What, no weathering?

I think a lot don't weather O because they think it devalues the item down the road and some don't feel confident enough in they're abilities too weather they're own stuff. I beat, bang and rust almost everything I get my hands on. Here's my latest O build.

I'll offer a few opinions concerning weathering:

1) In first sentence of your "Second.....", item; the biggest difference between your "HO RR modeler" and the "O Gauge world", is generally scale fidelity. The HO "modelers" generally model in Scale terms, while the "O Gauge" folks are generally not to scale proportions. Remember the recent discussion about "O Gauge" vs. "O SCALE"

2) In the HO Modeling, most folks are modeling a specific time frame/era, and maybe even specific scenic locations in the U.S., thus weathering helps to complete the scene being modeled.

3) Those of us that Model in 3-Rail SCALE, generally do weather everything in order to represent the time frame/era we are modeling. In my case that would be early thru mid 1950s, "big steam era", plus some first generation diesels.

For me, O Gauge is all about the trains themselves. I am not a modeler. I am not trying to faithfully reproduce any real-world place and time. Now, I am building an operation-oriented layout, and I intend to put reasonably realistic scenery on it. But the whole point of having the layout and the scenery is to provide a place and a purpose for running the trains.

It seems to me--and I am going to really overstate this, just for the sake of clarity--that many model railroaders see their model trains as more of a means to an end. What they are really interested is the real thing, and the model trains are a means by which they can capture that thing. Or maybe it is that they are interested in simulating railroad operations, and the model trains are the means necessary to run the simulation. For me, the train is the end. I keep it pristine, not because it might have resale value, but because I like the way it looks. I do not want replicas of tired, dirty railroad equipment. I want bright, clean, Christmas-morning toys to play railroad with.

I didn't weather anything in N or HO, and I don't weather it in O, either.  I don't like the look of weathering.  Everything on my layout is fresh out of the shop.

nickaix posted:

For me, O Gauge is all about the trains themselves. I am not a modeler. I am not trying to faithfully reproduce any real-world place and time. Now, I am building an operation-oriented layout, and I intend to put reasonably realistic scenery on it. But the whole point of having the layout and the scenery is to provide a place and a purpose for running the trains.

It seems to me--and I am going to really overstate this, just for the sake of clarity--that many model railroaders see their model trains as more of a means to an end. What they are really interested is the real thing, and the model trains are a means by which they can capture that thing. Or maybe it is that they are interested in simulating railroad operations, and the model trains are the means necessary to run the simulation. For me, the train is the end. I keep it pristine, not because it might have resale value, but because I like the way it looks. I do not want replicas of tired, dirty railroad equipment. I want bright, clean, Christmas-morning toys to play railroad with.

 

Some very good points. However, In my situation, I have worked in the railroad motive power industry, both diesel and steam, virtually all my life, thus my modeling desires are to be as generally realistic as I can. Since almost everything I work with/on was "weathered" except for the very fist day it was new and place into active service. ALL railroad equipment is "weathered", especially the steam era that I model.

Balshis posted:

I didn't weather anything in N or HO, and I don't weather it in O, either.  I don't like the look of weathering.  Everything on my layout is fresh out of the shop.

Even the track, scenery, and buildings????

After my initial attempt of "weathering" I have decided that the "new" manufactured look, with minimal dust, is a vast improvement over my so called weathering.

We like them beautiful. 

I like weathering! But it's a skillset I am only beginning to learn. I have, to my satisfaction, weathered several building kits. But only one rail car so far . . . and not so successfully.

Thousands of 3 railers will never be “Ready for Real” But a small hand full of us modelers will always be.

See several thousand weathered photos on the link below if interested.

Gotta have mine weathered!

SIRT posted:

Thousands of 3 railers will never be “Ready for Real” But a small hand full of us modelers will always be.

See several thousand weathered photos on the link below if interested.

Well, with a layout with the outer loop a whopping 772 scale feet, nearly 0.15 scale miles, I surely don't fall in the "Ready for Real" category. So, my "maintenance crew" keeps the tracks pristine and constantly cleans coal soot, oil leak streaks, and other dirt and grime from all rolling equipment. Hence weathering wouldn't be prototypical.

Rustyrail, love the panel truck. Great idea having replaced used doors of another color. Don

Locos, rolling stock and buildings get weathered in my little world. But a select few do escape....

But there are a few 'Queens' that will not get dirty.....

But the real S1 didn't get dirty often either.....

I really like weathering. I also like the idea of adding scale couplers, but I don't have the ambition to do either.

I can weather to any degree that I want but I usually leave that to some Sci-Fi stuff that I do and restrict my weathering on my trains to a dusting on the trucks and then only occasionally.

I think that maybe subconsciously .... the cost of these O scale items has made me hesitant to weather them. Also, my very average skills would be more evident on them, than on my HO equipment.

But, I'm going to get over it ... and finally start.

