandals who are now in their 50’s. Too much glue sniffing in their youth from one of them. But he’ll agree, if the colors don’t fit the car the graffiti no matter how well technically that it’s done it will look like crap.

Most of the guys with spray bombs in a rail yard have minimal if any artistic skills but there are a few that truly are artists. I have seen a few viaducts in Chicago that were done by a team of the vandal/artists that look unreal. Then a 20’ wing wall done by someone who thought they were good.

I will post in the loco thread the Cascade Green unit

 

[C&OMtnMan]

I’ve been under the weather most of the week (nothing serious), and haven’t been cranking anything out in the way of weathering.

Iffen y’all fellows have anything you were planning on writing up, posting about your newest efforts would give a cranky curmudgeon something to read & look at while he’s recovering.

 

[TLOC]

I’ve been under the weather most of the week (nothing serious), and haven’t been cranking anything out in the way of weathering.

Iffen y’all fellows have anything you were planning on writing up, posting about your newest efforts would give a cranky curmudgeon something to read & look at while he’s recovering.

I’ll be in the locomotive thread later today but not freight cars today.

Glad it’s nothing serious that has got you under the weather

 

[C&OMtnMan]

I’ll be in the locomotive thread later today but not freight cars today.

Glad it’s nothing serious that has got you under the weather

A cold had a good hold of me. I’m pretty much better now, just sleeping extra.

 

[RC Perspective]

I’ve been under the weather most of the week (nothing serious), and haven’t been cranking anything out in the way of weathering.

Iffen y’all fellows have anything you were planning on writing up, posting about your newest efforts would give a cranky curmudgeon something to read & look at while he’s recovering.

Ask and ye shall receive. Hopefully you are feeling better!

Here are a couple gondolas from the 60's IIRC. Along with updating to Kadee couplers, they also got metal Intermountain wheelsets.

The loads are epoxy, and they were purchased on ebay, from an estate lot. The loads are HEAVILY coated in Tamiya brown panel liner, and some black panel liner as well. While still wet, I went through and selectively colored objects with Tamiya weathering powders, rust, silver and gunmetal. I did my usual, scrape the surface of the weathering powder, to make powder. Then I dabbed the brush directly onto the wet panel liner with the powder. To me, it looks great; Your thoughts are welcome as well!

The gondolas themselves, were done with black and brown panel liner, and more weathering powders from the same Tamiya kit. I did use a little Snow powder here and there, but it's mostly Soot and Rust.

Bogies are Vallejo german brown mixed with red primer, with rust weathering powder applied while the bogies were still slightly wet.

I do need to do more brown panel liner inside the gondolas; They are not to my liking, so they will wind up looking more like that Erie Lackwanna gondola I posted a few pages back. You can see the end of it in the second pic here.

As always, questions and comments welcome!

-RC

 

[RC Perspective]

And to add, I CANNOT WAIT to weather this. Sorry for the caps, but if you couldn't tell, I'm excited.

I converted a Bachmann Santa Fe crane, to a Conrail crane. I also added a functional second hook, and designed and 3d printed the crane operation key, to look like an old CRR Of NJ key. The second hook isn't in these pics.

I am also leaning towards motorizing the crane, but that's for the Recycled Electronics Thread.

Have any of you weathered these types of cranes before? I loosely based it off of Conrail 45210. I like that syle CR, so that's how that wound up on there.

Photo credit goes to Donnie Lee, and the Conrail Historical Society.

I suppose this would fit over in the MOW weathering thread, yea?

-RC

 

[C&OMtnMan]

Thanks, RC, for both posts.

 

[RC Perspective]

So, before work today, I've applied some more brown panel liner to the gondola top rails and inside. Also included close ups of the bogies.

Wow, didn't realize how heavy the powder caked on that Wabash gondola LOL.

I'm thinking one more coat of panel liner in the cars? 1980s-90s, so these would be quite old at that point yes?

-RC

 

[TLOC]

Good afternoon. I’m been preoccupied and haven’t checked in for awhile! I will go back and review the posts that showed up while I was gone. Thanks for keeping the thread visible…

I have a 1st time client that has forwarded me 1 diesel and 12 pieces of rolling stock. I have a method to my madness that I call my normal procedures. I have had requests here via forum email and many requests on FB as to what those normal procedures are! I will post pictures of my process for 5 cars as I move along. It’s nothing spectacular or crazy earth shattering but it works for me

The five

When I receive a model I first put the name of the modeler with address and number of pieces to return on the box it came in and that I will use to return the finished cars

No picture!

