ICI Presflo Wagons

[Gibbo675]

Hi Folks,

 

I intend to build a short rake of suitable modified Dapol Presflos into the ICI Bulk Salt livery and would like to know, does anyone happen to know what is the best colour match for ICI Transport Blue ?

 

The ICI shade seems similar enough to BR Blue but how close I'm not sure. I do know that BR Blue is derived from an ICI shade known as Monastral Blue, would that be the correct shade ?

 

Thanks for looking and thanks for any assistance in this matter,

 

Gibbo. 

[cctransuk]

Gibbo,

 

I had Halfords mix up what I recalled ICI Transport Blue to be - and then found that it was virtually indistinguishable from BR Rail Blue !!

 

 

 

If I was doing the exercise again, I'd use Rail Blue and, perhaps, add a smidgen of green - but I doubt anyone could prove Rail Blue to be incorrect.

 

..... and remember who was Chairman of ICI before he became famous - Beeching !!

 

Regards,

John.

[KalKat]

Should that not be infamous?

 

 

 

Emma

[Gibbo675]

Hi Folks,

 

Progress so far is that I have discovered, from another ICI Transport Blue related thread about caustic soda tanks, that the new shade of blue used for the Caledonian sleeper may be a suitable shade for ICI Transport Blue, and also that I have been busy with what is to be painted with a paint that I do not yet have a definitive shade for.

 

 

Gibbo.

[Gibbo675]

13 hours ago, KalKat said:

Should that not be infamous?

 

 

 

Emma

Hi Emma,

 

Dr Beeching's opprobrium most certainly precedes him, even posthumously.

 

It would seem to me that the most infamously under reported aspect of the Beeching report was that although most of the proposed cuts were carried out, the investment and improvements were not all carried out.

 

Not that I attempt to agree or defend either Dr Beeching or with how the cuts were implemented you understand, necessary or otherwise.

 

Gibbo. 

[Gibbo675]

Hi Folks,

 

I have done a little mote upon the ICI Presflos for I found some copper wire that was only .003" under the diameter of the brass wire. As it is softer than the brass wire it will require more careful handling but it allowed me to fit the discharge top air pipes.

 

I also gave them a once over with the remnants of a jar of BR Rail Blue that was starting to go off so I used it up quick so as to save my new jar for top coats, hence the reason the holes for mounting the hoarding board supplied with the kit are not yet filled. I'm still mot overly sure of the finished shade and I might mix some dark green into the Rail Blue.

 

Gibbo.

[Pandora]

ICI Grangemouth isolated the pigment Monastral, a key property being immunity to fade when  exposed to high intensity   light, therefore  very likelythat  ICI Transport Blue is based on Monastral, their showpiece colourant

[Porcy Mane]

Think; Beeching = ICI =Beeching = BR.

 

 

 

P

 

 

 

 

 

 

[Gibbo675]

8 hours ago, Porcy Mane said:

Think; Beeching = ICI =Beeching = BR.

 

 

 

P

 

 

 

 

 

 

Hi Porcy,

 

Thanks for the video link, I do enjoy such videos that may be described as "of their time". No doubt just the kind of thing that gave Harry Enfield inspiration his Cholmondley-Warner and Greyson sketches, especially the pipe smoking in a chemistry laboratory !

 

Like so many things in life it seems that the pigment was discovered by chance which later gave rise to a very useful product. This is a part of the development I was unaware of.

 

Cheers,

 

Gibbo.

[Andy Y]

It's maybe too late to say that the ICI Presflos should be twin silo variants.

 

 

[Gibbo675]

26 minutes ago, Andy Y said:

It's maybe too late to say that the ICI Presflos should be twin silo variants.

 

 

Hi Andy,

 

Thanks for the information, I am aware that they are twin silo and have cut the bottom off the hopper and will rebuild the lower section when I get around to it. I have previously found the above threads of of yours and had a good look at the photos which were very useful.

 

A more detailed description of the build is on my Ongoing Workbench Topic thread.

 

Thanks again,

 

Gibbo.

[Gibbo675]

Hi Folks,

 

I decided that a quick eBay purchase might be helpful in the shape of an ICI tank wagon that carries this elusive livery.

