Over my 30+ years in the hobby, I've tried other matte/flat substitutes for Dull-cote, but I've always come back. Some other products seem to yellow over time; I haven't noticed this with Dull-cote.
I stopped using Dullcote. I use Testor's Acryl flat finish. It does have to be applied with an air brush.
I use Microscale Flat Finish with an airbrush and like the results. I think it's very similar to Testors or Polly Scale.
A dusting of chaulk... It will give it a light weathering, that can be cleaned off if you want it back to the way it was.. At the same time, it will dull the shine... You can use a color close to what your loco is, or if you want to fade it some, use white, or light grey chaulk.. I stole one of the wife's big fluffy makeup brushes to dust locos and rolling stock with.. works well..
I did, and I can't see any damage it done.. Of course I might be able to after the swelling goes down in my eye... Those rolling pins hurt. lol
Away from the train and onto to street. I am having the same question about Vollmer (sp?) cobblestone streets. It comes in sheets of cardboard with one side printed glossy flat cobblestones. It cuts and fits really well and looks great except for the shine. Light and/or darker gray chalk does not do it. Dullcote does not do it. Grembacher (sp?) permanent fixative for sealing one's own decals does not do it. Matte Medium does not do it. The best combo that I have come up with so far is first either Dullcote or the fixative, let it dry and then a few brushings of the chalk. The results are acceptable, but not perfect. If anyone knows of a better way, please shout it out.
Fotheringill: This is being discussed right now in a current thread in the "Weathering Techniques" Yahoo group. Perhaps you could check over there. The primary complaint is that Dullcote is not as dull as it used to be. I don't know what the solutions offered might be. I did see the Krylon dull spray as one suggestion. Also a paint type called Vallejo that I am not familiar with. Also artist acrylics, but I didn't know that a clear was offered in those type paints. There are a lot of narrow gauge guys there. Heh, heh, heh...
I've also wondered about a different flat-coat. Not having an airbrush, I'd have to use Testor's dullcoat from the can. The years I spent building model cars makes me wonder why ANY scale train modeller would use the stuff. It goes on thick and yellows with age. When I started reading train model magazines, I was suprised I never read anything about the yellowing. I've had the same problem with their gloss coats, though they tend to spray on a lot thinner. Just my 2-cents...
I haven't had any yellowing, but it's still the best flat finish out there, in my opinion. I just used that the other week for the first time. It's really glossy. So much, in fact, that I'm using it for fuel spills on my locos fuel tanks now. I use a spray bomb for Dullcote. I pretty much soak whatever I'm modeling, as dullcote tends to level itself out pretty good.
You have to shake it (Polly S Flat Finish) up real good before using, as it's talc based. I dillute it with 30% water after shaking real good. It took the shine from this: To this without adding any noticible thickness:
Artist acrylics come in a huge variety of clear matte and gloss mediums in many different thicknesses. The problem is that you can only use them over weathering that was done using non-oily substances, otherwise, the acrylic (water based) will bead up and just flake off (water v. oil). To dull an engine or car before weathering I would recommend a matte varnish from a company like Golden. You would probably want the varnish because it would be much less viscous than a simple matte medium, thereby leaving a much thinner skin. You probably shouldn't use the varnish in a spray, though...check the labeling. This may be very beneficial for the upcoming weathering as well, as acrylic matte finishes are microscopically imperfect, thus depleting reflection...dulling, and having "tooth" which would hold weathering powders well.
I normally use a matt varnish to dull the factory finish. To answer the query about colours for carriageway and footway, I use a dark grey emulsion paint (from the local hardware store) to represent tarmac, and there's a "concrete" colour acrylic I use for representing the concrete slabs on the footway. Regards, Pete
I have purchased a can of Rust-Oleum Painters Touch Ultra Cover Matte Clear from Home Depot. I still have a can of Dullcote that I am using. I'll test on some junk cars or buildings. http://rustoleum.com/CBGProduct.asp?pid=403
