https://northcountrytrains.wordpress.com/2020/02/10/weathering-with-character-part-1/
One of my relatives recently purchased several freight cars for a couple bucks a piece, and gave them to me. Some of these cars were tuned up and put on the layout, and some were set aside for repairs and weathering practice. The first car in line is a Ontario Northland 40-ft boxcar. I am unsure of the manufacturer.
STEP 1: PROTOTYPE RESEARCH
As with any prototype project, I turned to rrpicturearchives.net, which features extensive photographic rosters. I could not find the exact road number of my car, but I found two other cars in the same paint scheme. This is what the car would have generally looked like in 1966, about ten years before my layout’s era:
http://www.rrpicturearchives.net/showPicture.aspx?id=4643601
It looks like it’s about brand new, not much weathering to be done.
The other car was photographed in 2012, being used as a tool car:
http://www.rrpicturearchives.net/showPicture.aspx?id=3121899
End view
http://www.rrpicturearchives.net/showPicture.aspx?id=3121900
This one shows some more wear and tear! I decided to go with the tool car to practice my extreme weathering skills.
STEP 2: GATHERING SUPPLIES
I started by gathering the subject of the project, several natural colors of paint, some chalks, and tools.
https://drive.google.com/file/d/1DruWEl0IDuXqwn2h6tuXzxg4phNyJvMF/preview?
STEP 3: TRUCKS AND COUPLERS
I like to get these out of the way before I start on the carbody. I started by removing the trucks from the rest of the car, then removing the wheelsets from the sideframe pieces.
https://drive.google.com/file/d/1ne5fQotW-o3h016v0QgIrcJlerOCuuQo/preview?
I depending on how much rust I want on the trucks, I either apply a brown wash, or drybrush rust highlights, as seen in the photo. I think I might have done a little too much.
https://drive.google.com/file/d/1lzGScg6528FzBmZmrjMpLHbmTJ6v3VdA/preview?
For the wheelsets, I paint the insides with rust colored paint.
STEP 4: THE CARBODY
Next, I turned my attention to the carbody. As seen in the prototype photo, the paint on the door has worn off on parts revealing boxcar red underneath. I modeled this by painting some brown on the doors. Perhaps I should have made it a little darker?
https://drive.google.com/file/d/1lzGScg6528FzBmZmrjMpLHbmTJ6v3VdA/preview?
To bring out the rivet detail and add some general dirt and grime, I spread dark brown chalk over the side of the car. The left half has the chalk applied and the right half doesn’t.
https://drive.google.com/file/d/1hmi7nUgTBgzFARX2G69MiKGMchL82LMA/preview?
At this point my hands got so dirty I didn’t want to touch the camera, but between the previous photo and this one I used white chalk to fade the lettering, brown paint to add rust to the logo, a white colored-pencil to write “TOOL CAR”, and a flathead screwdriver to scrape the lettering off the road number, as on the prototype.
https://drive.google.com/file/d/1g48vUOyKvYnlTpAMv6wSogba8Kur_73R/preview?
STEP 5: PHOTO TIME!
Next it was down to the layout to take some photos!
https://drive.google.com/file/d/16wbu-bMsEKvgaUc-SsieFYb94O5XMUYP/preview?
I think it looks pretty good for considering it’s detail level and the fact that I’m basically brand new to weathering.
https://drive.google.com/file/d/1NlplbkAqw7eEr3G2kr7GzymmXv__xfTx/preview?
Look for part two, which will cover the roof and sides, as well as some mechanical upgrades.
Harrison
Homeschooler living In upstate NY a.k.a Northern NY.
Modeling the D&H in 1978.
Route of the famous "Montreal Limited"
