When to paint

[Gary BrookeParticipant @garybrooke63895]

Hi all
I would value opinions of when to paint a model steam locomotive. Option 1 make parts and paint with the risk of damage as the build progress. Option 2 finish all construction and then paint. But would that mean leaving tolarances for paint
Also where to research coulors and where to paint and what not to paint as most plans give most off the information to build but dont mention finishes
Regards
Gary

[Gary BrookeParticipant @garybrooke63895]

[John BaguleyParticipant @johnbaguley78655]

Hi Gary,

 

On my last loco I finished it and steamed it for a year before painting as a lot of it was my own ideas and I wanted to prove the design and iron out any bugs before painting. It was a nightmare of a job and I vowed never to do it that way again The whole loco had to be stripped down completely, cleaned thoroughly and then rebuilt, painting as I went. You don’t realise how many parts there are until you take it all to bits again!

 

On my next job, I’m painting the chassis and it’s components as I go so I can steam it without having to worry about the dreaded rust attacking it or having to dismantle it again. I will no doubt have to do a bit of touching up on the chassis but it won’t be too obvious, unlike having to touch up paint on the ‘top’ I won’t paint the boiler and superstructure though until it’s been steamed a few times. It’s not so bad taking the boiler etc. off again and then painting that as you are looking at fair sized chunks.

 

As regards colours etc, if you are building a full sized replica then there are usually books that will tell you the relevant liveries, or there’s often plenty of photos on the net. If there is a full size version still in existence, you can always pay a visit with your camera.

 

John

Edited By John Baguley on 16/07/2011 13:48:18

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