Do you find that the tops of rails tarnish quicker after painting the sides?

[Peter Kazmierczak]

An optical illusion or something else?  Do the tops of the rails tarnish more quickly after painting the sides?

Recently painted the sides of the railways in Humbrol 113 and the rail heads appear to tarnish quicker.

Or is it just me needing a trip to the opticians?

[Dagworth]

Acrylic or enamel? 
 

I find that ballast glue causes tarnish until it’s fully dried (yellow rail heads), could it be that your paint hasn’t completely cured yet? 
 

Where is the layout? (Loft, shed etc.?)

 

Andi

[Alcanman]

1 hour ago, Dagworth said:

Acrylic or enamel? 
 

I find that ballast glue causes tarnish until it’s fully dried (yellow rail heads), could it be that your paint hasn’t completely cured yet? 
 

Where is the layout? (Loft, shed etc.?)

 

Andi

I've had exactly the same issue with ballast glue tarnishing rail tops but it easily wiped off with a cloth. 

[Peter Kazmierczak]

Thanks guys.

[The Johnster]

No.  But it is many years since I used anything other than acrylic paint for this purpose, and in fact almost every other painting job on my layouts; what difference, if any, this makes I have no idea.  Tarnishing seems to occur if there has been more than a couple of days between running sessions (the layout doesn't like being neglected and protests in this way), and I usually start off with a track-cleaning jag in these circmustances, but the layout is in a bedroom in the heated/ventilated part of my flat and this may also have a bearing on the situation.  I had a loft layout in my teens and tarnishing seemed to be a very frequent occurrence on that, despite the rail sides not being painted. 

[34theletterbetweenB&D]

Assuming this is nickel silver rail, it does tarnish, as leaving a length of it outdoors for a couple of years will confirm, typically a mid brown colour. High humidity and the presence of any agent that is slightly acidic will accelerate this process, indoors or out.

 

The best 'cure' is running as noted above. Run sufficiently, and the copper depletion in the rail surface slows the process so that there is no visible tarnishing - only takes about 3 years of daily operation for a couple of hours.

[Captain Kernow]

Never found it to be a problem.

 

[Michael Hodgson]

On 15/04/2024 at 23:02, The Johnster said:

No.  But it is many years since I used anything other than acrylic paint for this purpose, and in fact almost every other painting job on my layouts; what difference, if any, this makes I have no idea.  Tarnishing seems to occur if there has been more than a couple of days between running sessions (the layout doesn't like being neglected and protests in this way),

Also happens in 12":1ft scale, and they don't usually paint the rail sides with acrylic paint. 

The moral is clear - run trains regularly - it's not your paint job that's causing your diffculties.

[melmerby]

On 16/04/2024 at 11:40, 34theletterbetweenB&D said:

Assuming this is nickel silver rail, it does tarnish, as leaving a length of it outdoors for a couple of years will confirm,

Don't need to leave it outside.

Even indoors in a box it tarnishes badly over time.

 

A good way of weathering, just clean the running surface and away you go. (just takes a while)

[The Johnster]

I like the idea of natural weathering on layouts.  Scenic colours that fade over time blend better, wood which bleaches and ages naturally, that sort of thing.  Wood needs to be left outside for long enough for it to bleach but the problem with this is that it is difficult to keep the stuff from being blown away in the next gale or pinched by nesting birdies, but worth the effort as it is very diffiuclt to get the correct 'look' by painting.  For a while I used loose coal at my colliery and as wagon loads, which eventually proved to be too messy for a domestic environment and I now have card wagon fillers with coal glued to the tops, but it was a very useful way of weathering the buildings and the wagons. 

[34theletterbetweenB&D]

3 hours ago, The Johnster said:

Wood needs to be left outside for long enough for it to bleach but the problem with this is that it is difficult to keep the stuff from being blown away in the next gale or pinched by nesting birdies, but worth the effort as it is very diffiuclt to get the correct 'look' by painting. 

Likewise, lost more than I have produced by 'outdoor exposure' to obtain the silvery grey tones of really long term bleached wood!