I have a very small layout (1x6) and about three years ago I decided to hand paint the rails and ties using craft acrylic paints. It took some time, but I think it was worth it. Interestingly, like you I chose nutmeg brown as the primary color in my mix for rusty rail. I did prime the track with a dark brownish primer from a spray can to improve the craft paint's adhesion as the small size of the layout allowed me to carry it to our garage. It has held up well and I think it still looks good. Cheers from Wisconsin!
Thank you, Andrew, for your comments, they ARE appreciated. Yeah, it is tedious but well-worth the efforts in my opinion. Yeah the spray method you use does just that, but prefer to two or three coats of the bottled paints to get what I want it to look like. Again Thanks.... take care, stay safe and keep playing with trains. Happy New Year.
My absolute pleasure to share .... my MAIN motto is: "Information is of NO value unless shared with others." Go for the gold, Kyle. Happy Holidays to you and yours.....
And thank YOU for watching and commenting.... it It IS tedious and time-consuming (but only half the amount of time in N-scale vs. HO)..... but OOOoooooohhhh so satisfying when done. Thanks again and Happy New Year !!!!!!
I use a drop or two of acrylic floor polish added to my paint, it helps the paint to lay, stick and flow better. Use to get Pledge but that's gone now, the new is Quick Shine, in stores
What you're doing looks great, I like the colors. I use those acrylics also and they have their drawbacks, but you can't beat the price. The floor polish I mentioned just kinda helps the things they lack. I learned this from the model car guys, let me know, thanks @@railartist001
Thank you so very muchly ..... you can see what I will be painting (off and on) this weekend. And now that I am back into the train room more, the "To-Do" list is getting longer and longer and looooonger.....
Thanks, Collin ..... I usually have my own way of doing things.... except for my cooking. Always by the book .... BUT I wrote the cook book, BOTH PAGES!!!!!! Happy Holidaze to you and yours. Stay safe.
THANK YOU, GILES !!!!!!! Getting back into the scheme of things feels soooooo goodly. Just wanna share what I do and how I do it. The hobby has given ME a lot, I just wanna return the favor. Blessings and Mery Christmas to you and yours.....
G'day RailArtist! Nice job. I have a permanent lung condition that doesn't like too much dust and fumes. I generally use welding filter's when sanding or use a.spray can these days. But yes we gotta consider the others in the home. Take care and thanks for sharing.
@OTRWA Thanks for viewing & commenting... so very sorry to hear of your condition and limitations. But knowing the Aussie spirit, I am sure that you are doing the best you can with what you got. Take care, stay safe, Happy New Year !!!
Thanks, Glenn. I am NEVER in any kind of a hurry for anything..... One reason being I am retired, the other is that I am 74 years young..... livin' the life and lovin' it....
Thanks for your comments, Kind Sir .... it IS a tedious procedure, but them so am I tedious (according to my wife, anyway)... take care, stay safe and have a GREAT Holiday Season.
Thank you for your comments .... deeply appreciated. Remeber if'n ya gots 15 minutes free, go down (or out) to the train room and paint a foot of track or so.... works wonders for the psyche .... Take care, stay safe....
And thank YOU!!!!! It is my absolute pleasure to be bringing MY techniques into view.... I been doing the schtick since the early 1970's ..... should have learned SOMETHING by now.....
This way of painting track is great , agree don’t use rattle cans in the house, I might use the same paint in a air brush because I used cork under my track, great painting tips
James, thanks for the comments. It IS a tedious method when the yard is over 8 feet in length, but in the long run well worth the effort. AND Happy Holidays to your and yous !!!!
Mike great technique will keep this in mind, You must have code 100 track since it is black I use code 83 and mine track is brown planning to paint them when I am completed with some other projects
Yeah, Tom, I am definitely Olde Skool in practically everthing that I do ..... for the most part it's cheaper that way .... DC power, scratch build and/or kitbash whenever possible. Thaks for commenting, appreciate it.
As long as the top surface of the track is clean, you will get current to the locomotives. After a painting session I ALWAYS go over the tracake with a Bright Boy track eraser. Thanks for your comments.....
I've found I can get a base coat down in a fraction of the time - Rustoleum Camo Brown spray paint. Or if you have more time than me, hand paint with a brush.
Totally agree with you on that ....but then, I AM retired and all I gots is time... except when I am working on my book ... writing one not coloring in one......
