Some locos, some cars, some structures. And then there are all the to-do list ones which I plan to do, but....
I don't. My outdoor stuff we are constantly cleaning. I got four big boxes of (rare, vintage, collectible) Half Zero stuff a number of years ago for free....used I don't know how much Polly S paint and decal remover and two boxes of Q-tips and seemingly hundreds of hours taking that carp off.
I should say that when I do "weather" it is generally lightly done. I want to impart a used but cared well for appearance. Not the modern day neglected and beaten to death junk look.
I try NOT to have every car or locomotive look like it just came out of the paint shop. Talk about 'unrealistic'...
I weather everything. So, I don't know how to answer the poll. Should be one more category - me thinks. It seems if a modeler is inclined to weather - he/she weathers everything, freight cars, locomotives, structures, rail and streets. (I lean toward the lighter side, when it comes to weathering) Just my 2 pennies worth, Wolf
I have not started that process yet. I will once I'm at least 90% done with the layout, I will give it a try.. I wont do heavy weathering, just enough to take the shine off. I have purchased a few used cars that have some weathering on them but I wont do the "already for the scrap yard look".
Structures and freight equipment get weathered from heavy to light. I keep my passenger fleet pretty clean. Maybe the trucks and roofs get a little on my passenger diesel locomotives.
I have weathered or "aged" some structures for a few years. I did several in 2014 with pan pastels before I packed them in anticipation of a move. I also wrapped them in newspaper with the hope some of the ink with added to the weathering process. I have purchased a few weathered MTL cars, but not done any nor have I done any locomotives.
Lat Lattimore was in failing health when I completed my N scale model of his barn and showed it to him. He had not known I was building the model, but when he saw it, he recognized I had photographed his building during an NMRA Lone Star Region tour. At that time, he had repainted just the front of the building facing the street, and started on one side, but stopped to concentrate on getting his layout in the loft ready to show. He told me there had been a lean-to against one end of the barn, when animals could eat in a trough from feed that came out of little doors. He said he had forgotten that he lean-to had been there yearws before, but he recognized where it had been from the pattern in the fading of the old original paint job. I had attempted to duplicate that pattern from photos without knowing what it meant.
All right, I'll admit it. Some of this is weathering, but some is just sitting around collecting dust. Modified Minitrix.
But...even if the whole train ran thru a wash rack...the only thing coming off is loose dirt. You would still have....faded paint, chipped paint, rust, scratches, dings, dents etc. etc.. No amount of washing will fix any of that !