the penguin of doom Posted January 3, 2011 Share Posted January 3, 2011 Hello everyone. Thanks for looking in. I've decided to post on some of my current detailing projects. Many years ago, I had a full collection of mainly Lima models, based on NE region late 1960's diesel loco's. As the years have progressed, models have improved greatly although I do feel the Lima bodies still hold up very well compared with the newer models. With this in mind, I've been lurking around a well know internet auction site and have now sourced enough chassis and spare bodies etc to modernise my fleet. Some of you may have already seen a similar project with my fleet of Peaks. I guess I'd call my work personalising rather than super detailing. I don't tend to go really deeply into it, for example, I don't tend to add windscreen wipers. So in reality, it's just a thread to improve what is already out there. Rivet counters should stop reading now..... That said, if you're reading through the thread and find a glaring error, or are aware of a decent product that may assist with the work, feel free to post. I'll be starting out with 4 x 31's and a 40, but I have examples of classes 17, 47 and a Deltic to work on. I may also be doing some more work on my DP2 model which is complete, but is missing a roof vent. after that, there's a shed load of DMU's to crack on with. It's going to be a busy year..... Right! to start with, I've been inspired by James' conversion of a class 31 using a Hornby chassis. His thread is worth looking at too if you've not visited already. I've noticed that the Hornby skin head 31 only appears to be correct for the 31/0 version. The 31/1's appear to have different nose door steps, so since I had the lima bodies, I've decided to use these and graft the Hornby buffer beam skirts onto the Lima body and use the Hornby chassis too. The Lima bodies with the headcode box all appear to have welded doors, so need backdating. I'll be using the A1 models nose doors for this bit of the conversion. Here's a picture of work so far...... As can be seen, roof fan grilles and new headcodes will also be fitted. I also have a Lima class 40 body which will be grafted onto a Bachmann chassis. I feel that the Bachmann nose doesn't look quite right to me and that with a level of detailing, the Lima body is ideal. I'm sure there will be those out there that disagree, but it's a case of each to his or her own I guess. I already have a few of these already done, so I'm sticking with this method. Here's a picture of the untouched body. I intend this one to be D345 in green with full yellow ends. Thats all for now. Stay tuned and feel free to say hi. Cheers. Sean. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Andrew F Posted January 4, 2011 Share Posted January 4, 2011 Count me in Sean. I'm up for an occasional Penguin diesel thread as I should learn a thing or two and find this retro shell/ upgraded power/gear kind of stuff right up my street. Quite a good way of working too; getting a production line going to make sure the projects actually get finished. There seems to be a revival of this stuff going on at the moment and with the new (or old) Shawplan etches and Lazerglaze, it's never been a better time for diesels (they do the wipers in three sizes by the way(not twin arm though, I think), with variations of position if you fancy a bit of rivet countering). It looks like you're recessing the 31's fan grille etches so they sit flush with the roof panels; it's something I regret not doing with my NBL's. Also, I'm interested in your DMU projects as I've recently completed an MTK Gloucester unit with Bachy power. Which units are your projects? I'm intrigued with your Clayton 17. Is this an old DC kit or Dave Alexander detailing project or a Heljan model? I'm keen to do the Rolls Royce bonnet thing that two members of the class were blessed with. Don't feel shy about linking or posting past Penguin projects such as the Peaks. I'm sure there's some(me) of us who missed them on the old RM. Thanks Andy Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
James Posted January 4, 2011 Share Posted January 4, 2011 I'm going to enjoy this thread Sean! The approach of 'personalising' is quite valid. The overall look will be the same and for a fleet of layout locos the overall effect will be very good! Sometimes knowing when to stop can be the biggest obstacle when it comes to actually finishing projects! There seems to be a revival of this stuff going on at the moment and with the new (or old) Shawplan etches and Lazerglaze, it's never been a better time for diesels (they do the wipers in three sizes by the way(not twin arm though, I think), with variations of position if you fancy a bit of rivet countering). There does seem to be a real revival at the moment. A1 Models seem to have been there in the eighties but Graham Shaw started the revival with his rather nice etches a few years ago and Brian hanson has now revolutionised the possibilities for D&E modelling. And, incidently, Shawplan do some rather nice twin arm wipers! Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
