sb67 Posted February 25, 2022 Share Posted February 25, 2022 Thanks for the reply James, I've enjoyed doing the wagons, I tried using Metalcote polished steel for the buffers as per the Martyn Welch Weathering book but I feel it doesn't look quite right. I'll look forward to seeing the Barbels. Very nice Class 47's, I'm building up to weathering a loco! 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rob D2 Posted February 25, 2022 Share Posted February 25, 2022 (edited) I came for the duffs, but stayed for Rachael Stevens ! Nice work as ever James Edited February 25, 2022 by rob D2 2 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Premium Popular Post James Makin Posted March 4, 2022 Author RMweb Premium Popular Post Share Posted March 4, 2022 Some shiny red 56s this week! 56069 and 56094 by James Makin by James Makin - Account 2, on Flickr Joining the fleet today are EWS red 56s, 56069 Wolverhampton Steel Terminal and 56094 Eggborough Power Station. 56069 and 56094 by James Makin by James Makin - Account 2, on Flickr Based on the outgoing Hornby model, these two workhorses are represented in late 1998 condition, and looking resplendent in their freshly-applied EWS livery. The starting point was the Hornby's 56103 release, with a couple picked up many years ago and pugged away for a rainy day... 56069 and 56094 by James Makin by James Makin - Account 2, on Flickr First, the EWS lettering and numbering was removed from the side, gently scratching away with a curve-bladed scalpel to remove the sheen from the red printing before applying some Humbrol enamel thinners with a cotton bud to finish off the rest, which luckily came off without going through the EWS gold stripe beneath. 56069 and 56094 by James Makin by James Makin - Account 2, on Flickr Other modifications were added at this stage too - only minimal ones as luckily the donor models matched the prototype very well. 56094 had a few changes, including a square Replica Railways headlight added over the original round version, along with the two-piece front handrails. Finally, the cab roof aerials were changed to match the mix of 'T' and inverted 'V' mounts found on the real thing. 56069 and 56094 by James Makin by James Makin - Account 2, on Flickr Having applied Railtec's pre-made EWS lettering and number decals, and Fox's etched nameplates, the locos were sealed in with matt varnish and subjected to the usual weathering processes, aided by the fantastic Phoebe Green. 56069 and 56094 by James Makin by James Makin - Account 2, on Flickr The locos were reassembled, with drivers added in each of the forward-facing cabs, and the 'rear' end fitted with a 0.45mm wire loop to connect to tension-lock-equipped wagons for hauling trains around. 56069 and 56094 by James Makin by James Makin - Account 2, on Flickr Chassis weathering is a mix of greys and browns, airbrushed over with track dirt and brake dust. 56069 and 56094 by James Makin by James Makin - Account 2, on Flickr The names on these locos are one of the main attractions that's made them be on my long-term 'to model' list, and the no-frills industrial names are exactly the kind of name that the old-school enthusiasts love to hate! 56069 and 56094 by James Makin by James Makin - Account 2, on Flickr The subtle differences between the ends of 56069 and 56094 can be seen to good effect below, and also of interest is that '094 at some stage lost it's famous 'Grid' sitting below the bufferbeam! 56069 and 56094 by James Makin by James Makin - Account 2, on Flickr 56094 Eggborough Power Station has long been a favourite as it featured on an old VHS video of Toton depot getting a big works overhaul and painted out of Trainload Coal colours into the beautiful new, then-current EWS livery, and being re-united with its nameplates. The video even showed how EWS applied the real life nameplates using a chalked plumb-line, my young self always wondered how they got them fixed straight, especially when so heavy, it's hard enough in model form! Then seeing the loco in real life was almost like one of those celebrity-wow moments, I have got to model this..! 56069 and 56094 by James Makin by James Makin - Account 2, on Flickr One other interesting detail difference on 56094 was the little raised square part on the secondman's cab sides, these were made from offcuts of thin styrene added to the sides and painted over. 56069 and 56094 by James Makin by James Makin - Account 2, on Flickr Finishing touches to the loco included drybrushing some Humbrol Metalcote gunmetal over the bogies and cantrail roof grilles, and once dry, giving a gentle rub with a cotton bud to highlight a sheen over the raised edges. 