Mr Simon's N and 2mm Workbench - pg29> N V1 2-6-2, 2mm L&Y class 23, assorted wagons and stuff

[MrSimon]

Hello Everybody!

 

Here are some pictures of the other banana vans I've been putting together, all in their first coats of bauxite and half painted roofs:

 

This one is based on the diagram 242 banana van, the door fitting seems to be the wrong type, but I wasn't going to make a new one.

 

Annoyingly I can't find the source picture for this one, but it definitely had no bottom corner plates and the diagonal band didn't go round the top corner... thats my story and I'm sticking to it!

 

This is another van that really should be on a 9' wb chassis, but I didn't have another one in stock and I only just noticed when looking at the picture to see what type it represents.  It represents an ex GE designed LNER banana van.  The picture looks like a 9' wb, the drawing says 10' but is the same on the other details.

 

Since taking these pics they've all had vacuum pipes added and six have had a second coat of bauxite.  Like all the banana vans, they're meant for adding variety to a fast fitted goods train (which probably will be a banana train) on Bingham MRCs Rise Park/Top Valley Goods layout. 

 

There's been another coat of paint on the brake, but its just another boring coat of white...

 

Lots to do!

 

Simon

Edited August 1, 2018 by MrSimon

[MrSimon]

Hello Everybody!

 

It's been a month and not an awful lot has happened - but at the same time it seems like I've done loads...

 

Firstly, I had a bit of an issue making replacement roofs for the vans that I'd lost/broken the peco ones:

 

 

 

I used thin plasticard sheet for the roofs, bent in warm water and then cemented onto the van.  They were OK and then within a few hours they had crinkled up like this.  Then I remembered from a few years ago someone recommended that I drill a hole in the floor to let the glue fumes out - so I tried it and it worked

 

 

 

 

All the vans have now had second (and some of them third) coats of brown, and had their roofs painted - as well as their buffer shanks and underframes

 

 

I just have the end vents to make and attach for these three and then they're done.

 

All twelve vans need to be glossed and have the transfers fitted, then they can be weathered and returned.

 

The other job I've been doing is the coach repaint.  Learning from previous repaints I've been trying to keep the coats of paint quite thin, and not paint too many coats of different colours on top of each other:

 

 

I need to tidy up the bottom of the blue and then give in a slightly thicker second coat of blue - with a cleaner edge of masking tape.  I've not decided whether to alter the interior yet to make it a BFK, which would be correct, or leave it as a BFO.  Maybe I'll save the interior for another day...

 

Other than the coach I've been touching up my HEA rake, but I didn't take any pictures of that.

 

Lots to do!

 

Simon

Edited August 1, 2018 by MrSimon

[BernardTPM]

I've made* Mk.2 BFK interiors using the seats from the old Graham Farish corridor coaches. On early versions it was really easy to splice the seating up as the corridor partition was moulded separately; later they reworked it as a one-piece moulding, which is not so good. The corridor partitions on Mk.2 shell BFKs (& FKs other than the very early Mk.2, the ones with the different sliding vents) had deep glass windows so I made the whole thing from clear styrene, ruling the 'aluminium' lines with one of those silver fine line marker pens and colouring the lower parts from the reverse in black and 'wood' (just a buff colour), though the NSE ones were recoloured, the partitions gaining 'Edward Pond' murals. There are several good shots in that flickr set.The guard's compartment and luggage cages are the same for BSO & BFK.

 

* back in the late 1980s!

Edited May 26, 2014 by BernardTPM

[MrSimon]

Ah brilliant thanks Bernard, I'll dig out my glazing plastic and give it a go (but I'll see how it looks before I start moving seats on the interior!) I gave the coach a second coat of blue, but I think maybe I should have used the early NSE blue?  It needs a third coat so I can correct it.

 

Cheers

 

Simon

[BernardTPM]

The majority of NSE coaches were in the light blue, even after darker blue was being used on EMUs/DMUs, particularly on the West of England sets.

[MrSimon]

Thanks Bernard!

 

I've given it a coat of the light blue and it looks much better   I just need to repaint the window bars

 

Will take pics when the sun comes back

 

Cheers

 

Simon

[BernardTPM]

A few retained aluminium on the window frames, though not many. I did have a list of the minutiae of NSE loco-hauled coaches compiled from either clear magazine and book photos or my own observations. Unfortunately I suspect this was lost in the move, though there are a couple of boxes of unsorted paperwork that was fairly randomly grabbed on the day.

[MrSimon]

Thanks Bernard - unfortunately I'd already painted the window bars in the darker blue but the second coat went on fine - much easier to paint that the old ones!