ChrisB Posted January 4, 2011 Share Posted January 4, 2011 I'll go along with all of the above. I don't know how many rivets there are to the foot on whichever part of this or that sub class of a 47 and, frankly, don't care. Like you say, "If it looks right, it is right". Power to your elbow and err..........get on with it..........please !!! Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Gold Downendian Posted January 4, 2011 RMweb Gold Share Posted January 4, 2011 Sean (and James)<br />I've been following both of your threads with interest - wondered who was outbidding me on those Lima 31s!!<br />I've also just started upgrading a very ancient Lima ScR square box 40, although will be putting it on a Limby railroad chassis, having run it this morning may change my mind and go Bachy so will be watching the Penguin on that route.<br />Looking forward to updates. I agree with your comments on the Lima 31 body shells they are very good.<br /><br />Neil Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Gold Downendian Posted January 4, 2011 RMweb Gold Share Posted January 4, 2011 Hi Sean A query on the Hornby/Lima 31 shells. They both have a pair of rectangular exhaust ports, but Hornbys are at right angles to the Lima ones? Any reason for this? Was there a difference in port layouts between the class 30 and 31? Look forward to seeing your 40 repowering , as i'm unsure if the Limby chassis will be fit for purpose. Neil Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest jim s-w Posted January 4, 2011 Share Posted January 4, 2011 The Hornby class 31s are not class 31's (at least some of them arent) they are class 30's HTH Jim Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
BernardTPM Posted January 4, 2011 Share Posted January 4, 2011 Hi Sean, I can confirm that the exhausts were altered when the original Mirrlees engines were changed for the English Electric ones, so both are correct but for different prime movers. This means technically Lima never did a Class 31 in N gauge*, but a Class 30. (* OK, not a very scale N either!). Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lukasz Posted January 4, 2011 Share Posted January 4, 2011 Will be watching this thread with interest and anticipation as I did James' wonderful thread. What are the plans for the locos? Br green? Lukasz Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Andrew F Posted January 15, 2011 Share Posted January 15, 2011 Glad you sussed the paint problems out with the Pullmans; I had similar peeling problems myself. I used the rough body with my work first just like you, and found that the first attempt was the best and the ones that followed were worse; curse the learning curve!!! ...familiarity breeding god know's what. Are you using etched doors for this 31 or recessing some of your own ? Thanks for the update Sean...power to the retro diesel builders. Cheers Andy Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Andrew F Posted January 17, 2011 Share Posted January 17, 2011 Exciting stuff indeed Sean! It's possibly the ambiguity of your nose door method that's causing me sleepless nights I'm joking. It's more preferable for me and probably a lot of other modellers, to see your kind of thread and mine I hope; and like you say, there's a lot more to be learned from this kind of experience and informal write-up. Coachmann set one of his models on fire? He did it on purpose I say Cheers Andy Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
mike knowles Posted February 8, 2011 Share Posted February 8, 2011 Hi all. Next job is to work out a method of bending the doors around the top 1/4 where they follow the profile of the nose front. Cheers. Sean. You can have a borrow of my hold & fold if it helps. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
'CHARD Posted February 8, 2011 Share Posted February 8, 2011 Oh I'm glad to have found this thread, PoD. It's right up my street, looking forward to as much 'If it looks right...' as you're prepared to offer, your philosophy's finding a very willing advocate here. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pennine MC Posted February 8, 2011 Share Posted February 8, 2011 ... and I'm going to have to find a nice close up photo of the nose doors as there is a slit cut from top to bottom on the etches and I have a feeling there should be a seal here which is proud of the doors. Feel free to post a link if anyone has the requisite picture..... No seal that I'm aware of Sean, here are 5578, 5599 and 5842 from Brush Veteran's site that show the noses fairly clearly. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Max Stafford Posted February 8, 2011 Share Posted February 8, 2011 Oh I'm glad to have found this thread, PoD. It's right up my street, looking forward to as much 'If it looks right...' as you're prepared to offer, your philosophy's finding a very willing advocate here. And here too! Looking forward to the rest of PoD's 'snog, marry, avoid' ped makeover! "Life's too short to strive for perfection..." Dave. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
'CHARD Posted February 9, 2011 Share Posted February 9, 2011 And here too! Looking forward to the rest of PoD's 'snog, marry, avoid' ped makeover! "Life's too short to strive for perfection..." Thanks Jenny Frost, I was soooooo tempted to deliver the PoD punchline, then I knew there was someone I could rely on to Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
