Weathering Rolling Stock, a Continous thread

[C&OMtnMan]

Thanks, but it's not a start... it's like my fourth try

Four is still startup territory.

Maybe be less ambitious with early projects, and get yourself closer to satisfied with some basic grime, fading, lay that car aside as a progress marker, move on to some rustier jobs, and, down the road, you can work on the vandalism & defacement.

 

[TLOC]

While it maybe Front end Friday in some forums and threads, it is inspect and clean up day here at my weathering bench.
80 reefers will be moving across the bench the next few days. 36 more were inspected this morning and I am on break. Total now of 44 with another 36 to go.

I have finished the 2 that were received last Saturday and they are part of the pictures below. The sound unit though still rolls like doggie do. The client said last night after approving his 2 units that I should just send them. He understands from me and online sources they are terrible rollers. When a solution is found he said he is capable of fixing it. Many of my clients I swear don’t have any basic modeling skills

I don‘t have current plans to show any more reefers in the weathering process. I will gladly answer questions and I have lots of pictures from the 2 I have finished if need be.

The cars to be weathered and sent off will of course get pictures but these are almost all going to be similar. The graffiti will be different but the actual weathering is going to be light on all these cars. Some though will get light rust streaking. So far only 18 cars will not have any graffiti or tags. Graffiti will be either decals or custom drawn, tagging is custom

 

[migalyto]

While it maybe Front end Friday in some forums and threads, it is inspect and clean up day here at my weathering bench.
80 reefers will be moving across the bench the next few days. 36 more were inspected this morning and I am on break. Total now of 44 with another 36 to go.

I have finished the 2 that were received last Saturday and they are part of the pictures below. The sound unit though still rolls like doggie do. The client said last night after approving his 2 units that I should just send them. He understands from me and online sources they are terrible rollers. When a solution is found he said he is capable of fixing it. Many of my clients I swear don’t have any basic modeling skills

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I don‘t have current plans to show any more reefers in the weathering process. I will gladly answer questions and I have lots of pictures from the 2 I have finished if need be.

The cars to be weathered and sent off will of course get pictures but these are almost all going to be similar. The graffiti will be different but the actual weathering is going to be light on all these cars. Some though will get light rust streaking. So far only 18 cars will not have any graffiti or tags. Graffiti will be either decals or custom drawn, tagging is custom

Do you think the rolling issues can be solved with running a truck tuner through them and adding graphite?

I have only done the couplers on 2 of mine, but found the rolling improves a little by running them. Still not where they should be though.

Wondered what your thoughts were to help solve this.

 

[TLOC]

Do you think the rolling issues can be solved with running a truck tuner through them and adding graphite?

I have only done the couplers on 2 of mine, but found the rolling improves a little by running them. Still not where they should be though.

Wondered what your thoughts were to help solve this.

Mike, I tune every car I do for myself. The wheel tuner is one of the most used tools on my bench. I rarely use graphite.

BUT, the sound cars have the connecting wires dropping down through the floor. To tune the trucks up you need clip the wiring or unsolder it from the contact points on the truck. Or if you are really good, unhook the wheels from the trucks and tune while still on the car body. I’m not that good as my fingers are not that nimble! You have that truck spreader, that may help

I was going to clip the wires but the client said he’d take it as it was. I did tune my 8, now 7 non sound reefers and they were good rollers before, they are great rollers now!

I thought adding washers to the bolster would help, but while I think (hopeful) it did I think that was another time waster. Sound car rolls about 12” and literally stops. If I could get it to 18 to 24” I’d accept that. The non sound cars easily roll 6-8’ on the flat with a light finger flick. I’m sure YouTube content providers are working on a solution but there was nothing there Thursday night

 

[TLOC]

Besides Reefer cars I do have other cars on my bench.

2 CEFX covered hoppers from Intermountain that the client says will be in Cement service

A few pictures from RRpicturearchives.net with the photographer credited on the picture border but it’s Paul Rice

Since these are relatively newer cars there is little weathering and he wanted the cars light. I found these 3 pictures among many I sent him that I thought he‘d like. They will be used as inspiration.

The cars were inspected, cleaned with a mild dishwasher soap mixed and rinsed with Distilled water. I’m still leary of going back to tap water! A quick check after the cars had dried and away to the paint booth I went. These were the first 2 cars I clear coated this morning prior to starting the 36 reefers. Remember I try to batch process as much as possible.