Just so you know, you can purchase already painted flex track. The rail, which so far I found only in code 83 is actually nickel silver that has been heated and then quickly cooled. If you took metal shop and welding you will understand how this is done., the ties are painted some shade of brown and that some aren'[t exactly straight. The down side is that is costs twice as much as unpainted track. But if you just use this for yard and sidings and maybe secondary lines that don't see a lot of trains then the expense can become managable. After why do things the hard way.,
Totally agree with you Paul.... wait until you see my "technique" on ballasting rails.... been doing it this way since 1975, ain't gonna stop now..... Old Skool YES, but them so am I .....
Thanks for your comment.... appreciated. Two main reasons why I don't use one (other than never owning one) they produce an over-all uniform appearance, being an artist I know that there IS no uniformity in the outdoors. #2 is that my wife has moderate COPD, ain't taking no chances with that. But I DO thank you for your thoughts and comments.
Thanks for viewing and commenting, appreciate it. It DOES look better than spraying, I think. AND you can mix pigments to get JUST what you want. Tedius yes, time-consuming yes, satisfying Oh HECK YES. Have a great New Year !!!!!
I was looking for your email, I think I won your BN engine during Sparky's giveaway, If necessary, I will go thru Sparky to get it sent. I will chip in for shipping! THANKS! I will watch this when I get back from dinner!
On second thought .... e-mail me at railartist@yahoo.com with your address .... will acknowledge and send ASAP (with a bonus BN print for your inconvience) .... sorry for the delay...
I have a very small layout (1x6) and about three years ago I decided to hand paint the rails and ties using craft acrylic paints. It took some time, but I think it was worth it. Interestingly, like you I chose nutmeg brown as the primary color in my mix for rusty rail. I did prime the track with a dark brownish primer from a spray can to improve the craft paint's adhesion as the small size of the layout allowed me to carry it to our garage. It has held up well and I think it still looks good. Cheers from Wisconsin!
Thank you, Andrew, for your comments, they ARE appreciated. Yeah, it is tedious but well-worth the efforts in my opinion. Yeah the spray method you use does just that, but prefer to two or three coats of the bottled paints to get what I want it to look like. Again Thanks.... take care, stay safe and keep playing with trains. Happy New Year.
Glad I’m not the only one, I started doing that to some of my bachmann track and it actually looked pretty darn cool. Thanks for sharing!
My absolute pleasure to share .... my MAIN motto is: "Information is of NO value unless shared with others." Go for the gold, Kyle. Happy Holidays to you and yours.....
Mike, thanks for sharing your process!! I will save this video for when I get to painting.
And thank YOU for watching and commenting.... it It IS tedious and time-consuming (but only half the amount of time in N-scale vs. HO)..... but OOOoooooohhhh so satisfying when done. Thanks again and Happy New Year !!!!!!
I use a drop or two of acrylic floor polish added to my paint, it helps the paint to lay, stick and flow better. Use to get Pledge but that's gone now, the new is Quick Shine, in stores
Thanks. will give it a try in the very near future.
What you're doing looks great, I like the colors. I use those acrylics also and they have their drawbacks, but you can't beat the price. The floor polish I mentioned just kinda helps the things they lack. I learned this from the model car guys, let me know, thanks @@railartist001
Very nice and informative video. Have a great upcoming weekend.(Steve)
Thank you so very muchly ..... you can see what I will be painting (off and on) this weekend. And now that I am back into the train room more, the "To-Do" list is getting longer and longer and looooonger.....
There's a right way, a wrong way, and then there's Mike's way. Nice video!
Thanks, Collin ..... I usually have my own way of doing things.... except for my cooking. Always by the book .... BUT I wrote the cook book, BOTH PAGES!!!!!! Happy Holidaze to you and yours. Stay safe.
Works well, nice touch
Thanks Dave .... appreciate the comment.....
Great to see you doing what you do, Mike. Giles here from Crossroads OVR. Blessings and Merry Christmas!
THANK YOU, GILES !!!!!!! Getting back into the scheme of things feels soooooo goodly. Just wanna share what I do and how I do it. The hobby has given ME a lot, I just wanna return the favor. Blessings and Mery Christmas to you and yours.....
G'day RailArtist! Nice job. I have a permanent lung condition that doesn't like too much dust and fumes. I generally use welding filter's when sanding or use a.spray can these days. But yes we gotta consider the others in the home. Take care and thanks for sharing.
@OTRWA Thanks for viewing & commenting... so very sorry to hear of your condition and limitations. But knowing the Aussie spirit, I am sure that you are doing the best you can with what you got. Take care, stay safe, Happy New Year !!!
Nice job. Things always come out better when you are not in a hurry.
Thanks, Glenn. I am NEVER in any kind of a hurry for anything..... One reason being I am retired, the other is that I am 74 years young..... livin' the life and lovin' it....
