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Frederic Testard
Engineer
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Posted - 06/01/2010 : 11:11:46 AM
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Color, texture, rotting of the bottom are outstanding, Dallas!
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| Frederic Testard |
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Country: France
| Posts: 16524 |
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dallas_m
Fireman
Premium Member
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 Posted - 06/02/2010 : 08:11:51 AM
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A few more experiments and some short-winded notes!
First, thanks again (as always) for your comments, suggestions and encouragement. With all the things that worked and didn't work, I had gotten to a point where I couldn't see which was which for a moment there ... but letting it all sit for a day, it does seem that the basic techniques I'll use for the siding are pretty much ironed-out now. (Hooray!) So, just a few quick notes on some minor variations on the theme ...
Pink Soap: This is a brush-cleaner and conditioner for use with acrylic paints. It won't have the same chemical reaction as using mineral spirits, but it is odor free and works just as well as the crackle medium as a "resist" layer ... brush it onto the stained wood, let it soak-in/dry, then proceed as described before with the crackle medium ...
Salt, Spit & Hairspray: A disgusting recipe that should not be served at parties! But, works equally well and has the potential to produce more of the "chipping" appearance found in Chuck's method. Now, sorry, there is a potential gross-out here  ... work up a good spit (and I can definitely say that a swig of coffee won't hurt here) ... spit into a little dish, piece of wax paper whatever ... use an old paint brush to smear that out on some stained strips, then sprinkle on some salt (coarse salt in a grinder is nice to vary the size of bits) ... then let it dry. I oversprayed with hairspray, but I'm really not sure that's necessary. Use the toothbrush to apply paint, let that set up just a bit, then use scratch tool and/or masking tape to peel.
This time around, I used the toothbrush, the basic off-white shade and a couple variations to mix up the coloring just a touch ...
I also did a few using just hairspray (water-based in a pump bottle) as a "resist" layer, and used the scribing tool and masking tape to peel (without any additional water). Obviously, that was fairly resistant to paint as can be seen by the relatively bare boards here! Note: The hairspray will soak in and cup the boards a bit, but they seem to flatten themselves out in about a day. I think the crackle, pink soap and salt/saliva combos will work best ...
Each of these boards has just a single-round of coloring ... some will go back and get a second round as done before to mix things up a bit.
quote:
Originally posted by Bbags
Dallas,
I have been sitting in the back of the lecture hall following this build and taking copious notes for a long time without comment.
I decided today is the time to comment after seeing you latest experiments.
I am sure Mike is looking down at you work with a smile on his face for you have produced some outstanding tutorials that will benefit all who read them.
Mike, also like yourself was always trying new techniques and while some did not meet his expectations he kept at it until he succeeded much as you have been doing with this project.
Also the presentation is in the best tradition of Mike with the humorous style used throughout this thread.
So there could be no better name for this structure that Chambers Gas & Oil.
Keep up the great work.
John -- Thank you so much! It's wonderful that the "Chambers Challenge" is not a competition, but instead a way in which we can "challenge" ourselves to try new techniques or new ways to express ourselves thru modeling then come together to share the results. In terms of experimentation, there are times when it's pretty frustrating, times when it's incredibly humbling ... and times (usually after a good dose of the previous) when it somehow clicks and seems to work out. It's nice not only to borrow directly from Mike, but also from so many of the forum members who have been influenced by his contributions ... and regarding the "funny business" ... well, some of us just can't help it! 
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Country: USA
| Posts: 3137 |
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dallas_m
Fireman
Premium Member
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Posted - 06/04/2010 : 1:00:10 PM
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Cracked/peeling "lead paint" without fumes (or lead)!
I really liked the "old whitewash" look on the previous round(s) of testing, but figured the front of the building and the side of the building facing the road should look like they've been painted more often to attract business ... and hoped to find a way that would look like thick, cracked and peeling lead paint. This variation of the same techniques seems to capture this look ... and roughly approximates the effect that Chuck got using mineral spirits, but no need for the chemicals here. (And, for those who can work comfortably with those thinners ... that's probably easier and certainly effective.)
Here's how these were done:
-- Distress and stain stripwood; used a #11 knife and the Scratchboard parallel line tool ...
-- Lay a few boards on masking tape (about 6-8/batch is easy to work) ... slather with acrylic crackle medium.
-- Let that set up for about 5-10 minutes.
-- Mix up some acrylic paint and a little wet water. I used American Slate Gray with a touch of Vallejo "Grease & Oil" paint(blackish color) ... thinned for application with toothbrush. How much probably depends on how stiff the toothbrush bristles are and how much pressure is applied ... so speckle on some newspaper first, and continue to thin as needed.
-- Let the gray paint dry for 10-15 minutes. Go over it lightly with the scratch tool (with grain) to break it up a bit. Dab with tape to remove some pieces. May need a pretty tacky tape like shipping tape, but start with masking tape until you know.
-- Slather with another coat of crackle medium. Let that set up for 10-15 minutes.
-- Mix up some paint to go on top ... I used Vallejo Chalk white with a touch of the grease & oil and some brighter white.
-- Thin this a bit and brush it on with a paint brush ... sort of a "wet drybrush" method ... touch the brush to the paint, brush it onto some paper to reduce the amount of paint, brush diagonally across the grain, then turn and go in the opposite diagonal direction. Heavier at the top of boards, tapering off toward bottom.
-- Let that set for 10-15 minutes; use scratch tool and tape again ...
