Hi All,

The Alexander Chapter-NRHS has a great start on the restoration of our narrow gauge Lawndale Rwy boxcar; however, we do need some advice.

Most of the interior of the car- flooring, interior wall braces, interior wall siding- is in excellent condition. But naturally, there are areas that need replacement wood where bugs or weather have taken their toll on the original.

Our concern is that the new replacement wood will standout, perhaps too much, from the original unpainted interior, and we are seeking advice on how to treat the replacement pieces to most match the original.

The wood is mostly pine, and the most obvious solution is stain, but we can't find one called "old used dirty wood".

Any suggestions?

Thanks,

Matt Bumgarner

Have you considered replacing it with old wood similarly weathered? It seems there are places selling used wood in most areas these days. I am sure it would take some looking but you may be able to find a pretty close match making the restoration a little easier.

John Bohon

In your area there should be a Home salvage company, someone that disassembles building and saves the parts. They would have old dirty pine, you may need to plane one side and rip to width to get it to fit, but the look should be close, especially if the wood came from a barn floor.

You can mix a bunch of oil stains and create your own patina, requires a lot of trial and error.

Then there is the old switch-er-oo, where you pull good wood from elsewhere on the car, either up top where the replacement wood would be hidden in the shadows or from down low where it would be hidden by a display. Don't forget the exterior wood (if it is double sheathed) would only have paint on one side, so the backside would have that dirty wood look and any fresh wood would be used on the exterior and covered with paint.

Just some ideas,

Rich C

So far on our boxcar restorations we just leave the new wood as "new". We found evidence of previous repairs inside, so this falls into that tradition. Additionally it has the advantage of making the new wood identifiable.

The alternative is coloring the new wood. You might want to check out the project at this link http://www.mnhs.org/preserve/conservati ... ox_car.pdf

Its a 1878 wooden boxcar restored by the Minnesota Historical Society. They used acrylic artist colors to blend new and old work.

At the danger of bringing back the professionalism thread, read it carefully, the people doing the work and writing it up are museum professionals, curators and conservators, not railroad people... The are adhering to museum principals to restore an industrial artifact... Some of the techniques seem like gold plating a pig's ear. They clearly don't understand the terms used to describe a railroad car.

On the plus side they have some interesting techniques for cleaning and sealing old metal. They talk about preservation and conserving fabric. On the down side, this is a static display, inside, so they didn't address issues we would for an operating car. One of my criticisms is that they slavishly preserved the car they received, which had been previously restored and repainted, without questioning any work done or decisions made by the earlier restoration team...

Take a scrap piece of the new wood and apply "Old English". Try one light coat and let dry completely, couple of days would not hurt. What is the final finish on the original floor? Varnish or oil? Keep that in mind when darkening the wood. Works for 100 year old house so why not RR car.

Matt - there's texture and color. Texture can be replicated using mechanical means, like sanding, wirebrushing or sandblasting the surfaces. Color can be stained in or painted on. Acrylics have been mentioned, but don't ignore such things as oil or creosote that may have caused the coloration in the first place.

Document what has been replaced and how for future generations.

dave

Thanks for all the comments and suggestions. We will soon be launching an online report with photos of the car's restoration.

If anyone is in the Hickory, NC area, you are more than welcome to join our efforts. We get together on the first and third Saturday mornings of each month from 9am-12pm for a few hours of fun, dirt, and history.

And hey, don't forget the 6th Annual NC Railroad Expo on April 5th! Funds from the past shows are paying the bills for Lawndale #315.

Matt

Gee, too bad you are in NC and not further north. I have had to replace fence boards on the backyard doggie barrier. After one winter the new wood is well along to blending in and after two winters, almost indistinguishable from 30 year old boards also aging in the sun and weather. So, fit up your old wood, set it outdoors for a few seasons, and brush in a topcoat liberally laced with soot, grease, and grime.

This kind of reminds me of driving past paint factories when I was a young-un and seeing maybe a few acres of posts and boards painted with sample pieces of all colors, angled to the sun and tilted to catch the best rays. Do they still do that anymore? Or has technology yet again trumped mother nature?

Bob Kutella

One other option is a light water and soap cleaning of the entire surface to"spread the wealth" of old dirt. It won't bring the new down to the level of the old surface, but it may blend enough that it won't be as noticeable.