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How to create a rusty track?


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Hi all,

I want to make a layout depicting a slightly run down TMD. Therefore I'll have to get it looking all stained up where locos mostly stand and on a few derelict lines I would like to make them rusty but I would like to achieve this without giving the sleepers that rusty effect! Should I try masking or are there weathering pens used to weather just the rails? Any info would be appreciated and addition of sample pictures would be better still! Just to note I am not really following any particular period because I have a Mainline Class 60 and W&S Class 67 and a few MK1 coaches (for the derelict sidings) and I plan on picking up a EWS Class 67 and an RFD Class 47. If you want I'll post a pic of my plan that i sketched out by hand (not to scale)*

 

Jeremiah

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Guest oldlugger

Hello Jeremiah,

 

The tried and trusted method for just having rusty rails is to paint them by hand with varying shades of matt enamel paints to get the shade of rust you want. You'll need a reasonably steady hand and to take your time, also painting up the chairs as you proceed, trying to avoid getting paint on the sleepers. If you do get some paint on the sleepers, don't worry, just use some thinners on a small brush and carefully brush/wipe it away. I wrote a short step by step on track detailing on my layout recently so have a look at that for some help:-

 

http://www.rmweb.co....o/page__st__550

 

Cheers

Simon

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Jeremiah,

 

As Simon says above, careful painting in situ is probably the best solution, assuming you are not making your own track (which I do, and which enables me to paint rail and chairs togather before sticking them to the sleepers).

 

One plea from the heart, though; if you are going to mix your colours then go very easy on the rust shade; rail sides are much more brown than red.

 

Another thing I do is to very gently brush some rusty weathering powders along the track once all the painting and gluing is done. Gives this effect;

 

post-8535-0-15238800-1347833627_thumb.jpg

 

Best of luck, and do post up a plan.

 

George

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Hi

When i do my track i paint it useing Humbrol N0.29 RAF brown and the give some area's a wash over with P978 Track colour (Oil leakinings)from Phoenix Precision paints,IMO this looks spot on to what real track look's like.

All the best

Darren

post-6929-0-24880000-1347842399.jpg

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Darren. That's not all you do, is it? Looks great! Are those plastic sleepers? Talk us through!!!!!

 

And George, that's looking great too. Can you tell us the precise recipe?!

HI BRealistic

The sleepers are made from ply and dyed with sleeper stain; the rest is just painted with the paints I mentioned, nothing more.

Still need to add the fish plates around the point work in the photo, which is now done as it is now down on the layout East the Water.

All the best

Darren

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I remember seeing on some website about a pen that could be used to create the rusty appearance on the rails! Basically the nib is shaped in a particular way so that it can move through the grove easily!!! I had seen a video on youtube which showed that it did give promising results. But now I simply can't find this anywhere? I thought it was gaugemaster who manufactured it but I still can't seem to locate this on any website nor on youtube!!

Anyone knows about this? There were quite a few of the type of pens (for creating rust, grease etc that one would find on tracks)

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HI

I have seen one of them used and they do work ok ,but the colour is to red and do's not look right too me.

BR, you can dry bush a little silver paint over the top of the sleepers ,this gives the effect of the Creosote ,also you can dry bush the sidding track with a little light grey paint ,for a more worn track look.

All the best

Darren

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I used the method illustrated by NSE_DAZ in this post (http://www.rmweb.co.uk/community/index.php?/topic/46840-shaftesbury-o-gauge-nse-venture/page__st__150&do=findComment&comment=666318) although it's for O gauge, with thinner masking tape you should be able to use it for OO gauge trackwork.

 

This is what I ended up with.

 

Track3.jpg

 

Don't forget to weather the ballast as well, unless your track has only very recently been relaid (which in many cases is unlikely of course). I simply used a 'wash' of matt black, track grime colour and my "pot of brush cleaner" liberally applied over everything with a half inch brush, and it tones everything down very nicely.

 

Best solution for anything new is obvious but often forgotten - try your techniques on an old piece of track on an old piece of board, so if it all goes horribly wrong it doesn't really matter that much.

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I used the method illustrated by NSE_DAZ in this post (http://www.rmweb.co....150#entry666318) although it's for O gauge, with thinner masking tape you should be able to use it for OO gauge trackwork.

 

This is what I ended up with.

 

 

 

Don't forget to weather the ballast as well, unless your track has only very recently been relaid (which in many cases is unlikely of course). I simply used a 'wash' of matt black, track grime colour and my "pot of brush cleaner" liberally applied over everything with a half inch brush, and it tones everything down very nicely.

 

Best solution for anything new is obvious but often forgotten - try your techniques on an old piece of track on an old piece of board, so if it all goes horribly wrong it doesn't really matter that much.

 

I don;t know about that. At Hove station are several sidings which have not seen a train since 1990 at least. Last time I saw anything on there was 319s before they went into service, and that was in 1986. However, I have since seen patches of new ballast on these same disused tracks.

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You are right of course, there's possibly going to be 'spot ballasting' although on sidings they do tend to be left to their own devices. But all too often you see layouts with perfect ballasting only possible after a recent relaying, which is unlikely to have happened in real life to have just happened to have been done just before the date the layout is set in.

 

Unless of course your layout is an engineering possession...

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