Rob Hayes

Well this is were I am. All 3 With gripper coat done awaiting a seal over with klear and then the gloss coat will go on. I am very happy with how they look they might not be super detailed ones but to me they are perfect. Here we have 60s 4498 Sir Nigel Gresley. 4464 Bittern, and 4468 Mallard. I hope you like them. Cheers Rob. Thanks so much to modelmasters and foxx transfers for making this possible.

Update again, Bittern and Mallards gripper coat is complete. Bittern is now receiving her decals. I have also opted to use kingfishers tender.. I am really enjoying this build/modding session. I am happy with how its coming out. Its so much fun doing this and nice to have something unique with a bit of me in it. more coffee more decals and I am getting there. Planet Rock FM helps with this too.

I must admit I was hoping for the great gathering all the A4s would have been returned to Garter blue condition. That would have been awsome. though I understand it would be unfair to represent only that part of history. Indeed like wise it would be nice to see them all in green too. What I would love to see is 4498 SNG to be put back to having her valances on with the silver strip that would be smart.

Update time and more coffee mmmmm RIght then. I am not sure If I am going to pinch the tender off kingfisher for Bittern.. (you know I probably will in the end...) Either way I decided to paint up the railroad tender as and option if nothing else. The old tender is not that bad really. The coal load is huge but I have seen A4s piled up like this often and I have seen bittern that way. If i was to remove it and remove the casting inside that would have held the motor. I could scratch build the insides quite easy. or something that looks better at least... This can be done at a later stage its not the most important thing right now. so here it is being masked with good old tamiya tape. This is SNG 4498 being masked up using the rivets and another Hornby A4 as a guide. decals are always applied with a smally puddle of old johnsons klear. its the only stuff I know that magically sucks and sticks down decals leaving no film visable and makes them look painted on. these are Fox Decals.

Well I dint get much further last night before I had to go to sleep. normally I can keep going till 4am but not this time. So I am up bright and early with another cup of coffee and back at it. I have painted the brass part on the left hand side of mallards boiler. Sadly I do not know what this is but I guess its either blower,injector,blastpipe, I wish I could find technical information on what is what and what its not. Again this was brush painted with the excellent Revel Aqua Brass paint with a dollop of Windsor and Newton Flow Improver. Lovely stuff to work with. so mallard is about to receive a gripper coat. I have got alan gibson wheels for her though I must say shes looking good as is. I am also not brave enough to do this just yet and need a quatering jig. I have got a spare chassis that needs a rebuild to have ago at regarding that anyhow. So when I have finished this coffee the next job is decals on Bittern and SNG. All good fun. Cheers Rob (I really wish this form had a work in progress page.)

I have just been looking up photos of Sir Nigel Gresley as she was in 1992 on the SVR in garter blue but with black nameplates which it wore for a short time before going to br blue. I remember this as the week before it had Red plates I think It defiantly had them most the time I visited steamtown. Anyway I was lucky then as a kid to be invited by the driver to "have a go" I had been telling my dad all about A4s as we stood next to it in steam on the sidings outside the shed. The driver called me saying "young man you seem to know alot about this machine come up here both of you and have ago" He told me what to operate and guided me and let me drive her off the shed over the turntable onto the mainline. She was on route to Kidderminster what an amazing experience. What has sparked me off recounting this story is I was looking for photos for a future build of this from a railroad A4. and I found a photo take 22 years ago yesterday at kiddy. I got to sit in the cab again on the platform there. Man do I feel old I can remember it like it was yesterday. I remember those comfy seats... Long live Sir Nigel Gresley. Here is the photo http://www.flickr.com/photos/16749798@N08/5723043065/in/set-72157615168844799 I just thought I would share that nostalgia trip with you. Cheers Rob

