Ian Rathbone

I understand that all the K2s were serviced at Cowlairs, hence the Scottish Region style cab side markings - they carry a power class, which Eastern Region locos didn’t have. Ian R

I remember going on holiday in 1956 and travelling in a newly painted teak grained (steel sided) coach from Newcastle Central down to the docks. I can still remember the fresh paint smell inside the coach. I also saw 26501 on the dock lines. Could this have been a livery trial for the newly liberated Eastern Region? Ian R

Fox transfers have an exaggerated extension below the base line, not shown on the prototype. In this case put the masking tape above the lettering or use HMRS transfers, which have no backing. Ian R

It’s a pity the backing film is visible on the LNER transfer. It is not difficult to put the letters on without the connecting strip. Cut a piece of masking tape and place it on the model along the base line of the letters, checking that it is straight and level. Then cut out the lettering transfer and place it in its correct position dry, then mark the letter positions on the tape. The transfer can now be cut into individual letters, removing as much backing as possible and then soaked and put in position. lan R

For a GW period loco the beading that runs between a green area and a black area, ie around the top of a tender or tank side, was black. In BR livery the beading colour was invariably green. The cab cutout beading, between two green areas, was green. Ian R

Apologies to The Johnster but there are some errors in his brief explanation of the Welsh article y. Yr is not a mutation, just a modification for words beginning with a vowel (and sometimes h). Mutation has an important role in Celtic languages whereby the first letter of a word changes depending on grammar and gender. For example the Welsh for Wales is Cymru but on road signs saying Welcome to Wales it says Croeso i Gymru. The C changes to a G after a preposition; this is called Soft Mutation, there are others. He quotes f as being hard and ff as being soft but in fact it is the other way round. The voiced consonant is always the soft one - c/g, p/b, t/d etc. The Welsh double letters are not diphthongs (diphthongs are vowels), they are simply double letters counted as a single letter in the Welsh alphabet. There are 8 of them - ch, dd, ff, ng, ll, ph, rh, and th. I know there are differences in pronunciation in South Wales but s is pronounced s except when followed by i, hence siop is pronounced shop (and means shop). I’ll stop now. Ian R

Never trust the livery on a preserved loco. 6998 should have the orange line on the numberplate. During GWR and BR all lined green locos had lined plates. During very early BR some blue Kings had a white line, some lined black engines had a red line and some other black engines had plain red plates (but not for very long as they were difficult to read). Ian R

Coach lining - BR lining was more of an ochre colour (as was LNW or GW). Try mixing Revell 80 (tan) with the yellow to give it more depth. Paint consistency - it depends to a large extent on what your pen can cope with. You need a paint that stays put on the model ie it doesn’t spread to make too thick a line. I use the cocktail stick test which is, dip the stick in the well stirred paint, remove it and then hold it horizontal. If the paint runs off it is too thin, if it doesn’t run off it is too thick but, if it drips off and can be contained on the stick by rotating it then it should be just right. Humbrol paint consistencies are somewhat variable these days so testing a new can is important. Another test is to load the pen away from the tip then see how long the paint takes to crawl to the tip. Ian R

You need Fox transfers 8” BR numbers and the small BR late emblem (left facing). Very easy to use water slide, just take care lining the numbers up. Ian R

I suggest you pose the question on “Wright Writes”, I’m sure Tony can tell you. Ian R

In regard to the colours I use - I don’t record the colours in my records, perhaps I ought to have done. It is usually customer preference or, when they don’t know, it will be the PP paint or a cellulose mixed to match. For 910 I was given a number of photos of the preserved engine (which appeared to be under a tent somewhere) for both the colour match and the lining details. The main colour is certainly not Saxon Green but is a close match to PP ‘LSWR Urie Green’ (which may well be fictional). I had some cellulose mixed to match and my customer was happy with that. The coupling rod splashers may have been Saxon but appeared more blue in the photos so there I used Brunswick (GCR). Interestingly the wheels were another green, very close to PP LNER Darlington, which I used. Ian R

