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Post by lvrr325 on Nov 30, 2017 1:26:20 GMT -8
Seeing a photo in another post of a build blown apart for paint and the handrails were bright red, reminded me.
I picked up an Athearn RTR GP38-2 shell in Lehigh Valley cheap on eBay that was missing some of the plastic handrails. In sorting out stuff to see what I had to put it together, it got left on a table in the basement in front of a picture window (our basement backs to a yard because the lot is lower there).
Lo and behold, a few months later I notice the red color is just about gone from the handrails, they're now a very pale pink. I was a little surprised, I didn't expect them to not be colorfast.
So presumably if you have a set in a bright color and need to paint them, and have the time, leaving them exposed to sunlight for a while will fade them out also. I would also guess all of them may fade over time.
The window doesn't even get direct sun through it for very long, between the porch next to it and the generally southwest direction it faces. It never gets warm enough there to warp anything.
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Post by fr8kar on Nov 30, 2017 5:00:06 GMT -8
Interesting they aren't colorfast. I wouldn't have thought that either.
I have had good luck using Pactra RC car body paint on Athearn handrails. My LHS is primarily in the radio controlled vehicle business, so it's always been easy to get. Anyway, the stuff has a weird chemical smell and dries quickly but it stays on the handrails surprisingly well. Once you have the initial coat of paint on there, I imagine you could put your favorite color over it easily enough.
My personal favorite solution is to chuck the Athearn handrails and replace them with brass stanchions and wire, but I keep getting outbid on stanchions. It's like they're made of gold instead of brass...
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Post by steveturner on Nov 30, 2017 8:10:57 GMT -8
Nothing is color fast when it comes to sunlight , especially plastic in redish tones. I dare say if I left my window shades up in train room I would have all kinds of fading on the layout. Light fade out on layout or other items is important to keep in mind. On another note I have some red paint cabooses that have been in their boxes for years unopened and I noticed the other day color transfer to the thin plastic sheet at bottom of box where compressed to caboose.Caboose fine just this hew or transfer of paint color to plastic sheet touching, protecting caboose on lower side in box.I have noticed on some equipment red hand rails and parts plus those in orangy color can be translucent when produced. They just don't look a solid color. I think painted is better looking than molded in color. Steve
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Post by nsfantodd on Nov 30, 2017 18:03:20 GMT -8
Seeing a photo in another post of a build blown apart for paint and the handrails were bright red, reminded me. I picked up an Athearn RTR GP38-2 shell in Lehigh Valley cheap on eBay that was missing some of the plastic handrails. In sorting out stuff to see what I had to put it together, it got left on a table in the basement in front of a picture window (our basement backs to a yard because the lot is lower there). Lo and behold, a few months later I notice the red color is just about gone from the handrails, they're now a very pale pink. I was a little surprised, I didn't expect them to not be colorfast. So presumably if you have a set in a bright color and need to paint them, and have the time, leaving them exposed to sunlight for a while will fade them out also. I would also guess all of them may fade over time. The window doesn't even get direct sun through it for very long, between the porch next to it and the generally southwest direction it faces. It never gets warm enough there to warp anything. I've wonder if anyone has used UV light in a controlled manner to fade a model's paint? Years ago, I put an Athearn 5344 box car shell on top of a fence post to see if it would fade. It Never did...and I left it out there in the rain and sun for 7 or 8 months. I actually think it was closer to a year, I kept forgetting it was out there. So it didn't work for me. Todd |
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Post by Deleted on Nov 30, 2017 19:42:48 GMT -8
In large scale they use paint additives for outside use, but even then the stuff fades and cracks etc.
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Post by lvrr325 on Dec 1, 2017 21:34:51 GMT -8
If you painted a model with the Rustoleum 2x coverage spray paint and left it exposed for a long enough time, some of those colors will fade. But it's a slow process.
The rest of the shell looks fine, just that section of rail that was topside has faded.
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Post by Judge Doom on Dec 2, 2017 4:37:34 GMT -8
For models it's more an issue with coloured injected plastic parts rather than a loco's paint. I have a few P2K FA2 and GP30's where the red fans and roof plastic bits have faded somewhat, but the painted body etc still looks great.
Lego also comes to mind, as there have been issues with "brick fade" of the plastic blocks when left out by a window for long periods of time, most notably with whites turning yellow (the same thing with white plastic computer equipment turning yellow over time due to UV exposure).
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