Mixing Concrete Paint

[BCR751]

Has anyone mixed Polly Scale colors to obtain something close to aged concrete?  If so, what colors did you use and what are the approximate mixing ratios?  We have no hobby shop here and I need to do the painting right away.  I have a bunch of Polly Scale colors so I hopefully will have the right ones to mix.

I searched the forum and didn't find anything regarding this topic.

Doug

[MichaelWinicki]

Doug, here's how I went about getting the "right" concrete color.

Keep in mind that "right" varies from area to area.

For instance our area concrete has very little yellow to it– it's much more gray.  And the older it gets the grayer it gets.  As a matter of fact the color of our old concrete and old asphalt is not far apart.

What I initially did was look around at the concrete in the area modeled.  That gave me a good starting point.  And it didn't take me long to realize the Pollyscale "Contrete" and "Aged Concrete" simply were not right. 

What I did on whim was go to a paint store.  While looking over some color samples I spied "Stamped Concrete".  It was about perfect, so I picked up a quart of latex.  I dilute it down for model RRing purposes and it works great! 

[LV LOU]

 No out of the bottle color is ever going to be right.Where I live,there's a l;ot of iron in the sand & water,old concrete here is rusty brown.Michael has a good idea there.Take a good pic of something made of the concrete you're trying to copy,and match it at a paint store,or by yourself if you can...

[BCR751]

I'd be very dubious about using store-bought paint, particularly through an airbrush.  The pigment grind is much more coarse than that used in model paints and could cause all sorts of difficulties, not to mention what the finish might look like in N-Scale, the scale I model in.  While I appreciate the thought, I'd rather stick to a mix of model-ready paints.

I think I'll try "rolling my own" using the paints I have on hand.  The aged concrete here in northern BC is a gray-ish white with a slight yellow tinge.  Maybe start with reefer white and add some black, maybe a little yellow, and see what it looks like. 

Thanks for the ideas.  Just trying to not have to reinvent the wheel.

Doug

[DKS]

Aged concrete is a tough color to achieve, mostly because concrete acquires a huge range of color variations as it ages, not to mention the type of concrete/aggregate used for starters will affect it as well.

I usually begin with Light Aircraft Grey, then hit it with any number of stains/tints/washes. For quick and dirty aged concrete, I will use an India ink was after painting.

[LIRR]

I found Rustoleum Sandstone #7223 works for aged concrete. I'll post a photo....

[LIRR]

Of course This won't help you if you're unable to use a spray...

[mmagliaro]

I'd be very dubious about using store-bought paint, particularly through an airbrush.  The pigment grind is much more coarse than that used in model paints and could cause all sorts of difficulties, not to mention what the finish might look like in N-Scale, the scale I model in.  While I appreciate the thought, I'd rather stick to a mix of model-ready paints.

I think I'll try "rolling my own" using the paints I have on hand.  The aged concrete here in northern BC is a gray-ish white with a slight yellow tinge.  Maybe start with reefer white and add some black, maybe a little yellow, and see what it looks like. 

Thanks for the ideas.  Just trying to not have to reinvent the wheel.

Doug

Don't fear the paint store.  Passenger car #371, in the upper right, I airbrushed with an enamel I had mixed at a paint
store.  I brought the official NPRHA color drift card to the store and they mixed me a quart, and it is perfect.
Yes, in the can, it is thick as glue compared to what we need for an airbrush.  But thinned 50/50 and it is almost watery-thin.
It sprayed beautifully from the airbrush.

I would have a lot of trepedation doing this with any type of latex paint.  I imagine thinned or not, the latex would gum
up the airbrush.  But I think if you stick with a solvent-based paint at a paint store, it works great in an airbrush.

[MichaelWinicki]

All of my latex paint applications were done with a brush.

[Kisatchie]

All of my latex paint applications were done with a brush.

Hmm... I always use a
roller...

[CodyO]

Here`s a shot of a bridge I just did in polyscale aged concrete doesn`t look too bad!

[MichaelWinicki]

Again, it all depends on the area you're modeling and what a normal "aged" concrete looks like.

Around here old concrete has no yellow to it.

[Ian MacMillan]

Other than using real concrete, I generally will use Testors Light Aircraft Gray and then I will weather the crap out of it. I do like that Rustoleum Sandstone though, as it will be much cheaper!

[BCR751]

Since I have none of the bottled concrete paint and the nearest hobby shop is 800 miles away (and I won't do mail orders until at least January 15th) I measured out 15ml (1/2 oz.) of Polly Scale Reefer White.  I then added 2ml of PS black and mixed it thoroughly.  It just didn't look like the aged concrete around here so I started adding PS Reefer Yellow, one drop at a time.  Got to 13 drops and it looked as good as I could expect.  I have no idea how many ml's 13 drops is but I guess it could be calculated.  Anyway, what ever it is, it works for me.

Thanks for all of the info, by the way.  I'm still a bit scared of Rustoleum (Tremclad in Canada) in a spray can, however <g>.

Doug

[Ian MacMillan]

... I'm still a bit scared of Rustoleum (Tremclad in Canada) in a spray can, however <g>.

Doug,
Rustoleum has changed quite a bit over the years. If you can get the color you want in the "For Plastics" version, it and the Krylon Fusion version spray very nice and evenly. On most of my large projects like roads, spraying brick, or structures I use the two brands. I was timid at first, having remembered the thick drippy enamels of the day, but after using Rustoleum Ruddy Brown Primer as recommendation to spray for brick color, I was turned onto how well they spray these days.

I use Ruddy Brown for bricks, Periwinkle for that "prefab Blue" color on metal buildings, "Fern" for green bridge beams, and an assortment of primers for roads.