Suggestions for the best paint to use to depict polished steel. What I want to depict is the polished steel top of railroad rails and the steel wheels of railroad cars- specifically the rails and wheels for the 1/35th Leopold Railway Gun.
How good are those metallizer 'buffing' paints -(Testors I think)

Peter

Model Master Buffing Metalizers are Ok.

I like Testor's 'chrome' and Vallejo's 'oily steel'

What a curious question. You are bound to get plenty of differing opinions. The biggest problem people seem to have with metalizers is masking them. After a failed attempt at a foil finish, I also embarked on finding out what was the best metal paints. I currently have a test running of some metalizer paints. I have a piece of sheet styrne that I've sectioned off and painted with various shades of metalizer on both primed and umprimed surfaces. My next step is to do some masking, paint some different shades of metal using enamel, acrylic and metalizer and see how well the surface coatings hold up when the masking is removed. A preliminary test I did showed that the base coat of metalizer held up well if applied over a primer but not good at all when the mask is removed if the metlizer wasn't applied over a primed surface. Soon I will publish my results so everyone can see.

Okay, I just played out the shades and memory of regularly used track...I'd go with MM Burnt Metal Buffing Metalizer polished out a bit. I'd go with their Burnt Iron or Gunmetal (non Buffing) for the parts that don't get regular metal to metal contact.

I know a while back they used to have rattle cans that claimed to look like chrome, but to what I seen did look like polished steel when sprayed on steel bumpers, I wouldn't be surprised they still sell them, but it says it is supposed to look like chrome

Hi Sphyrna. About two weeks ago I had the same painting problem.
I told my local hobby shop owner, and he advised me to use Humbrol Metal Cote.
For polished steel you should use nbr. 27003, this is the polished steel shade You are looking for.
It works very easy, apply, and after approx. 20 mins. gently rug with a cotton cloth...Looks great!

Good luck, John.

dont forget graphite powder, make with a pencil and some sanding paper or buy it in a bottle (one will last years) just rub it onto the area you with a cotton bud (q-tip) and buff up easy as that got a nice effect on my t-34 road wheels :-)