The DPM kits have, IMHO, a serious flaw. The sides are molded as one piece with lintels, windows, frames, and everything else, already there. When I inquired in the other DPM thread, Flash said that he airbrushes the side first in the color of the lintels, window frams, etc., FIRST. I have been thinking about it and have only one DPM kit left and hesitate to purchase any more even though they look great. I would guess that if you sprayed the lintels and trimmings first then the brickwork would have to be hand brushed with a superfine MicroBrush. That leaves the question of the mortar wash, and even more vexing, if you want the window frames to be a different color than the lintels and such. Am I missing something here, or is the model to be a compromise in variety?
I think the best part of the DMP kits is they can be as detailed as you want to make them, which gives them the individuality that weoften crave. I find them great canidates for kitbashing so they become less recognizable and don't look like the same structures on everyone elses layout (if thats what I wanted I'd just use those Bachmann buildings:thumbs_down It is quite common for brick structures like these to have been repainted all one color. In our modern time we are seeing brick structures returned to the original red brick. There is no end to the variety of ways DMP kits can be painted. I have found that for me drybrushing brings out the brick texture the best. Depending on the effect it can take many layers, which yes, is VERY time consuming. Knowing that before starting makes the task less daunting. Here are some older pics of my Purina plant bashed from DMP kits, after being freshly painted. The combination of red and gray brick took about 6 layers of dry brushing, plus another pass for window trim. Having a good selection of brushes is always a good plus. This one fit the widow frame perfectly-
Here is a link for painting the DPM kits in N scale. These techniques may also be applied to other type N scale kits. Additional Search Terms: window windows building scenery
