weathered gondala

spitfire

Active Member
Ralph's post about Kings Port Steel got me inspired to finish this gondola since KPS is a supplier on my layout.

Here's a view of it heading under the crane for unloading.
 

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spitfire

Active Member
A top view showing whatever you call those lumber supports (?). I've seen photos of this before and the lumber used is usually brand new, so that's what we have. I made nails with a fine tip marker at the ends of the boards although they don't really show up.

I got a lot of the rust for this paint job by letting an SOS pad sit in a jar of water for a couple of weeks. It produces a very bright orangey rust which looks like "new" rust. I like the slight texture it imparts.

Val
 

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spitfire

Active Member
Here's a closer view of one of the sides. i scratched off some of the lettering before weathering. In the background you can see another dirty old boxcar and behind that the Walthers Machine Shop kit.

This was a fun little project that only took an hour or so. (Gotta do something while the chat is down!)

Val
 

spitfire

Active Member
Finally a close-up on the lettering. I also lightly sanded with a very fine sandpaper called Crocus Cloth. It removes the paint from the rivets (which I figure would be the first to go) without leaving any abrasion marks.
 

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Ralph

Remember...it's for fun!
That's nicely done Val....chipping away at the lettering was a good touch. Thanks for the tip about Crocus Cloth. Seems to be the perfect tool for the job.
Ralph
 

spitfire

Active Member
Thanks Ed and Ralph. I should add that I also used an Xacto knife to scrape at the lettering. Another approach would be to lightly paint with the same colour as the car itself. I'm going to try that at some point too.

Val
 

Arlaghan

Member
Very realistic, Val!

I clicked on the little arrow that takes you straight to the recent post, so the first picture I saw was the last one you posted... I thought it was real! When I Scrolled up to see the rest of the thread I realized that it was not! WOW! :eek:
 

Russ Bellinis

Active Member
Originally posted by spitfire
A top view showing whatever you call those lumber supports (?). I've seen photos of this before and the lumber used is usually brand new, so that's what we have. I made nails with a fine tip marker at the ends of the boards although they don't really show up.

I got a lot of the rust for this paint job by letting an SOS pad sit in a jar of water for a couple of weeks. It produces a very bright orangey rust which looks like "new" rust. I like the slight texture it imparts.

Val

Beautiful work, Val. The wood is called bracing or shoring, and it is used to keep the load from shifting. It is always new wood, but usually the cheapest grade obtainable. When the car gets to the other end, and is unloaded, the wood shoring will be tossed. They use new wood because it is cheaper to have a stack of new lumber to cut to length than it is to pay good wages for someone to scrounge through scraps to find useful pieces of lumber.
 

spitfire

Active Member
Originally posted by Russ Bellinis
When the car gets to the other end, and is unloaded, the wood shoring will be tossed.

Thanks for the info Russ. This gives me a modelling idea - a stack of discarded lumber beside the overhead crane.

Alex - fooled ya huh? Cool! The goal of every modeller is to make things look as lifelike as possible.

Thanks for the kind comments guys.

Val
 

jmarksbery

Active Member
Really nice work Val, we need other modlers to give us tips on weathering like that. Great job. :thumb: :thumb: :thumb:
 

spitfire

Active Member
Thanks Tyson, Tom and Jim! I forgot to mention earlier that I also used the good old alcohol and india ink wash on the car as well.

Val
 

Matthyro

Will always be re-membered
Excellent work Val. It just looks soooo real. What did you make the rolls of steel out of?
 

jim currie

Active Member
nice job Val gons always seem to take the worst beating.
here is a pic befor and after of the method told you about in chat other night.just soak car in soapy water for several days and scrub with old tooth brush.
 

spitfire

Active Member
Looks like a great technique Jim. Will have to try it on my next weathering job. Thanks!

Robin, I am ashamed to say I bought them. They've been getting kind of weathered all by themselves sitting on my workbench for 6 months. Just used a Sharpie to "paint" the bands.

Val
 
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