I grew up with trains and 1/48 military models. the weathering just seemed required. however I believe it is harder to do a scale of gauge train versus something in home. just my opinion.

Weathering is a matter of choice.  I am a toy train guy and want everything to look like it just came from the paint shop on day 1.   I have seen weathering that looks good and other that is horrible.  A matter of choice.

RBOX is a rewarding car to do for customers. The 2 on my layout are shiny new as delivered in my 70’s modeling period.

Marty Fitzhenry posted:

Weathering is a matter of choice.  I am a toy train guy and want everything to look like it just came from the paint shop on day 1.   I have seen weathering that looks good and other that is horrible.  A matter of choice.

Yeah, I would fall into that second category, horrible. LOL! But SIRT, that Rail Box car is an excellent job!

scale rail posted:

Rustyrail, love the panel truck. Great idea having replaced used doors of another color. Don

Thanks for the compliment Don. I just try to make each vehicle into something no one has ever seen or had. That thing started out of the box new with Publix grocery stores printed down the side of it. I built it for a photo project that's coming up in a couple of weeks then I'll probably sell it.

While I think you guys do a great job weathering, I collect postwar classics and don't do it. My layout will also reflect that with a toy like appearance. Tinplate shiny buildings, etc.

I admire some of the "weathering talent" I see here and at running shows,  but I don't do it myself. I don't want my railroad to look like the "real railroad world", as cruddy and tagged-up as it really is. For decades, I was one of those people who didn't mind being stopped by a freight train at a crossing, because I could see the power and the freight car types/roads represented. I also did a lot of "railfanning" and photography. Now, everything is so full of graffiti and many trains have such a "uniform look" (unit trains) that I rarely go trackside. (The exception, of course, is a running steam locomotive.) I am stuck in a shiny version of the "50's. 

Recently completed freelance small 2-8-8-2 (very modified RK 2-8-8-2) painted in weathered black, not decaled as yet. The "weathered black" is Duplicolor automotive primer (Rustoleum also has a darker auto primer - almost, but not quite, black). This gives me a leg up on weathering  - if I do any more I'll use Bragdon's dry pigments (I dislike air brushes; I have one, have used it, but do not generally enjoy the process. Just me.)

I enjoyed doing this loco - it'll never run out of sand! RK tender was re-trucked; trailing truck is PW Lionel.

(Not weathering-relevant, but it has ERR Cruise Commander and Railsounds, remote coupler.)

I like to weather them when I have the time.  I don't have the time these days and I finally need a new airbrush after 25 years with my old one.

Custom Painted, heavily modified RK NE Caboose and an All Nation boxcar.  Both very heavily weathered.

Close up of the caboose.

Modified and custom painted C30-7 pretending to be a U34CH.  I wasn't as happy with the weathering on this one.

Just a little dusting of road dirt on the modified and custom painted F40PH

Light weathering on a PRR E6s

GG1 4840 and a photo of the real one where the CR was freshly stenciled on the side.

I guess I'm a 50-50 guy. I like the look of weathered track, buildings and structures, like water towers, barns, bridges, etc. and have done quite a few and purchased some. I also like to kit-bash and weather inexpensive pieces, like from Plasticville. 

On the other hand, I like the look of new and shiny engines and rolling stock. Weird ? 

I only have one weathered car done by Sirt, which I like very much. It is a wood freight car, which I enjoy more than rusted metal freight cars. There is something about the lightly weathered wood look vs rusted metal that appeals to me much more. For the majority of my freight I prefer a like new look. Since I am a big Postwar fan, looking as new as possible and being classic Postwar Lionel is my thing.

Sometimes the weathering is just enough to give the train a little more realism. This is a MTH Diecast Railking tank car. Not a lot of detail but kadee couplers added. 

Ray Marion

Nothing wrong with scale and pristine

SANTIAGOP23 posted:

Nothing wrong with scale and pristine

True, assuming your trains never run.

Hot Water posted:

SANTIAGOP23 posted:

Nothing wrong with scale and pristine

True, assuming your trains never run.

That's a bad assumption.  You can run scale trains without weathering.  It's what that person likes on his or her layout.  So...SantiagoP23...there is absolutely nothing wrong with running your trains scale and pristine.  Go for it!  Matt

I've found weathering to become less important to me nowadays.  I still may occasionally weather the odd freight car or two, but it's not very high on my list of things to do.

Unweathered rolling stock hasn't lessened my enjoyment of the hobby.

Rusty

Hot Water posted:

SANTIAGOP23 posted:

Nothing wrong with scale and pristine

True, assuming your trains never run.

Or he has a top shelf maintenance crew...

boin106 posted:

Hot Water posted:

SANTIAGOP23 posted:

Nothing wrong with scale and pristine

True, assuming your trains never run.

That's a bad assumption.  You can run scale trains without weathering.  It's what that person likes on his or her layout.  So...SantiagoP23...there is absolutely nothing wrong with running your trains scale and pristine.  Go for it!  Matt

OK then. How about we ask SANTIAGOP23, who I believe is a Professional Photographer, to post some of his fine photos of his layout with trains running?

