MDC/ROUNDHOUSE locomotive rebuilds

[doctorwayne]

From what I've seen in photographs, most, if not all, CNR locomotives used an oil/graphite mixture on both the smokebox and firebox. Depending on the amount of each component, the appearance, when first applied could look somewhat silver due to the graphite content. However, once those areas got hot, the colour could change markedly - to various shades of grey, reddish-brown, or almost black.
I use several colours to paint my steamers, all based on black slightly lightened by the addition of some other colours. Lightening the black somewhat is more-or-less the first step in the weathering process, the majority of which will be done after painting and lettering has been completed.

The colour names used in these formulae are for Floquil or PollyScale paints (both discontinued) but you can simply substitute with whatever black, brown, grey, etc. colours are offered by your favourite brand of paint: for example, Roof Brown, Rail Brown, and Tie Brown are all different colours in the Floquil line, but any of them would give reasonable results in the formulae shown below. I'm also not too fussy on the proportions, adding each ingredient "by-eye" into a clean paint bottle.

Here are the paint proportions which I use:

CAB & TENDER:

5 parts Engine Black
1 part Roof Brown
1 part Grey Primer

BOILER, SMOKEBOX FRONT, & APPLIANCES:

3 parts of the Cab & Tender colour shown above
1 part Roof Brown
1 part Grey Primer

SMOKEBOX & FIREBOX:

1 part Engine Black
3 parts Roof Brown
1 part Grey Primer
Plus a little Reefer Orange and/or Caboose Red to suit

FRAME & RUNNING GEAR:

4 parts Engine Black
1 part Roof Brown
1 part Platinum Mist (a not-too-shiny-silver)

Here's CNR 3254 at Steamtown. The smokebox is various colours, although the lighter portions near the front and below the feedwater heater bundle may be the oil/graphite colour. The rest of it is considerably darker, mostly due to soot and cinders along with condensed steam from the stack, which causes the streakiness:



Here's a front view:



Notice that the smokebox front is the same light grey, which indicates that it was finished in the same manner as the rest of the smokebox. It may be oil and graphite but could also be paint. Most in-service CNR locomotives which I've seen in photos usually have the smokebox front painted the same colour as the boiler. However, this could vary, depending on where the locomotive was shopped.

This is CNR 6060, shown in regular passenger service in the mid-'70s:



The smokebox front is sheathed with a sheet metal nose cone, and is painted to match the boiler, while the smokebox itself is a greyish brown - certainly not silver, but perhaps it's been some time since it was treated to the oil/graphite mixture.

The firebox on this one is lagged (insulated), so the lagging has been painted similar to the boiler. It has picked up a little more road dust, though, so the colour isn't quite identical to that of the boiler - this effect is best done with weathering:



Here's one of my Athearn Mikados, painted using the formulae listed above, and weathered fairly lightly:



A recently-shopped CNR Ten Wheeler:



These Bachmann Ten Wheelers were painted based on the CNR practice of the smokebox front using the same paint as the boiler, even though the lighting makes the boiler look lighter:



A well-maintained 4-8-2...



While it's readily apparent that several colours have been used, I think that none stand out unduly, since they've all been mixed from the same colours, albeit in different proportions.

Finally, another well-cared-for CNR locomotive. Note the painted smokebox front, and the firebox similar in colour to the balance of the smokebox:



You can vary the colour mixes as you wish, of course, but my advice is to not paint the smokebox or firebox the same colour as the boiler. The effect of heat on those areas is part of the locomotive's over-all weathering and establishing those colours during painting rather than later, when weathering, should add to the realism of the finish.

If you want to mix a graphite colour, start with black, then lighten it a bit with grey, and add a not-too-metalic-looking silver. You'll have to experiment with the proportions, so I suggest using a brush for the initial experiments to determine the proportions needed of each. For instance, on a clean, non-porous surface, add 5 drops (or brushloads) of black, 2 of grey, and 3 of silver, then mix it using the same brush and paint a swatch of it on another non-porous surface. When it's dry, you should have a good idea of what colour adjustments are needed: perhaps the original mix, but with an extra 2 drops or brushloads of silver. Doing rough mixes in this manner saves paint (most of which is too expensive) and once you have a little practice, chances are that any colour mixing will become more instinctive than the initial hope-for-the-best attitude with which most of us begin.

Wayne