After final assembly I used a rust colored primer to paint the model.  I decided that the color was close enough and used a wash of light gray to pick out the mortar.  In this case I made the wash using about a 50/50 mix of water and paint (I used delta ceramcote as recommended in the instructions). After painting all of the surfaces with the mixture I let it dry completely.  I then used a rag (old t-shirt) to rub across the surface of the model, taking the paint from the bricks and leaving it in the mortar lines.

Here is the view of the other side of the building.  I still need to paint the fieldstone at the top portion of the wall.  I painted the surfaces black to provide the correct base for my “rock” texture.

After doing a little research I found a couple of different techniques, the best of which I found on the NMRA website.  This technique was to paint the walls a brick color, using an airbrush.  Once that had dried I mixed up a batch of watered down white paint.  I brushed this over the wall, covering about one third of the wall.

After allowing it to dry for about one minute I used a rag (an old T shirt) and wiped off the majority of the paint.  This had the affect of removing the white paint off the bricks, leaving the white in the mortar lines.  I was  very pleased with the look, especially considering how quick and easy it was.  Here is the picture of the results:

As you can see it is very bright, but I intend to airbrush and use chalk to complete the look.

I recently started working on a plastic model, the Bakery from ConCor.  It is a rather simple kit, representing a brick building with large windows.  I chose this building since it looks similar to many of the old commercial buildings around Oakland, CA.

I was rather surprised upon opening the box and finding a model molded in a shiny dark blue, and the detail parts in a bright green.  I almost gave up right there, until I looked a little closer and noticed the fine detail molded into the walls of the kit.  I quickly cleaned the parts and assembled them in the magnetic jig, as shown in the last post.  Here is a picture of the assembled walls in the jig:

After using a solvent type glue to assemble the major parts of the model I primed the building inside and out, using a gray primer.  My first attempt at painting the brick was to drybrush the brick color directly over the primer, with rather poor results (still kinda blue).

After this rather poor result I went to the internet for ideas to paint the bricks.  I visited the NMRA website for ideas, which I will discuss in the next post.

Here the various sub assemblies are put together on the base I cut out of scrap plywood.  In this picture you can see that I have constructed and installed the front dock and the back porch, the only major change I made was in putting another ramp on the near end of the dock.  I have yet to finish weathering the back porch.  The dock was weathered using various pastel chalks, similar to what I did on the floor of the building.

Also in this picture is the foundation which the office rests on.  For the desired effect I started with a dark gray and dry-brushed two lighter colors of gray on top.  I touched up the highlights with a final light dry-brush of white.

This picture shows the front view, a little bit further on.  Notice that I have put some of the doors in place, and the cardstock for the roof.  In hindsight it would have probably been better to build the sub roof using scale lumber, as you can see the edges of the cardstock under the corrugated metal roofing.  I set the side door part way open, with someone standing in it to add life to the building.

The first step, after drooling while looking at the box picture, is to unload the box and make sure that all of the parts are inside. Here is a picture of the contents of Fryxell Feed & Seed:

After verifying that all the pieces are accounted for, identify each of the pieces.  Carefully cut out the window and door openings – I found that multiple light cuts with an x-acto knife worked the best for me (an attempt with a small wood chisel led to splitting, the knife did not).  I used one of the window frames to verify the opening size and used a jeweler’s file to make adjustments as needed.

Once all of the window and door openings were cut out, I primed the walls inside and out.  After allowing time for the primer to dry I then brushed on a couple of splotches of rubber cement on each wall (outside only).  Make sure to get the cement on the areas that would be natural for peeling paint on a building, usining pictures of real buildings to help with locations.  After the cement has dried (I waited overnight, but an hour would most likely be enough) I painted the walls with the final color, using as many coats as needed.  You can see the cement from the shiny spots in the picture:The final step, after the topcoat has completely dried, is to use tape and stick it to the patches of rubber cement.  Pealing the tape off will take the outer layer with it creating the desired effect (repeat as needed for the desired effect).  I used blue painter’s tape, but have heard of people using duct tape.