Airbrushing 101

If there's one bit of advice I would give to a new model railroader, I think right near the top of the list would be "Learn to use an airbrush."  It's one of those skills that, once you've acquired it, you can't imagine how you ever did without it. It's undoubtedly one of the best modeling tools to have in your arsenal.

For the first almost 30(!) years in the hobby, I feared the airbrush. But, thanks to my friend Ralph Renzetti, I've overcome my fear by using his foolproof tools and techniques. On his recommendation, I've also devoured Boomer Diorama's airbrushing how-to videos. Ralph cribbed heavily off of Boomer in developing these easy techniques to get you consistently good results.

In this quick (I promise!) post, I'll cover the 4 main things you need to know to start airbrushing successfully today!

1. Airbrush
2. Paint
3. Technique
4. Cleanup

Airbrush - Badger Patriot 105

At first glance, a double-action, internal mix airbrush may seem like an odd recommendation for a beginner, but trust me, once you get used to it, the control you get from a double-action can't be beat.

Most importantly, a double-action allows you to blow just air without paint, and gradually add paint to the airstream. This is critical to minimizing - if not eliminating - tip dry, which will cause your paint to come out splotchy. Blowing air before and after paint will keep the airbrush from clogging and will keep it cleaner during painting. I'll get into the proper technique below.

Paint - Tamiya Acrylics (X and XF)

Tamiya acrylic paint, thinned 50:50 with 91% isopropyl alcohol, shot at 12-15psi with a double-action airbrush will result in just about foolproof results. Tamiya acrylic is very forgiving and can be thinned with a variety of thinners, from Tamiya's own brand of thinner, to water, to lacquer, to IPA. I prefer the IPA since it's easily available and produces consistent results. It also "cleans" the airbrush while you paint.

Trigger Technique - Down & Back/Forward & Up

• Press down the trigger to shoot air;
• Keeping the trigger pressed down, pull back on the trigger to shoot paint;
• When done painting, push trigger forward to shoot straight air again (clearing the nozzle);
• Lift up on the trigger to stop the airflow.

This basic technique will just ensure that you have airflow before and after paintflow (as well as during, of course). Keeping that airflow before and after paint will keep the airbrush from clogging and keep paint from drying at & clogging the tip (the dreaded "tip dry"). Tamiya acrylic paint, thinned as recommended and shot at 12-15 psi, works especially well with this technique.

Painting Technique - Start Paint Before the Model/Stop Paint After the Model

Hold the tip of the airbrush about 3-5" away from the model, off of one end. Start shooting air, moving toward the surface of the model, pulling back on the trigger to apply paint before you reach the beginning of the model. Move steadily as you apply paint across the surface of the model, and as you move past the end of the model, push the trigger forward to stop the paint flow, then lift up on the trigger to stop the airflow.

You should see the paint apply wet and then "dry" almost right away. Overlap your passes to get complete, even coverage.

This basic airbrush painting technique will admittedly take the most practice to master, but using the airbrush/paint/triggering combo I outline above will give you LOTS of leeway and room for error. Practice really is the key. Get some old newspapers, hang them up on a wall, and practice, Practice, PRACTICE.

Trust me, you WILL get the hang of it pretty quickly!

Cleanup

 

1. Dump remaining paint from color cup & wipe out cup.
2. Fill cup halfway with isopropyl alcohol (IPA - I use 70% for cleaner, to save my 91%).
3. Swish with an old, soft paintbrush, cleaning the inside of the cup.
4. Dump cup.
5. Repeat steps 2-4.
6. Fill cup halfway with IPA.
7. "Backwash" by stopping the tip with a paper towel/cloth and shooting IPA. The IPA won't come out of the tip, but will cause air to "backwash" back into the cup. You'll see it bubbling.
8. Spray out contents of cup - preferably into a cleaning station.
9. Repeat steps 7-8.
10. Wipe out cup.
11. Remove needle, wipe clean with a paper towel wet with IPA.
12. Add lube to needle (Badger "Regdab" needle juice or equivalent lube).
13. Replace needle.

To change between colors, I either just spray clean IPA until the airbrush sprays clean, or - to be extra careful - I do an abbreviated version of the above (same steps, but no repeating steps).

Final Thoughts

That's really all there is to it!

• Definitely experiment - Start by familiarizing yourself with the airbrush, just shooting water and grooving the trigger technique. 
• Experiment with different thinning ratios - you almost can't go wrong with Tamiya acrylics thinned with IPA. For example, I use a 1:9 ratio of paint to IPA for my fades.
• Experiment with different air pressures too.

