Boomville 2.0; Unorthodox paint test on the shop rap up & action pics.

[geboom]

Unorthodox paint test on the shop.

With the building of “Boomville 2.0” well on its way I wanted to start painting one of the buildings.
I got some interesting painting tips from you but I had this crazy idea on my mind all along.
A gamble and it might well turn out to be a total failure but I simple had/have to try this.

For this test I used the “shop”.
This is the most simple building of the lot and if my attempt fails I can rebuild the shop easily within a weekend.

If my idea does work well then I might have come up with a technique that I modestly would call revolutionary. (sounds quite dramatic)

Early this morning I started a small test. I took a piece of wood, an old toothbrush, and shoe-polish.
Once I got this piece done had a cup of coffee and inspected the piece.
It didn't feel greasy or sticky and after rubbing my fingers over it I still had clean fingers.



I hate shopping and I hate shoe stores even more.
Guess it has to do with the ladies in the family that always seem to need more shoes and can stay for hours in these kind of shops.
Well today I had no reason for complaining I needed shoe-polish in colours that go well with the Wild West theme.
As you can see I got some nice colours and tested them all out.
Always wandered why we kept the old toothbrushes, I'm happy we did.



I hesitated a lot but I finally started to molest the shop with shoe-polish.
So far I used dark brown, grey and green and after applying the polish I used a steel brush to make the woodwork look a bit more shabby, old, worn down.





The test is on its way and I hope to finish the shop this weekend.
You might not like this method and you might not like the way looks at the moment.
Most important for me is to experiment with this material and see what I can do with it.

Please feel free to comment. I am very interested in your opinion.

Update follows asap.

Cheers,

=========

Today I finished the shoe-polish test on the outside of the shop.

It was an interesting test but I am not sure about the result and for me it doesn't feel.... right.
I will use the inside of the shop for future paint tests and skip the shoe-polish for now.

Thanks for the feedback and maybe this technique works for some of you.
Thanks Heisler for you extensive en thorough reply.
Below you see the final result.
 






Already started on rebuilding the shop and while doing so I will build a series of 3 houses in more or less the same size.

This afternoon we played 3 games of “Fist Full of Lead”.
The game is a lot of fun and we played a lot in the houses as well.
All the houses are truly player friendly. Guess this also has to do with the ease you can take levels off and put them back on.
Playing in the casino is a bit more work due to its size.

While playing I found out that I need to make some modifications on the hotel.
I was cornered and needed a hatch that wasn't there. So I will add that for sure.
Playing in the basic and medium sized buildings is a lot of fun.
This is the reason I redo the shop (a better one) and add another pair of  similar size houses.

Some pics of our shoot-outs this afternoon.












Cheers,

Geboom.

[Vanvlak]

Looks very good actually, and very nicely worn too.
I'd guess it works on wood as it can absorb some of the cream.
Would've never thought of this.
I'd add a light (or heavy) sand drybrush, to provide dust, but as it is it's ingenious.
 

[Johnno]

Looks good to me.
Probably much easier to achieve a weathered look than several layers of paint.

[moonshado]

Looks very effective and you have a nice palette of colours to pick from. Any idea how this will kind of coating will last? Do the colours fade over time? Does the colour come off on your hands to any great extent when the buildings are handled?

[Mason]

To be honest my first thought, looking at the first 'coloured-in' picture, was: 'NO!'

Looking at the second picture changed my mind.
I think it looks pretty good, and with a few little washes and a grey drybrush they should come up a treat.

Keep going, sir.
I would like to see the finished effect.
 

[Ramirez Noname]

As Mason said "keep going"..

The test pieces have produced some interesting results. Looking forward to seeing a fully decorated version of one of your fantastic buildings 

RMZ

[Elbows]

I think it looks pretty darn good...as long as it doesn't sweat, leak or stick (good rule of thumb for life I support..) I'd rock it. Of course I live in South Carolina in the states which is essentially a swamp.  I know the Netherlands has some rather dismal swampy bits.  I hope high humidity doesn't affect it. Anxious to see the end result.

[FifteensAway]

Nice and should work.  This medium has been used in the craftsman level of model railroading, though I don't think on the scale you are setting out to attempt.  I'm guessing it should work out okay since it sounds like you are using a "dry toothbursh" method of application.  I think the real challenge might be sealing the final product without damaging the inner core styrodur.  Guess that means brush on sealer.  I, too, wonder how the long term hold up will turn out.

[d phipps]

I really like how this turned out. The weathered green in the bottom pic looks great! 

