Hi all,

I thought it was about time to contribute something here besides trite jokes and weird questions!

I once picked up extra money by working for a couple train shops as a custom painter, and model builder. I wasn't the greatest out there by any means, but I did come up with a few tricks that maybe some of you will find useful.

This first one is VERY simple, and often overlooked. It's also a way for me to test out my new photobucket account![:I]

Often, and on more models than you think, there will be a representation of a detail that isn't as visible as it could be, simply because the part is not the color it would be on the prototype. The reason for a lot of manufacturers doing this is easy to figure out - It would be too labor-intensive and costly to do. But, a few minutes spent with a small paintbrush, and a little/lot of patience, you can take a model to "the next level", using only a little paint applied in the proper places.

The model below is my BR 86. It is my first digital Märklin locomotive, and it is one of the ubiquitous versions of the BR 86 found in Märklin's digital starter sets. I did the painting long before I found this forum, so the thought of taking "before and after" photos had not occurred to me. However, a photo of the starter set BR 86 shouldn't be too hard to find for comparison!



The photo below is based on a photo of a BR 86 I found online, but I can't remember the site. All I know is that it was some kind of museum, and I really liked the way the front was painted:



The only tricky part of this, and it's not so tricky with a little practice, is painting the side rods and valve gear. Let a decent amount of paint remain on the brush, and run it over the part you are painting, and don't worry about it going on the surface of the rod at all. The only thing to be cautious of is to not let paint get in a pivot point, or joint (HINT: a TINY drop of oil on all these points prevents this from happening, as the paint is water-based). As soon as the paint has filled in the depression in the rod, take a bit of tissue that is pulled tightly enough over your finger tip that it will not dip into the depression, but simply remove the excess paint on the surface. A close-up of the running gear:



3/4 view from the rear:



This paint is what I used, undiluted, and brushed on the model in all cases. It is so close to a perfect match to the Märklin red that I didn't even try to adjust the color. You can see the "part number" in the photo, and the paint is called "Signal Red":



I hope my first attempt at image-posting works. Also, let me know how photo quality turns out on your end - too dark, too light, dithered, etc.. I use a Mac, with a nice LCD screen, and I know that Windows-based monitors are calibrated differently. The photos look just fine on my monitor, but may not on yours, so I want to learn how to strike a happy medium.

P.S., Yes, the paint is water-based.

Thanks Kimball! After I get used to holding an airbrush in my hand again (it's been awhile), weathering comes next!!

Don Taylor

Thanks for posting the "before" photo Svein!

I forgot to mention earlier, but everything that was red originally, I did NOT repaint! Especially, I didn't paint any of the wheels/drivers, I only painted the ends of the axles. Yes, that's just how well that paint matched the original!

Don Taylor

Nice job Don!

Hi Don,

It looks great!

But... it can look even better (more realistic) when you paint the electricity boxes yellow. See this thread https://www.marklin-users.net/fo...ult.aspx?g=posts&t=10272 on how I did that to my BR 64.

Cheers, René

Very good, Don.

Thanks for posting the pictures.

Hi there! I've got a small obstacle: i'm not going to find this paint brand arround here. Is there any other solution with Umbroll or something similar?

I'm glad you found this, I have no source of Humbrol in my area that I am aware of.

Don

Thanks for starting this thread and sharing your work. I need to do some touch up work on a couple of locomotives and now finding a good colour match will be easy. I may even look for prototype pictures to do extra details.

Yep! that's the work that matters in here!
Nice job Don!