There was no fading done on these cars. But adding the clear coat not only gives future paint, oils or pastels something to grip to, there is still a slight fading affect

CEFX 81703 is the first and Engine Grime from AMMO #1407 was lightly brushed on and mostly taken away with a dry brush, applied again and removed till I was ok with it. This side is drying and I am doing similar to CEFX 81630

 

[PMW]

Four is still startup territory.

Maybe be less ambitious with early projects, and get yourself closer to satisfied with some basic grime, fading, lay that car aside as a progress marker, move on to some rustier jobs, and, down the road, you can work on the vandalism & defacement.

Good advise!

 

[C&OMtnMan]

Happy Birthday!!!

To….

This thread! Per the stats on this page, started two years ago by @TLOC . I found this forum and thread about one year ago, and it has been very much a positive for my weathering skills & efforts. Hope it continues as a resource & gathering place for a good long time to come!

Edit: (typos in a birthday card - walks away in shame)

 

[TLOC]

Happy Birthday!!!

To….

This thread! Per the stats on this page, started two years ago by @TLOC . I found this forum and thread about one year ago, and it has been very much a positive for my weathering skills efforts. Hope it continues as a respurce & gathering place for a good long time to come!

I had no idea how this thread would go over but 2 years, WOW! It mostly has been fun. there’s been no real drama just good advice both ways. The occasional and welcomed detours have been great, but 2 years! I was just hoping to share a couple ideas and learn from others. I think that part has worked out well.

Thanks to all that visit and/or share

 

[Smudge617]

I had no idea how this thread would go over but 2 years, WOW! It mostly has been fun. there’s been no real drama just good advice both ways. The occasional and welcomed detours have been great, but 2 years! I was just hoping to share a couple ideas and learn from others. I think that part has worked out well.

Thanks to all that visit and/or share

I think I'd just joined the forum when you started this thread, it's gone on in leaps and bounds since then, probably the most influential thread on weathering I've ever read or watched, great ideas and tips from an amazing group of people, and a master class in weathering.
To TomO for a great idea and all who have shared and participated and hopefully continue to do so, thank you.

 

[TLOC]

I think I'd just joined the forum when you started this thread, it's gone on in leaps and bounds since then, probably the most influential thread on weathering I've ever read or watched, great ideas and tips from an amazing group of people, and a master class in weathering.
To TomO for a great idea and all who have shared and participated and hopefully continue to do so, thank you.

You are too kind, Chris. Thanks

Cambriaarea51 (Tom) has been a tremendous help and many others too. Tom also has his locomotive continous thread going

 

[C&OMtnMan]

I had no idea how this thread would go over but 2 years, WOW! It mostly has been fun. there’s been no real drama just good advice both ways. The occasional and welcomed detours have been great, but 2 years! I was just hoping to share a couple ideas and learn from others. I think that part has worked out well.

Thanks to all that visit and/or share

Within the next 48 hours, I hope to be ordering the cars to support my “next generation” of weathering, using different materials and techniques, to achieve a different realm of result for me. Yes, it’s still going to largely be my 1900 to 1960 era to the bitter end of steam, yes, still boxcar red and hopper black, but exploring a quadrant of the weathering realm I haven’t gone into yet.

Back in the 1980s-1990s, it became popular to talk about “think outside the box.” UPS came up with a great commercial: “at UPS, we think ABOUT the box.”

That’s me (sounding like Foghorn Leghorn): Ahh say, dawg, Ahhh’ve ‘ben thinkin’ ‘BOUT the box. It’s ‘bout time stop the thinkin’ and get down to the DOIN’ ‘bout that there box.”

 

[TLOC]

Within the next 48 hours, I hope to be ordering the cars to support my “next generation” of weathering, using different materials and techniques, to achieve a different realm of result for me. Yes, it’s still going to largely be my 1900 to 1960 era to the bitter end of steam, yes, still boxcar red and hopper black, but exploring a quadrant of the weathering realm I haven’t gone into yet.

Back in the 1980s-1990s, it became popular to talk about “think outside the box.” UPS came up with a great commercial: “at UPS, we think ABOUT the box.”

That’s me (sounding like Foghorn Leghorn): Ahh say, dawg, Ahhh’ve ‘ben thinkin’ ‘BOUT the box. It’s ‘bout time stop the thinkin’ and get down to the DOIN’ ‘bout that there box.”

The only caution I have about using new materials and techniques is practice with them FIRST. I went a few months trying various mat clear finishes or varnishes that were not in spray cans.