[Heisler]

Nice and should work.  This medium has been used in the craftsman level of model railroading, though I don't think on the scale you are setting out to attempt.  I'm guessing it should work out okay since it sounds like you are using a "dry toothbursh" method of application.  I think the real challenge might be sealing the final product without damaging the inner core styrodur.  Guess that means brush on sealer.  I, too, wonder how the long term hold up will turn out.

Exactly right, model railroaders used this technique for years. Your product may be different from what is available in the US. Shoe polish in the US is usually alcohol based which means that if you intend to seal it with a spray-on enamel based matt coat make sure its really, really dry or it will frost. I have pulled a response on one of my model railroad forums that might provide some insight.

This was written by Craig Bisgeier, you can find his model railroad website at: http://www.HousatonicRR.com I highly recommend taking a look at his site.

"Actually most if not all shoe dyes are alcohol-based, since water affects the
leather surface of a shoe poorly.

Having now used alcohol shoe dyes extensively for scenic work, i can recommend a
few things about it:

A little bit goes a LONG way. It is highly saturated with color straight out of
the bottle, and for our purposes (wood stain) it needs to be diluted -- a LOT.
Start at 1:20 to 1:50 dye:alcohol mix if not more.

I had a couple of fresh 6 oz. bottles of dye, one black and one brown, when we
got started dyeing the stripwood for my pier. I asked a friend to start working
on the dyeing before I was able to mix the proper stain strength, and he
misunderstood my instructions. Long story made short, he mixed both bottles of
dye with a quart of 70% rubbing alcohol (about a 1:3 ratio) and it was like it's
strength wasn't even touched. We have enough dye now to finsh my pier, every
piece of stripwood I'll ever place on my layout, and everyones elses' piers in
my local modeling group (at least three piers). We won't be running out anytime
soon.

We use a number of different dye application methods; brush, soaked paper towel,
catton balls. Brush and paper towels seem to work best. The brush is faster
but paper towels are best when you need a lot of control. You can also just
dunk the stripwood in the container if thet strips are small enough and blot
with paper towels. I use a wire drying rack to let the strips dry on overnight
after dyeing. Cotton balls are poor because they leave fluffy stained bits on
the edges of the stripwood. But sometimes they are good for dabbing spots.

Oh-- hey, use rubber gloves and a smock, this stuff even when diluted is a major
staining force, it will soak right into your hands and clothes and can't be
washed off. You'll thank me later.

It can be hard to find but most shoe repair stores carry it or can get it.
Problem is there aren't many shoe repair stores around anymore.

For me, the stain wasn't really enough, I needed to hit all my stripwood again
with a very light wash of gray acrylic craft paint (Delta Ceramcoat) to get that
weathered gray color onto it. Applied pretty much the same way as the dye, it
goes on very thinly, and you have to stop before you think it is right because
it lightens and becomes more opaque when it is dry. The delta paint is thinned
with water, not alcohol.

Hope this helps."

Craig Bisgeier
Clifton, NJ
 

[FifteensAway]

Nice to see the action shots.  Hope our comments about the shoe polish method didn't put you off of the idea.  I think your shop came out looking fine, especially like the distressed effect on the sign.  It is a challenging medium, though.

I've posted this before but I invite you to take a look - if you haven't already - at the photos on my blog of Bodie, CA, a real, live 'ghost' town.  Might help with ideas on how to treat the color applications on your spectacular buildings.  Here is the link:

http://steeplechasingzebras.blogspot.com/p/buildings.html

Do keep in mind that these colors only work if you go for the aged look, really aged in this case.  I like the idea of seeing your town all dressed up in its newness and expectantly awaiting the vast crowds that are "sure" to come; that fits so well with the name Boomville.

[EndTransmission]

The colours look really good, but it does look like the recommendation to thin the stuff down is a good one as your brush bristles look to be too thick to go into some of the crevices, leaving very bright white wood showing through in places. This is especially noticeable on the dark brown areas.

If light bits are to show through, they are more likely to be on the exposed areas, rather than the recessed parts as this is where the wood will flake off.

[Elbows]

I do thinking taking a normal small brush with some wash or dye and simply "touching up" the small intricate pieces would work out fine. 

[Mason]

I have to say that I think it would look better with a couple of washes applied and then a drybrush.
The washes would add depth and get into those fiddly little nooks and crannies too.
 

Not sure how shoe polish will react to washes, though....

Those pics of your game look great, and I feel that I have to say that that is one brave Mexican!
 

[Heisler]

A water based wash, either acrylic paint or inks should be fine. An alcohol base or enamel wash might make the color run.