Looking for feedback from people who have built this kit. I am looking form some advice on how to paint and weather the gravel pads that come with the kit and the track ties and tracks themselves. What colour should I paint the gravel plates? What colour should I paint the track ties...wood colour, dark black/brown? Paint them seperate and pop them after the gravel pads are painted?

PLEASE help!!!!

As a long-time railroad geek, here's some advice.

The gravel - they call it ballast - is typically grey stone, so paint it a mottled grey color. Wash it liberally with dark brown and black to represent oil and soot from passing trains.

The ties in the WWII timeframe were typically wooden, so paint them to represent weathered wood, usually dark brown or grey. Again, plenty of oil and soot stains would be appropriate.

The rails themselves usually show a patina of rust on the sides, but are bright steel on top where wheels would contact. Same on the contacting wheel surfaces of the Leopold's trucks.

Hope this helps...

Neil