How's The Weather In Your Area?

[Davo Dentetsu]

It's fair to say that the ultimate reason we all model Japanese trains is not because we like the colour, the variety and the nation in general.  It's because we are too lazy to heavy weather any trains because they never really need it.   :P

Only joking.  But I'm curious, does anyone actually perform such a thing on their collection?  I only have two done so far (well, depends on how lazy I am to add more to it).  And... yeah, that's this topic sorted.  Show us ya dirt!

[domino]

Well, I don't weather any of my trains , for some reason I don't like  when a loco is weathered , I think it is because it really looks fake or something, never really looks real .

 

Just my opinion.

 

Brian

[POMU]

Haven't had time to yet - but plan to do so.  JRF engines and freight cars appear to have a lot of dings, dents, dirt, and rust from vids I've seen. 

  No need to weather passenger trains as they are washed frequently, some even hand washed every day.

[Davo Dentetsu]

Well, I don't weather any of my trains , for some reason I don't like  when a loco is weathered , I think it is because it really looks fake or something, never really looks real .

 

Just my opinion.

 

Brian

 

I prefer to not buy pre-weathered trains for that reason, it seems to take away from the individuality of such an undertaking I find.  But it's a big thing in the Euro and British markets now, so people go for it for whatever reason.

 

A better shot of the sides.  Looking at photos of a few trains, the roof section and bogie sides tend to be the biggest beneficiaries of a dirt scrub.  I think it definitely adds that little bit extra with a minimum of effort.  Now and again a body will come in for some thrown up muck.

 

Edited April 3, 2014 by Azumanga Davo

[ToniBabelony]

So far, I haven't done any weathering on my trains here in Japan, but I plan to do so. It makes detail stand out, but you have to be careful not to overdo it. I have a bad example back home of a MicroAce ED16 which is over-weathered... I need to clean it when I go pick it up in summer.

[E6系]

I am more collector than hobbyist.  Therefore, I do not weather my collection.

[lurkingknight]

I like pristine stuff... like it came from the factory.

[Martijn Meerts]

Weathering is rather difficult, but getting just the right amount of weathering does make a model look much better. It should be subtle though, and definitely not stand out. People shouldn't even notice a locomotive is weathered when it's just doing it's rounds on a layout.

[Keikyu]

I've weathered some of my stuff.

 

 

Edited April 5, 2014 by Keikyu

[Bernard]

I agree with Marti....painting/air brushing isn't my forte, so I'm a little afraid to weather I might screw up a train.....having said that I did weather some of my American Steam locos but it was by accident.....so paint dripped on one of my trains so I decided to weather it....it came out alright. As for my Japanese trains, most of the Prototypes are sooooo clean in appearance.

[cteno4]

I'm also with martijn, subtle and careful weathering can be wonderful on a model, but its a very fine edge. Harder with Japanese trains as they are usually washed and maintained to a nicer condition than most in the world!

 

Cheers,

 

Jeff

[POMU]

Weathering can be a scary project for beginners, especially if you try to weather a "New" expensive model.  I started out by buying cheap junk freight cars at train shows, experimented with a single action airbrush, then moved on to weathering powders.  I've found that the powders are the best as they don't require a lot of clean up like using the airbrush.  My favorite powders are from Bragdon Enterprises www.bragdonent.com - these are self adhesive and do not fade when you spray on the Dull Coat ( I use Testor's Dull Coat in an aerosal can ) A Little dab of powder will do ya and Subtle and properly placed, will produce the effect you need.  I apply with Acid brushes, cheap metal handle brushes that plumbers use to apply glue to PVC tubing.  Cutting the bristles on the brushes to different lengths will produce wide to small areas of weathering effects.  Very simple and easy to do.

[Keikyu]

I've never heard of weathering powders.

[cteno4]

Spot on pomu, weathering powders are great and pretty easy to pickup compared to airbrushing. The newer ones like pomu noted like Bragdon are self attaching so no after coat of dull coat needed, which can be an issue with windows. You can also get those cheap nail paint brush sets on ebay for a few bucks to apply very small bits to just hi light a few areas hare and there.

