Hello-I am working on an Athearn Blue Box GP38-2. I am going to paint it as a local train here in Clearwater FL, a CSX "street runner". I am a bit confused as to what goes on the trucks side frames. The Athearn instructions show a brake cylinder on the front of the side frame and a strut on the back, this is the front truck left side. It doesn't show the other frames. I have seen images with the brake cylinder and strut on front and rear side plates left side BUT just brake cylinders on both front and rear wheel on the right side. Or to simplify it a brake and strut on left side trucks and just brake cylinders on the right side 4 places. Hope that's not too confusing. What is the correct set up? Thanks -John
It might vary by unit too. Choose a specific road number to work off of while you build your model and gather photos of it to make sure you are as accurate as possible. I picked a random GP38-2 on RRPictureArchives: it which had a brake cylinder on the left side of each sideframe. (leading axle has a damper on the engineer side and trailing axle has a damper on the fireman side). That goes for both trucks. Some may not have any dampers, which might explain your second photo.
Thanks, so far the unit I want to build has pictures of the left side only but I will continue to search. I positively know the left side set up at least!-John
Like those built with trucks from trade-ins. Also, the first GP38-2s built for CN (with the standard cab) didn't have the damping struts. The second batch, with the new CN safety cab, had the struts. Detail variations are infinite, and as mentioned above, you need to focus on one particular engine/road number and use that as a model. Or choose the one that mostly corresponds to what you have already, and fill in the rest.
I found the right side picture. It goes like this-left side-front truck-brake-strut.....rear truck-brake strut right side-front truck-strut-brake....rear truck-strut-brake. The sides are not mirrored, they are opposite if you can follow that.-John
Yeah. From whatever side of truck you are looking at, the brake cylinder is always on the left. I think that is correct for units with the damper.
Yes, that is what the pictures show, facing the trucks the brake cylinder is on the left side. Thanks-John
I have another question. The body I am using was decorated by Athearn. I was told they do "pad printing" a lot. What is that and will these markings cover with paint? I am going to mask and paint the roof white, the nose and rear yellow and the body a lighter blue. Will these markings not show through like decals would? I have never painted a decorated shell.-John
Pad printing is basically like a stamp. That is how most model companies do logos and numbering these days. Decals on the other hand are printed on a sticky clear sheet which is applied to the model. Pad printing is more professional, but it cannot be done by regular modelers without specialized industrial equipment. Whether or not it is visible under new paint is determined by a few factors. Older pad printing is thicker and may actually have a thickness you can feel. If you are using an airbrush to repaint it, the layer of new paint may be thin enough that old stuff shows through. That is why it is important to keep glue and contaminants off the surface. What brand paint are you using? The contrast between the white and blue may be enough that the new color on top does not look uniform. If you are repainting the entire unit a different color, why not just strip the paint and start with bare plastic? That way you are not layering up too much paint. Having paint on paint on paint over time will bury smaller details and make the lines look less crisp. Most people prime their models with a neutral base coat (grey or black). You may need to do this, although with some brands of paint you can get away with not priming the model. In all honesty, I would strip the paint. Take for example the nose - it has Mo-Pac blue, a pad printed eagle logo, you will paint it CSX yellow, it will get another nose decal, gloss clear, and flat clear. By stripping the model, you remove 2 or three layers of paint in that section. Isopropyl alcohol is the general go-to paint stripper for most models. It takes a few hours and is not that expensive. It will give you a clean slate to start with and you can be assured that the old paint will not cause issues.
Thanks, I have isopropyl alcohol 71% and 90%. How do you do this? Soak the shell in a container with alcohol? I have only stripped chrome off of parts with oven cleaner, never stripped paint. I think also I need to remove the cab window first? Thanks for your help.-John
It looks like you took everything apart already, which is good. 90% isopropyl will take the paint off in a few hours. Get a cheap container (tupperware, food container, really anything that fits the locomotive shell) and submerge the shell in the alcohol. Come back later with a toothbrush and scrub; the paint should come right off. I also like to use a toothpick or something to clean out the small details like grills and door latches. Sometimes it takes longer around lettering and logos because there are more layers of paint, but Athearn models generally clean up very well. That will give you a bare plastic shell, a perfectly clean starting point for your new paint scheme. You will be happy you took the time to do this, you'd be surprised how often old paint becomes a problem later on in a project. Be wary about leaving it in for too long. Usually it is not an issue, but sometimes leaving it isopropyl for a day or two can make the plastic more brittle. I think this might have been an issue with some Kato models though. Athearn Blue Box models have a reputation as being sturdy and good starting points for super detailing. There is a ton online about building Athearn models if you wanted more information.
Thanks, this is my last paint job, an Athearn undecorated GP9 shell done with Tamiya TS rattle can paints which are lacquer. No primer was used. I masked and did the black then masked and did the blue. When that dried I gloss coted and decaled. I am currently waiting for the rails as the old ones were brittle and broke.-John
I just took the railings out of the vinegar bath. There were some almost all rust and some almost clean. I put them in a Tupperware box with a lid and just covered them with white distilled vinegar for 3 to 4 hours. They came out decent, may need a little light sanding.-John
That looks killer. I'm a big fan of Tamiya paints too. I use some of their small bottles in my airbrush, but I have never used any of the spray cans. If they made railroad-specific paint, they would be, no-contest, my go-to.
Thanks, I lucked out as when I won the GP9 on E Bay as it came with laser cut windows. They work most EXCELLENT!-John
I soaked it for 3 hours in 90% isopropyl alcohol then scrubbed it with a tooth brush and washed in warm water and dish detergent. I looks almost like a crazed finish. Did the original paint eat at the plastic? I know lacquer paint has a "bite" to it. Any ideas? The pad printing did not come completely off.-John
