1st step weathering problem

[jimbooregon]

Hi all,
I'm new to model railroading and have been watching a lot of YouTube videos and reading articles on weathering. A lot of people give the first step as  " Use a spray from a can of Testors brand "Dullcote" (or a similar product that dulls a finish) to lightly cover the car. This can also form a base with a little more "tooth" for some of the techniques mentioned later."  
I'm a retired US citizen living in Morocco. There are no hobby stores in Morocco. Sellers can't/won't ship aerosol products. I can't travel by air with aerosol products in checked in luggage....
What's an alternative to spray cans or spending money on an airbrush and compressor??
Also, for the final step using weathering powders in sealing the work in???   HELP!!
Thanks all for your input.

[analogbeatmaker]

Although you can get away with weathering directly on the model without an initial coat of a matte finish it is very difficult. Without a matte coat for "tooth" some weathering mediums such as powders are going to be very difficult to work with. However, the real problem for you is going to be sealing the weathering once completed. Without a final sealing finish (matte or gloss according to the weatheing) you will have to be extremely careful how the model is handled. More than likely no matter how careful you are you will still damage the weathering you have applied without sealing it. So, you can try brushing on the matte coat for the initial layer to give "tooth" but you will need to be able to spray the final sealer coat somehow...or the brush application of the sealer coat will move and modify the weathering you have laid down. If you cannot get aerosol paints then an airbrush is the only realistic option. You could buy an inexpensive airbrush and run it off of a can of compressed air to avoid buying a air compressor. Good luck!

[flyingcrow]

One thing you can use is pastels for weathering. I have used them with great success and never sealed them with anything or had to put down Dullcote before I used them. As long you don't handle the model too much, the pastel layer should stay on your model for years. The only issue is you can't dust the item because it will wipe off the pastels. Normally, that is not a big deal because the dust adds another layer of weathering as far as I am concerned. If you do wipe some off, it is very easy to reapply or if you don't like what you did, a damp cloth will take it away.

Also, pastels are cheap and you can order them online and have them shipped just about anywhere. I buy mine from Hobby Lobby as they have a set that comes in earth tones. I just scrape or sand from the stick what I need and dust the model using a soft paint brush.