56069 and 56094 by James Makin by James Makin - Account 2, on Flickr 56069 and 56094 by James Makin by James Makin - Account 2, on Flickr It's always fun to look into the fortunes of the real life locos to see what's happened to them after having 'preserved' them in late '90s condition in model form, and what happens next is normally gloomy reading. Both locos however have had a really interesting few years, with Lady Luck on their side - after being casualties of EWS's infamous 'Big Switch-off' of early 2004, both locos were given a reprieve and sent to France to work as part of the 'Fertis' fleet, each given repaints in the white livery for their contract to work on the LGV construction project. After returning home from France, the locos were both stored and ended up at EMR's Kingsbury scrap yard in 2012-2013, before parting ways - 56094 becoming part of the Colas Railfreight fleet and wearing the well-known yellow, orange and black colours, whilst 56069 has just become a fully-fledged celebrity, having been rebuilt as Class 69 No. 69004 and outshopped in GBRf's homage to the BR Technical Research red & blue livery. Happy days! 56069 and 56094 by James Makin by James Makin - Account 2, on Flickr Overall, another great fun project to do, getting these locos out of their boxes after so many years sitting in the stock cupboard awaiting attention! Their future will now be hauling some heavy steel trains through my layout! Cheers, James 25 5 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mophead45143 Posted March 4, 2022 Share Posted March 4, 2022 1 hour ago, James Makin said: Some shiny red 56s this week! 56069 and 56094 by James Makin by James Makin - Account 2, on Flickr Joining the fleet today are EWS red 56s, 56069 Wolverhampton Steel Terminal and 56094 Eggborough Power Station. 56069 and 56094 by James Makin by James Makin - Account 2, on Flickr Based on the outgoing Hornby model, these two workhorses are represented in late 1998 condition, and looking resplendent in their freshly-applied EWS livery. The starting point was the Hornby's 56103 release, with a couple picked up many years ago and pugged away for a rainy day... 56069 and 56094 by James Makin by James Makin - Account 2, on Flickr First, the EWS lettering and numbering was removed from the side, gently scratching away with a curve-bladed scalpel to remove the sheen from the red printing before applying some Humbrol enamel thinners with a cotton bud to finish off the rest, which luckily came off without going through the EWS gold stripe beneath. 56069 and 56094 by James Makin by James Makin - Account 2, on Flickr Other modifications were added at this stage too - only minimal ones as luckily the donor models matched the prototype very well. 56094 had a few changes, including a square Replica Railways headlight added over the original round version, along with the two-piece front handrails. Finally, the cab roof aerials were changed to match the mix of 'T' and inverted 'V' mounts found on the real thing. 56069 and 56094 by James Makin by James Makin - Account 2, on Flickr Having applied Railtec's pre-made EWS lettering and number decals, and Fox's etched nameplates, the locos were sealed in with matt varnish and subjected to the usual weathering processes, aided by the fantastic Phoebe Green. 56069 and 56094 by James Makin by James Makin - Account 2, on Flickr The locos were reassembled, with drivers added in each of the forward-facing cabs, and the 'rear' end fitted with a 0.45mm wire loop to connect to tension-lock-equipped wagons for hauling trains around. 56069 and 56094 by James Makin by James Makin - Account 2, on Flickr Chassis weathering is a mix of greys and browns, airbrushed over with track dirt and brake dust. 56069 and 56094 by James Makin by James Makin - Account 2, on Flickr The names on these locos are one of the main attractions that's made them be on my long-term 'to model' list, and the no-frills industrial names are exactly the kind of name that the old-school enthusiasts love to hate! 56069 and 56094 by James Makin by James Makin - Account 2, on Flickr The subtle differences between the ends of 56069 and 56094 can be seen to good effect below, and also of interest is that '094 at some stage lost it's famous 'Grid' sitting below the bufferbeam! 56069 and 56094 by James Makin by James Makin - Account 2, on Flickr 56094 Eggborough Power Station has long been a favourite as it featured on an old VHS video of Toton depot getting a big works overhaul and painted out of Trainload Coal colours into the beautiful new, then-current EWS livery, and being re-united with its nameplates. The video even showed how EWS applied the real life nameplates using a chalked plumb-line, my young self always wondered how they got them fixed straight, especially when so heavy, it's hard enough in model form! Then seeing the loco in real life was almost like one of those celebrity-wow moments, I have got to model this..! 56069 and 56094 by James Makin by James Makin - Account 2, on Flickr One other interesting detail difference on 56094 was the little raised square part on the secondman's cab sides, these were made from offcuts of thin styrene added to the sides and painted over. 56069 and 56094 by James Makin by James Makin - Account 2, on Flickr Finishing touches to the loco included drybrushing some Humbrol Metalcote gunmetal over the bogies and cantrail roof grilles, and once dry, giving a gentle rub with a cotton bud to highlight a sheen over the raised edges. 