Now you know why the prototype paints the steel body first

Then adds the wood deck.....

But if you can't pry the deck off carefully, I'd suggest bending a wire hanger (wire? What's that?....). Stick the ends in the truck screw holes.  Clamp the hanger in a vise.  Hold a metal straight edge firm against the top of the stake pockets.  Spray with an air brush or spray can.  Have fun....

Nice job weathering the "wood" deck, BTW.

Scott Chatfield

"how to best paint this Tichy

  Masking tape?  I'd probably tape off the deck  then airbrush the body. But if I was in the mood I might just hand paint the body with a brush then weather the whole thing .....DaveB

Kabuki Tape

i’d recommend masking at least the deck edges with kabuki tape- Tamiya’s yellow tape is the most common brand and is usually available at most local hobby shops and Hobby Lobby. There are other brands that work just as well.  It will conform to most details and seals well.  I use the kabuki tape along the edges of the area to be painted and then use a less expensive masking tape to mask off the larger areas between the kabuki tape.  In your case I would mask the vertical edges (deck board end)s  with kabuki tape and fold it onto the deck top then use blue painters tape to mask the deck, overlapping it on the kabuki tape. (Writing it out sounds more complicated thean it is.)

Lou in Idaho

Kabuki tape

thanks Lou, i’ll have to try that

David

Wire “jig”

Scott, thanks, I had forgotten the use of wire to hold a flat car. This worked slick. 

I still have coat hangers around from when I had to dry clean clothes.

FYI, Tichy’s flat cars are a single molding of sides and deck to which one adds details to make a highly detailed flat car kit - a bit of old school.

David 

If you didn't want the sticky

If you didn't want the sticky from tape on the deck, you might try cutting a piece of card stock to cover the deck. The use of wire in the truck mounting holes is a good idea. 

Here's what I use, a piece of aluminum angle stock cut & drilled on one end to screw to the truck bolster.

I think the greatest benefit of this holder is for putting decals or working on the end of a car. Mount the car on the holder at a 90 degree angle. Clamp the holder in the bench vise and now you can work on the end of the car with out having to worry about the other end getting damaged.

I like the wire idea so I did some checking.  On a 2-56 screw, I think a pretty common size for truck mounting, the tap drill for this screw is a #50 drill = .070"  The screw itself = 0.82"    So after tapping & inserting a screw, the hole size is going to be between the .070" & .082"    The last coat hangers that I bought at Fred Meyers for another project,  measured .085" (bare wire). Way big for a 2-56 hole. I do have some bailing wire, it measured .075"  A very good snug fit with out having to force it. I did have some other wire not sure were I got it, & it measured .061",  kind of a sloppy fit, so I'll probably go with the bailing wire, you just have to dress up the end after cutting, because it is such a snug fit.  Another tool in the model making arsenal.....Nice!  

LHS

I’m not sure if you have a hobby shop in Red Bluff, but Redding RC & Hobby should have it.

Lou in Idaho (originally from Woodland)

Painting Tichy Flat cars

Having painted over a dozen of these for myself here is how I do it. Mask off the deck then seal the mask with a clear coat. It is frustrating to discover a leak has resulted in coloring your deck when you peal back the tape after you think you are done.

I have a jig to hold my models when painting. It is very basic, comprises of two wires (I used copper ground wire) mounted in a block of wood. To make this jig universal each wire has two 90 degree bends. The first bend is where the wire comes out of the block of wood and the second about an inch further up.You want 2 vertical post that rotate around the holes drilled in the block of wood. Set the car on the wire by putting the ends of the two wires in the truck mounting screw holes. You may have to file the wire to get it to fit.

When the body has dried remove the flat from the jig, lay it upside down, then paint the underside. Once the underside is dry put it back on the jig and paint/seal with a high gloss varnish  to prepare for decals.

For sealing I use blue painters tape. It seals well (still use a clear seal before painting) and removes easily without leaving residue or removing the finish on the deck.

Tichy directions

The Tichy flat car kit directions direct a modeler to paint the deck, then masking it off and painting the car color. After it is dry, apply the decals then a flat finish. At this point the model can be weathered using your favorite media.

I did the opposite of the Tichy directions with a car a few years ago. I sprayed the car color first then brush painted the deck. Weathering steps were outlined in this 2015 blog post.

Eric

"I did the opposite of the

That certainly sounds like the logical sequence to me.   Thinking about the prototype I doubt that they would worry about getting paint on the deck so would probably just spray the car sides when repainting and let a bit of overspray get on the wood, so proto models have something else to consider:> ) .....DaveB 

Tape choices

I’ve had great results using plain old blue painter’s tape - with one added step. Using a small smooth tool - a stiff piece of plastic rod sanded to a spherical point, for example - firmly rub the edge of the tape “into” the surface to be masked.  Then paint promptly and remove the tape as soon as the new paint dries. I’ve done this many times, most recently on two creosote tank cars - with perfectly acceptable results. See photos at my blog post: Impatient? Do it yourself!

Matt

Painted Tichy Flat

Thanks all for your suggestions, I ultimately used a coat hanger wire jig in the truck mounting holes and blue tape to mask off the deck.

David