Off at a tangent once more.

Using some old household emulsion paint should be fine. I would recommend thinning it down then applying by hand, anotherwords, a brush. Take a look at the link below, it should give a good description of what I have done on Industry Lane :

http://yourmodelrailway.net/view_topic.php?id=13081&forum_id=21&page=14#p247809

I had used some 'cheap as chips' acryllic poster paints, available from the 'Pound shop', to paint the track. Simples. ;-)

Cheers, Gary.

 

I'm with Gary, emulsion strick to a brush or roller, or an air gun designed for emulsion. For the air brush, cheap acrylics (normally in a tube), water or glass cleaner as a thinner and if your worried about thinning it too much, add Winsor and Newton Flow improver.
Paul

I spray my track first with grey primer, then using a 1" paintbrush paint it using cuprinol dark oak (its what I have laying around) then paint the rails afterwards using a lighter brown either by airbush or a long bristled rigger brush.

Cleaning off the rail head as I go using a piece of hardboard dipped in IPA (not the dinking kind) and some paper towel.

I cant see why you couldn't use emulsion with this method, I use the primer first as I find the next coat then sticks better.

I just spay 1 or 2 coats of 'track' colour then paint the rails rustier if i need to :):)

Cheers
Ron

So it's pretty much a consensus then ……… Not.

Think I'll go down the cheap acrylics line. These can be diluted with water if I'm right ? I saw a set in WHSmiths but may try the supermarkets first as they'll no doubt be cheaper.

I'll make up a batch in a jar and just decant into the air brush using a dropper. See where it goes from there. I won't be using my best air brush in case I get it wrong. As I said before, it's just a base coat.

Cheers

Toto

Hi Toto

Remember for spraying, the consistancy of milk is what you are looking for

I've used tubes from Tesco, Dunelm, the Range, HobbyCraft etc etc

Acrylic Paint | Hobbycraft

Using Burnt Umber, Titanium White & Black for my base mix, made up in a 2oz jar to the required colour to about half full, then add water (or W5 glass cleaner - Lidl, or Asda glass cleaner) to get the correct consistancy. If a rustier mix is required then a drop of raw sienna or burnt sienna is added. It's a bit heath robinson / bucket chemistry but it gives a bit of variation.

Paul

I'll pick some up on the way home on Friday. I feel a air brush moment coming on. ( if you'll excuse the phrase )

Cheers

Toto.

Sounds like a plan!!!!
:cheers  Gormo

I have used the cheap tubes of acrylic from poundland and supermarkets, they work OK but I also have some from W.H.Smith and I think the pigments may be finer in those as I get better coverage with the same amount of thinning.

I've ordered some off tinternet. A set of 24 for about £7 I think. They'll do the job.

The switch 8 is en route and also a couple of laser cut ply kits that I ordered up from Greenwoods.

I should get 1 full day in on Highbridge. A bit of a mixture of tasks. How long do the acrylics take to dry out of curiosity ? I 'd like to get the base couloir down on the track bed and sleepers etc but also start getting the wall brick card stuck in place where I can. It all depends on the drying time of the paint I suppose.

In saying that, if the paint is going to take a while to dry, I can always do the switch eight and the soldering of the track feeds to the track BUS whilst I am waiting.

Still need to come up with a convincing set up for the main back wall yet. I have some previous ideas but a bit to do on it yet. I'm also still trying to decide if the second ( double ) bridge should go in or if I leave it out. The main reason for the doubt is if it's out, it does free up a lot of space for other buildings. Not sure yet. I do like the look you get when looking down the line of the track and seeing the two bridges in place as well.

Cheers

Toto

Change of plan ………. Forth Bridge closed on Sunday so full weekend on Highbridge. Sky's the limited. don't know if I'm coming or going these days.

Anyway …….. That makes a significant difference. I think the first layer of ground cover will go on Friday night in the form of brown emulsion.

This is purely to cover over the bare / new wood. It will never actually be seen and if the worst comes to the worst and the ballasting or grass etc gets chipped off, there won't be any bare wood showing through.

