Painting Japanese/Korean brass loco's Tips wanted.

[JZ]

I have got hold of, or at least promised and price agreed, a couple of brass loco's from Japan or Korea. I will be painting them and would like some tips on what is needed. I presume they are lacquered, so will this need to be removed? If so, how? Any other pointers welcome.

[sunbeam.20]

The answer to this is dependent upon how much you want to do and what your ability is. Also the finish you wish to achieve dictates the best solution.

 

I always remotor and sort the drive first to reduce the chances of damage to the paint.  You need to be satisfied with the operation of the loco first.

 

Shells in good condition or previously painted I strip in thinners and if the brass comes up clean and not needing any soldering I etch prime. Ones with corrosion and or paint that won't all strip are soda blasted to remove the problem. Any repairs will be made now, it is much easier to solder clean metal. Any changes are made now too like drilling holes for wiring, lighting etc.

 

Usually I spray the smoke box, fire box etc silver or graphite first as appropriate then mask for the black.  When I paint multiple colours I work from lightest to darkest. I spray the previous colour over the masking before the colour to prevent/minimise colour bleed. Small items like the bell, whistle etc that are brass  I brush.

 

For the drive my preference is to disassemble and spray separately. Do not put your wheels in the the thinners or you risk destroying the insulation. This provides the best job but is the most work. When painting my own locomotives I choose to do this. However I have been known to power drives and carefully airbrush while it is slowly moving when doing free repaints for friends and then removing the paint from the driver treads. These are always models that are weathered too, not ones that are intended to represent shop fresh locos.

 

Once the paint is finished I decal and seal with dullcote. Most are weathered to some extent, the minimum is dust low on the loco and tender and smoke on the smoke box and boiler top. I prefer to use photos to create a more accurate finish but this is dependent on personal preference. You might want shop fresh locos.

 

Matthew