Repainting Hornby rolling stock cheaply

[DK123GWR]

I have a class 08 in 'Dino Safari' livery which I would like to repaint into something which looks a little more prototypical (I don't think an 08 ever made it to the Isle of Wight, where it would probably be closest to replicating an actual livery). It is likely to be Rail Blue. This will be the first time that I have repainted anything so I would like to know what the cheaest way to repaint something and have it look reasonable is. By 'reasonable' I mean that the colours should look correct to a normal person (like me), and that it should be possible to paint all of the major details (wasp stripes being the obvious example on a class 08). It's only an unboxed, second hand example of a locomotive initially offered as part of a train set marketed at young children, so I'm happy to use this for my first attempt at repainting a loco (I will probably try out the techniques on a broken wagon first though, just to be safe). Thank you for any help and advice you may be able to provide.

[Adam FW]

The cheapest repaint for it would be to go for BR black, in which case you can repaint it from supplies at your local poundshop or B&M bargains (or whatever is similar and open), just grab a can of automotive primer (tends to be grey, but watch out for a rouge can of silver mixed in with the primers, I've made that mistake before) and some matte black. Depending on the stock some stores have other colours, my local poundland has had yellow, orange, green, blue, red, silver and white in the past so you may be able branch out into more colourful liveries.

 

Remove the body from the chassis. If you have the model I'm thinking of, it already has wasp stripes so using masking tape cover them up and any other areas you want to remain original. Then apply several thin coats of primer (give it some time to dry between coats), later on once the primer has dried apply the top coat in several thin coats again. Let the paint dry then remove the masking tape, add decals later if you want.

 

If the model doesn't already have wasp stripes apply primer to the entire body, then yellow paint to the areas you want to stripe, once that's dried use masking tape to cover up any areas you want to stay yellow and then apply the black paint.

 

Tamiya and some other companies make thin masking tape for modeling which is perfect for wasp stripes. I used 2mm masking tape and enitrely poundland spray paints on my 3D printed pannier tank body.

 

 

If you want BR blue then you're going to want to go down the pot of airfix/humbrol paint route for cheapness and use a brush as I assume you don't have an airbrush or want to buy railmatch spray paints, alternatively you can also buy spray paint for around £5 a can on amazon for more colour choice but your unlikely to get a perfect match to BR blue as you'd be guessing the shade from the image on a computer screen.

[DK123GWR]

1 hour ago, Adam FW said:

The cheapest repaint for it would be to go for BR black, in which case you can repaint it from supplies at your local poundshop or B&M bargains (or whatever is similar and open), just grab a can of automotive primer (tends to be grey, but watch out for a rouge can of silver mixed in with the primers, I've made that mistake before) and some matte black. Depending on the stock some stores have other colours, my local poundland has had yellow, orange, green, blue, red, silver and white in the past so you may be able branch out into more colourful liveries.

 

Remove the body from the chassis. If you have the model I'm thinking of, it already has wasp stripes so using masking tape cover them up and any other areas you want to remain original. Then apply several thin coats of primer (give it some time to dry between coats), later on once the primer has dried apply the top coat in several thin coats again. Let the paint dry then remove the masking tape, add decals later if you want.

 

If the model doesn't already have wasp stripes apply primer to the entire body, then yellow paint to the areas you want to stripe, once that's dried use masking tape to cover up any areas you want to stay yellow and then apply the black paint.

 

Tamiya and some other companies make thin masking tape for modeling which is perfect for wasp stripes. I used 2mm masking tape and enitrely poundland spray paints on my 3D printed pannier tank body.

 

 

If you want BR blue then you're going to want to go down the pot of airfix/humbrol paint route for cheapness and use a brush as I assume you don't have an airbrush or want to buy railmatch spray paints, alternatively you can also buy spray paint for around £5 a can on amazon for more colour choice but your unlikely to get a perfect match to BR blue as you'd be guessing the shade from the image on a computer screen.

Thank you for the advice. I am currently leaning toward Rail Blue as by 1985 (roughly the target period of my layout) you would probably have to scrape around for the last remaining black 08s, if any were still in service (and I've never really like the black ones).

 

Yes, although I do not have the model to hand I believe that it does have the wasp stripes. Where would be the cheapest place to source decals for a class 08? And just to confirm, will it be OK to apply the primer without removing the current paint?

[Adam FW]

51 minutes ago, DK123GWR said:

Thank you for the advice. I am currently leaning toward Rail Blue as by 1985 (roughly the target period of my layout) you would probably have to scrape around for the last remaining black 08s, if any were still in service (and I've never really like the black ones).

 

Yes, although I do not have the model to hand I believe that it does have the wasp stripes. Where would be the cheapest place to source decals for a class 08? And just to confirm, will it be OK to apply the primer without removing the current paint?

Shouldn't be any need to remove the old paint before priming but you probably will want to give it a clean to remove any dirt/oil.

 

If it already has decals/printing on it they may need rubbing back to stop it showing through to the new paint as I doubt you want to see dino safari ghosted onto your new paintwork

 

Getting hold of some decals may be difficult with most model shops shut or online only and no swap meets or train fairs going on. Your best bet to get some decals at the moment is likely ebay, personally I like HMRS pressfix transfers (they just need cutting out and pressing onto the model, no water sliding or solvents needed) and you can get a sheet with lots of logos, numbers and lines on for £6-10 but I've never used the BR ones so couldn't say how good or bad they are.

[DK123GWR]

On 30/04/2020 at 19:49, Adam FW said:

If it already has decals/printing on it they may need rubbing back to stop it showing through to the new paint as I doubt you want to see dino safari ghosted onto your new paintwork

As I may be getting closer to actually carrying out the work, can anybody reccomend the best way to remove the decals from this model without causing damage? I have read that different methods work better on different models, so is anybody able to make a reccomendation regarding Hornby locos of this era?