As I mentioned in a recent thread, I finally have an airbrush to use. I found it was a bit difficult to figure out what paint to use and where to locate it. A big reason for that is the landscape for model railroad paint has changed and changed again quite a bit over the past several years. The days of floquil are long gone. Testors model master is apparently out of production as well. The options we have today appear to be Badger Modelflex and Vallejo. While we do have some information about paint recommendations on the forum, its scattered around, and most of it is out dated now with the change up in availability. My goal here is to make a comprehensive, up to date list of what works well for acrylic air brush paints for Frisco modelers. Someone wrote a nice guide a while back that includes a table to help match old floquil colors, however it includes the now defunct Testors Model Master. It is handy though. https://www.testors.com/-/media/Dig...hash=A55D20518FF90D67DC26273BABC0336CC1DD72E4 I think my main paint source will end up being Badger. They have a nice color chart on their website. http://www.badgerairbrush.com/library/Paint Chart Images/Railroad Colors.gif I recently received my first for vials of paint and managed to put together a couple test subjects. While its easy enough to pick out a basic black or white color, the "perfect" Frisco Orange/White is always difficult to pin down, and to an extent, the gold color used on the B/Y diesels is as well. I'm going to create separate replies to address both of these schemes.
Lets start with what I see most often discussed: what to use for the red/orange color for diesels wearing the O/W scheme. A common recommendation is SP daylight red. Badger does offer this color in their modelflex line and I was able to get some to try. Badger also offers a "Frisco Orange". I started with a base coat of Reefer white, and then divided the shell in half and masked off areas to leave white stripes. Picture one is of the test shell outside in the natural light. Picture two is with an Athearn GP40-2 and SD45 Picture three is with an Atlas U30B and whats left of an old Athearn GP40-2 that was painted with some automotive paint I picked up a while back that is supposed to be an exact match to the original Chevy Engine Block Orange-Red from back in the day, which is what the Frisco used. As always, its tough to get an exact match. It also depends on how weathered the locomotive is that you are looking at. Naturally red paint doesn't stay the same for very long out in the sun. Combine that with all the various dirt and road grime that accumulates, and you will find that different hues will work best for different looks. My thoughts on the two options I have so far is that the Frisco Orange is pretty close, but a little too vibrant. The SP Daylight right is also really close, but may actually be a bit too dark orange. I am considering making a blend of the two to test out. Next chance I have, I plan to do three full locomotive shells: One of each color and another with a 50/50 blend. Stay tuned for more.
Next up, lets look at some options for the yellow used in the black and yellow scheme diesels. Much like the red/orange color, there's a lot of debate around what is correct for a yellow color. Once again, the amount of time out in the elements does have an impact on what shade the yellow looks like. Looking a photos of different models and repaints, its as possible that the color its self varied some through the years. On my first order I couldn't come up with any thing that closely resembles the "light" yellow you see in some photographs. I did find a couple good options on kind of a middle yellow that I think a lot of us would think is closest to correct, and for good reason. Badger Modelflex offers a B&O Dulux gold and I think it will look excellent for most B/Y models. There is another option for that darker shade of yellow that some photos show: Badger Railbox Yellow. Picture one is of the shell out in natural light Picture two is of the side with the B&O dulux gold up against an old Stewart F3 that is painted what I would describe as the "light" yellow, and a recent Athearn F3 that some considered to have too dark of a yellow. Picture three is is of the side with the Railbox Yellow up against the same pair of F3s. I plan on using the Dulux gold on my models in the future.
Ethan, the longer a red paint is exposed to natural UV light, the more the color shifts towards either orange or pink shades depending on the original color, thus most of the discussion about the Frisco red (Chevrolet Engine Red) being more orange than red.
In the archives here there a few pictures that show this well because units have doors from other units installed after servicing. It shows how the color would change with time and exposure.
My first response was solely focused on red, when I should have addressed yellows or "golds" as well. The yellow color on the Athearn Genesis Fs and GPs would be more consistent with relatively new units (as delivered). Over time the yellow would lose its darker components due to UV and would result in much lighter tints of yellow, and depending on the original paint, possibly even nearly lemon colors (when not covered with diesel or oil grime).
So sometimes getting the paint takes longer than painting the project, I guess. Spent all night trying find a good source for Tru Color Paint. If you go direct to Tru Color you have to email them to buy paint. Seems a lousy system to me. I checked a few sites. Ebay but the selection is poor. Other sites and the price was jacked up. Finally landed on Hobbylinc and that was good for me. Shipping is still high but the paint was priced 17-32% off depending on color so ordered 4 bottles. Got Frisco Frt Car Brown, Jenks Blue, MP hopper gray and MP Frt Car Red. $32 dollars shipped but that is equivalent to paying retail with no tax, free shipping. Bear in mind they are 1 oz bottles, double the MM bottles. Frisco colors are a bit lacking but they have a couple of blue colors. The rest I guess you get the closest match and mix to taste. I still like the Model Master Chevy engine red the best and bottles are still available on the internet. For now.
I hadn't heard of Tru Color yet. At this point, availability seems like the most essential quality of any paint. Last night I did try some Vallejo flat black I picked up at Hobby Lobby. Seems pretty similar to the Badger Model Flex. Both have worked pretty good for me so far.
Unfortunately, it is difficult to get nice weather and free time to line up, but I got just that the last couple nights. I finally had a chance to run further tests on options for a good red/orange paint. From my initial test, I thought the Frisco Orange was a bit too vibrant and the SP Daylight Red was a bit too dull. My theory was if I mixed the two, I would get a good color out of it, and I think I was right about that. In the picture below, the GP38-2 on the left was painted with the Frisco Orange, while the GP35 on the right was painted with the SP Daylight Red. The F7B in the middle was painted with a 50/50 mix of the two. I'll try to go get more comparison pictures later this week.
Just occurred to me that I never shared the pictures from my other experiment. I think the B&O Dulux Gold looks nice. I tried some Vallejo flat black, and thought it worked well.
All these units faded over time, and there is every chance that if two identical units were painted, say, three months apart, at the end of a year, they wouldn't match, anyway. Also, the degree of fade would depend upon where geographically they spent most of their time, how often they (if ever) they got anywhere near a wash rack, etc. Unless your fleet all went through the paint shop on the same day, in short order no two units on your roster would look exactly the same in the real world. GS
All good points for sure. Ethan you might consider using 3M Green masking tape available at most if not all hardware stores. I understand these are test projects but that Blue tape just does not work as good as Green. I tried many hobby type masking tapes, but in my (only mine) experience for the money, 3M Green is best. But dont let it get old.
Tom, What product # is the 3MGreen masking tape you are referring to? I assume it comes in various widths too? Thanks! John
Hi John it 3M #2060 masking tape. It is made for irregular surfaces. I find it fits around shapes very well. And yes it comes in a couple different widths, like 1" and 1 1/2".
I would be interested in trying some of that tape if I can find it. The only concern is the width. A while back I bought a variety pack of widths of that blue painters tape and its worked really well so far, much better than trying to cut down tape that's too big.
I just slice it to width with a Exacto knife and stainless steel scale ruler, easy peasy. It's right beside the blue tape at my local True Value. I think you will find it sticks much better around molded details than that blue tape. I very rarely use the factory tape edge for my separation lines, too much fuzz and little stuff sticks to the edges of the roll. I get a clean line doing it that way.
I use the green from Painters Mate and Frogtape yellow. I also buy a “variety pack” from some Chinese company rolls going from 1/16” to 5/16”. Ethan I usually spray the white,mask, and then respray a light white coat to seal the tape and avoid any seepage. If it’s a flat surface it’s not needed but an HO scale locomotive has a lot of small areas that can be tough to make sure the tape is burnished down tight enough. Good luck, keep us posted.