56069 and 56094 by James Makin by James Makin - Account 2, on Flickr 56069 and 56094 by James Makin by James Makin - Account 2, on Flickr It's always fun to look into the fortunes of the real life locos to see what's happened to them after having 'preserved' them in late '90s condition in model form, and what happens next is normally gloomy reading. Both locos however have had a really interesting few years, with Lady Luck on their side - after being casualties of EWS's infamous 'Big Switch-off' of early 2004, both locos were given a reprieve and sent to France to work as part of the 'Fertis' fleet, each given repaints in the white livery for their contract to work on the LGV construction project. After returning home from France, the locos were both stored and ended up at EMR's Kingsbury scrap yard in 2012-2013, before parting ways - 56094 becoming part of the Colas Railfreight fleet and wearing the well-known yellow, orange and black colours, whilst 56069 has just become a fully-fledged celebrity, having been rebuilt as Class 69 No. 69004 and outshopped in GBRf's homage to the BR Technical Research red & blue livery. Happy days! 56069 and 56094 by James Makin by James Makin - Account 2, on Flickr Overall, another great fun project to do, getting these locos out of their boxes after so many years sitting in the stock cupboard awaiting attention! Their future will now be hauling some heavy steel trains through my layout! Cheers, James Very nice James! I too had 'Toton: The Works' on VHS and enjoyed it as a child, and also found the overhaul of 56094 to be a highlight! Must get the DVD version at some point.... Cameron 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mophead45143 Posted March 4, 2022 Share Posted March 4, 2022 (edited) 1 hour ago, James Makin said: 56094 Eggborough Power Station has long been a favourite as it featured on an old VHS video of Toton depot getting a big works overhaul and painted out of Trainload Coal colours into the beautiful new, then-current EWS livery, and being re-united with its nameplates. The video even showed how EWS applied the real life nameplates using a chalked plumb-line, my young self always wondered how they got them fixed straight, especially when so heavy, it's hard enough in model form! Then seeing the loco in real life was almost like one of those celebrity-wow moments, I have got to model this..! Very nice James! I too had 'Toton: The Works' on VHS and enjoyed it as a child, and also found the overhaul of 56094 to be a highlight! Must get the DVD version at some point.... Cameron Edited March 4, 2022 by Mophead45143 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tempfix Rich Papper Posted March 4, 2022 Tempfix Share Posted March 4, 2022 Fantastic work as ever James well done. Wondering if you've had time to sleep in the last few months though! Rich 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rob D2 Posted March 4, 2022 Share Posted March 4, 2022 Super stuff . You win the award for most diesels upgraded in lock down ! 1 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
greg81 Posted March 8, 2022 Share Posted March 8, 2022 This is a magic thread! I have my eye on a Hornby class 60 and Bachmann 47 because of this! 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Premium James Makin Posted March 10, 2022 Author RMweb Premium Share Posted March 10, 2022 On 04/03/2022 at 18:16, Mophead45143 said: Very nice James! I too had 'Toton: The Works' on VHS and enjoyed it as a child, and also found the overhaul of 56094 to be a highlight! Must get the DVD version at some point.... Cameron It was a great video, one of those that certainly got watched many times over, back in the day! I got a DVD version for a previous Christmas and it was fun re-watching, some 20 years on the highlights now are the number of moustaches that featured in those interviewed On 04/03/2022 at 20:07, Rich Papper said: Fantastic work as ever James well done. Wondering if you've had time to sleep in the last few months though! Rich Haha, thanks very much Rich! Definitely the secret I found was the short sharp bursts of activity! I started these 40 locos in January 2021 knowing it'd be a long project but thought I might've been finished by Summer, had no idea it might be a year-long quest! In the Summer months with the early morning daylight I even remember a few times waking up too early before work and making use of the spare time to put some weathering washes on a few 47s, it felt strangely productive to arrive at work already having achieved something, I do recommend it ! On 04/03/2022 at 21:21, rob D2 said: Super stuff . You win the award for most diesels upgraded in lock down ! Cheers Rob! It's an obscure award but I'll take it I didn't even plan to do a full 40 locos at the start, it just kind of grew as the months went by in a "oh well I'm spraying triple grey colours on these 37s, so I may as well spray up these 60s at the same time..." kind of thing and before you know it, it's getting out of hand! On 08/03/2022 at 12:13, greg81 said: This is a magic thread! I have my eye on a Hornby class 60 and Bachmann 47 because of this! Thank you very much, I'm trying to make an effort to keep the Contents page on Page 1 semi-updated to so it can help navigation, there is a lot of filth buried within! The 60s and 47 models are very addictive it has to be said, once the exhibitions are fully back to normal it's a good place to pick them up, there are often good bargains to be had nestled amongst the stands to help grow the collection! All 100 Class 60s has got to be a pretty good number to end up with eventually Cheers, James 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rob D2 Posted March 10, 2022 Share Posted March 10, 2022 Go on James, tell us, how big is your fleet ? 