 

The coach has had thin coats of blue and white but nothing thats been very photogenic - but last week a pair of ATM bogies arrived to go under a tanker

 

I don't remember robbing a pair of wheels off this tanker, but it seemed to be the ideal one for re-bogie-ing

 

It was a simple swap to fit the ATM ESC bogies and they make quite a difference!  When I've next got the layout up I'll experiment with shorter couplings.  I've already got two or three fitted with the ATM Gloucester.

 

Difference between the old and new bogies - and now I've got a pair of farish wheels to put under something else.  Nearing the end of pizza-cutters on Gresby!

 

This wagon has now gone in the painting box to have the steps fitted and to sort out the swampy underframe and have a go at tanker weathering before I tackle the rest of the rake.

 

Lots to do!

 

Simon

Edited August 1, 2018 by MrSimon

[shanks522]

Hi Simon,

 

 

 Like the new bogies on the tanker, makes a huge difference.

 

 

graham.

[PaulCheffus]

It was a simple swap to fit the ATM ESC bogies and they make quite a difference!  When I've next got the layout up I'll experiment with shorter couplings.  I've already got two or three fitted with the ATM Gloucester.

 

Hi

 

Which shorter couplings did you use? I have found that the Farish and Dapol couplings don't fit the ATM coupler pockets very well.

 

Cheers

 

Paul

[Revolution Ben]

 

Hi Paul,

 

The ATM coupler pockets were designed for ATM couplers. However NEM conversions are now available to for flexibility.

 

A word of warning though: not all Farish NEM sockets are correct - the auto ballasters, for example, have pockets that are too loose to adequately grip ATM, Dapol and even Roco NEM couplers.

 

Cheers

 

Ben A.

[PaulCheffus]

Hi Paul,

 

The ATM coupler pockets were designed for ATM couplers. However NEM conversions are now available to for flexibility.

 

A word of warning though: not all Farish NEM sockets are correct - the auto ballasters, for example, have pockets that are too loose to adequately grip ATM, Dapol and even Roco NEM couplers.

 

Cheers

 

Ben A.

 

Hi Ben

 

Thanks for the reply.

 

I make have mistakenly assumed that Simon was using NEM coupler pockets but re reading his post he may not be.

 

It is the NEM coupler pockets I am using but I find that they do not correctly grip the couplings from either Farish or Dapol which appear too be larger forcing the bottom of the pocket downwards. I found that the couplers supplied with the ESC1 bogies space the tank wagons too far apart so wanted to reduce the gap.

 

Hope the above makes sense.

 

Cheers

 

Paul

[MrSimon]

Hi Paul, I've not used any yet, they're still the ones that came with the bogies - I didn't realise all the NEM sockets were different, so I'll probably just glue them.

 

The Gloucester bogies I've got aren't NEM, but they couple really closely (I can't remember how but I'll take a pic when I've got them out next)

 

Thanks Graham, They make a massive difference to the appearance of the wagon, amazing what a simple change can do! I've had some of these tanks since I was 10, they've been repainted and detailed and (mostly) re-wheeled/re-bogied, but never weathered - time to change that I think!

 

Cheers

 

Simon

[Revolution Ben]

Hi Paul,

 

I've used the ATM coupler pockets with ATM, Dapol and some Farish couplers without difficulty; on other occasions there are problems.  I suspect there are small variations between batches though I am not sure why this should be.

 

cheers

 

Ben A.

[MrSimon]

Hello Everybody!

 

I had a second pair of the ESC bogies turn up last week, so they got fitted to the next pizza-cuttered tanker in the queue.

 

I've not done any thinking about the shorter couplings yet, but here are the ESCs next to one fitted with the Gloucester bogies.

 

Close up of the Gloucester showing the close-coupling - another one on the 'to weather' list!

 

A progress shot of the BFK.  The new Mark 2s are much harder to paint than the old ones!  I think either the blue needs to be lower or the grey higher.  Or both.  And then neated up the joins...

 

Maybe I should have waited for Farish?

 

Lots to do!

 

Simon

Edited August 1, 2018 by MrSimon

[MrSimon]

Hello Everybody!

 

Ages since I last updated this, but I've been working away on bits and pieces... The coach is still getting sporadic coats of paint, and its great news that Farish are bringing one out in NSE livery - it'll be much easier to repaint!

 

After sitting on my desk for a month I finally forced myself to start applying transfers onto the first of the banana vans:

 

Its a bit of a pain that the transfer sheet is all for BR built vans, when quite a few of these are supposed to represent LNER/LMS vans, but with weathering and in a moving train I don't think anyone will notice... no number would be much more noticable!  This is the first time I've painted a wagon gloss for the tramsfers to stick on better, I can't say I noticed any difference, but I'll see how they are after I've painted them back matt again, and weathered them.  There's four more I need to transfer, but that can wait for another day.