Update time I am working on this now but just having a quick coffee break and a few custard cremes to help me paint better. Mallard is receiving silver handrails. I am brush painting these with the excellent revel aqua aluminium with as always with me a good healthy drop of windsor and newton flow improver added which means you can paint acrylic with no brush marks as it makes the paint level and behave more like enamel. I free hand painted the main handrails but the cab ones will likely need masking as this is the legends version. Revel aqua paints are fantastic but their metallic paints along with citadels metallic paints are the very best I have ever used that are not alclad2. They have a gorgeous sheen and brush very well indeed. I have successfully brush painted 2 aircraft kits with these a Vampire FB5 and Gloster Meteor mk4. Bittern is now Bittern and not falcon. Well shes getting there still needs numbers, black on the cab and tender extending, I am also thinking of removing the wheels and spraying them crimson to the edge but there is not rush to do that. Sir Nigel Gresley is being reworked too. I may update the transferrs, the hand rails and pipe were touched up, as the previous owner had got them all chipped and the cab ones were brass. I had not got any garter blue but I made my own match for Hornby's by mixing white into humbrol BR Blue. strange I know but it works. Sir Nigel Gresley was a Railroad Falcon too I did not convert this one but I have improved it on what I got off evilbay but its still not finished. She has had her gripper coat and klear on ages ago but I needed to retouch the rails as mentioned and I am now redoing the front casing numbers as the ones on before were plain wrong. Much as I wish these 3 had glazing the ones added on sir nige are a good effort but not that great. So I am going to remove them I think and then later on get some glazing spares for them. Or I may make a new resin casting to make new glazing. for rail road A4s. Right back to the paint shop..

Ok now I am getting giving mallard a tarting up. Here I am using 6mm tamiya tape to mark out were the plaques will be fitted. then I use a strip of tape to hold the plate in position but allow me to lift it over to put a very small amount of rubber infused superglue on the back then when I flip it back over its in the right spot. I do the same for Bitterns nameplates. I am leaving Hornbys mallard plates as the look better spaced than the etched ones. Bittern has its this was railroad falcon. I first used 6mm tamiya to mask were the plates were fitted then masked around to remove the excess plastic without damaging the surrounding paint. I will update more later. Cheers Rob

Cheers Donnyrailman. Well I hope I will be posting more soon. My Fox decals arrived prompt this morning I am very impressed at their swift delivery. so I can start the renumbering of bittern soon. I just hope the Nameplates arrive soon. It also Means I can correct the numbers applied to the front of my sir nigel gresley. Its a mod someone else did and had been done well but has gradually had improvements made by me like a chassis that actually runs ! The chap who did it has done a good job He had cut the valances off and renumbered renamed it as sir nigel gresley, He also fitted wire handrails, But It needed a varnish and for the nameplates which had fallen off on arrival re fitting. I have got the gripper coat and klear done on this one. so Hopefully my next update will be either a completed 4498, 4464, or 4468. Cheers Rob

Yea I always assumed it to be wrong. I wonder were they got the idea from as I have seen many other models over the years painted the same. I guess one company made a mistake and others followed It assuming its was right. When I was a kid I painted my minitrix one as it annoyed me so much same with my farish one. Which had blue cylinders but balck buffer housings/beam cheers Rob

Thanks very much for that It sure Is interesting I do wonder how accurate they are but Its a very good effort. I know there are other issues with variants of nameplates red backed black backed and brass or stainless. Plus not all A4s In garter blue had the all red wheels down to the rims. Some if not Most had polished steel rims. I don't know if this reflects a livery revision or if it was just randomly done at the works. I know there are 4 main garter blue liveries. Original like mallard is, then there is the commonwealth garter blue livery stainless numbers and trim. the hybrid of the first two like sir nigel gresley wore gold numbers with steel trim,. then there is the new number system post war garter blue. and for a 5th version BR garter blue. I bet there are more variations too, I guess there is not much photo evidence from the era. I suppose that gives some modellers licence. I have often wondered if the garter blue post war livery I have seen portrayed by Hornby's limited edition 4498 from the early 90s and minitrix's 4498 were they have painted the cylinders black was an official livery or a mistake. I see some top notch models from loveless or golden age have been done like this but I have never seen a photo of a real A4 done this way. Cheers Rob

Cheers mate I will post more soon. I have contacted Digitrains today curious about their sound for the A4 as I have never heard it. They very kindly did a video just for me and I am very impressed with Paul's work on the sound. Here it is I will be ordering one of these for one of my A4s and probably more for sure.