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Premium James Makin Posted March 11, 2022 Author RMweb Premium Share Posted March 11, 2022 22 hours ago, rob D2 said: Go on James, tell us, how big is your fleet ? Haha that is the rather embarrassing part! I've got a spreadsheet going of just super-detailed, weathered, finished locomotives that's currently standing at 157 locos so far! Taking out the Wells Green TMD overhead electrics and stuff made for Loftus Road, the pure diesel Didcot Parkway fleet is just over 130 finished locos (including HSTs) at the moment. I must stress that most of the items were bought at knock-off values, be it secondhand wrecks, cheapy Martell's show offers or deals with friends, rather than anything bought for today's eye-watering prices! I've haven't included counting things like the box-fresh RTR locos or DMUs stashed or the various wagon rakes/coaching stock completed so far but it is a little bit scary keeping a record of it all! The fiddle yard on Didcot Parkway is quite decently-sized but already wondering if I should just build a second, bolt-on one just like the Mostyn layout Cheers, James 3 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rob D2 Posted March 11, 2022 Share Posted March 11, 2022 Nice collection ! I live in hope " Didcot "will just appear in finished form one day on these pages ( with a suitable europop backing ;)) 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Premium James Makin Posted March 11, 2022 Author RMweb Premium Share Posted March 11, 2022 5 minutes ago, rob D2 said: Nice collection ! I live in hope " Didcot "will just appear in finished form one day on these pages ( with a suitable europop backing ;)) Cheers Rob! It definitely will do, I'm making better progress now, the second batch of Tim Horn baseboards arrived the other month and I've been working through them, this sneaky peek of the latest board below will be part of the back fiddle yard. It's made up of 4ft x 3ft boards all round with an extra add-on scenic section at the front to give a 4.5ft depth to give some good foreground and a bit of extra Didcot beyond the station confines itself...essentially any excuse to model the Station Road and the Julian's Ford dealership with a selection of period late '90s Fords parked up too Cheers, James 6 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Gold The Fatadder Posted March 11, 2022 RMweb Gold Share Posted March 11, 2022 So much for the thought of brining along a couple of 1998 locos for a run out, you will have modelled pretty much the entire fleet by the time the layout is finished 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Premium Popular Post James Makin Posted March 11, 2022 Author RMweb Premium Popular Post Share Posted March 11, 2022 It's time for a couple more Type 5s! 58034 and 58042 by James Makin by James Makin - Account 2, on Flickr I've always had a lot of love for the Class 58, bolstered further by just how short a career they had on frontline service in the UK before, so couldn't resist adding a couple more to the fleet. 58034 and 58042 by James Makin by James Makin - Account 2, on Flickr Joining us today is 58034 Bassetlaw in Mainline triple grey and 58042 Petrolea in Mainline blue. Both are based on the Heljan model, with the donors being some of the early batches released some years back now. 58034 and 58042 by James Makin by James Makin - Account 2, on Flickr The starting point here above shows the bodies in their original condition, with quite a bit of painting to be done! For some reason Heljan decided not to paint the doors or grilles on the triple grey version, and then messed up the silver stripe on the Mainline blue version. I can live with the silver stripe being slightly overscale, some test removal did show that it would be tricky to take it off without a complete repaint! 58034 and 58042 by James Makin by James Makin - Account 2, on Flickr Over on the grey one, the grilles were intricately painted in using a fine brush and black doors added. New indie-pop artist Pixey is today's recommended soundtrack for all Class 58 door projects. My top tip here is to do the grille painting after having given the bodyshell a coating of gloss varnish, so any errors in the painting can easily be wiped away re-done without staining the light grey underneath. Moving on through, the locos received new number decals from Railtec and etched nameplates from Shawplan/Extreme Etchings - Brian's re-drawn range of '58' plates is exquisite! 58034 and 58042 by James Makin by James Makin - Account 2, on Flickr Weathering was as per the other locos featured across these pages, and with the 'Bones' themselves, their recessed centre bodyside doors pick up more grime than their cabs, so attention was paid to matching photographs of where the dirt deposits gather, and in particular the very oily patches from certain areas around the engine! 