I have a fascination for Hornby’s super detail Britannia and Clan models.  This Post looks at some variations that Hornby have not produced.

 

Firstly I am also rather partial to things ‘Great Western’.  When I spotted Hornby super detail Morning Star rebadged by The Model Centre (TMC) I would make a bid for it.  It was a big bid and Morning Star duly arrived.

 

 

Morning Star

 

I am generally not bothered about details such as counting the number of rivets but on this occasion the position of the Morning Star name plates did not seem right.

 

 

TMC Morning Star with high level plates

 

There is a useful image on Flickr of Morning Star in 1958 shortly after it had moved from the Western Region to the London Midland Region.  It is still without its speedometer but clearly shows a single front step, raised sand boxes and the correct position of the name plates.

 

https://flic.kr/p/NkD7We

 

I repositioned the plates and repainted the deflectors – a better result I think.

 

 

TMC Morning Star with repositioned plates

 

A bonus for me was that the TMC Morning Star came with a tender with a Late Crest which would fit nicely with my 1960s layout.  However removing the TMC applied etched plates revealed the name ‘Britannia’.  TMC had evidently rebranded Hornby R2562 which was a model of ‘Britannia’ shortly after it had entered service in the early 1950s.  I would consult my encyclopaedia – the David Hey Collection. http:// https://davidheyscollection.myshopblocks.com/

 

Hornby R2562 appears to be a reasonable representation of ‘Britannia’ as running in the early 1950s.  However for the late 1950s the dome is too small, the front step is missing, the coupling rods are fluted, there is no rear cab support and the sand boxes have not been raised.  One good point was that Morning Star kept the same ‘dangerous’ smoke deflectors for all its life and did not receive a speedometer until the early 1960s.  There would have to be quite a few changes to the R2562 bodyshell to make a convincing 1960s Morning Star.

 

After my big bid for Morning Star I had another bid on some bits from Hornby ‘Clive of India’.  I was attracted by the prospect of some BR (LMR) pattern deflectors (more of that later) but as a bonus I was able to salvage a front step, large dome, some sand boxes and rear cab supports all for Morning Star.

 

 

Hats Off, Hornby Britannia Domes, Large Late (L) Small Early (R)

 

The domes on both Morning Star and the donor easily pushed out as if they had not been glued.

 

Swapping the existing two front steps for the larger single step is in theory straightforward.  My original single steps appeared to have very little glue and pulled out.  In contrast the donor single step which uses the same fixings required a lot of persuasion with a craft knife from the inside of the bodyshell.

 

The rear cab support is a separate moulding glued to the cab floor and is used to attach the two cab doors.  With more care it might have been possible to remove the item (and its handrail) in one piece for reuse.  In the event I folded the moulding backwards to snap it from the footplate.  Once released from the donor it was a careful cutting and gluing operation to form the required new tops to the supports. 

 

 

The new cab supports

 

The sand boxes were more difficult and were eventually forced from the donor by a mixture of cutting and pushing from beneath the footplate.  I had all manner of plans for marking out holes for the ‘new’ boxes.  I need not have bothered because it would appear that all Super Detail body shells come with indents / knockouts on the underside of the footplate for up to six boxes.

 

 

Underside of footplate showing indents for sandbox fixings.

 

I used a combination of 0.5mm, 1mm and 1.5mm drill bits to make a hole through the footplate.  Forcing the donor sand boxes out from the footplate had damaged their fixing pins and it was relatively easy to shape the remains of the pin to fit the newly drilled 1.5mm hole.

 

 

Newly drilled holes for sandboxes.

 

I fitted a new set of solid rods purchased from one of the usual suspects and I think I have a more presentable 1960s version of Morning Star.

 

 

Hornby Super Detail Morning Star aka R2562 with modifications

 

One issue that I will have to live with is that there should be an opening on the side of the footplate around the lubricator linkage.  Cutting the opening is not the issue.  Sourcing or fabricating the tiny handles for the lubricators is more of a challenge.  You might say that if you wanted a model of Morning Star with a Late Crest there are more appropriate models to start with rather than Hornby R2562.