Well thank you very much. I am very happy to get such a positive response. I must admit I was a little nervous about posting the images as I thought I would get brow beaten by the "it must be matt to be a model" whilst I understand that argument I have never totally agreed with it especially now as if you look at photos of these and real A4s to me these look more real. It was an experiment at the end of the day the 3 locos all had minor issues especially the Green 60022 , 60003 Both were missing the lamp irons and cab side glass piece which don't bother me too much and they also had glue marks on the boiler casing and tender sides which I have carefully got rid off with 1200 grit wet and dry and klear. I am so happy with them that soon I will be adding more to my fleet here. I will post Images of them when they are finished. 4498 in 60s LNER garter blue with gold shaded letters as first preserved is done and needs glossing up modded from a Hornby double chimney Falcon. Another double chimney falcon will be bittern as she is now once the decals and plates arrive. also the legends mallard you see will be fitted with speed plaques have the handrails silvered and glossed in the same manner. I many thanks for the kind comments they are appreciated. Just while were on the subject of A4s can anyone provide me with links to photos of wartime black A4s I would love to know which had N E and LNER on the tender. Also what sort of condition were they kept in. were they cleaned or were they so dirty you could not see the Identity and did they ever run minus their namplates. sorry for all the questions but the history of Wartime A4s is something I have never been able to come across and a bit of a mystery to me. I guess there was not much history being recorded then as everyone was more focused on simply surviving. Cheers Rob

Yes I know what you mean matt does make the colours look "cheap", The Gloss for me brings out that almost regal quality locos like this have deep lustre of the colours are accentuated. Matt colours for me are better suited to military models. It all depends on how your modelling and more important how your viewing your own models. For instance if your layout is viewed from further away then you may opt for more satin or matt hues due to scale effect. that said these though shiny close up (which is how I will be viewing them on a very small layout) Do loose there shine prototypicaly from a distance due to the humbrol paint leveling and using small particles that scale well. I am sure it would look wrong if I had used furniture varnish. I think I should turn this thread into my A4 collection page as I customise them. I have just tried the T-cut this morning on my falcon and I am very happy with the results. I just cant wait for the fox transferrs to arrive and the model masters bittern plates to arrive. I will be pinching the tender from my kingfisher perhaps. then again the railroad tender Is not bad its just got the coal load in which is not that bad I have seen a4s with coal stacked that high. Whichever I choose I will need to extend the black of the cab rood and tender tops down a bit further to get her livery right for her current look. The only other difference I can spot but will ignore is that the real bittern has not got the black continued on the top of the valence like it should. But I prefer the look of it to be black anyhow. Cheers for taking the time to look at these. Rob

Oh and if anyone else does this be sure to use the "Acrylic" version of Humbrol 35 gloss varnish NOT the enamel variant

Brilliant well I will try and hunt a spare body to try. I would like to get more railroad a4s falcon and mallard to do some more green and blue a4s. Doing 4498 in the preserved 80s and early 90s garter blue livery would be great. but I would need to make sure removing the numbers and letters was done perfectly as the later style stainless numbers were alot thinner than the more elaborate gold shaded versions. Doing a model of Union Of South Africa would be great also. As I live in kidderminster I can tell you I really miss her being on the SVR I hope she returns or another A4 takes up residence on the valley. I hope one day to get enough cash together to get the guys who built tornado to build me a new A4. A nice dream I know.. But if I do ever manage that she would be kept on the SVR and she would be done up as different A4s no longer with us. Firstly as golden eagle in the much over looked doncaster green livery. A4s looked smart in that. I hope Hornby get around to giving us some Green A4s Same as I hope they give us proper executive HST cars.

