best paint match for Bachmann smoke box front

[NevinW]

I'm changing the smoke stack on my Bachmann 4-6-0 and I've discovered that my bottle of Floquil Graphite paint is too dark the match their paint.  Any suggestions as to which paint matches the Bachmann 4-6-0 graphite paint on their smoke boxes?  Thanks. 

[West Bound]

In the past have mixed black and silver to match smoke boxes. You have to experiment with the proportions to get the right shade. Let the paint dry before deciding on the the final mix.

[jonathan]

Nevin,

It has been my practice to repaint the entire smokebox area, whenever I make changes to that part of the locomotive.  Probably not your first choice I'm sure.

I use Neolube, which is, afterall, graphite in an alcohol solution.  The color is extremely close to the model's original color, perhaps a half shade darker.  I apply it with a small brush, two coats.  Then buff it with a Qtip.  Since, you are replacing the stack, I would paint it black, before applying the Neolube.

Since I have recently become more brave, when it comes to weathering, I haven't been too concerned about how close the color matches.

Anyway, that's what I do.  Others will probably have a better solution.

Regards,

Jonathan

[Doneldon]

Nevin-

I'm with Jonathan on this one. Don't worry about losing the family look if the color of one locomotive's smoke box is a slightly
different color. That's not unusual in the prototype, in the first place, and it's unlikely to be noticed in the second place. While a
smoke box door which is a little different color that the rest of the smokebox might be noticable, the same isn't true for slightly
different colors which aren't right next to one another. Throw in a bit of weathering and there's no longer a difference to detect.

                                                                                                                                -- D

[Desertdweller]

It should not make a difference as long as the whole area is roughly the same color.  The silver color on steam locomotive smokeboxes, front covers, and smokestacks is not paint.  Paint would have a hard time not burning off unless the whole area was insulated ("lagged") and covered with metal sheeting.  Sometimes, this was done on later locomotives.

The silver color you see so often on steam locomotives is actually a mixture of graphite and oil.  This stuff itself would be in varying shades of silver.  It would be applied when the locomotive is serviced in the shop.

Since that is what it is, it is going to change color as the locomotive is used.  A locomotive may emerge from a roundhouse in the morning with a bright silver smokebox, and have it turn grungy by the end of the day.  Oil being what it is, it will be streaked with soot.

The purpose of the silver oil and graphite coating is to prevent the iron from rusting.
Bare iron, especially when periodically subjected to high temperatures, rusts quickly.
Look at the exhaust manifold on your car's engine as an example.

Look at some color pictures of steam locomotives in service.  The only ones with a uniform silver color will be ones fresh from the shop.  Restored display locomotives look like that too, but only because they are not used (or because they really are painted silver and never used).

Les