Model Forum / General / Railroads / September 2006

I use Oxide red or Box Car red.

I use spray cans of red auto primer, from the auto parts store.  It is a
good red with a hint of brown, very flat, will cover anything.  After
the paint dries you can rub some powdered white chalk into the mortar
lines.  You can powder plain old school blackboard chalk be rubbing it
on a kitchen strainer.  Be aware that Dullcote marries into powdered
chalk and makes it disappear.  Buildings don't get handled much so they
don't really need the Dullcote to fix the chalk in place.
  I feel that raw unpainted plastic has too much glossy sheen to look
right.  If I don't paint it, I give it some Dullcote to kill the gloss.
  The color of prototype brick varied quite a bit from time to time and
place to place.  I have seen pure soft red without a hint of brown, dark
brown, and every shade inbetween.  The pure soft red brick is 1800's in
the Northeast.  Montreal is dark brown brick everywhere. Also yellow
brick, popular in the 1930's to 1950's but not seen much in new
construction.

David Starr

Dan,
in "real" world, bricks come in a wide range of colors. From gray,
cream, tan to various shades of the common "red clay" bricks.

I assume that you want that avarage brownish/orangish/red color.

Polly-S used to have a color called "Venetian Red"  IIRC, it was in
their Fantasy Colors line.  It dried flat and had very pleasing "red
brick" hue.  But I think it is now discontinued.

If your colors are to glossy, there are several dull clear coats
available....

As far as airbrushing goes, any paint can be shot through an airbrush.
Even spary can paint can be decanted and sprayed through the airbrush.

Peteski

DanK spake thus:

Here's a thought: forget model paints altogether. I've had better luck
with the little bottles of acrylic craft paint you can get everywhere
(in the U.S., at least), e.g., Delta Ceramcoat. They come in about a
thousand colors, including some very nice brick red/terra-cotta colors,
plus they're flat, not unrealistically glossy. Very easy to work with,
too. And cheap.

Well, first off, there no such thing as "brick colour." Just go look at
actual brick buildings, and you'll see what I mean. If I were you, I'd
take a bunch of photos for reference. (Bonus: if you use a digital
camera, you can print some of them on cardstock , cut them out, and glue
them to backdrops.) Then go look at acrylic craft paints available in
craft and hobby stores, etc. Pick reddish browns, the earth colours
(sienna, ochre, etc) -- whatever looks close to what you've seen.

This is how I paint brick buildings. I let the paint dry thoroughly
between steps. A "wash" is a very thin solution of paint, watery in
consistency, and with little covering ability - almost transparent, in fact.

1) wash the plastic parts or completed model in dish detergent, and let
them air dry
2) prime with a automotive red primer. A light coat is sufficient, just
enough to kill the plastic shine and provide some tooth for the acrylic
paint. If the plastic itself was "brick" coloured, this is often enough,
got to 4.
3) add washes of suitable brick colours over the primer. Don't worry
about getting an even coat, the overall impression is what counts.
4) add an overall wash of medium to light grey and let it settle into
the mortar lines. Avoid white - mortar is grey! (Some owners have
"improved" their buildings by painting the mortar white - if you're
modelling one of those, use a heavier white wash, and gently dab the
surface to pick up the white from the bricks and leave it in the mortar
lines.)
5) paint details such as window frames, etc, if present. If you need to
mask, use blue or green masking tape, not the beige stuff. Step 9 may be
done at this time, too.
6) add washes of black and/or dark greys to simulate the effect of
decades of exposure to smoke etc. Apply unevenly. Repeat as needed to
create the tone you want, letting the wash touch dry between
applications 9about 5-15 minutes).

The following steps are more or less optional, depending on desired effects.
7) add streaks of rust, dirt, etc from edges of window sills, etc, so
simulate the effect of rain washed dirt. Use a fine brushes, and
slightly heavier washes.
8) add light grey or white washes here and there to simulate efflorescence.
9) pick out areas of brick in a slightly brighter colour to show where
signs have been removed, or brick has been replaced or cleaned, etc.
(Study your pictures for ideas.)
10) repeat some or all of steps 7 to 10 as needed.

Similar techniques work for roofs, wooden walls, etc - just use
appropriate colours. Basic rule: always prime the parts/structure first.
If it's a lighter coloured one, use light grey primer instead of red.

HTH

Paints can be mixed to whatever color you want to have.  If you're unsure of
what colors to mix with what, ask a friend that is an artist painter.
Next is that brick really isn't one color.  Aside from the different bricks
in different areas being different actual colors, weathering also changes
the color of a brick.  Finally, the individual bricks in a building are
usually a range of colors near the basic color and this is something that
you may not have noticed.
After you do the basic color, you'll have to go through and temper each
brick with some wash to bring out it's own color on the wall.  After that,
you can add in the mortar lines and weathering of the whole wall.

--
Yeppie, Bush is such an idiot that He usually outwits
everybody else.  How dumb!

The colour of brick is dependent on the colour of the local clay used to
make them plus a little on the means of firing. From there, brick buildings
tend to last a long time so the weathering can vary from almost none through
to no original colour visible. In addition, the colour of the mortar has an
effect on the overall appearance, varying from pristine white through to
completely weathered. This weathering lets down the initial white much
quicker than it does the brick.
I tend to spray with red-oxide automotive spray (I spray almost everything
with red oxide =8^) then wash with a mix of white and burnt sienna acrylic
for the mortar, then wipe it partially off and finally lock it on with an
artist's matt varnish spray.

Regards,
Greg.P.