hi,
i must paint the railway for my station diorama...i have problem whit the colour...which colour i can use for the wood part??and for rail?
thank for your help

First recommendation: Go out and look at real RR track.

Sides of rails: Anything from rust to mud and then polished steel for the tops of the rails. The polishd metal assumes an active rail line. If this is to be a little used siding then use the same rust/mud color for the tops of the rail as well.

If ties (sleepers) are to look like wood then perhaps something like Testors "Rubber" color with a light wash of "Earth" color over top of that. Ties can be anything from fresh jet black to old very distressed weathered medium brown.

Paint ties before adding ballast gravel to maintain some contrast between ties and ballast.

Then add the occassional oil stain, sanding stripe, weed, grass and a fair coating of dust to blend everything together.

Remember, generally European railroad right of way is cleaner and better maintained than its' US counterpart unless you are talking about major US Class 1 railroad mainlines such as the Union Pacific or Norfolk Southern.

Model by Chun Iun-hsu "Camo" - Ft. Knox, Kentucky

Model found on Internet - Modeler unknown.



Don't think I've ever seen ties this lightly colored in real life. These look like natural untreated wood and almost all wood ties are dipped or pressure treated in creosote to retard rotting.