What goes in my weathering tackle box?


SpaceMouse

Fun Lover
Well I got a small wad of money that was going to spend at Timmy's Immodium, now it seems my car will be in the shop and I have no way to get there. So I want to buy a few things off the Internet.

I have a Badger 150 which I need to get better at.
Various Pastels and Pastel Pencils which work well on buildings
A can of Dull Cote
A zillion brushes
Plenty of artist acrylics and oils (Wife's a pro artist)--but I haven't gotten a good consistency to spray from the Badger from these. I hope all I need is practice.

What else should I conjure up?

Suggestions so far.
India Inks
Rubbing Alcohol
Tooth picks
Q-Tips
Paper towls
Sanding Sticks (NWSL Detail Sanders and Emery Sticks)
Xacto Knife (USPSCSX's tool to fade paint)
Hairspray (The Pumptype)
 
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Good topic Chip!

I would also grab some india inks, HobbyLobby has a large supply in my area, I got White, Black, Brown and Grey. Also once you get the air brush down, I would shy away from Dullcote and get regular clear flat paint.

You will need a lot of printer ink, a good printer and images grabbed from the web or your own collection, I think working from an image, even if it's not an exact reproduction is a must so you can control how much weathering effect you do.
 
Rubbing alcohol as thinner. Makes the water wet for the acrylics, and if you're doing a wash (even with india ink), that stuff works good.

Kennedy
 
Some other items that I use:

Tooth picks
Q-Tips
Paper towls
Sanding Sticks (NWSL Detail Sanders and Emery Sticks)
Xacto Knife (USPSCSX's tool to fade paint)
Hairspray (The Pumptype)
Testors Clear Parts Cement

Another note, when doing a weathering job of rolling stock it might be a good time to make sure the cars are within NMRA compliance, and any other maintanence work. I am guilty of not doing that all the time.
 
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Pre-weathering is also a good time to do any detailing you need to do, unless you're trying to make it look like a replacement part (I.E. new door on a box car, brakewheel, etc.) But do remember this: A wheel is NEVER clean when you see it on the rails.
 
Here are my weathering tools:
  • Testors Clear Parts and Window Maker Cement
  • A ton of brushes(You might want to use seperate brushes for chalks and for paints...although I admit to using one for the other..)
  • Various paints. I ALWAYS have Polly Scale Rust, Polly Scale Grimy Black, and Polly Scale Oily Black. (Oily black REALLY does leave an oily appearance-Perfect for trucks/wheelsets!)
  • Testors' Model Master Model Cement(For when I break a stirrup ;))
  • A FEW colored pencils(They work!) Usually only colors like variaties of brown, black, and sometimes a blue or red...depending on what I'm working on.
  • Testors Dullcote! The stuff WORKS!
  • Water...for obvious reasons.
  • Pump Hairspray(Meaning NON-Aerosol)
  • Screwdrivers to remove trucks and couplers.
  • Various colors of chalk. (Right now I have a color for everything!)
  • An XACTO-My favorite "fading tool!"
  • Gel Pens(For graffiti)
  • Forgot to mention this above: Containers for storing chalk.
  • Alcohol(The rubbing variety;)) I don't drink anyway..
  • Artist Crayons-Perfect for rust streaks and highlighting areas!
  • PAPER TOWELS-You will NEED them, trust me.
  • Microbrushes-I can't weather without one.
  • Sand paper/Sandpaper(However you prefer to spell it) Useful in SOME cases for fading.
There's probably more...I just can't remember it all right now!
 
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OH, I forgot to list:

  • Paint thinner.
  • Oil-based paints(Haven't used them yet, but I plan on getting some.) I'll use them for rust patches. You have to admit: SOME rusty areas just don't look textured.
  • Rubber cement. Used for replicating peeling paint. See MrKluke's thread on a BN/CB&Q hopper over on The Railwire to see how it's used.
  • Either a stiff piece of cardboard or a small piece of plastic. Used for puddling hairspray to dip brushes/cosmetic sponges into...which brings me to my next item.
  • Cosmetic sponges! Used for textured rust and/or "splashes" of rust/grime/oil/whatever else. See modeltrainsweathered.com for the "rust" method.
More later, probably!
 
SpaceMouse said:
Aren't there stuff like pre-packaged weathering chalks and jars of rust? Anyone use them?
I plan on buying some pretty soon. I think you're talking about AIM and Bragdon. They make self-adheshive(Spelling) powders.
 
SpaceMouse said:
Aren't there stuff like pre-packaged weathering chalks and jars of rust? Anyone use them?

Jars of Rust? I would be interested in some of that, as long as they grind it up real fine. I remember reading how you could make real rust with I think steel wool and vineger? Anyone know about this method?
 
One of the other weathering threads made me remember there was a clinic at the NMRA Convention this past summer by a guy that was called "Weathering with Women's Make Up". The description noted that the stuff was superior to chalks and the like.

As a side note, I went by the table setup by Leslie Eaton, MMR., at the Train Show, and it looked like she was using the more expensive stuff, given the containers that were sitting next to the little craftsman shanty she was building....

Kennedy
 



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