The first coat with a blackened gray adds texture and represents remains of older, oxidized coats of paint ... second coat with the whiter paint represents more recent coats of paint, which of course haven't been tended too recently! 
Next step: Hit with the thin spot washes described previously. (Haven't done that yet in these photos.)
Well, now I've got a big enough pile of siding to do the back and rear end walls ... so it's time to do some battens, frame some end walls and all that other stuff ... a little at a time. 
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Country: USA
| Posts: 3137 |
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dallas_m
Fireman
Premium Member
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Posted - 06/04/2010 : 8:02:43 PM
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Back of the back wall ...
A little closer ...
Inside of the back wall ... only three more walls to go ... just don't tell Mr. Mudgeon that those all have doors and windows! 
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Country: USA
| Posts: 3137 |
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OregonOn30
Crew Chief
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Posted - 06/05/2010 : 1:30:50 PM
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Hey Dallas
this is really turning into a fun ride! I am definitely going to give your toothbrush method a shot.
Keep it up. (You must not be married to have enough "free" time for the trial and error stuff)... :O]
Thanks!
Rick
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Country: USA
| Posts: 551 |
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CieloVistaRy
Fireman
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Posted - 06/05/2010 : 2:02:17 PM
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As usual, top-notch tutorial! I am learning much as I go along and will be sure to steal some ideas from you.
Arthur
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Arthur
Cielo Vista Railway (on30) |
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Country: USA
| Posts: 4474 |
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dallas_m
Fireman
Premium Member
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Posted - 06/05/2010 : 2:38:05 PM
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Thanks again for the on-going feedback and encouragement! Rick, I've had my share of trial and error in that department ... so for now, when the work day is done and I've told myself to wash the dishes and take out the trash, I can spend a few hours here and there on the hobby for relaxation. And, in that regard, the trial and error just results in tossing out a few pieces of stripwood now and then. I can cope with that! On the flip side, it has taken six weeks to get the first wall of the building up ... hard to say where the time goes ... and some of my retired friends tell me they have less spare time then when they were working. Strange how things go.
Weathering with Pastels: I posted a couple of the trial-n-error pix on the FineScale forum for feedback, and Gordon Birrell kindly directed me to a post that he had made about modeling peeling paint with pastels ... another way to go around the issues with chemical fumes.
Gordon's description of the technique starts on page three of this thread ... check out the photos, then scroll down to his April 22 post here:
http://www.finescalerr.com/smf/index.php?topic=128.30
I didn't have any hard pastels on hand, but I went over the boards and battens on that back wall with a couple colors of soft pastels and some washes. Should search out some hard pastels to give those a try, but this is the back of the back wall that no one is likely to see so it'll do for now.
A great example of Gordon's scratchbuilding skills:
http://www.finescalerr.com/smf/index.php?topic=752.0
Alrighty, time to catch up on some weekend work ... have to see if we can clear some time for more playing ... still have to do a lot of detailing on the inside of that back wall and start framing the others ...
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Country: USA
| Posts: 3137 |
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Tyson Rayles
Moderator
Premium Member
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Posted - 06/05/2010 : 3:06:52 PM
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Most excellent Dallas!
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| Mike |
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Country: USA
| Posts: 10250 |
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OregonOn30
Crew Chief
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Posted - 06/05/2010 : 4:17:12 PM
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Any luck with water color pencils?
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Country: USA
| Posts: 551 |
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dallas_m
Fireman
Premium Member
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Posted - 06/05/2010 : 4:33:37 PM
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Tried water color pencils on a couple of stained boards and for building up the worn-white paint, that didn't float the boat! Have used those on a few other projects ... limited experience there.
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Country: USA
| Posts: 3137 |
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lemkerailroad1
Crew Chief
Premium Member
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Posted - 06/05/2010 : 6:39:51 PM
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dallas.........i just found this post
that is some great work with the boards
i am going to use your methods to do the outside boards of my engine house i am doing
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Country: USA
| Posts: 624 |
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dallas_m
Fireman
Premium Member
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Posted - 06/07/2010 : 02:55:44 AM
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No crazy experiments this time ...
Just a little more progress on framing up the place, so Mr. Mudgeon can get to work ... and a new window so we can keep an eye on the repairs!
"Now, where the heck are the dang wrenches?"
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Country: USA
| Posts: 3137 |
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Frederic Testard
Engineer
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Posted - 06/07/2010 : 12:36:11 PM
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Dallas, I like the way your structure is slowly reaching its full personnality.
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| Frederic Testard |
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Country: France
| Posts: 16524 |
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BBLmber
Fireman
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 Posted - 06/07/2010 : 3:21:09 PM
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Hey Dallas, your build is looking very good, you are going to have to find a nice tow truck to bring in all of the work.
Mark
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| W,L,&E |
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Country: USA
| Posts: 4314 |
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dallas_m
Fireman
Premium Member
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Posted - 06/10/2010 : 5:45:25 PM
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Turns out assembling miniature metal shelving units is just like assembling them in 1:1 scale ... shelves flopping everywhere!
Kinda busy at work here, so this was a pleasant little diversion ... just hit it with the first round of paint (shown here before painting) ... now I've got to trim out all the little resin bits and pieces to fill 'er up. BTW, I was curious and did some surfing ... seems that variations of steel shelving units go back to the 1930s or earlier. This one may be a bit more modern, but think I'll fill it up and see how it looks ... might make some interesting contrast to wood shelves and such planned for the interior.
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Country: USA
| Posts: 3137 |
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