 

http://www.ebay.com/itm/16-STYLE-Nail-Art-Tips-Brush-Pen-Acrylic-Dotting-Drawing-Painting-Liner-Set-Kit-/151207470602?pt=US_Nail_Care&var=&hash=item2334aae60a

 

There are probably some shops (or bragdon itself) that sell Bragdon or other similar weathering powders overseas and I bet there is an equivalent in Europe.

 

http://www.bragdonent.com/weather.htm

 

Many youtube videos out there as well. While used for heavy aging, little fits in just the right nooks and crannies can give a model great pop that its well taken care of but just has a few years on it. Nice thing is a tiny bit goes a long long way! Also you can just do a tiny bit, live with it a while, add some more, etc, until its where you want it! Buy some really cheap used rolling stock at a train show or on ebay and use them to practice!

 

Also works well on the tomix and kato buildings that are shiny plastic to knock off the shine and give some contrasts to detail lines easily. Again don't have to turn it into an old building, just keep trying some touches here and there to bring out the details and knock off the shine.

 

Cheers

 

Jeff

[Martijn Meerts]

One of the safest ways to weather, and something that works for almost everything, is the black wash. It's really just heavily diluted black paint, often with a drop of dishwashing soap in it as well. You just brush it onto the model, and once the water has evaporated, you'll have a model that's less shiny, and with bit of black paint here and there which really make the detail pop out. This technique does require a bit of patience though, because often the effect isn't really noticeable until after the 3rd of 4th wash. You end up adding a little paint to get results quicker, but that often ruins the whole thing.

 

I think a combination of techniques is likely your best bet. The black wash is nice for getting the initial dirt going, then the weathering powders to add additional detail where needed, and especially add color to the bogies (the black wash doesn't work well on black bogies obviously ;)), maybe brush on some oil residue with a regular paintbrush, and then mist on some dust using the airbrush.

[cteno4]

Yeah lots of stuff use India inks diluted with alcohol so it drys fast so you can do more thin layers to not go past the point of too much.

 

Jeff

[POMU]

The black wash works extremely well on buildings, especially wood and hydrocal.  Haven't had good results on SMOOTH shiny plastic tho as the wash runs right off and requires too many applications to achieve the desired effect.  The good thing about the black wash is if you don't like the effect you can wash it off and start over before you use a finish like dull coat to seal it in.  Really adds great detail to brick when you just run a brush load or two along the top of the building and let it run down.  Doesn't fill all the crevices but adds that subtle aging look to the brick. Have also had great success with various wood stains on wood boxcars and wood buildings in O Scale.  Thanks Martijn for the black wash comment.  Good idea for modelers to know about when weathering.  The Bragdon rust weathering powder is made with real rust and has become a favorite of mine for bogies and wheels. 

  Another tip for sealing your weathering or decals is Future Acrylic Floor Wax.  Very cheap, doesn't yellow over time, can be applied with a brush or airbrush and can be found worldwide under different names.

[cteno4]

I've wanted to try the futura trick, folks say it goes over clear plastic windows much better than dull coat does and can give a very nice semi gloss shine that may rail cars have

 

Yes the washes don't work as well on smooth surfaces, but using the alcohol to dilute helps a bit, I fiddled a couple of times with it like that. Like you say it can be washed off! It works well with flat cheap spray paints and very well with cheap water based craft acrylic paint but does not was off that as well.

 

Jeff

[JNRModelsNick]

I've never heard of weathering powders.

 

It's a term Humbrol use for a new range of products they have made. In more general terms they are Pigment Powders. Paint with no medium in other words.

[marknewton]

...Looking at photos of a few trains, the roof section and bogie sides tend to be the biggest beneficiaries of a dirt scrub.  I think it definitely adds that little bit extra with a minimum of effort.  Now and again a body will come in for some thrown up muck...

 

Even during the steam era in Japan it seems that most rollingstock was kept fairly clean. As you noted, most of the dirt you see is on the roof and the running gear. I'm not a fan of the black wash, particularly since the majority of my JNR freight cars are black. I've been experimenting with the Tamiya weathering sticks on some of my model freight cars. I cna't take a photo now, but in the morning with decent light I'll take a photo and post it.

