Hi all, with all the track laying that seems to be going on around here at the moment I thought it might be an idea to photo some of my recent testing with 4 different products
(http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c171/polo2k/Models/rail%20painting/DSCF1470.jpg)
The top piece is code 55 with no painting but cleaned with a fibre tipped pencil (as were all the rails)
Then the next has the left done with neat acrylic paint out of the tube, and the right half is humbrol 118 neat out of the tin
Then a brown "Promarker" felt tip from hobby craft (also good for touching in corners on card buildings)
Then the newest product, an alcohol based dye. as its the newest im not sure ive got the technique right yet.
All products were applied with either a fine brush, or with the included nib for the marker)
Here they are again in the same order:
(http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c171/polo2k/Models/rail%20painting/DSCF1472.jpg)
(http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c171/polo2k/Models/rail%20painting/DSCF1474.jpg)
Acrylic paint
Brand: Windsor and Newton(from hobbycraft) (Galeria range - Raw umber)
Comments: Good coverage straight from the tube and easy cleanup
Time, takes a little care to ensure even application but can also be roughly drybrushed on if you want to weather the sleepers too
Enamel paint
Brand: Humbrol (Number 118)
Comments: If anything this would benefit from a slight thinning, but I used it neat. Some stinky fumes but not overpowering. Easy Water cleanup
Time: As with the acrylic, time taken will be rewarded with the results and drybrushing is also an option
Felt tip
Brand: Promarker (from hobbycraft) (Burnt Sienna)
Comments: easy to use, zero cleanup colour is quite orange, this may be cure-able with another colour, multiple layers are not possible as the first is wiped off by the nib
Time: how fast can you draw a line with a felt tip?
Alcohol Dye
Brand: Joes model trains - USA (purchased from Westons Model railways in swindon)
Comments: I fount the coverage to be minimal, however I want to experiment more with this stuff as I have had great effects on wagons. Easy water cleanup. The effect is more noticeable from higher viewing angles due to it settling at the base of the rail web (its possible that a lot of the dye went into the sleepers as im using code 55 where the rail is embedded in the sleeper)
Time: similar to the other paint brush applied options
I think that nothing screams more loudly than unpainted track on an N-gauge layout, because it is so shiny. Code 55 was just starting to appear as my layout code 80 track work was nearing completion, so maybe it is more forgiving. My strategy was to paint the tops of the sleepers with track colour (now Humbrol 173) and have a supply of this track to lay. I'd bend it to shape and cut it to length, then paint the sides of the rails and the chairs with rust colour (now Humbrol 113). I then ensured the surfaces required for electrical contact with the locos were perfectly clean and left it to dry.
The results look fabulous....however, the track won't bend easily or evenly after having the rails painted and any movement of the rail relative to the chairs exposes unpainted rail, so it only works when the shape is right before painting. Once the paint is dry, I lay the track, wire it up (I solder a feed wire to every fishplate so there's no voltage drop anywhere on the circuit) and ensure it is perfect before ballasting.
It might seem like a lot of trouble to go to, but I painted at least 4 scale miles of track this way and became such a dab hand at it that I could complete a metre length (167 scale yards) in about 20 minutes. It was still many hours in total but I have never regretted it! :camera: to follow :)