That all said, I have to admit that I haven't varied much at all from the above. It works for me and I get good, consistent results. Try it yourself and I bet you get great results too!

As always, be sure to let me know how you do - and if you have any questions I can try to answer - in the comments below!

Wordless Wednesday #509 - Did You Ever See A Mountain Blush?

 

Happy October!

from Liberty Magazine, October 1946

Ah October! The best - or at least one of the best - months of the year. At least it's one of my favorites.

And if you live in New England, it's certainly the most colorful of months - and right smack dab in the middle of my favorite season: Autumn! It's also the shortest season - since I only count when the leaves have erupted in full color, my favorite season lasts only a few weeks. Anything before that is "late summer" and anything after that is "early winter."

But for now, I look forward to enjoying the shushing of leaves, the smell of wood smoke in the air, the taste of a warm cup of apple cider by the fire. And it wouldn't be a bad thing if I spend some more time in the basement on the layout as well in the coming weeks - after all, it's always Autumn on the Valley Line!

Wordless Wednesday #508 - Trackside Photo, Model Railroader, October 2025

 

On the New Haven Railroad 84 Years Ago - Cycle Trains

 (Ok - so this post has nothing to do with the Valley Line, and I post it on this day every year, but I include it because it gives me a chance to combine my two primary passions: the New Haven Railroad & bicycling.  It's also an absolutely wonderful window into the past - a veritable time machine, a trip down Memory Lane despite the fact that you're viewing it on a computer or tablet. So, turn back the pages of history and get a little glimpse of what life was like in New England on the New Haven Railroad on the eve of World War II, 84 years ago today . . .click to cue the music) 

September 28, 1941 was a Sunday. An early autumn day in Southern New England, clear and mild.

World War II had been raging in Europe for exactly two years this month.  The German army had advanced into the Soviet Union over the summer and was riding high on the success of having already conquered most of Western Europe.  France had just been split into German-occupied and Vichy zones the previous month.

It wasn't learned until much later that at some point in the days leading up to September 28, 1941, there was an important meeting concerning Nazi Germany's capacity to develop nuclear weapons.  We thought the atomic age didn't start until four years later.

We didn't yet have to "Remember Pearl Harbor."

On this particular Sunday, the Japanese were celebrating the 10 year anniversary of occupying China's northeast territory of Manchuria.  At some point during that same day, perhaps as some sign of heaven's outrage at such an audacious celebration, the sun was blacked out during a total eclipse visible in most of China - from just northeast of the Black Sea to the Pacific ocean.

Just three weeks earlier, the Japanese government assured President Roosevelt that it had "no imperialist designs on any foreign nation."

Britain had survived the Blitz, which ended the previous May - the same month Glenn Miller first recorded "Chattanooga Choo Choo" which was featured in a hit movie starring Sonja Henie.  "Blue Champagne" by the Jimmy Dorsey Orchestra was the #1 song of the land on September 28, but the Henie movie, "Sun Valley Serenade," was released to theaters exactly a month earlier.  By then "Chattanooga Choo Choo" was already a top ten on the Hit Parade, well on its way to becoming the first gold record ever the following February.  It was the nation's #1 hit by that December.

Bobby-soxers fed the voracious appetite of juke boxes across the country one nickel at a time and made Frank Sinatra the top male vocalist that year.

Families had probably gone to church that Sunday morning in Connecticut, though some navy yard workers may have slept in having worked so hard to launch the Gato Class submarine USS Greenling (SS-213) at the Electric Boat Co., in Groton the previous Saturday.  Some were still marking the 3 year anniversary of the Great New England Hurricane that devastated the Connecticut coast and rendered Hollywood screen siren Katherine Hepburn temporarily homeless, having to rebuild her family's home in Old Saybrook.

But there was no sign of bad weather on this day, and at least a few folks took advantage of the beautiful Sunday afternoon to go for a bike ride and have a picnic - all courtesy of the New Haven Railroad.

There aren't many left that remember the "Hobby Trains" run by the New York, New Haven & Hartford Railroad (aka the "New Haven") during the late 1930s and early 1940s.  In an effort to boost ridership, the New Haven took advantage of the fact that their railroad connected the Great Metropolis of New York with New England.  There were camp trains in the summer and ski trains in the winter.  Photography specials in the spring and all year 'round.  But what better time for a Bike Train than Autumn and what better place than the Berkshire Hills?