 

The main triumph of this post is that after 20+ years of owning one, I have finally weathered a 100T tanker:

 

 

 

I need to paint some white onto the handwheels and the steps, and touch up the yellow on the lifting things, but I think for the first time I can actually call a tanker done.  I think it looks OK... maybe a bit too dirty?  What do you think?

 

Lots to do!

 

Simon

Edited August 1, 2018 by MrSimon

[BernardTPM]

Like the tanker Simon. No, it's not too dirty!

[rope runner]

Looks spot-on to me, very good

 

Paul

[MrSimon]

Brilliant thank you - 11 more to go! Is the handwheel for the brakes? I've got two with hand wheels on the bogies, would they need the chassis mounted wheel too?

 

Cheers

 

Simon

[BernardTPM]

The hand wheel would be for the brakes, so if you have them on the bogies you don't need them on the chassis. I assume these are coil sprung bogies, like Y25 or Gloucester GPS, etc., can't recall any of the three-piece ones with brakes on the bogies.

[MrSimon]

Hi Bernard, yep they're Gloucester bogies (the early ATM ones with the etched bit) under two of the tankers, I'll remember to take the body mounted wheels off when it's their turn to be weathered.


I had a bit of an epic modelling session last night, especially for a work night, but I want to get those banana vans finished before I go up to Newark next week - I've had them long enough! Last night I put transfers on the last four:


While these were drying I got out the powders and attacked the first eight wagons with the weathering powders (without managing to take a single picture) When I've varnished these four I'll weather the last of them, and maybe even do a video on Hawthorne Dene next weekend



Start with the tanker with the underframe and bogies painted in your favourite dirty black/brake dust/underframe dirt mixture, with dry-brushed oil streaks in dirty black.


Turn it upside-down and put plenty of dirty brown weathering powders on the bottom of the barrel and stipple down with a stiff old brush. Rub in to the bogies and underframe.


Brush the spare powder up the body and run along the ridge and then brush the powders up the sides until you get to the top. If it gets too thick you can wipe it off, and you can blend it in, or wipe downwards with a cotton bud to mimic rain.


This tanker seems shiney-er than the one I did first, so the camera hasn't picked up how it looks in the flesh.


Lastly I add some back powders over the fillers, around the top and down the streaks I painted on. I took everything outside and sprayed it with a light coat of matt varnish.


Once the varnish is dry I painted in the handwheels and the bottom steps in white. Messy work this weathering.

Lots to do!

Simon

Edited August 1, 2018 by MrSimon

[Southernboy]

Neat weathering on those tankers Mr Simon. 

 

...  the effect you have achieved is quite convincing and notes taken here in Frankland

[MrSimon]

Hehe thanks Mark - can't wait to see the results on Frankland!

 

Busy busy busy over here, rushing to get stuff finished before a trip up north (but I've also been doing bits on my own stock too).  First up, I'm nearly at the end of the NSE Mk2 repaint:

 

Just the stripe to do.  I'm pretty sure me doing this has directly influenced Farish's 2015 to do list, so you're welcome... I've got the interior to alter, the roof and ends to do and the chassis to weather.  Part of me thinks I should wait for the Farish one and paint this railtour maroon, but I've got this far

 

I got the vans I'd been working on weathered and delivered to my Dad this weekend, and I couldn't resist giving them a run on Dad's layout - and I thought I'd try splicing some clips together to make a longer video... which is all kinda blurry:

 

Here are the twelve I did, and a peco one from the box:

 

 

 

The other banana vans are already in Trevor's stock box, and should make a decent train.

 

I've got some more coaches to sort, and the usual weathering and detailing to keep me busy...

 

Lots to do!

 

Simon

Edited February 2, 2020 by MrSimon
Show video as embedded

[MrSimon]

Hello Everybody!

 

Good bit of progress this week - I've finished the main painting on the NSE/Regional coach sides.  At last.  It seems like its taken forever...

 

 

 

A blue line, for the coaches transferred to RR NW from NSE.  Since taking these pics I've aso filled in the bits of window bar I missed and got the bit of smudged light blue.  The next job on these is to paint the ends and the roof black, then gloss and transfer the sides.  Its all go! 

 

I'm not sure what to do about the interior.  Its so well moulded it would be a massive shame to hack it up, but at the same time the interiors wrong form the coach and I can't see Farish bringing out a BFK for me to swap interiors with... its going to be a pain, but I reckon I'll be making a corridoor out of glazing as Bernard suggested, and moving the seats around.  Fun haha. 

 

It'll be nice to have something thats not a tanker coming out of my painting box...

 

Lots to do!

 

Simon

Edited August 1, 2018 by MrSimon

[Nelson Jackson]

That's a good tip about drilling a hole in the bottom of the van to let the glue fumes out, must try that out sometime, great work on them.