Model Railroader mag -- observations and quesions

nice car
Keith wrote:
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Keith wrote:
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Yes, extensive, heavy weathering is perhaps the one way to eliminate that plastic shine.

mark_newton wrote:
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Yes but I'm comparing kits with pre-painted sides - Central Valley, Silver Streak and Ulrich vs. Accurail, Walthers, Athearn, et al. I don't want to have to redo all of the lettering afterwards. The pre-painted wood sides of the former kits always look flatter than the latter kits, which was my original point.

Rick Jones wrote: [...] No matter how much Dullcote or flat finish I spray on
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The trick is a light overspray of grey or brown primer, just barely enough to cover, and then apply flat acrylic (waterbased) paints. When mixing paint shades, stir just enough so that the paint is about 90% the same throughout - you want those subtle variations that exist in real life. They look even better applied with a brush IMO. A brush automatically introduces subtle variations in colour that wood cars develop almost as soon as they're painted. Spray paint in these applications is too uniform for my taste. Oh, and wash the plastic first - that mold release agent interferes with proper paint adhesion, especially water based paint.
I overspray wood kits with a very light flat finish, and often do not oversrpay at all. A heavy coat of even flat finish actually introduces a sheen. I rarely use Dullcote - it just doesn't do what it's name says. (Actually, I find its best use is to kill the glare on glossy photos.) The flat finishes made for artist's use are better (and not more expensive -- they just come in bigger cans than Dullcote.) It's trickier to decal on flat paint, but it can be done, with careful cutting out of the deacls, and repeated use of decal-setting agents (which must be wipded clean after they dry, every time - don't put fresh decal set over existing muck). Dry transfers are a snap, and preferable if you can get them.
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Granted. Great kits. Now, if they could afford to upgrade the whole line to laser cut parts...
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Wolf Kirchmeir wrote:
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Wolf, What brand did you use? I tried a spray can of flat clear finish once and it made the decals crinkle. So I went back to DullCote.
It's
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Like you, I have good luck decaling on flat finishes. As you say, trim it close, use SolvaSet, use great care in handling the wet decal, work any air bubbles out, wait for it to get good and dry. Then a shot of Dullcote to make the decal blend in.
David Starr

David J. Starr wrote:
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Grumbacher IIRC.

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Walthers DDV works fine. Get some artists matte medium at an art supply store and thin it with Liquitex brand Air Brush Medium. If they don't have Liquitex, Golden will work OK. Go to a shop that specializes in aircraft and military models and get some Tamiya flat overspray, Humbrol, Gunze-Sangyo, and others all make products that are superior to Dullcote. Krylon has a line of artists coatings that work well also. there is a UV resistant clear, a satin, and a matte finish as well.
You cannot find everything you need to build model trains at a train store. Even the best train stores in the country do not have everything you need to get great results. Learn to think "Outside the box." I have to remind myself to do this all the time as I am prone to staying inside the box if I don't watch out. Cheers, Froggy,

On Thu, 27 Oct 2005 09:42:12 -0400, Wolf Kirchmeir wrote:
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Given the mediocre quality and (relative to the quality) high pricing of MR's .PDF downloads, it could be a long slow decline.

Wolf Kirchmeir wrote:
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One of the best posts on the subject I've read that covers all but one important point.
Seems the name "Model Railroader" is on a mag that should be called "Railroad Modeler"
Most people are "Railroad Modelers" involved in greater degrees with the art of modeling the railroad by creating dioramas with trains that move through them.
Fewer people connected in the "hobby of models and railroading" are "model railroaders".

First, I must admit that I seldom even flip through MR anymore so maybe I'm way out of touch. The few times someone brings one to the club I've seldom seen much on operations. Maybe i just miss those issues and am speaking out of my butt.
If MR was really about "model railroading", operations would make up a "majority" of articles. If not, then it's safe to say that they cater more to railroad modelers.
Yes, I agree many do both, but from what I have experienced, most ( not all ) of the people that are new to the hobby, say less than 3 to 5 years, are usually building a diorama with trains passing through. Operators are usually ones that have been in the hobby for years and have learned to appreciate "railroading". While many older model railroaders do read MR, i would bet that most do not and only pick one up when someone tells them of a specific article that they might be interested in.
To sum it up, most of the more serious, or more intense model railroaders "that I know", seldom even speak of MR anymore. MR needs the widest possible readership and it seems it's mostly to newer modelers.
While the newer editions of the past few years have really great pictures and is more "fancy" in it's publication, I tend to go through our collection and read articles back from the 60's on up.

Hey Jim, If you think Model Railroader has changed wait till you run across an old girl friend that was the hottest thing on legs 30 years ago. Makes MR look pretty sweet. Bruce
"Jim McLaughlin" <jim.mclaughlin> wrote in message
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