Project - Experimenting with MIG Rainmarks to improve a Toy Truck for a Friend's Hi-Rail Model Railroad

Copyright 2022 Nicholas Kalis

Photo 1 Mack Truck by Vitesse (Before)

Copyright 2022 Nicholas Kalis

Photo 2 Tamiya Liner applied to rear doors (After)

Copyright 2022 Nicholas Kalis

Photo 3 After

Project

Keep an eye out for a future article in one of Kalmbach's publications covering my friend and Potomac Division member Gary Eames' wondrous 1:48 scale layout; this truck - with six tires - will sit somewhere on his layout. A John Armstong design, Gary's Pennsylvania Railroad Northern Central Branch is set in the 1930s and 1940s. 

I set out to improve this Mack Truck - assuming it is 1:43 scale - employing the good enough approach coined by W. Allen McClelland of The V&O Story fame. This Vitesse truck is factory lettered for Plenti-Grand vegetables; trucks of this sort are still quite common throughout cities in the United States. I should note its decals or stickers used are quite apparent. First order of business was to attach with ACC (Gorilla Super Glue) to the vehicle undercarriage the chrome plastic transmission that had become detached. 

I then masked its clear plastic windows with blue tape (Scotch Long-Mask Masking Tape # 2090) and sprayed this truck with a rattle can of Rust-Oleum clear matte finish 249087 (first bringing the can out of my garage and into my home to warm up its contents). As I wrote, my approach is "good enough", no need to use an airbrush.

This truck was lettered on both sides for a business in California - this would not work as Gary's layout depicts Baltimore, Maryland and surroundings. I removed this lettering (the California address) with several Tamiya Item 87107 Craft Cotton Swabs (many times better suited for this task than Q-Tips). Q-tips leave lint on your model and are a bit too soft for this application. To remove its lettering, I applied Winsor & Newton Brush Cleaner & Restorer 32 fl. oz. Item 3254895 to my Tamiya swab; the lettering did not come loose easily - patience is required.

Copyright 2021 Nicholas Kalis

Photo 4 Tamiya swabs Item 87107 

I also used Tamiya Panel Line Accent Color 87131 to emphasize the step treads, rear doors and the wheels. I also added a bit of Bragdon Enterprises rust to the step - though it is not very apparent.

I also applied MIG Productions Rainmarks Reference P417 to its roof, hood and fenders; if I were to do this again, I would dilute this product first before applying it. It is probably designed for 1:35 military models and seems quite apparent when applied to the black paint of a 1:43 scale model such as this.

Photo 5

Cleanup was with Tub O' Towels - a product I swear by.

Parting thoughts

A nice touch for any vehicle is to add license plates that are appropriate for the era modeled. I could not find any that suited me, so I skipped that effort.

Materials Used

MIG Productions Rainmarks Reference P417 75 ml

Bragdon Enterprises Light Rust

Rustoleum Painter's Touch Matte Clear No. 249087 12 oz.

Tamiya Panel Line Accent Color 87131 Black 1.35 fl. Oz

Tamiya Item 87107 Craft Cotton Swabs

Scotch Long-Mask Masking Tape # 2090

Winsor & Newton Brush Cleaner & Restorer 32 fl. oz. Item 3254895

Gorilla Super Glue 0.19 oz.

Federal Process Corporation Tub O'Towels 

Revised April 15 2022