Blue genes…

Not the Blur song, rather the Kadee 50ft box car that I bought right back at the rebirth of my Canadian adventure in 2020. This example was a wonderful model but it’s bright blue paint has meant I’ve put off weathering it, not because of a fear of ‘ruining’ it, rather unsure how to deal with the colour itself…

You see blue is a tricky one to get right. Often any weathering probably needs to start with the colour used by the manufacturer in the original paint job on the model. As blue fades it changes, and I find this more noticeable in some ways than greys, blacks, brown or reds. It can go chalky, it can go grey, turquoise even. In this case the blue used but Kadee was a touch too bright but the shade looked right to me and so I decided to risk a wash of Humbrol 64, quite a cool grey, normally I’d have used a warmer tone but I had a feeling this might work. It did, leaving a mottled and faded body to work from. Left to harden for 24 hours I’ve revisited with a wash based on Humbrol 33 and 98, wiped off and then choreographed around the hinges and door based on photos of the real car. Although the model needs a dusting of airbrushed road dirt along the lower edges it’s gone back into service, for now, and I sent a few photos to my good friend across the Atlantic, Chris Mears…

Isn’t it amazing how “right” this scene looks?

Blue is a funny colour to read weathering on. I wonder if that’s a function of how we interpret colour? Like how the eye sees blue as a component of other colours?

Chris touches on something here, rather elegantly describing my thoughts on blue. Yes, despite it being a primary colour I think the way it fades into components of other colours does change the way we work with it. Painting models in the ‘true’ factory paint scheme often leads to models rendered too dark and in low contrast on a layout, I prefer to mix my own shades from photos, where the effects of light, distance and atmospheric pollution picture a colour to aim for, and work into a multi layered weathering. I enjoy reworking and weathering these models, but I really must get on with ground work again on Beaverbrook. This corner is crying out for some grass, scrub and road signs. Until next time, more soon…