Modelling on the Cheap: Hairspray

The hobby of railway modelling need be as expensive or inexpensive as you want it to be. In these times especially with the price of models of locos and rolling stock getting ever higher and the general state of the world economy, modellers are more canny than ever of looking for ways to avoid spending money on specialist (and often expensive) modelling products. For example, Woodland Scenics does a fine Scenic Glue, but properly diluted PVA/water/detergent is a heck of a lot cheaper, works equally well for most duties and more importantly is more widely available than just in your nearest model shop. Of course there are many products which fill a specific need, but for some you can look in your supermarket, cheap shop, hardware or even your spares drawers and find something that will fit the job at hand.

During the recent construction of a new club HO exhibition layout, spray adhesive was used to affix scenic materials to certain objects or the layout. Experience using the spray on our N Gauge layout, the 'Barrie Valley Railway' showed that this tended to leave a white effect on the scenery which would not go away, furthermore the cans would inexplicably spurt white streams of foam like gunk randomly which would clump up and  further mess up our work. Unsurprisingly an alternative was sought. Spraying diluted PVA tended to produce  a wet effect on the scenery which may be alright for a base layer but when you're trying to add a subtle second coat of grass it can mean you add more than you want to.

The answer lies in the Cosmetics section- cans of Hairspray. Specifically the cheapest generic/homebrand one, unscented, with the strongest hold you can get. Having read this tip on one of the modelling forums I decided to give it a try when static grassing modules of 'Northfield Abridged'. The result is: no white haze on everything (it makes sense given hairspray is supposed to go invisible in hair!) and the static grass stuck beautifully to the base layer of scenery. Results for other forms of scenery are unknown, it may be preferable to use something stronger when making trees (I will stick with my Hob-e-tac for now).

As always, each to their own and some people may find this useful others not so much. I recommend trying on a small section first and giving it a good test before spraying it all over your layout!

Painting a teak effect on models

Most people would remember the rather ratty looking ‘Teak’ coaches that come with the Flying Scotsman in the old Hornby sets, they are a world away from the magnificent new versions which look the proper deal. Of course the ability to get a good teak finish in a model coach built from a kit is not easy. Even the manufacturers don’t always get it right, consider the On30 ‘Coffee Pot’ which has a plain brown coach detracting from its appearance. Even if there were few ‘teak’ wooden coaches in Australia the technique is useful for painting wooden buildings or structures.

 The actual method of painting a model in this livery is not as scary or unachievable as it might seem, anyone who has some weathering is well placed to succeed. While getting a finish as good as the Hornby or Pro-kit painter is a lot harder, this tutorial will give you a good start with plenty of scope to experiment!

Firstly start with an unpainted model, I used my JEM H class tram which happened to be on my workbench. I would of course advise practising on a scrap model or such.

1)      Ensure the model is clean and then prime with a light coloured paint. I used Tamiya Acrylic Fine surface Primer which is a white colour and goes on very smoothly. There is a consensus that acrylic should be used for the undercoat regardless of which colour you use.

2)      Pick one or two colours for your ‘teak’ colouring. Depending on which colour scheme you require, more than one brown or even a little red might be needed. Also think about whether you want your model to appear fresh out of the paint shop or weathered. Mine used a base coat of chestnut acrylic with a little bit of red, followed by darker Humbrol Brown on top.

3)      Once the primer is completely dried, apply the first coat using the ‘dry brushing’ method. Anyone who has dry-brushed dirt on a model will be familiar with this. Dip a soft sable brush in your paint and remove most of the paint using a tissue or kitchen towel, then run the brush along your model. It is very important to go in the direction of the grain for the extra wood effect. Remember your objective is not to completely cover the model unless you are using only one colour.

4)      Dry brush further colours onto the model. Continuing to follow the ‘grain’, this will emulate the teak finish whereby there are many different shades of varying darkness. Remember the coaches often had darker corners to their panelling, and weathered coaches had a darker appearance.

5)      Once dry, apply a varnish. This can be a regular satin or gloss coat, some modellers use actual teak varnish thinned down, some others make a mixture for a wash of satin and black paint to darken the model. If you want to apply lettering or decals of course you will need to work out which method would help them adhere best. Feel free to add weathering powder etc after this step.

This is a rare case where hand painting a model is considered advantageous- further more visible brush strokes are wanted to help bring out the wood grain effect.

This first effort was relatively quick and rough, as a test for later application on some N gauge coaches. I was very satisfied with the results even I did not apply an overcoat varnish or decals (unnecessary as I will strip the tram down again!). I can recommend for anyone who has the old Hornby coaches to perhaps give them the treatment, or pick up on at a swap meet and try it out on them.