Re-painting grab irons

[arbomambo]

..and, also...if no one has mentioned it yet, 91% alcohol is what should be used for stripping...40% and 70% will work....eventually......but, generally, 91% will do the trick...
I don't leave Kato shells overnight in the 91%...I'm proactive when stripping these, but, the 91% has not given me any trouble at all, and will certainly be the best choice for stripping paint from metal...
I would echo those who suggest air brushing these....if you decide to hand brush, then thin your paint with the approved thinner...I always decant and thin my paints for hand brushing...never just brush them straight from the bottle,unless you're using a pre-thinned paint like modelflex(accuflex)...I save every coffee and jar lid, just to use as a palette when decanting and thinning paints for hand brushing...i also use them to decant CA and water-based adhesives.
~Bruce

[Chris1274]

BTW, do you have a caliper or micrometer?   It would be interesting to measure the diameter, both with and without the original paint in place.

Unfortunately I don't. My brother is the mechanical engineer in the family; I'm sure he has one, but the grab irons are already soaking in acetone and soon won't have any paint on them left to measure.

[Chris1274]

I would echo those who suggest air brushing these....if you decide to hand brush, then thin your paint with the approved thinner...I always decant and thin my paints for hand brushing...never just brush them straight from the bottle,unless you're using a pre-thinned paint like modelflex(accuflex)...I save every coffee and jar lid, just to use as a palette when decanting and thinning paints for hand brushing...i also use them to decant CA and water-based adhesives.
~Bruce

I think I will have a go with an airbrush. I don't yet have one, but it's high time I make that investment anyway. I've been putting off buying one for years.

[Chris1274]

Here are the grab irons with (most of) the paint stripped off:



Interestingly, the larger ones are made of steel and the smaller ones of copper. I wonder why they used two different kinds of wire. In any event, hats off to Atlas for using quality material for such small detail parts. They might have gotten the color wrong, but at least it's made of good solid stuff.

[Scottl]

Since you are going to all of this trouble, I agree with Ed and would replace them with thinner wire.  At risk of a contrary opinion, that would matter more than air brushing on a dark color vs brushing.

[Chris1274]

Nah, I'd never be able to get them bent into the right shape. Since they'll be painted the same shade of blue as the cab, they won't be as conspicuous as they were in yellow.

[ednadolski]

I'd never be able to get them bent into the right shape.

If you haven't already tried, don't sell yourself short.  The only thing you have to lose is a few small pieces of wire.       With a bit of patience, it's not hard to learn, the only 'trick' is to work on a flat surface.   I hand-bent all of the grabirons and handrails on this model:  https://www.therailwire.net/forum/index.php?topic=24874.msg245540#msg245540


The *real* caveat, tho, is that scale-sized parts can be addictive -- after doing one, you'll want to keep doing more.... 


Ed

[Chris1274]

If you haven't already tried, don't sell yourself short.  The only thing you have to lose is a few small pieces of wire.       With a bit of patience, it's not hard to learn, the only 'trick' is to work on a flat surface.   I hand-bent all of the grabirons and handrails on this model:  https://www.therailwire.net/forum/index.php?topic=24874.msg245540#msg245540

That bnsf unit looks outstanding. If I ever develop the intestinal fortitude, I'll make new handrails for my CSX GEVO's and replace the incorrect ones that Kato installed, but that'll be a while. As for the model I'm currently working on, I think that last pic gives the wrong impression as to how thick the grab irons really are. Here's a side by side comparison showing the difference before and after I stripped off the factory paint:



Sprayed with a thin coat of blue paint, I think they should look OK. I doubt my shaky hands could manage wire that's any smaller than that anyway (I just hope they're not too shaky to paint over those yellow "eyebrows" without making a mess).

[Scottl]

Regardless of your final choices (your preferences are what matter), the look is transformative. 

I'll be doing a one or two of these units in the future as CN has been buying used models, so I am pleased to see what can be done with this model.

[Chris1274]

I have to say, I'm glad Atlas goofed on this one, otherwise I probably would have just left well-enough alone. I have the Conrail version of this model waiting for me in the post office right this moment, so now I won't be afraid to make the same modification, even though the grab irons will (probably) be the correct color.

[peteski]

(I just hope they're not too shaky to paint over those yellow "eyebrows" without making a mess).

That is a perfect job for an airbrush!
First of all, you probably won't ba able to find perfect matching blue paint. So, paint brushing these would leave very visible blue streaks on the body.  Simply mask off the areas not to be painted: front window area (no need to try to mask the individual windows), nose, sides (up to the angled roof), and the gray colored hood.  Then using the airbrush, (set for a narrow pattern) spray the yellow representations of the grab irons. Better yet, since the yellow is stamped on top of blue, if your hands are not too shaky, take a hobby knife with a fresh blade and gently scrape off the yellow paint.  That will expose the blue paint underneath.  Then gently over-spray the entire roof area with blue to blend everything together.

Since the paint demarcation lines will be on natural body edges, the color mismatch will not be not as visible. Hopefully, not visible at all.