My rolling stock weathering is representational of real-life cars and locomotives. My locos are a little more weathered than they were in real life, but not by a lot. The cars are weathered pretty well, but I don’t go what the local guys refer to as “Going all Malcolm Furlow” on them.

I liked how coach 23 turned out, being lightly weathered:

Here's a before-after:

Hot Water posted:

boin106 posted:

Hot Water posted:

SANTIAGOP23 posted:

Nothing wrong with scale and pristine

True, assuming your trains never run.

That's a bad assumption.  You can run scale trains without weathering.  It's what that person likes on his or her layout.  So...SantiagoP23...there is absolutely nothing wrong with running your trains scale and pristine.  Go for it!  Matt

OK then. How about we ask SANTIAGOP23, who I believe is a Professional Photographer, to post some of his fine photos of his layout with trains running?

Let him post them.  I'd like him to post them.  It doesn't mean they are not fine photos of running trains and layout just because you don't like them.  And...when he posts them...if you don't like them...don't look at them.  Everyone has their individual likes and dislikes about their layout.  So...run those pristine trains...you can you know.  

While I love seeing the work of many guys on here, my layout is much more toy like. I like bright, cheerful colors, and I am not too concerned with it being realistic. That would explain the cartoon characters, various Batmobiles, and King Kong.

Wow, it’s amazing I haven’t gone deaf from the sounds of all the splitting hairs around here.

So by not weathering, the trains aren’t… correct? OK, say someone weathers them, then what about the pesky third rail that CLEARLY isn’t to be found on a real railroad (except maybe a bog railway or some trolleys that run from a center powered rail)? The incredibly short distances between points on a layout? Ridiculously tight curves? Locomotives in paint jobs that never existed? Any layout, if you look long enough, will betray countless things you’d never see in real life. Yes, my layout too (especially since I model a 3-foot line in On30).

Hey, I’m not a big fan of ‘toy trains’ and I want my stuff to look as close to real life as I can make it (and still fit into the room, stay within my technical skills, and/or not bankrupt me), but it seems that hypocrisy meter is getting a strong workout from this thread!

To me it's not about being prototypical but rather just having fun taking something and let my imagination run free and seeing what I come up with. Here's some pieces I threw on the table and two days later this is what I ended up with. A tribute to the American farmer. I scratch built everything right down to the cow piles and loved every minute. Now that's quality time.

Ah, yes, weathering......In my HO club I am known as Mr Weathering but I don't weather my O scale trains.  Somehow my weathering seems to look more realistic in HO than in O.  I guess I am more interested in the model trains in O scale while I am more interested in model railroading in HO.  I guess there is no accounting for taste.  After all they are MY trains and that's how I like them.

Hot Water posted:

boin106 posted:

Hot Water posted:

SANTIAGOP23 posted:

Nothing wrong with scale and pristine

True, assuming your trains never run.

That's a bad assumption.  You can run scale trains without weathering.  It's what that person likes on his or her layout.  So...SantiagoP23...there is absolutely nothing wrong with running your trains scale and pristine.  Go for it!  Matt

OK then. How about we ask SANTIAGOP23, who I believe is a Professional Photographer, to post some of his fine photos of his layout with trains running?

I'm actually a painter, but thanks for the compliment. 

Here is my Q F3 being tested...

https://youtu.be/X-FBprYTCpE

Not sure I would refer to that as a "layout", but nice modeling in 2-Rail SCALE anyway.

N5CJonny posted:

I only have one weathered car done by Sirt, which I like very much. It is a wood freight car, which I enjoy more than rusted metal freight cars. There is something about the lightly weathered wood look vs rusted metal that appeals to me much more. For the majority of my freight I prefer a like new look. Since I am a big Postwar fan, looking as new as possible and being classic Postwar Lionel is my thing.

 

 

N5C - After I sold that car I tried to find another for myself. I really liked that car with old school milk cans which is now a rare SIRT Collectors item in the history books!

Glad you enjoy it!

Steve

The key here is not to actually weather things, but to make them as realistic as possible. This includes using weathering skills to help achieve this goal.  Way too many think just weathering things make it realistic.  Not true! You must do it accurately!!! To make it clear, rust makes it looks like junk if over-used!!! 

SIRT, your skills speak for themselves.  Nicely done for sure...

great thread to read on weathering. I am going to buy a few cars at York and give this a try.

We Hi-Railers will do this sort of thing; we're more shoot-from-the-hip, gonzo modelers than our "3-rail Scale" friends. But we do like 'em dirty, too.

A nearly completed project; I intend to flow a bit of thin black under those side grills for depth. Missed it before decaling; fooey.

MTH (modified MILW); Bragdon's weathering powders; running gear painted weathered black (OK, Duplicolor auto primer).

Awaiting my ERR upgrade kit order. I may lower the tanks one day, a bit.

Nice dirty windows, too: