What way round are you doing it

Iv got most of my model all dry built so I'm getting to the point wear I'm going to start adding some painting.

What i want to ask is silly little things like did you paint the horn plates and spec plates all bolted up with the shafts in or all as parts ?

And what about the smoke box. I'm having hard time to make up my mind if i should paint it on the boiler all bolted up or on its own in a stand and then on top of all that should i do it with the perch casting on or of.. Any idea's ??

I'm going to use craftmaster paints after doing a lot of testing with other paints. Has any one tyred to add a bit of there PPA in when spraying. Its meant to let the paint flow when brush painting as well as help with a dry edge. Iv been thinking it might be of use when spraying the rear wheels as iv all ready got one in base cote it takes time to get the paint on so using this to delay the drying time would help with dry spots.

https://s249.photobucket.com/albums/gg203/hudmut/My%20little%20secret/ This is my build

if you paint hornplates and boiler separately you may find when steamed up they come loose so need retightening hot before you drive your animal. mine loosened and i thought i had bent the crankshaft but when i worked it out the timming was out because the block / crankshaft distance moved. verdict paint before but tighten up several times or clean mating surfaces on assembly.. Tom

I find it pays to paint small assemblies or individual parts, the horn plates are painted seperately from the boiler however on the inside of the hornplate I only put three coats of paint as opposed to 5 - 6 everywhere else. Also when bolting up the hornplates to the boiler scrape away all the paint that is around the inside of the holes in the hornplate so that when you are happy that it is all in the right position each bolt can be taken out and given a collar of JBWeld. This is heat proof and prevents any movement between the boiler & hornplates. When spraying one needs to get an even finish all over and if too much is bolted together the finish will suffer.

When using the craftmaster paints I used their spraying thinners not the brushing thinners. About 6 - 8% thinners was all that was needed however more important is the temperature of the paint & surrounding air. Too cold and you get an orange peel effect and if you add too much thinners it just runs everywhere. This time of year you really need to be spraying in a warm environment.

When painting the wheels I mount them on an engine stand so that I can spin them around. Then work out all the tricky bits to spray, the edges of all the spokes, the inner rim, the inner hub etc. Spray these first and then look to see what hasn't been covered with paint, chances are that 80% of the rest is now painted, a quick flash over the front of the spokes and the outer rim & it's all done!

Finally when spraying inside, use an air fed mask, they are so much better. I tried several quality filter masks but you always end up with paint up your nose a bit. The air fed masks are great with no paint spray getting into your lungs. I know they are more expensive, but cheaper than a new pair of lungs!