You flatter me haha. It's because most people believe gloss does not scale well. In some cases I agree but there are many different types if gloss finish that respond differently. How ever looking at these I personally love the gloss. Looking back at photos they were like this but in the hard days of steam it didn't last long in some photos they looked grubby even in LNER days. It would be nice to have a dirty hammered wartime black loco to contrast these. I wonder if they got a clean working freight !

I have thought about doing that I would love the Hornby great gathering A4s but found out about them too late. I think it's stupid they have made so few if such a popular set of models they could sell more. But it is what it is. If I could get just one it would be bittern. I wish they would do a model of sir Nigel gresley as was in 1992 when I got to drive her with silver 4498 number that was her best look for me I do like the BR blue too though. Be nice to se her in green again. I'd love to find out how to reliably remove Hornby numbers so I can do my own any tips ?

Cheers for liking my posts Nelson Jackson I hope the explanation goes some way to helping you out. I am sorry for the amount of photos but A4s are addictive to look at with all their complex curves which seem to be so fluid and evolve and change from every angle it really is a work of art. I often wonder if the Bugatti nose was designed by a Gresley or Bugatti themselves as I heard the casing was developed over there. Cheers Rob

Now the green ones

Here are some more photos of Peregrine with the new refurbed tender that had the gash down the right hand side and other uglies. The legends series Hornby Mallard in Lner blue that is in original Hornby finish so you can compare the difference. Plus to other a4s that came second hand and were also a little scruffy and missing items that I Have restored and shined too. Its like a little great gathering. Hope you enjoy the following images.

Hi there I am glad you like it, I have always wanted exactly that finish of NRM/Preserved A4's and steam as thats what I grew up with the 80s and on. The finish is something that takes practice but can be achieved easily but will require bravery.. I use Humbrol rattle cans they are amazing paints these days and I use them mostly on my model kits over on Britmodeller (robvulcan on there if you want check me out) They go down well level off and are extremely scratch resistant. The matt colours grip acrylics amazingly well if you brush humbrol or revel aqua or xtracrylics with some windsor and newton flow improver added they become thin like ink but retain colour density and do no leave brush marks thanks to the flow improver. but you also get a solid finish that wont scratch and looks airbrushed. I then seal them with klear. As for the humbrol varnishes they are amazing but don’t use any of them in humid condition or they will fog. but don’t worry if they do as further coats of the same varnish will remove this. Believe it or not this loco and tender were fogged up totally and looked like it was a frosty morning (looked pretty good actually,) but the 3rd coat got rid of that entirely. even sometimes when the gloss fogs with in 24 hours it will go like glass. The process for doing these A4s was to spray from the humbrol rattle can from full arm extended distance a misted gripper coat. this is because it will stop the gloss varnish which has no pigment from eating the Hornby paint as it is made from a chemical which cuts in and grips. so misting it a few times is essential, I usually sit the bodies on bog roll centre tube this is perfect to hold them. Once the gripper coat is dry rinse the bodies and let dry to get rid of fragments then, I get a little container of water and a piece of sponge, I then pour out into the cap some old type or new type johnsons klear, with the wetted sponge I ring it out and then dip it in the klear then ring out a bit. I then wipe over a thin layer of klear the wet sponge gives more working time but your still need to be quite quick and watch for little fragments, let that coat dry, then with 1200 grit wet and dry lightly rub down the large flat areas watch out for rivits and details but dont worry too much your only trying to remove the fragments that might be stuck in the klear if done carefully there will be very few. then repeat the process 2 more times. by now it will look shiny but not the right kind of shiney. every gloss varnish will give a different effect but never have I seen one as effective as humbrol 35 rattle can varnish.. Next once your klear coats have dried and any fragments removed with wet and dry don’t re-coat it with anymore klear. its only there as a barrier to the Hornby paint with the gripper coat on and the klear gripped onto that to prevent any reaction. Now rinse your loco and tender body and let dry make sure you have a sunny day but not humid. leave the rattle can outside for an hour to acclimatise along with the body and tender for a few mins prior to spraying, getting everything the same temperature will improve the finish quicken the dry time prevent fogging and just basically make it work right for you, spray your first coat this one will be about 8 inches away move in quick directions spraying before contact with the body and stopping after contact with the body as you move the can over the body this stops spattering got left to right and get a fairly thick coat down. It will level off and shrink down as it dries. If it fogs leave it a min or 2 and go over it again once its tacked over the varnish will reactivate and shrink down again. even if you encounter fog again leave it a day and then go over again it will still disappear (bit of a battle is possible but you will win) once this has dried you can then apply further coats with little worry of reaction. The final coat should be a heavy coat to get a really good gloss that levels off and gives a mirror sheen that is thin this is what your looking for but its hard to achieve but once you have got the knack you can do it. This was my first attempt. A gamble yes but much better than any other gloss I have seen I have spent my whole life looking,. Best of all its not going to yellow like old tins used too. I have done my best to take time out to explain too you it is tricky though It would be better if I could show you. or make a video on the matter. Yes realistic coal load would be good but I will probably just paint it matt black, Though I see Bachmann have started glossing their coal which I don’t understand, My super d has gloss black coal,. hmm This is an expensive process at 4.99 a can and each loco tender taking 2/3 cans each. but entirely worth it in my opinion the gloss looks so delicious to the eye they look like you could dip your hand into the finish its lush and lovely to touch too. The feel like they are a proper metal machine when you touch them and a real feast of eye candy. Too me at least. The other added advantage is it helps protect the thin paint on the handrails. I hope this is of help to you I will do some pictures of the others in a short while. Cheers Rob

