NBR Livery and Paint Choice

[sulzer27jd]

I am seeking some help from the collective knowledge.

 

I have a North British Railway B Class (LNER/BR J37) that I want to use as an early example of the class and if possible paint it in a livery that was used before everything turned black. From my research, I understand that some of these locomotives were painted in the lined 'brown' livery when new (around 1914). I have purchased Precision Paints NBR Loco Brown, but when applied it seems to be very dark and  (please don't laugh at this - well, very - brown!) I was rather expecting more of the 'bronze' appearance, rather than a particularly boring shade of brown.

 

Can anyone enlighten me as to;

1) what I should be expecting in terms of the finished look - should it be a dark brown colour, or a more vibrant bronze look?

2) is brown the correct colour, or should I be looking to achieve something more like the shade on the preserved Glen Douglas? [i know from GNSR work that the preserved locos do not necessarily look anything like the original livery]

3) are there any recommendations regarding paint choice.? (I have seen the reference to Gretchin Green on other threads considering similar topics)

 

The kit that I am using was bought about 30 years ago, so I guess I am in no dramatic hurry to complete it, but I would appreciate any advise.

 

Thanks in anticipation.

 

John

[coachmann]

The last time I saw a tin of Precision Paint NBR Bronze green, it looked okay to me. When I was commissioned to paint George Mellors GEM NBR J83 kit for display and photos for box lids, no such colour was readily available. George simply said mix yellow and black to something darker than medium!  This was a greenish colour rather than brownish. That was the easy part. The multiple lining colours are a test of any model painter!

 

However, I have no doubt the experts on here will tell us we are all colour blind, we all see colours differently, and it only matter when the moon is in conjunction with Uranus...

[DOCJACOB]

NBR Journal 100 covered this topic (and its a controversial beauty) and 101 was full of the amendments/discussions.

 

The CR society even managed a whole book on liveries especially the ethereal blue.

 

Can contact me or NBRSG re this.

 

The Precision paint (as used on some of 62c models) looks pretty respectable.

[sulzer27jd]

The last time I saw a tin of Precision Paint NBR Bronze green, it looked okay to me. When I was commissioned to paint George Mellors GEM NBR J83 kit for display and photos for box lids, no such colour was readily available. George simply said mix yellow and black to something darker than medium!  This was a greenish colour rather than brownish. That was the easy part. The multiple lining colours are a test of any model painter!.

 

The only 2 colours I have been able to source are NB Loco Brown P675 and Loco Olive P676, which I assumed were the main loco body colour and the olive would be the panel bands. There is no Bronze Green listed.

 

Thanks

 

John

[duncan]

I suspect the final colour can also be influenced by the undercoat colour   

 

question to a Caley man, what colour is a NB engine ?

 

answer, not blue

 

 

 

ok definitely left the room !

[Caley Jim]

question to a Caley man, what colour is a NB engine ?

 

answer, not blue

 

More of a 'yeuk'!

 

Jim

[ian@stenochs]

I remember in the very early days of the G&SW assn listening in on a discussion on loco colours. There were a lot of members then who had first hand knowledge of the pregrouping companies. I remember David Smith, John Thomas, Willie Stewart and others being engaged in the discussion but it was one of the old railwaymen, for the life of me I cannot recall his name, who gave the definitive description of NBR livery which has stuck with me even though I have never built or painted a NB loco.

 

This is how he described it!

 

Wait until early summer and go into a field where cows are grazing, find a cow pat which has been there a couple of days and the skin on top has got hard. Scrape the top off and that is the colour of NB loco paint!! I would add that he used a more colloquial description for cow pat but I don't want to upset anyone.

 

Ian

[Caley Jim]

I was tempted to use that description too, Ian, but resisted in the interests of good taste. (and it being a Sunday).

 

Jim

[ian@stenochs]

I was tempted to use that description too, Ian, but resisted in the interests of good taste. (and it being a Sunday).

Jim

My Granny used to say ' better the day better the deed!'

 

Ian

[NBR906]

The first J37 (NBR class B) was No.8 which entered service December 1914.

A works grey photograph was taken of it newly completed outside Cowlairs which suggested Reid's green goods livery including the control number on the tender (introduced in Autumn 1913 for goods engines) was intended.

However, there is no evidence that when painted and released into traffic that this was carried and it is believed that they entered service with Reid's later Goods Black livery with the straw double yellow lining which was standard from 1915 on.

With regard to the J37, it is black whether modelling NBR, LNER or BR!

 

 

The J35's (introduced 1906) were originally built with the body colour in Bronze Green and the style colour Dark Green. Lining was red-black-yellow.

 

Some of the first rebuilt Holmes C class 18" Goods (J36) were also finished in the green livery from 1913 until the black livery became the norm c1915.

 

Hope this helps.

 

(I have a 7mm "J37" which I have still to build up the courage to line in the NBR Goods Black livery.........)