As the Greek god of the Arts, music, war, athletics and of course weathering has said, “Just do it”. Nike was part of Greek Mythology long before she was a shoe…

remember the frustrations are part of getting to the fun

 

[TLOC]

One of the YouTube content providers I like to endorse on learning how to weather is Dan at dansrailroad2011.

He has his newest instructional on how he does truck frames and wheel available.

It is worth 26 minutes of your time IMO

tomO

 

[C&OMtnMan]

The only caution I have about using new materials and techniques is practice with them FIRST. I went a few months trying various mat clear finishes or varnishes that were not in spray cans.

As the Greek god of the Arts, music, war, athletics and of course weathering has said, “Just do it”. Nike was part of Greek Mythology long before she was a shoe…

remember the frustrations are part of getting to the fun

I’ve weathered some 60 cars; I consider #60 to have been as much a practice piece as #1 was.

 

[TLOC]

I’ve weathered some 60 cars; I consider #60 to have been as much a practice piece as #1 was.

Ok, have fun…

 

[C&OMtnMan]

Ok, have fun…

That part might be asking too much!

 

[TLOC]

Good morning on this Friday. Some work to be done

Back to the weathering bench today SORT OF!

After working on 3 dozen very white reefer cars it’s time to switch gears as I wait for supplies to show up before I can continue down the reefer track. I am about 40% on the first set of 36 reefers.

I am out of Vallejo Air burnt umber, various Vallejo whites, the 3 paints I mix for my desert dust and I have 1 bottle of Tamiya xf86 flat clear left. Totally a screw up on my end.

1. I wasn’t supposed to be in Wisconsin in February but re-wrecking my knee ended my vacation after 11 days. So, I am about 10 days ahead of the reefer weathering schedule…

2. 82’ reefers use many more supplies then the 50’ and 60’ cars I am used to weathering

3. My usual dealers are out of the supplies and they back ordered everything.

4. Amazon is much higher priced but when I decided to bite the bullet and buy anyway, the major item (Tamiya flat clear) wasn’t available in the amounts I wanted and they are backordered

So, I pullEd out some of my own cars. Inspected and items noted to be done. Today I will add the safety stripes.

I pulled cars off the shelf to be worked on today. Stripes first and the 4 cars not already weathered will be clear coated with my last bottle of Tamiya flat clear. These are all cars distributed from HomeshopsLlc and are available at Homeshops.net

16 cars with 15 getting stripes added. I know the safety stripe mandate was issued for 2005. I am saying these all qualify after the brakes were re-done or an ownership change. There are 4 cars that have no weathering at all and that will change over the next 4-6 days. A few of these cars will be re-done

enjoy your day

 

[C&OMtnMan]

Hey, @TLOC , I’m sure this didn’t happen without you noticing, but in the next-to-last picture, the long Arkansas Valley boxcar, you have an abrupt change in the appearance of the roof, right at the end of the word “Arkansas.”

Is that to represent a change of storage state of a car? Partly in/out of a building for years? Stick partially out from under a covered open-air bay?

Or just unfinished, waiting on the supplies?

 

[TLOC]

Hey, @TLOC , I’m sure this didn’t happen without you noticing, but in the next-to-last picture, the long Arkansas Valley boxcar, you have an abrupt change in the appearance of the roof, right at the end of the word “Arkansas.”

Is that to represent a change of storage state of a car? Partly in/out of a building for years? Stick partially out from under a covered open-air bay?

Or just unfinished, waiting on the supplies?

I have had issues with the 86’ long auto parts car for Arkansas Valley. A while back I was using tap water for the wet on wet method and for thinning. What we believe was our water softening salt reacted with the clear coat I was using. On this and a few other cars everything became a mess of cloudiness, fog and just mixed up looks. This car is going to get re-done for the third time and that roof will be mildly and eveningly rusted some day

 

[C&OMtnMan]

I have had issues with the 86’ long auto parts car for Arkansas Valley. A while back I was using tap water for the wet on wet method and for thinning. What we believe was our water softening salt reacted with the clear coat I was using. On this and a few other cars everything became a mess of cloudiness, fog and just mixed up looks. This car is going to get re-done for the third time and that roof will be mildly and eveningly rusted some day

I know we had that discussion a couple of months ago, and you have migrated to distilled water since. One other possibility:

If you have one of those mini-faucets that got installed with the water softener, it probably runs through a demineralizing/deionizing filter that takes out the residual salts, and might give you a good controlled source.