Auto paint over Bachmann paint?

[on30gn15]

Hey Y"all;

After getting that V&T "Silverado" set, I want to get the PRR "Pennsylvanian" set in a couple months.
Have a book where it looks like some old  timer steamers were in the Brunswick Green on most parts but boiler jacketing was bare metal.

What I want to do is paint over boiler with some gunmetal tone metallic color automobile spray paint.
Will that work or badly react with Bachmann's paint?

Am certain regular model paint spray enamels will work, but color and tone I want doesn't seem to be made.

later,
Forrest

[on30gn15]

Baaaah, now I can't find it.
Earlier today was searching through Google hits for Bachmann Big Hauler and found a page where it was said that Bachmann paint seem to be coated with some kind of waxy finish that spray enamel just beads up on.
Maybe it was in here somewhere http://www.girr.org/girr/index.html or maybe not.
That would be an issue!

[altterrain]

I have never heard of that and have used ordinary rattle can spray paints on Big Hauler cars and locos without a problem.

-Brian

[Kevin Strong]

Don't use automotive paint. If you're after the look of a plannished  iron (aka Russia Iron, American Iron) boiler jacket, go to your hobby shop and get a can of Testors' "Model Master Buffable Gunmetal" paint. This paint is used to give models--especially jets--the look of unpainted metal. The Gunmetal shade looks as close to a plannished iron boiler jacket as can reasonably be accomplished with paint.



It gives a very reflective surface, which will pick up the blue of the sky like the prototype.



On the Heisler, I sprayed the paint directly over the Bachmann black paint. The 4-4-0, I primed the boiler with Krylon grey primer prior to painting it. I noticed no difference between the way the two applications performed.

To get the metal effect, you spray the paint on the model, let it dry, then buff it with a cotton buffing wheel in a Dremel tool to shine it up. Model Masters sells a "sealer" coat to put over the finish once it's buffed, but I've never used it.


BTW, I found Badger Accuflex "Seaboard Airline Pullman Green" to be a good shade of dark green for locomotives. I found most commercial versions of Brunswick Green to be virtually indistinguishable from black when put on a model.

Later,

K

[on30gn15]

Hey Yall;

Thanks guys.
A reason for not knowing about the Testors paint is that our brand new, opened first week of March, hobby shop, River Eagle Hobbies, ( a reference to Missori Pacific trains as we leiv along ex-MoPac, now UP, tracks along Missouri River and MoPac had passenger trains named Eagle such and such ) here in our itty bitty burg of population 8700 +/- doens't have Model Master paints yet; and that paint rack with paint is something like $400 plus wholesale, so he's building up stock as he goes. But there's at least 3 auto supply stores in town with all manner of sprays and I use the Duplicolor primers and colors on my model rockets so am familiar with them. And it's something like a 70 mile round trip to Columbia for a $4 can of spray paint at Hobby Town USA where I guess they might have it.

Come to think of it, Mike might to be able to order just a can or two?

Okay, the term "buffable" that does mean it would have to be polished and then sealed somehow

[glennk28]

A color I could recommend--if you want a rattle-can--is Ford "Dark Smoke Gray Metallic"--this is on my 2008 Ranger pickup and looks lime a gunmetal color.  gj

[mudzuks]

try that brunswick green over a white primer coat and it will look nice, base primer makes a big difference.

[Kevin Strong]

Try buying it online if your local shop can't get a few cans for you.

Yes, you do have to buff it. That's where the cotton wheel in the Dremel comes in. I do not seal it, though Testors does sell a sealer for it.

Later,

K

[on30gn15]

Ah, points noted.

I have an airbrush and use PollyScale's acrylics on the HO and On30 trains. For the occasional PRR paint job use Brunswick Green with a dose of CNW Green. Have read in books that PRR's actual Brunswick Green painted steam locos might as well have been black as far as photographers could tell.

The green parts other than boiler will stay way they are out of Bachmann's factory, it's just boiler jacketing color to change.

I just don't want to mess with airbrushing something this big - hit it with rattle can and be done is the line of thought.
Will take 5 times longer to dismantle and mask than to paint either way, though 

Okay, now see in Kevin's May 13 post answer to buffing question asked on 14th.
Don't mind me, I'll catch on in a week or two