Getting Down and Dirty

[SouthernBlue80s]

Nice weathering. I have enjoyed this thread

Best wishes

Steve

[Gwiwer]

Thank you Steve.

 

A timely reminder perhaps that I ought to be getting some new work under way.  It is proving quite a challenge setting up a workbench in a rented room where I cannot secure anything to the walls nor spill anything on the carpeted floor. Lighting for both modelling and photography is also an issue.  Nevertheless I have a queue for weathering, the kit is all here and unpacked and I have taken brushes and powders to one side of the Hornby Q1 recently.

 

I'll try to get some useable pictures up soon.

[Gwiwer]

With no workbench, no layout and only a corner of a baseboard available as level surface I have attempted to weather the DJM class 71 with mixed results.  I had some difficulty with the pan well as the powders would not grab and it took some amount of persuasion to get the dirt mix into every nook and cranny.  The pan head has also been weathered to match without losing its detailed appearance.

 

The headcode slides have been inserted, a driver fitted and cut-off vacuum pipes added so as to fill the hole on the buffer beam but trimmed clear of coupler swing.  The shoe beams and lifting lugs are also fitted.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[Mick Bonwick]

Rick,

 

If you have trouble getting weathering powders to 'stick', try the application to the intended surface of a thin layer of matt acrylic varnish. Or Testor's Dullcote if you can find any.

Edited November 12, 2017 by Mick Bonwick

[Gwiwer]

Thanks Mick

 

One of the techniques I sometimes use is to spray the subject with cheap hairspray first. I have to be careful that it doesn’t reach the glazing which crazes as a chemical reaction to something in the product. That much I learned from weathering a Bachmann CK which now has a full set of steam-heat fogged-up windows!

 

The spray gives me around 10-15 seconds working time to apply powders which both momentarily liquidise and adhere nicely. That helps when creating some of the streaky or striped effects.

 

Hairspray can also be used after powdering as a sealant but with great care as the spray is nowhere near as fine as an airbrush and can result in spotting or blobs.

[SouthernBlue80s]

When Matt varnish is appliead as a sealant over the top of powders it tends to knock them back and you loose much of the more subtle effects.

Have you found this usuing Hairspray? Or has is proved to not effect the powders too much

Thanks

Steve

[Mick Bonwick]

I should have made it clear that I meant the varnish was to be applied before the pigment, so that the pigment had something to grip. Apologies for ambiguity.

[Gwiwer]

Any liquid applied over powder tends to liquify the powder however momentarily and some fine detail can be lost. That includes hair spray. Brishing powders onto a pre-treated surface will still cause them to liquify but the detail is added in the precious seconds before drying. At that point the powder adheres well and more can sometimes be added, including subtle effects, as it grabs the initial application.

[Barry O]

Rick

 

that is why I use diluted ink as a pre-powder wash. Some of the stock I have weathered has had a high varnish finish and the powders still come off. Having said that one RTR loco in a particular livery - the Hornby Silver Link A4s in "silver" has a grey finish which grabs powder and won't let go..

 

Baz.

[Gwiwer]

Far too long since I added anything to this topic. So here’s the first of the new Kernow MRC / Revolution Trains Cargowaggon pairs no longer looking pristine. And a hint of the still-clean one for comparison.  This is nowhere near as filthy as they got in traffic. 

 

[deltic9014]

Welcome back Rick, I've always been impressed by your weathering. Looking forward to more - don't leave it another 3 years... ;-) 

[Gwiwer]

10 hours ago, deltic9014 said:

Welcome back Rick, I've always been impressed by your weathering. Looking forward to more - don't leave it another 3 years... ;-) 

Thank you.  A few more showing a little of what I have been up to recently.

 

Goods shed, wagon, van and compressor weathering for the current Waddlemarsh layout

 

 

Heljan class 07 Southampton Docks shunter

 

 

And a light touch for the Hornby "Brighton Belle" as these units were normally well-kept but did accumulate a little track grime and roof dirt.  There is also a subtle wipe of a dirty brush along the body sides which is barely visible but just takes the edge off the plastic sheen without adding much in the way of dirt. 

 

 

 

[Gwiwer]

Another long pause between posts. With the exhibition circuit still closed I haven’t been doing much weathering. I have a small amount of unweathered stock which is waiting for the 2022 invitations now. I don’t have space to keep a large amount just in case. 

But I have done a few bits and pieces just to keep my hand in. Today’s victims were a quartet of tank wagons and a pair of GUV vans. The tanks have a little factory weathering but remained mostly shiny black plastic until my efforts. The van ends are shown coupled though perched on the window ledge rather than placed on the track. 

 

 

 

 

 

[John Tomlinson]

A fascinating thread.

 

I've never been comfortable with "wet" weathering, and your use of powders seems to be just as effective.

 

Thanks for posting.

 

John.

Edited May 8, 2021 by John Tomlinson

[Gwiwer]

21 minutes ago, John Tomlinson said:

use of powders seems to be just as effective.

Thank you. 

 

Airbrush and powders give different finishes.  There are some effects not readily achieved by one method which can be done by the other. But most weathering can be achieved by either method.  

[Gwiwer]

N-class 31874 appears to have had some issues. Is that washout on the smokebox door or has she run low on water and scorched?

 

Meanwhile the first of the Delabole presflo rake has been weathered. 

 

[saxokid]

On 11/05/2021 at 15:54, Gwiwer said:

N-class 31874 appears to have had some issues. Is that washout on the smokebox door or has she run low on water and scorched?

 

Meanwhile the first of the Delabole presflo rake has been weathered. 

 

Nice work here..

[Gwiwer]

The Q1 has only ever been lightly weathered and retained a bit of a plastic appearance. Until today. After a few minutes work she looks a lot more careworn. 
 

 

 

[Gwiwer]

Unfortunately this topic has suffered from loss of images in the re-hosting of the site. 
 

I don’t have time at present to restore them from my files but I never delete the originals; they are all here on an external drive. 
 

The latest arrivals have been the two recent Bachmann “Standard 5” locos. The green one has been weathered, fitted with crew and has had its pkastic coal replaced with Woodland Scenics stuff.  The black one will be dealt with later; I have to keep a stock of pristine models ready for whenever my next demonstration / exhibition invitation arrives. 
 

 

[Gwiwer]

Many images here have been lost due to the Great Website Rehosting (or “GWR”) and will not be easy to restore. 
 

But here’s a sample of some recent work where the original weathering I applied some time ago had become worn and looked a little patchy. 
 

The Q1 has been re-weathered with more grime and rust than it had before. It is also no longer affected by the mould lubricant which has dried out over the years but which caused the first attempts at weathering to fail thanks to an oily film in the plastic

 

 

 

[Gwiwer]

Some gentle weathering of the Kernow MRC steam railmotor to give it a "being used" look