Backshop boxcar re-stenciling

[Bill Gill]

Last summer I posted a R.I.P. track passenger car getting its roof repaired. A worker is sitting on the roof eating lunch. That car is part of the overall backshop scene on the NEB&W and it will be joined by another project recently completed: a freshly repainted 36ft wooden boxcar being re-stenciled. The boxcar is an Accurail kit that got a few additions to the B end of the car. Since this car will be a static display, dummy couplers were installed with the uncoupling levers connected to them. 

[Bill Gill]

Although I'm not a proponent of active figures in scenes, a prototype photo from the club's collection inspired adding a painter at work here. A Preiser figure was modified to fit the job and a scaffold and painting supplies scratchbuilt for him to use. Before he had to (hopefully temporarily) close his business, Dave Krakow (VectorCut) cut the laser board stencil from artwork I sent him. He even managed to include the very narrow connecting bars that hold the stencil together. They can be seen in the photos.

[Bill Gill]

The NEB&W still hand paints its rolling stock, but another photo from the club shows a more "modern" spray gun in use.

[finescalerr]

Good idea. That should wake up a few somnambulant visitors. -- Russ

[Design-HSB]

really a very good idea that explains why the car has no aging.

[Bill Gill]

really a very good idea that explains why the car has no aging. Helmut
Yes, and to make that car look newly repainted I had to remove the data that came printed on the car sides. Naturally it didn't want to come off easily, so I had to strip all the paint and then repaint the entire car.

I don't have an airbrush, so the car was brush painted. The color was matched as closely as possible using inexpensive craft acrylics, then as an experiment the paint was "thinned" or "extended' to the consistency of milk using the acrylic floor finish liquid that was once simply called "FUTURE". (It since has changed names often enough that I've lost track of what it is called currently.)

The experiment was a partial success: The paint mix brushed on and leveled out without any trace of brush marks, it looked airbrushed. But: 1. the  coverage was semi transparent and took 2-3 coats to cover (that still did not obscure any details on the model). 2. The paint paint had a semi-gloss finish, which was good for representing a just painted car, but the finish was soft and easily scratched. I let the paint mix cure for a few weeks and it seemed to toughen up a bit, at least enough for a boxcar that will be a static display and not handled very much.

Here's the kit's original paint on the left and the experimental craft paint& "FUTURE" on the right.

[finescalerr]

Remarkable. Nothing suggests you used a brush. Will (or did) you use a flat or semi-flat spray to protect the finish? -- Russ

[Bill Gill]

Russ, The paint-"FUTURE" mix wound up having a semi-gloss finish and based on a couple prototype photos I decided that would make a good representation of a freshly repainted car, so I left it as is because the model actually has a bit more shine than seen in the paint comparison photo above.

The boxcar shouldn't get handled much at all once it's on the layout, so it ought to be OK. Here's one of the photos used as reference for the finish. Notice that although the body of the car was newly painted, the trucks and underframe were not. I tried to duplicate that look in the model as well.

[Ray Dunakin]

Clever concept, executed perfectly!