 

I decided to have a little paint mixing experiment and I found that BR Blue with a tiny amount of BR Std Loco Green turned out to be not too far off. I used the small amount mixed to paint the bright metal tie bars to match the tank body of the new wagon. With the remainder I painted one half of a Presflo roof and the panels between the top set of ribs to see how would look. I feel that it needs a slight more green when I come to mix a batch up.

Although not too obvious in the photograph, the ICI shade seems to be how I imagined it, both darker and more green than the BR Blue which looks quite bright when placed next to it.

 

The Presflo with the test mix of paint is on the right

 

 

Gibbo.

 

 

[Gibbo675]

Hi Folks,

 

I have now finished the ICI Bulk Salt Presflo wagons, they were in the end painted in a mix of mainly BR Blue with a small amount of BR standard Loco Green mixed in with just a drop of Dark Roof Blue/Grey, Railmatch colours numbers, 207, 300 and 310 respectively.

 

The transfers are from CCT and the only problem I had was that the ICI roundels only just fit between the ribs of the Dapol model. I had to be very close to the printed decal when cutting them out so that they would fit in between and stay flat. The only diversion I had regarding transfers was that there is an instruction board above the sole bar so I cut the larger set of instructions and positioned it to the left hand side of the board and the smaller set of instructions was cut in half, trimmed to length and positioned to suit.

 

After the transfers had been sealed with a water based varnish I used Railmatch matt finish varnish to tone down the finish appropriately. The last job was to pick out the hand wheels and axle box ends in yellow.

 

Many thanks to all that have contributed to the above thread, I am pleased with how the models have turned out and I enjoyed the building of them.

 

View shewing the opposite sides of two of each of the four wagons built.

 

Gibbo.

[Gibbo675]

Hi Folks,

 

I've been busy on Ebay and purchased an original Hornby-Dublo ICI Bulk Salt Presflo. I had one of these years ago that my dad got second hand, it had been varnished with a bog brush so I stripped it and repainted it in BR bauxite. I am now reliving the dream with my new Hornby-Dublo wagon although I still have my now repainted wagon from years back.

 

Looking good despite its age.

 

Gibbo.

[paul 27]

Just came across this,  has any one coverted the Bachmann presflow would like to make

 some of these would like to see pictures please.

[cctransuk]

On 10/02/2019 at 23:50, Pandora said:

ICI Grangemouth isolated the pigment Monastral, a key property being immunity to fade when  exposed to high intensity   light, therefore  very likelythat  ICI Transport Blue is based on Monastral, their showpiece colourant

 

Those of us of a 'certain age' will recall that the original XP64 blue was specified to be Monastral Blue.

 

CJI.

[The Johnster]

As was the corporate identity blue IIRC, along with pearl grey?  I liked the colour, and thought it looked good on locos and stock, including the VoR steam locos, until the awful fye disfigured them, not that I would have suggested abandoning an idea that undoubtedly saved lives among PW staff, who were being mown down at an alarming rate throughout the 60s as steam was replaced.  Early blue livery examples such as Hymeks with sye and white window surrounds, or Westerns with sye (we were already used to these in single colour plain liveries) looked superb IMHO, which nobody ever took any notice of (and, to be fair, why should they?). 

 

The slaughter of PW staff was dealt with during the 70s by the intorduction of hi-viz.  Tragedies still occourred of course, running lines are horribly dangerous places to have to work, but the frequency was less.  I particularly recall one in which the empty class 126 dmu proceeding to Chepstow for the morning commuter run to Cardiff hit and killed 3 men on the up main at STJ, because in the half-light of a winter dawn and in a strong easterly wind that had them well wrapped up against the bitter cold they had not seen or heard the approaching dmu, running at about 50mph, until too late, an awful incident.  I had been booked to work this train but had swapped turns with another guard, so fortunately for me I was not involved in this affair.  This would have been about '73 or 4; trains did not have high powered headlights in those days, only marker lights little brighter than steam-age oil lamps.

 

 

[Porcy Mane]

1 hour ago, paul 27 said:

Just came across this,  has any one coverted the Bachmann presflow would like to make

 some of these would like to see pictures please.

 

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Edited October 4, 2022 by Porcy Mane

[paul 27]

Yes would like to know what parts Andy used and what is involved converting them

Edited October 4, 2022 by paul 27

[AY Mod]

13 minutes ago, paul 27 said:

Yes would like to know what parts Andy used and what is involved converting them

 

I looked at pics of the real thing, took some plasticard and brass wire and copied it.