In-ko-pah RR: The Mineral Ridge Mill

[Ray Dunakin]

It hasn't been painted yet, Marty.

[finescalerr]

I thought it would just weather and turn brown. Or maybe oxidize it with a chemical wash. But paint? -- Russ

[Ray Dunakin]

I'll be using Rustoleum's "Cold Galvanizing Compound", a spray paint that is basically zinc powder in clear acrylic. Gives things a very realistic galvanized metal look.

[finescalerr]

I'll be interested in the photos you post of the painted model. -- Russ

[lab-dad]

No worries Ray!
You've never let us down before!
mj

[Ray Dunakin]

After applying all the corrugated metal and giving it at least a couple days or more for the adhesive to dry, I washed it off to remove oily fingerprints, etc. As before, I sprayed it with oven cleaner, then rinsed it.

When it was dry I primed it with Rustoleum's "self-etching" primer. Then I gave it two coats of Rustoleum's "Cold Galvanizing Compound". Here's how it looks so far:








Still to come: Weathering the structure, adding exterior details, painting and installing the windows, etc. I also haven't built the sorting house yet, which goes on top of the ore bin.

.

[lab-dad]

Looks brand new!
Just curios; why did you do all that oven cleaner work to just cover it up?
Or am I missing something as usual?....
Mj

[artizen]

I am assuming the oven cleaner acts as an etch for the metal and cleans it ready for paint? Pretty nasty stuff to be using on a model!

[Ray Dunakin]

Ian is correct, the oven cleaner not only removes any grease (such as fingerprints), it also etches the brass slightly. The corrugated stuff flexes a lot due to temperature changes. On a previous structure had some problems with the paint flaking off the brass after while, so I wanted to take every measure possible to ensure a good bond.

[Chuck Doan]

So far so good.

[TRAINS1941]

Looks good to me.

Jerry

[finescalerr]

If you had trouble with paint before, why didn't you try a different coloring method (like chemical oxidation or etching)? Just curious about your reasoning. -- Russ

[Ray Dunakin]

Russ, I don't know of any other method to make brass look like zinc (galvanized metal), other than painting it. The problems I've had on a previous building were not what I would consider insurmountable. I've also had others that were fine.

So I think I just needed to make sure I got a really good paint bond, first by thoroughly cleaning it to remove fingerprints, and second by etching to give the brass a bit of "tooth", and third by using a good primer.

[Ray Dunakin]

Time for another update...

I've started putting together the sorting house on top of the ore bin. This small structure is the most complex part of the entire mill.

It will have Gn15" tracks entering it on two different levels, from two different directions, as well as one track exiting the building to a trestle for dumping waste rock. Part of the internal structure -- the upper tram dump and ore chute -- will extend above the peak of the roof. And the large tram openings, together with a pair of windows, make the interior fairly visible, so I have to model a lot of the interior details.

I wanted to apply the corrugated siding to a PVC substrate, as on the larger part of the mill. But I wanted to make it look like a wood-framed building. So I built the walls out of thinner, 3mm PVC and then added an interior framework made of styrene strips. When finished, the interior walls will be painted the same color as the corrugated metal siding, with "aged wood" color on the frame.

This shot shows the beginning of the construction. The four walls are assembled and a few of the interior frame pieces have been installed. You can see where the lower level tram enters the building on the right, and exits on the left. The small, triangular platform at the peak is where the upper level tram will come to dump its ore:




The next three shots show the current stage of construction. The upper level ore dump and chute have been built and temporarily installed, along with the necessary support timbers. Most of the frame has been applied to the interior of the walls, however there are some pieces still missing:








And just for fun, here are some pics I shot recently while running a train:








.

[TRAINS1941]

Looks great Ray.  Love the train going through there.

Jerry