I use Copydex, the fabric adhesive. It is far better than Maskol in that it doesn’t degrade to a sticky mess after three days - you have two weeks. It is available in tubes from any hardware shop. Ian R

Is this anywhere near Saxon Green? I used Precision Paints NER Green, P525. I have other photos of this engine, taken in different light conditions, which show apparently different shades (or is it hues?). Comparing it to the Saxon Green panel above it’s not too bad. Ian R

You just have the valances to do now! Ian R

The cylinder lining should be orange, it looks red in the photo. Yes, the splasher tops should be green, only the Western Region painted them black (except on the County Class). However, ‘always’ means ‘mostly’, and ‘never’ means ‘except sometimes’. Ian R

For the leading crank pin on a loco with outside valve gear I use a thinned down Romford/Markits 4mm wheel nut. 7mm coupling rods are usually double thickness so I open out the hole in the outer lamination to clear the wheel nut, and use a thinned down top hat for the inner lamination. The Markits nut screws down tight to the top hat so there is no need for any Loctite. I also use a Markits crank pin and washer for the big end of the eccentric rod (shown here without the washer). Ian R

No, transfers this time. Sorry.

There are also the Derek Mundy crank pins, which have been around for years. They are available from Hobby Holidays. Ian R

I rarely took photos of construction progress and never of 4mm locos I’ve built. I sometimes take photos of painting progress, if it’s a complex livery. I’ve built about 50 locos but painted over 1500. Here’s a Met tank in Cambrian guise - Ian R

This was the last 4mm loco I built but I cannot remember the motor or the chassis, I just put together the bits in the box. Although it was clearly a K’s Milestone kit it was marketed by another company, West Country based? Sorry to be of absolutely no help on this one.

I built this one back in 2010, as Titfield Thunderbolt. It went together ok and ran ok. A bit crude in close-up though. Ian R

I’ve heard many tales of woe in regard to ‘model’ varnishes, Humbrol/Precision/Railmatch with their various thinners. Why not go to an actual paint shop (not a chain DIY store) and buy some Ronseal Hardglaze Polyurethane varnish and a can of white spirit, mix 50:50 and off you go. I know for a fact that at least one of the thinners mentioned above is pure white spirit, sold in a tiny can at a 500% mark up. Practise, practise, practise on something that doesn’t matter before applying it to the model. I always use gloss paint so I add a little Precision Matting Agent to the mix, and sometimes a single drop of black paint. I’ve varnished over 1500 locos and coaches with it. Ian R

From shelf queen to work horse - 7mm V2 built by Richard Spoors from the Martin Finney kit. Ian R

Tony, you forgot this one, ok I know it’s not a layout setting. I liked this one with the gentle weathering and the slightly oily finish on the driving wheels. It was a pity you wanted me to strip it and repaint in BR livery. I remember the prototype back in 1967 or 8 when it was No. 7. I was one of the team managing the construction of a motorway bridge (M74) over Uddingston Junction. Late one afternoon No. 7, travelling light engine, was stopped at a signal on the Bellshill branch in the middle of our site. We had three lookout men on site, all relief signal men, and all three jumped on the footplate and disappeared off to Belshill. No lookout men, no work, so it was early home that day. Ian R

I only have ten locos - I model in 0 gauge so they take a fair time to build, and I don’t have much time for my own stuff. It’s a pretty esoteric collection too, not sticking to any region, and, shock horror, there’s nothing from the Eastern region. All my BR stock is weathered but the pre-grouping is not. How could I weather this? It was probably kept spotless for the six months that it ran like this (for Queen Victoria’s Jubilee) before being repainted to the standard black. On the other hand my 2P looks quite wrong in a pristine condition. It looks far better like this - Only a gentle touch, a few weeks in traffic maybe, but it gives it so much more life. Ian R