Just thought I would say hello

I have been looking on the forum for a while and am about to embark on trying to build a DCC road loco.  I have just got the 2 rear wheel kits and the plan is to obtain all the kits asap.  It seems a really good forum with plenty of information but I still think that I will have plenty of questions.

Regards
Martin

Hi Martin,
welcome to the forum,I am quite sure any questions or problems will be answered here.
Good luck with your build,hopefully you will post some photos of your progress.
Kev.

Welcome to the wonderful world of steam traction. You are in for a real treat building your RL, keep us posted with your progress.

Thanks for the welcome.

No pictures yet- just a couple of vulcanised but rusty wheel rims.

Martin

Welcome aboard.

Yes we are all friendly and as I always say. A question is only silly if you know the answer.

Ok first few questions:

I am thinking of having the rear wheels sandblasted to remove the rust.  I realise they may not be able to do it all because of the vulcanising but is it a good idea?

Is there anywhere on this forum that lists in one place all the mods/improvements that people have done?

Is it better to buy a nickel plating kit or have it done 'professionally'?  Also is there a list of recommended parts that are normally plated?

At present I am agonising over the colour to chose as until I decide this I cannot really order the primer and undercoat.  Probably crimson lake or some sort of green but black also looks good.

Regards
Martin

Hiya

Sandblasting the wheel rims is no problem with the tyres fitted. I had mine done and boy it made life a lot easier.

Colour and plating is a personal touch, only your imagination is the limit. Checkout Lord Darby for an alternative colour scheme.

Regards

Hi

Plating with professionals can also be problematic. Not breaking down assemblies or covering over bushes etc.

The motion rods are all plated on Crystal but it does not really make much difference as everything is covered in oil anyway.
My valve covers are painted so do not require plating.

Yes it is your engine and colour selection is your choice and yes it can be a difficult one.

Getting the wheels blasted. Make sure the media is degradable so if any gets in to the rubber it will break down and not cause lesions once the engine has been on the road.

Hi Martin,

Ive built two DCC and both had rusty rims,
Neither were sandblasted.

I cleaned all rims with an angle grinder fitted with a sanding disk and then an old drill with a flapper wheel on it,
The rust is only surface bound and flies off leaving a good clean surface. I considered hiring a sandblaster to do mine but with 10 minutes work per wheel with an anglegrinder it wasn't worth it.
The rest on the muck that was caught up in the corners of the rim where the filler will go I cleaned up with 60 grit sand paper.

once you have but high build undercoat on and sanded back a few coats of top you will have filled any imperfections in the metal to a glossy smooth finish.

With regards to the plating. If your going to have you engine stand on show and not covered in hot oil I would recommend plating.
If you are going to run it and get it covered in oil I would save your time and money.

As Lynn mentioned she plated her shinny bits but as its now all covered in oil there was little point.

Thanks for all the replies - much appreciated.

I have a Kite spray gun +compressor but think that it would be worthwhile perhaps investing in a HVLP spray gun. I will be using Craftmaster paints and the guy I spoke to thought that hand painting was the way to go. Perhaps a combination of the two. Spray the larger areas but hand paint the smaller parts.

As I understand it, one of the advantages of hand painting is being able to put thicker coats onto the metal. What about hand painting the primer and undercoat +a few finishing coats then a final couple of final gloss coats using a spray gun?

Martin

I am using Craftmaster paint on my 7.25" build, I'm spraying it - can't brush paint for toffee...

I hand painted the undercoat and primer on my Foden, rubbing down between each coat.  The top coats were sprayed, again with a lot of rubbing down and the lining and letters hand painted with the aid of tapes and stencils.

Mike

Thats looking very nice indeed

Kev

I've brush painted all the engines i've built and i wouldn't consider myself a professional painter, but the results speak for themselves as all that have seen them have said how good it is.

My Method is as follows:-

Using an car engine stand / work bench and several car bottle jacks I get the paint surface totally flat using spirit levels. The surface is prepped with red oxide, high build undercoat and several top coats each sanded down flat with 600 / 1000 wet/dry. Tack clothes used just before painting commences.

The last coat is thinned out very slightly just to help it pull out as Craftmaster use a high quantity of hardener in their mix and it sets too fast for this technique.

The paint is put on liberally and then pull out with a high quality 1/2 inch brush in two directions.

The result is a mirror finish.

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Thanks for the replies. All very useful to me. I can see advantages in both methods so I think I will use a combination of spraying and hand painting and see how it goes.

Regards
Martin

If you want the brush finish without the agro, spray it all but the last coat. Use a soft wide artists brush and brush the last coat of lacquer on the bits that show. Some people consider it cheating to spray an engine and the only"proper job" is brushing. Personally, a good finish is a good finish.