Its always good to hear feedback. I see I have 1 like and 1 disagree. I love the broad church of ideas modelling is. I may do some more photos in a bit of my other glossed A4s 60022 and 60003 plus peregrine with the other super detail tender Which started this thing off. I received the tender described as "mint un used" off ebay of which I In the most only have good experiences but the tender had paint missing from the handrails. a big gouge to the rear tender and other minor blemishes. So I sprayed a gripper coat misted from a distance to build texture and flatted back with wet and dry 1200 then sealed with a coat of Klear to create a solid barrier to avoid any possible chemical reaction with Hornby paint/plastic, then sprayed on a few gloss coats as I was curious to have a model glossed like a real one despite what many would disagree with it now does look mint and has no gouge, I like the finish so much I have done more locos like it. I like the idea of some NRM level of shine locos going around the track. and when filmed seeing the reflective ripple moving over them really adds another dimension of realism to them. It seems to make them look "bigger" My super D will not end up like this though that will have to look suitably battered ! Cheers Rob

Cheers John I now wish I had bothered to fit windows too her. I guess I could still do that. I have today just paired her with a spare super detail tender. I might yet go back and fit more accurate front beam decals and silver the front window frames and give her another top coat. If so I will post an update here. I might show more photos with the new tender. Cheers Rob

(*UPDATE - I have decided to turn this into an ongoing update of my A4 collection to share with you all as it develops. Other posters who want to share their A4 related stuff photos and information and inspirational material welcome. Cheers Rob) Hello all and good morning I have just gloss varnished one of my Hornby A4's 4903 Peregrine in the gorgeous LNER blue livery. She might be a railroad loco but she looks the business. I have swapped out the motion set for finer super detail versions and Glossed her up so she looks to me more "real" like shes made out of metal. I am very happy with how she now looks and thought I would share her with you. I hope you like her. Here she is outside curing off in the afternoon sun. Cheers Rob So there she is thanks for looking. Rob