Dry Bulk Vac Truck build

[carlso]

As a reminder, this is what I am shooting for. Hope I can do it justice.



Here are the parts, the SW tractor came in today and it is a pretty decent print. I'll know for sure after I spray it with a color. Mark, your print far outshines this SW item.







This last one was me goofing around with the Molotow marker on a spare grill that I had. The chrome was applied to bumper and frame around the grill screen.


 I know, the images are not my best.

Thanks for looking,
Carl

[Philip H]

I do like how that marker turned out.

[bman]

I've used the Molotow markers to touch up the "chrome" on a couple older 1/25th scale model car kits I picked up. Worked great for me.
I was wondering if it went on thin enough to try on N scale vehicles. Looks like it does. Thanks it looks good!

[mu26aeh]

I used a silver Sharpie for chrome work. 

[carlso]

Here is an update to my project and I am including 2 steps that I have done. First step was to spray all the components with a KRYLON brand automotive 2in1 filler & sandable primer. The 2nd step was that I wet sanded each item with 1000 grit and then 2000 grit we/dry sandpaper. Boy, I thought they looked great and were ready to spray. Then I took the following images and burst my own bubble. Some of what looks bad is a transition from the primer to the print material and with a little more light, one direction sanding will be ok. However, the sun visor on the tractor needs more, 2 or 3 light coats and the a proper sanding. The trailer is a different story and I want to say that the striations and "scrape" marks are from a very poor job of sanding on my part. The trailer is printed very well by Mark. After another 2 or 3 lite coats of primer and a proper, one direction sanding, it will be fine.

BTW, look at the small detail parts and how well they are done on this N scale trailer. Wow!

Oh yea, I usually use a jpeg to check out the to be painted surfaces before I continue. They do not lie to you.









I must be patient, I must be patient, I must be...................

Thanks for looking,
Carl

[carlso]

Update as of today. I could not resist airbrushing the Liquid Chrome today and the ambient temp was only mid 50's with low humidity and no wind (dust). I should have waited.

1st image is of the grill/bumper/ filter canisters. The bumper looks much better in real life..............


 2 images of tractor chassis, with chrome battery box/steps .....................



They dry bulk trailer. One comment, be very careful with mud flaps on trailer. I did not fasten the trailer well enough to my paint stand and it fell off an broke the flaps off (recovered both) but it dinged the wet chrome pretty bad (will be fixed)..................


Finally 2 images of an in progress gas trailer bash job. I did this to test and mess with settings for the liquid chrome. It actually looks pretty good......................



Thanks for looking,
Carl

[Mark W]

They dry bulk trailer. One comment, be very careful with mud flaps on trailer. I did not fasten the trailer well enough to my paint stand and it fell off an broke the flaps off (recovered both) but it dinged the wet chrome pretty bad (will be fixed)..................

WOW Carl!  That is hot!



Yes, I've debated removing the mud flaps from the print all together.  About half of my own trailers have a styrene replacement, or I just left them broken. 

[carlso]

Some more images from yesterday.







Not sure where the pitting look on the trailer comes from. Could be bad under base, my poor photgraphy skills, or shooting to close in on object. It looks OK in real life.

Thanks for looking,
Carl

[Philip H]

Tell us more about this liquid chrome.

[peteski]

So, the entire vehicle (including tires) is going to be "chrome plated"?   Nice demo! 

Chrome paints are quite a "thing" in model car circles.  Molotow liquid chrome is one of such finishes.   Alclad II chrome is another, and Spaz Stix is yet another.  There are few others, but either not as "chromey" or (like Alsa Chrome) very expensive. Google search for those names to get more info.

[carlso]

Philip,

 google "Molotow Liquid Chrome" and there is a plethora of info. As Pete suggests, there are several others available but I picked the Molotow cause I feel it outshines the others. I have experimented with a 2mm marker and had good results for doing trim work, however I wanted to airbrush the large areas. Pete, I know you are jesting, so I will be painting details. In fact I tested the plum color that I bought for the tractor. I am not pleased with the results as I think the "pearlized" pigments are too large for N scale truck so I will get some just plain paint. The test was to cover the tractor driver fenders (gray primer) with the plum and also to spray over the mo-gas trailer and over the chrome finish. I applied various thicknesses to study results. I then coated all of these with KRYLON UV-resistant gloss clear acrylic to check for compatibility.

1st image is the fenders............


2nd is the test trailer sprayed over the chrome...............


You can see the oversized pigments, the paint would look good on larger scale models.

I think I figured out why the bulk trailer looks grainy or pitted. I believe it is overspray from the other items that were too close to the trailer.

Thanks for looking and the input,
Carl

[peteski]

I agree that most metallic paints have particles way out of scale for 1:160 model. Carl, if you look through the fingernail polish section of a local pharmacy, dollar store, supermarket, department store, or even a beauty supply store, you can sometimes find metallic polishes which have very fine metallic particles. Some are even so fine that they look like colored chrome.  Another alternative would be to paint the base coat with very smooth silver (like Tru-Color silver or gold), then apply top coat using a candy-type  color. Those are transparent ans the base coat will reflect through the candy, giving it a nice metallic sheen.

Or take one of those fine-particle silver or gold paints and mix some regular color (same brand of paint) into the silver. That will give you some nice metallic colors.  Then, instead of testing the colors on a model, paint a plastic spoon.

[daniel_leavitt2000]

The best way to make a metallic chip paint is to paint the model chrome, then a candy color of your choice and finally a semi-flat finish, which will keep the reflective look but dull the "see-though" plastic look of the candy coat.

Conversely, to make emergency lights, use clear plastic, paint with a candy color od your choice them use a high-gloss to enhance the translucent affect.

[CRL]

You better fix those mud flaps or the TXDOT fines will bankrupt your railroad.

[Mark W]

2nd is the test trailer sprayed over the chrome...............

Could be worse...


I'm reminded of this holiday glitter train from a recent show.


https://i.imgur.com/177v6ec.jpg

Not my taste, but they displayed it proudly.  That's all that matters.



I like the other suggestions for candy chrome though, and will definitely look forward to seeing your results!