Thanks for the tutorial on painting track and I hope that you and your family have a Merry Christmas.
Good lesson from a real artist
Thanks, Joe ..... appreciated comments from a Pro himself .....
I'm digging the technique. Looks great!🫵👍✌️
Thanks for your comments, Kind Sir .... it IS a tedious procedure, but them so am I tedious (according to my wife, anyway)... take care, stay safe and have a GREAT Holiday Season.
I am still debating painting the ties and rails. Might be able to get the wife to do it. lol Thanks for sharing your technique.
Thank you for your comments .... deeply appreciated. Remeber if'n ya gots 15 minutes free, go down (or out) to the train room and paint a foot of track or so.... works wonders for the psyche .... Take care, stay safe....
I thought it was Deep Run Mike, not Tom Sawyer, lol. I hope that you and your family have a Merry Christmas.
Railartistttttttttttt this is awesome how to do video i really like how your doing this thank you
And thank YOU!!!!! It is my absolute pleasure to be bringing MY techniques into view.... I been doing the schtick since the early 1970's ..... should have learned SOMETHING by now.....
Nice tutorial Mike.
I does my best with what I gots to offer..... Thanks, Grandpa
This way of painting track is great , agree don’t use rattle cans in the house, I might use the same paint in a air brush because I used cork under my track, great painting tips
James, thanks for the comments. It IS a tedious method when the yard is over 8 feet in length, but in the long run well worth the effort. AND Happy Holidays to your and yous !!!!
I think I will give it a try for sure
Mike great technique will keep this in mind, You must have code 100 track since it is black I use code 83 and mine track is brown planning to paint them when I am completed with some other projects
Yeah, Tom, I am definitely Olde Skool in practically everthing that I do ..... for the most part it's cheaper that way .... DC power, scratch build and/or kitbash whenever possible. Thaks for commenting, appreciate it.
Looks amazing! I will try this. Also can you paint over the tracks and still have electricity that reaches the locomotive?
As long as the top surface of the track is clean, you will get current to the locomotives. After a painting session I ALWAYS go over the tracake with a Bright Boy track eraser. Thanks for your comments.....
good vid nice work thanks lee
Well Thank YOU for watching and commenting... have a great day playin' trains....
By the way, you get the cookie for commenting first.... congratulations.
I've found I can get a base coat down in a fraction of the time - Rustoleum Camo Brown spray paint. Or if you have more time than me, hand paint with a brush.
Totally agree with you on that ....but then, I AM retired and all I gots is time... except when I am working on my book ... writing one not coloring in one......
@@railartist001 Yeah.... so many modelers have more time and it shows!
[thank, you for you're great helpful video]
[thank, you for you're helpful video]👍
Just so you know, you can purchase already painted flex track. The rail, which so far I found only in code 83 is actually nickel silver that has been heated and then quickly cooled. If you took metal shop and welding you will understand how this is done., the ties are painted some shade of brown and that some aren'[t exactly straight. The down side is that is costs twice as much as unpainted track. But if you just use this for yard and sidings and maybe secondary lines that don't see a lot of trains then the expense can become managable. After why do things the hard way.,
For some reason, I feel the old-school techniques or more realistic
Totally agree with you Paul.... wait until you see my "technique" on ballasting rails.... been doing it this way since 1975, ain't gonna stop now..... Old Skool YES, but them so am I .....
Why not use thin-line permanent marking pens instead?
because then it comes out essentially all one color. and besides I like using a brush. Thanks for commenting, appreciate it.
You need an air brush
Thanks for your comment.... appreciated. Two main reasons why I don't use one (other than never owning one) they produce an over-all uniform appearance, being an artist I know that there IS no uniformity in the outdoors. #2 is that my wife has moderate COPD, ain't taking no chances with that. But I DO thank you for your thoughts and comments.
I Just Did That To My Ho And My N Scale And They Look Sharp.
Thanks for viewing and commenting, appreciate it. It DOES look better than spraying, I think. AND you can mix pigments to get JUST what you want. Tedius yes, time-consuming yes, satisfying Oh HECK YES. Have a great New Year !!!!!
I was looking for your email, I think I won your BN engine during Sparky's giveaway, If necessary, I will go thru Sparky to get it sent. I will chip in for shipping! THANKS! I will watch this when I get back from dinner!
Him and I need to contact with each other for addreses to sed to .... it IS safe and sound here awaitng an address..... and confirmation
On second thought .... e-mail me at railartist@yahoo.com with your address .... will acknowledge and send ASAP (with a bonus BN print for your inconvience) .... sorry for the delay...
Hi