Renumbering A Hornby Class 60 and Removing The Nameplate Decal - Some Questions?

[BritishRail60062]

Hi folks,

 

I am about to be brave and buy myself a couple of Hornby Class 60's in the DB red to renumber two of the three into others that don't yet exist. The first one which will be 60100 shouldn't be too much of an issue as replacement decal for the "The Midland Railway - Butterley" is in roughly the same position as where the "Dowlow" plate is height wise on 60044. The second one I am planning to do is either 60063 or 60054 with no nameplates. So this got me wondering on how easy is it to remove the "Dowlow" from the model without trashing the red paint? I like the idea of T-cut but I have never done it before, so I would appreciate any advice on using T-cut please?

 

Thanks in advance and all the best

Ash.

Edited June 26, 2019 by BritishRail60062
Spelling error.

[Andrew F]

It depends on how well adhered the printed nameplates are and knowing Hornby, they will be tough to get off. Rubbing a cotton bud and T-cut will eventually remove them but will leave a very shiny area where they used to be. I use a blunt curved scalpel blade to try and scratch the printing off or a piece of plastikard. One method is to soak the printed plate in IPA but I haven't tried this.

 

If you end up with a shiny area you could always spray-varnish the body shell (windows out of course).

[Mick Bonwick]

If you want to use T-Cut to remove an area and be precise about the size and shape of that area then I recommend using Tamiya Cotton Swabs - extra small triangular. These are very tightly wound and can be shaped with a craft knife if desired. Don't be tempted to use the point to rub the nameplate off, use the angled side/edge to cover a slightly larger area.

[rob D2]

I find Hornby stuff harder to remove than Bachmann. Had real issues with sector logo on a 60 as I had to rub harder than usual and before the sector markings had gone it went through the under lying grey.

 

take your time and don’t rub too hard. If the nameplates have silver surround that often takes a bit more effort as the black goes first 

[BritishRail60062]

Thanks for the information on this. I have the idea which came to me when I was coming home on the bus which was perhaps a fibreglass pen could be used on the nameplates if not a cocktail stick to "scratch" off most of it mask the area with tamiya masking tape and then T-cut the remaining black where the nameplate was. From my understanding, the Hornby name plates are tampo-printed onto the models and are sealed in with a lacquer to make them robust to handling etc. In truth I am not so keen on the IPA route because if I get it wrong. The IPA can eat into the red livery which is what I wish to avoid. Still I will give it a go with the Fibreglass pen and the T-cut as then I should be able to remove the unwanted names and numbers and then apply the Railtec replacements that I am intending to use. I will seal in the nameplates with a light coat of satin varnish (most Hornby painted model trains tend to have a satin look to my eyes. I will be adding drivers into the cabs as well, so I will probably do this first and then block off the windows with tamiya masking tape before sealing in the decals with varnish. 

 

I have a lot of patience and good results are not something that can be done in a day. I will be buying some Tamiya cotton buds for the nameplate removal and some narrow paint brushes to "push" the numbers around and get them into place .

[Phil Mc]

T-cut would be my choice.

Anything to scratch the numbers/nameplates off has a risk to it.

Just be aware that you'll need to change the cotton bud pretty regularly !

You can 'feel' when the bud needs changing through your fingers.

Start by removing the numbers, much easier to get them off, and you get a bit of practice, before moving on to the more difficult nameplate removal.

Don't worry if you can see a 'ghost' of the plate after all the printing has gone, it'll disappear with the covering of varnish you put on afterwards !

 

Cheers,

Phil.

[Topfeed]

Practice has taught me to carefully mask the area around the item to be removed, then use a cotton bud dipped in a little T-Cut and rub slowly and gently, especially on a painted finish. The resulting shiny surface gives a good base for the new decal to adhere to. The ideal situation is one where the plastic provides the base colour (i.e., not a painted finish), as a short burst of satin varnish then disguises any ghosting from the old decal and blends the new one in almost invisibly. The first time I wanted a late BR emblem in place of an early one, I paid to have it done 'professionally', but found I could do it better myself. Cabside numbers on BR Standards can usually be removed so that only the changed ones need replacing, and I find Fox Transfers to be an excellent match for both Bachmann and Hornby colours, when satin varnish is applied over them.