Thanks to a discovery of raw film footage by the NHRHTA, we can go back to that Sunday over eight decades ago and enjoy the sights of a pre-war bike ride.  You'll have to pedal your single-speed cruiser over a bunch of rolling hills before you get to eat.  Don't worry if you have to walk up some of them - and ladies, be sure to mind your skirts that they don't get caught in the spokes or chain.  There are no "rest stops" as we think of on 21st century rides - bits of orange and Powerbars - but an entire spread complete with potato salad, Boston baked beans, chicken and watermelon awaits us.

So give your Schwinn, Columbia or Raleigh to the porter to put in the baggage car, give the conductor your ticket, and enjoy the trip.  The train is about to arrive at the station . . .

For more about the cycle trains - and all the other "Hobby Trains" the New Haven Railroad ran - be sure to check out the comprehensive article by Marc Fratassio in Volume 40, Issue 2 of the NHRHTA's Shoreliner magazine.  I also came across the following article from the May 2, 1936 issue of Railway Age magazine which covers the New Haven's cycle trains shortly after the first one ran.

Hope you enjoy this additional little journey down Memory Lane . . .

Wordless Wednesday #507 - Join Us at the Train Show This Sunday!

 

On the New Haven, 87 Years Ago Today. . .The Great New England Hurricane

September 21, 1938 marks a somber - and for the New Haven Railroad, a devastating - event in history.

Making landfall that day, The Great New England Hurricane was - and remains - the most powerful and deadly storm to hit New England in at least 300 years. It killed an estimated 682 people, damaged or destroyed 57,000 homes and cost an estimated $5.6 billion in 2019 dollars. Even as late as 1951, you could still see damaged trees and buildings.

The New Haven's Shore Line route was hit especially hard. . .

But the railroad - despite being in receivership after having gone into bankruptcy a few years earlier - restored its many washed-out lines in record time. The little booklet above tells the story:

"On September 21st, 1938, with flood waters already threatening major washouts at important points along the New Haven Railroad where the tracks paralleled or crossed the swollen torrents of New England's rivers...suddenly, just before dark, in the teeth of a howling southwest gale which increased momentarily to hurricane proportions, a steadily rising tide which in some places rose twenty feet in as many minutes, swept inland along the New England coast-line across the Shore Line Route of the New Haven Railroad...carrying on its crest hundreds of boats, ships, cottages, buildings, and wreckage. Communications by rail, wire, and telephone with many devastated areas was completely cut off. No one realized as yet what a staggering blow had been dealt by this combined hurricane - tidal wave - flood throughout the length and breadth of southern New England. But the next morning revealed a grim picture of death and desolation. Where fast freights and through passenger trains, including the crack Shore Line Limiteds had sped in rapid succession between New York and New England points carrying passengers, mail, express, and the vital necessities of life...now miles of silent track hung at crazy angles over yawning chasms in a hopeless tangle of power lines, signal towers, houses, boats, and thousands of tons of debris. Further inland at Hartford, Springfield, Norwich, Willimantic, and Putnam the hurricane had left its toll of felled trees and communication systems, crumbled freight sheds and roofless factories...and to add to the chaos, the raging rivers from the north broke through dams and temporary dikes, washing out railroad bridges and miles of track...rendering useless the strategic points through which Shore Line trains might have been re-routed. The vital life-line between New England and points south and west had been effectually severed. It had to be restored without delay. Thousands of men were needed for the Herculean task of rebuilding a railroad. The summoning of trackmen, engineers, skilled repair crews, and laborers had to be carried out without the help of modern communications systems. In an incredibly short time an army of 5,000 men were at work...toiling 24 hours a day in 3 shifts...many of them eating and sleeping in work trains and Pullman cars on the job..."

Those of us living in New England a few years back went through "Superstorm Sandy" and got a taste of what The Great New England Hurricane might have been like. But, as it turns out, it was a pretty small taste - as bad as Sandy was, it didn't come anywhere close. Check out this site for an eye-opening comparison of the two storms.

There are fewer and fewer folks that have first-hand memories of that fateful day 86 years ago, but thanks to the extensive coverage the storm received - not to mention the wonders of the internet that allow all that coverage to be easily saved and shared - the heroic efforts of the employees of the New Haven Railroad, including those on the Valley Line and most especially along the Shore Line, will never be forgotten.