General Paint Types

[Kim]

Over on my Steam Tractor thread, I raised the question if I should use some special paint for portions of the model that will get hot. Like the boiler casing.  Zee mentioned that this would be a good general topic - types of paints and when and where to use them.  Especially as it relates to our model engineering work.  It seems there might be several people on the forum who could benefit from a little discussion on paint options and when and why you might choose one over another.  So I said I'd start a paint thread.

I'm specifically interested in paints for hot things.  I don't know how hot this will get. Its not the boiler itself - its just a casing around the boiler.  I'm sure its going to get hot - hot enough to hurt when you touch it, but I doubt it will be anywhere near as hot as a boiler would get.

Zee and others, please feel free to add your other paint related questions here.

Thanks,
Kim

[b.lindsey]

Auto supply stores carry engine paints good for higher temps, but usually in onle a few basic colors like red and blue in addition to black. There are also high temp paints used for grills, but the color choices may be even more limited.

Bill

[Jasonb]

Boiler cleading does not need anything special regarding heat resistance. The usual areas on a traction engine that tend to be done with something a bit more resistant are the smokebox, chimney, rear of the boiler eg backhead and firebox and to a lesser extent the cylinder.  Some of the ME suppliers do a "smokebox" black but any general heat resistant paint will do and often the sprays intended for BBQs and wood burning stoves are easy to use and offer the resistance required.

The above mentioned parts are usually done in a matt or satin finish which is what was found on the full size and is also easily available but when it comes to colour you are a bit more limited, some stove paint has a bigger range but is usually matt which leaves a limited choice in the HT engine enamels if you want gloss

[Ye-Ole Steam Dude]

Hello Kim,

Dupli-Color has just about every color under the sun and also in high temp. There primer cannot be beat.

Have a great day,
Thomas

[Kim]

Thank you all for the excellent input.
I'll have to look around here and see what I can find available.
Kim