It will be a very thin coat which will be well worked into the wood, not plastered on in thick coats. There will be a further coat of acrylic sprayed to the sleepers and a separate coat to the rails, probably applied by fine brush.

Well it's a starting point for the weekend anyway.

Cheers.

If you spray light coats the acrylic will dry very quickly I would imagine… mind you, it does depend on the local humidity and temperature… and it is Scotland!
Marty

Acrylics dry reasonably quickly even this time of year, 10-15 minutes and you should be touch dry.

I wouldn't recoat for at least and hour or two though as sometimes a second coat can make the first coat wet again if not thoroughly dry.

[user=1505]toto[/user] wrote:

If using an air gun, would there be any problem in just using thinned down household emulsion as a first base coat. I realise that it won't stick to the areas where the PVA has hit but it will catch the majority of the track edge sect.

The next coat would be an oil based or acrylic paint thinned down.

Cheers

Toto

Hi Tom,

Just caught up with the thread.

Acrylics (household or model) don't like being thinned down more than 10% unless you use acrylic paint thinner. The binder gets diluted out, doesn't stick as well as the neat stuff. Cheap acrylics for the kids don't contain anywhere near as much pigment (or binder) as the modeling ones, and in my experience do not adhere as well (they're meant for paper and cardboard, not plastic or metal).

Worthwhile starting with etching primer on bare metal (Halfords or equivalent should stock this, UPOL #8 or similar). New track  has a thin coat of oil on it from the molding process, some 90% IPA before painting normally takes care of that. Or a wash with a stiff nylon brush and unscented dishwasher in hot water, followed by rinsing with water, before you lay it.

If you can get them, the Vallejo range has some interesting rust colors suitable for rails. They are heavily pigmented, and the brush version goes on very smoothly with no bristle marks.

Nigel

Hi Nigel,

I may have mislead a bit. The acrylics were going to be used for the track edge ( baseboard not rails ) which are plywood. The rails would be hand applied with humbrol rust or similar.

What's your take on the acrylics sticking to plywood ? By the sounds of it, if I could only thin the acrylics down by 10 % it wouldn't be thin enough to go through an air brush anyway.

I think I have acrylic thinners ( I'd need to check to be sure though ) would this help any ?

Sorry if I sound confused ( I am ) as I here loads of people using them but maybe for other applications right enough. Please feel free to correct me where ever necessary as I'd rather get it right as opposed to ending up with an almighty mess. It would just be harder to cover.

Thanks for your comments.

Cheers

Toto

G`day Toto,
You know this track painting doesn`t have to be too complicated. I use artists acrylics and just brush it on, no thinning, quite aggressively with just an old brush, straight from the tube. It dries very quickly. I used about three colours….Charcoal Black, Dark Earth, Burnt Sienna…..or whatever takes your fancy or looks right. I start with the Brown Earth…….slap and drag it on….then Burnt Sienna for the rusty rail look and then some Charcoal Black to show coal and oil staining or just general wear and tear grime.
Personally I think it`s easier than mucking about with thinners and air brushes but I`m sure some will differ. I should point out that I am doing the painting prior to ballasting. Once the ballast is in I think further touch ups will be required.
:cheers  Gormo

PS….acrylics seem to go over just about any surface……plywood included.

Hi Gormo,

I'm the same. This is just a base coat onthe ply prior to applying ballast and ground scatter to get rid of the new wood colouring ofthe ply in case anything shines through.

Once I've done the general baseboard bits I'll maybe look at doing the sides of the rails with the nearest thing I have to a rust colour. Doesn't have to be exact, as long as it looks worn or / and tired.

I'll take the plunge one way or the other and live with the results. It will be covered anyway.

Photos will follow as usual.

Cheers

Toto

Hi Tom,
Mea culpa. As said, el cheapo acrylic is fine. I use a no-name recycled brand with built in primer, or the small sample pots (testers) for bare wood. Brown, green, rust red and and black. Throwaway sponge applicator, as getting the airbrush out is not worth the hassle even for a big job (for which I use a roller). Any areas of pva or wood glue will need sanding.
Nigel

Thanks for that Nigel.

Could be a weekend of painting then. Cheers

Toto