James Posted February 18, 2011 Share Posted February 18, 2011 Looking rather good! The doors seem to be blending in the with rest of the cab front quite well Though I was a bit worried about the buffers at first glance! From memory the Class 31 fan grille from A1 isn't too bad - the older Shawplan fan (as I used on 31 171) is actually too big! Brian informed me of this - his new EE class 31 fan came just too late for my project Are you using the Hornby fan? Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jol Wilkinson Posted February 28, 2011 Share Posted February 28, 2011 So it's not a trick question, if you don't recognise this nose end, you're in the wrong hobby! Sean. What hobby is that then? Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Gold Enterprisingwestern Posted March 1, 2011 RMweb Gold Share Posted March 1, 2011 I generally use the Shawplan parts, (as you'll see during subsequent projects), but I do prefer the less fiddly Craftsman frames and as I tend to paint with a brush, the really fine mesh on the Shawplan fan grille can sometimes get clogged up. That's why felt pens were invented Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Andrew F Posted March 5, 2011 Share Posted March 5, 2011 Hello Sean Good to see the builds coming along; the 31 front looks great as does the 40's roof vent. There's this fast evaporating thinners that Shawplan sell, that can put a slight paint coating on their etches without filling in the grilles. I've not tried it yet though Andy Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Premium mirreles31 Posted March 14, 2011 RMweb Premium Share Posted March 14, 2011 Hi Sean, Your 40 is looking good. I've just been rejuvenating a Lima 40 that I detailed and resprayed over 20 years ago. It's getting a new chassis from Hornby Railroad so is awaiting that being detailed. Mine was converted into a disc version from Lima's original model which was of a one off :-a disc headcode loco that had been given boxes after crash damage at both ends!! (40 062 I think) a really odd prototype to model, to represent any other centre headcode box loco it had to be altered as the boxes were square cornered not rounded and there were remnants of where the access door ends used to be at the bottom of the nose, I presume this is the reason that Lima 40s have disc headcode variant rooves . There's a pic of mine at a similar stage to yours on my thread 'aerosols vs airbrush'. Any way I'll be keeping up with what you are doing with the 40. Good work, Phil. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Premium keefer Posted March 14, 2011 RMweb Premium Share Posted March 14, 2011 it sounds then like lima's 40 was modelled after D260-266 (40060-066). these were modified by the ScR and were always identifiable, as you say, by the bottom profile of the former nose doors and the square edge to the headcode box - most of them also lost the 3 smaller handrails around the box (except 40060 it would seem!) 40062 - http://www.railblue.com/pages/Class%2040/haymarket_based_40_062.htm 40060 - http://www.railblue.com/pages/Class%2040/40060_YK_1984.htm 40064 - http://www.railblue.com/pages/Class%2040/40064.YK.197x.htm as always, work from photos - there are always loads of little differences to catch you out! Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Premium mirreles31 Posted March 14, 2011 RMweb Premium Share Posted March 14, 2011 Hi Keefer, thanks for adding that info I had forgotten the full story and was only a bit right about the accident to 062, I think the original info I read was in a review when Lima first introduced the 40 (1988?) and I just had to have one,then realised I'd rather have a named example!!!! hence the conversion . Cheers Phil. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
ozzyo Posted March 14, 2011 Share Posted March 14, 2011 it sounds then like lima's 40 was modelled after D260-266 (40060-066). these were modified by the ScR and were always identifiable, as you say, by the bottom profile of the former nose doors and the square edge to the headcode box - most of them also lost the 3 smaller handrails around the box (except 40060 it would seem!) 40062 - http://www.railblue....ased_40_062.htm 40060 - http://www.railblue....060_YK_1984.htm 40064 - http://www.railblue....064.YK.197x.htm as always, work from photos - there are always loads of little differences to catch you out! Hello Keefer, I've been looking at the photo of 40060 and she seems to have more rounded corners to her head code box, so that different again. OzzyO. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Premium mirreles31 Posted March 17, 2011 RMweb Premium Share Posted March 17, 2011 Hi Sean, the 40 is looking good, I wish I had thought of that!!!! when I was fiddling about with bits of paper for the headcode on my Falcon . And I've the lettering as well it would have been so simple. I've not bothered messing with the windows on my 40 cos it's really an exercise in bringing an old favourite back to life, it was my first real go at detailing and it reminds me of how good it turned out at the time and how much I've learnt since (like how to do headcodes!!! ). Am just in the middle of cleaning up the bufferbeams on the railroad chassis ready to fit all the requisite pipework. When done it'll be off for some light weathering and I'll probably post a pic on my thread. Keep up the good work Cheers Phil. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
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