Watch as Cody Grivno, Model Railroader Senior Editor, sets out to paint the rails on the HO scale (1:87.1) East Troy Industrial Park project layout. Learn how to prepare the layout, clean the tracks, and apply paint for a realistic, rusty appearance.
Be sure to keep up with the construction progress by linking into the Trains.com Workshop Webcam (available 24/7), and the full series of helpful, instructional videos rolling out every month until the effort concludes. Even then, the fun will continue in frequent Trains.com articles/updates and Model Railroader print features, beginning with the January 2026 issue. You won’t want to miss the Expert Tips and Techniques the crew will share with you along the way, as they have a bit of fun bringing the ETIP into fruition!
Before painting I apply a thin coat of 3-in-one oil to the top of the rails. No need to worry about the paint drying on the rails because the oil acts as a barrier.
Did one bottle of paint cover that whole section?
Now that everything is in place it is time for Cody to paint the track and put down the ballast. Getting close to being done. All that is missing is the buildings but Eric our Editor in Chief is building them.
Keep the content coming, looking good! Also, can someone find Cody an OSHA hardhat/ honorary member certificate? For the amount of times he says “workshop safety,” the guy’s a natural! LOL
When cleaning the flux off the rails, Cody mentioned changing from Denatured Alcohol to Isopropal because of a residue. Would using both DA then IPA reduce the amount of effort, and remove the residue? Or is the “extra effort” of the IPA so minimal that it’s not worth going over it twice?