Large Scale Central

Needed!! Help from the pros!!

Modeling
#1

I have created a problem with an AMS Combine that I hope someone can help with. While applying custom decals I spray painted some Rusto-oleum Clear Matte as instructed to seal the decals. The problem is I didn’t mask correctly and created a line on the body of the coach…to ad insult to injury I don’t believe I mixed the paint enough because of the whitish hue left where sprayed.

I’ve followed a few suggestions to gently sand with 320 - 800 grit wet/dry sandpaper the line created between the masked area and spray painted area. I’ve done this but the line is still somewhat visible and I’ve sanded away a little spot of the original green color on the car.

I feel I need to cut my losses and just repaint this particular side of the car but am not sure what paint or color to look for. The Combine is an AMS Unlettered in the Denver Rio Grande green color…very hard to find…darker than the CS car.

Any help is greatly appreciated. My other two coaches have turned out just fine because of a better masking job and better paint mix.

Thanks,

Richard

#2

Painting techniques vary a lot between modelers.

You may get several suggestions on how to “cure” your problem.

This has worked well for me, but does not 100% cure the problem. Next time only mask to break lines or body seams where the edge will be less noticeable.

My suggestion would be to get the closest match you can find for the green

even using the correct color can produce a different color depending on how wet it is applied.

mask as closely as possible to the bare spot and apply 1 or 2 light coats of color.two light coats will leave less of an edge where the paint was applied/ masked.Overcoat with matte clear if the surrounding paint was clear coated. Let it dry at least overnight preferrably,two days before working further.

Get some fine grit POLISHING compound from your local auto parts store - – the kind used to polish clearcoat, the sales clerk will help you get the right stuff. this will eliminate the edge left from the matte clear.Rub in a circular pattern with only light finger pressure. Take your time and watch closely as you proceed so you don’t take off too much.

Do a scrap piece first to get familiar with the process and see how well it works for you.

If it doesn’t work on the scrap piece , it wont work on the model either.

This is a difficult process even for skilled painters , so don’t be discouraged if it isnt right the first time you try. You have lots of scrap, get it right before you do the model.

Bill

#3

Richard,

I recently finished an RPO car and found that Floquil Pullman green is an exact match for the D&RGW green…Getting very hard to find

I also experience the white color after spraying clear matte finish … lucky for me it was the roof. I found out that you can not spray in high humidity, turns white.

Good luck

Richard S.

#4

Instead of sand paper use #0000 steel wool and light pressure.

#5

Thanks for the suggestions…with my limited painting abilities my first choice is to repaint the entire side of the car. And after some research Richard I found too that the Floquil Pullman Green is really good. I had a hard time finding it anywhere while internet hunting. So if anyone sells it I would appreciate knowing.

Thanks,

Richard

#6

I’ve not found Floquil’s sprays in stock in any quantity at Caboose Hobbies for quite some time (certainly not the “popular” colors), so I think folks have been stocking up. You can try taking the car to your local Home Depot or Lowes and having them computer-match the color. Depending on the store, they may be able to send you home with a “sample” jar (5 - 8 ounces, I think) for a few bucks. That’ll be more than you’ll need to paint the side of the car (and cheaper than a can of Floquil!)

I’ve found you can usually cut that paint about 50:50 with water and have it still cover well if you’re worried about brush strokes or nasty things like that. You may find–depending on the paint–that if you paint it with a fine enough brush, the brush strokes will lay down flat without any kind of thinning.

You have my sympathies on the whitish hue. I’ve had that happen numerous times to me when overspraying decals. (Reason #257 why I hate decals.) In my case, it just fogged the decal paper, so my “solution” was to go in with a fine brush and paint over the now-white decal paper. (Ugh!) Then, I brushed over with clear acrylic wash (Future-brand floor wax) to seal everything in. Fortunately, this was a model of a wood passenger car, so there was already a grain present, and lots of shadow lines on the letterboard and siding that hid any siight unevenness between glossed and not-quite-as-glossed surfaces. A light weathering blended everything in nicely.

Good luck!

Later,

K

#7

I have a really old (from the 50’s-which ain’t old for me) but they discuss this whiteness underneath clear decal areas. They claim, with a nice side view drawing, that this is air trapped in an irregular surface that is so small you can’t see it. Their recommendation is to use a decal softener. It “conforms” to the surface so there are no voids. I have had some whiteness on what I thought was a smooth surface, and this solution helped somewhat. I probably could have done better if I had more patience.

As our decal guru Stan Cedarleaf points out, decals do not like to adhere to a dull surface. So he recommends a gloss finish to decal on, followed by the final flat finish.

Important: I originally quoted a wrong product. I took the name out, but if you were going to buy it, DON’T!

#8

Update on the repainting process…

I took Kevin’s advice and had a coach color matched at Home Depot. I made sure to use egg shell and am very pleased with the results so far. I got better results by not thinning it.

So thanks for the advice!!

Richard