Each carton holding the model then gets a piece of painter’s tape with the modeler’s name on it and the price of the finished item

I then open and inspect each car looking for “obvious” missing or broken items. If something is found I will take a picture and text it to the modeler

I learned the hard way $$$ on this procedure, so it’s a must be done thing

I then remove the trucks and wheels for cleaning. I have various ways that I have tried for cleaning. I have air brushed Isopropyl Alcohol (IPA) but that became too wasteful during Covid when the price for IPA exploded. I have separated the wheels from the trucks and dipped them in a bowl of Isopropyl Alcohol and then brushed them. Now I take the wheels off and hand clean them with a mop brush dipped in IPA. Same with the trucks

Here is the mop!

That is what I am doing today. In groups of 5 I will inspect and clean 35 cars. The fading of the cars will start tomorrow and hopefully be done by Sunday night.

Between bouts of fading I will weather/rust the wheels with a brush. I will ream with a Micro-Mart Truck Tuner

the wheel holes on the trucks

and then weather the trucks

have a great day

 

[TLOC]

Ask and ye shall receive. Hopefully you are feeling better!

Here are a couple gondolas from the 60's IIRC. Along with updating to Kadee couplers, they also got metal Intermountain wheelsets.

The loads are epoxy, and they were purchased on ebay, from an estate lot. The loads are HEAVILY coated in Tamiya brown panel liner, and some black panel liner as well. While still wet, I went through and selectively colored objects with Tamiya weathering powders, rust, silver and gunmetal. I did my usual, scrape the surface of the weathering powder, to make powder. Then I dabbed the brush directly onto the wet panel liner with the powder. To me, it looks great; Your thoughts are welcome as well!

The gondolas themselves, were done with black and brown panel liner, and more weathering powders from the same Tamiya kit. I did use a little Snow powder here and there, but it's mostly Soot and Rust.

Bogies are Vallejo german brown mixed with red primer, with rust weathering powder applied while the bogies were still slightly wet.

I do need to do more brown panel liner inside the gondolas; They are not to my liking, so they will wind up looking more like that Erie Lackwanna gondola I posted a few pages back. You can see the end of it in the second pic here.
View attachment 198498
View attachment 198499

As always, questions and comments welcome!

-RC

The loads and coloring look great.

The use of the panel liners on gondola sides is very nice. Everything looks believable

I have used the panel liners on diesel locomotives with mixed results. Sometimes it followed the lines I wanted them to and other times they just clumped up

 

[TLOC]

And to add, I CANNOT WAIT to weather this. Sorry for the caps, but if you couldn't tell, I'm excited.

I converted a Bachmann Santa Fe crane, to a Conrail crane. I also added a functional second hook, and designed and 3d printed the crane operation key, to look like an old CRR Of NJ key. The second hook isn't in these pics.

I am also leaning towards motorizing the crane, but that's for the Recycled Electronics Thread.

View attachment 198504
View attachment 198505

Have any of you weathered these types of cranes before? I loosely based it off of Conrail 45210. I like that syle CR, so that's how that wound up on there.

View attachment 198506
Photo credit goes to Donnie Lee, and the Conrail Historical Society.

I suppose this would fit over in the MOW weathering thread, yea?

-RC

I would love to see how you weather the crane. Other than some Hi-wheeler trucks I have no other MOW equipment on the layout.

As to where to place the MOW equipment? I put a notice on 3/1/2024 that I would not be posting anything more to the MOW thread. I have no issues if you want to post MOW equipment here or do another MOW thread

Looking forward to seeing the crane

 

[TLOC]

So, before work today, I've applied some more brown panel liner to the gondola top rails and inside. Also included close ups of the bogies.
View attachment 198576
View attachment 198577
View attachment 198578View attachment 198579View attachment 198580View attachment 198581

Wow, didn't realize how heavy the powder caked on that Wabash gondola LOL.

I'm thinking one more coat of panel liner in the cars? 1980s-90s, so these would be quite old at that point yes?

-RC

Anything is possible on the Railroad. If somebody told you those were too crusty someone else would find a prototype photo of that. I like them but I’m a rust bucket lover

I’m not sure how old the gons would be in 1990 but they usually would have been in interchange service for 40 years and after that kept in service for internal work, not for interchange.

 

[C&OMtnMan]

I’m not sure how old the gons would be in 1990 but they usually would have been in interchange service for 40 years and after that kept in service for internal work, not for interchange.

Per RC’s pictures, one has a “NEW” date of 1947, the other, 1960. Of course, that can mean different things. Neither car shows a “BLT” date.

 

[logandsawman]

So, before work today, I've applied some more brown panel liner to the gondola top rails and inside. Also included close ups of the bogies.
View attachment 198576
View attachment 198577
View attachment 198578View attachment 198579View attachment 198580View attachment 198581

Wow, didn't realize how heavy the powder caked on that Wabash gondola LOL.

I'm thinking one more coat of panel liner in the cars? 1980s-90s, so these would be quite old at that point yes?

-RC

Your coloring looks great but to be perfectly frank you really need some dents with an authentic scrap load.

My 2 cents

Dave LASM