 

Cheers,

 

Mark.

[POMU]

Saw the Tamiya weathering sticks when they came out a few years back, but didn't purchase or experiment with them.  Will be interested in your experience and opinion on them.  Are they liquid?  Thanks Mark

Edited April 6, 2014 by POMU

[Martijn Meerts]

The Future floor wax is used a lot on canopies in airplane modelling, but it does have some issues as well. There are stories about it yellowing over time, or even cracking. It also gained a lot in popularity, so quite a few model stores started selling the stuff in small flasks that cost more than a large bottle. Sometimes they even give it special names and claim it's better and whatnot.

 

I believe the stories about the yellowing/cracking Future is probably where they used the 'custom' stuff.

 

 

I'm definitely going to experiment with weathering, but it's not exactly on the top of the list ;)

[dottney]

I've been using chalks for weathering for years. If you have an art supply store near by, you hopefully can get artist acrylic chalks there. They come in a variety of colors are usually square sticks that can be scraped with a knife and the resulting powder applied with small brushes.

Washes of acrylic and enamel paints and inks also work well. As noted black washes can be slowly applied but don't rule out other colors. Use some dark browns or tans to simulate dust and dirt. Even thin washes of white or off white give you faded paint effects. Look at a color wheel for other ideas for weathering. If you have a green car/loco weather the shadowed and dark areas areas using blue mixed with the base green color. To go lighter use yellow mixed with the base color.

There are many forums and sites that have lots of info & techniques dealing with weathering. Be sure to look at military modeling and figure painting sites.

Hope this helps.

Dave

[cteno4]

Ive used chalks and pastels since i was a kid weathering. they do a nice job, but always need sealing with a clear coat of some kind to set them. w/o a clear coat they will stick pretty well, but i found that where ever you touched much you would end up with a big finger print eventually sort of developing i guess from chalk, dirt and skin grease. i use to gently try to wipe the cars with a damp cloth a few times before beginning to get finger prints off the car as i did find that some areas where there were a lot from where you picked the car up all the time (sort of like how you dust for a finger print!). Ive not noticed this when playing with the weathering powders, but i still usually start with a clean surface. thats what i have liked about the weathering powder is that they stick after a little while. you have a little time to get most of it off if you dont like it. also very consistent powder size with these. with scraping chalks you get a wide range of bits. 

 

you are spot on with experimenting with other colors. when i look at the real weathering masters that do youtube videos you see the amazing process they do to layer up interesting colors that you would never think of using off hand. its a real art and when done well its stunning! well worth time watching videos and getting some old cheap cars to experiment and learn on.

 

pastels can do some good grease and mud/dirt clumps but not to big as they never really seem to totally dry and really need sealing. the tamia sticks look like sort of a pastel consistency.

 

ive played a few times with using cosmetics like eye shadow. they seem to work pretty much like chalks. my only concern is how long they hold up with their pigments or if they might do some color change with time. good thing about the chalks and weathering powders they are stuff thats pretty stable.

 

i do like the weathering powders to just dab on a little here and there quickly, not a huge process or worry about clear coating, but they do cost some $$ art chalks are pretty cheap!

 

cheers,

 

jeff

[dottney]

There are some weathering powders that were written up in MR (I think) last year.  They're available from art supply stores I just can't remember the name of them.  They come in tins and can be purchased in sets and individually.  One of the guys in the local group tried them and the results were very nice.

 

There are also some inks marketed to fantasy gamers.  They make good washes and also are good for lining.  Lining is where you outline features on a model usually with a darker color (ie: seams on panels, door edges, etc).  If you look at the Brit sites (modeling, figures and railroading) you'll see a lot of this technique.

 

I forgot to mention the use of make up powders. While I haven't tried them yet they do look interesting in that there is a myriad of colors.  I guess I just haven't gotten in touch with my feminine side yet and worked up enough nerve to go to a cosmetics display :)

Dave