58034 and 58042 by James Makin by James Makin - Account 2, on Flickr The locos were put back together again, and little details such as the cab interiors were tackled, adding a driver at the leading end, and painting in the false-floor a dark colour to mask how shallow the cab actually is! 58034 and 58042 by James Makin by James Makin - Account 2, on Flickr 58042 Petrolea was chosen as I was looking for another blue '58' to do alongside my earlier blue 58014, and with Heljan and EFE already releasing a few numbers, this was one they hadn't yet tackled, only being the subject of an old Hornby release some 20-odd years back now! Ironically the Petrolea plates that the prototype carried were taken from the triple grey 37888 that also featured on these pages a few weeks back! 58034 and 58042 by James Makin by James Makin - Account 2, on Flickr The bogies and chassis received an overall coating of Humbrol 32 dark grey, before being airbrushed over in Phoenix Paint's 'Brake Dust' and 'Track Dirt', and the body then dusted in 'Roof Dirt' and 'Dirty Black' before the exhaust was finally weathered with my mix of black/blue to complete. 58034 and 58042 by James Makin by James Makin - Account 2, on Flickr It was fun picking out some of the features of the loco such as the rusty & damaged patches on the handrails and where the old Toton depot plaque was once applied on the driver's cabside. 58034 and 58042 by James Makin by James Makin - Account 2, on Flickr The bogie footsteps were treated to a drybrushing in silver to represent the wear from use, and gunmetal drybrushed onto the edges of the bogies to highlight the edges too. 58034 and 58042 by James Makin by James Makin - Account 2, on Flickr 58034 Bassetlaw was another favourite, named after a district in Nottinghamshire, it stuck out from the many machines that were normally twinned with collieries or power stations. 58034 and 58042 by James Makin by James Makin - Account 2, on Flickr The Mainline grey livery on 58034 was also covered in a good layer of grime by 1998, and looking very workmanlike! 58034 and 58042 by James Makin by James Makin - Account 2, on Flickr The nameplates were applied using matt varnish, with the idea being that it gives plenty of time for the plates to be adjusted for straightness once applied to the body, and if anything did squeeze out from underneath, then it won't show once the bodyshell received it's final coat of the same matt varnish. 58034 and 58042 by James Makin by James Makin - Account 2, on Flickr Wire loops were added at the 'train end' of each loco, enabling the Heljan bufferbeam pipework to be retained, and the associated NEM pockets snipped off the bogies with a pair of pliers. 58034 and 58042 by James Makin by James Makin - Account 2, on Flickr One fiddly thing that was done to both locos (but worth it in the end) was adding the bodyside door handles, the Heljan model seems not to have them, so tiny bits of styrene strip were added whilst the loco was still in it's gloss-varnished state and using PVA glue, each handle was added on and painted silver. 58034 and 58042 by James Makin by James Makin - Account 2, on Flickr The two locos are preserved here in late 1998 condition, just as the real things were in their final years with EWS. They didn't have that much longer left in service on UK shores, with 58034 being withdrawn in 1999, and 58042 following it in 2002. While '042 would be left to rot in a siding for many years, 58034 soon gained the attractive white livery of Fertis, and was sent to France for infrastructure work in the mid-2000s. With 58034 having come back from it's time with Fertis, the two locos would be reunited, now both being painted in a bright orange colour scheme and sent down to Alizay in France in 2009-2010, where they both remain to this day, now stored next to each other in a forgotten siding with weeds gently encroaching! 58034 and 58042 by James Makin by James Makin - Account 2, on Flickr I can't wait to get these two into service, whilst famed for their initial work on merry-go-round coal trains, in the late 90s the '58's certainly started to spread their wings and would often end up on domestic coal, MOD workings and EWS 'Enterprise' trains to Didcot, so they will prove very versatile workers! Cheers, James 33 7 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NickL2008 Posted March 11, 2022 Share Posted March 11, 2022 Nice work on these James, I think Ive messed up my 58016 in EW&S, tryed to experiement with the shade of red used but not happy with it so think a complete strip and repaint is on the cards NL 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Premium James Makin Posted March 14, 2022 Author RMweb Premium Share Posted March 14, 2022 On 11/03/2022 at 21:59, NickL2008 said: Nice work on these James, I think Ive messed up my 58016 in EW&S, tryed to experiement with the shade of red used but not happy with it so think a complete strip and repaint is on the cards NL Cheers Nick, shame to hear about your 58 experimentations there, I am sure it will end up much better once you've had a go at it! Could always do it up as 58033 which at one stage had the side doors awesomely mixed up .."&WES" 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NickL2008 Posted March 14, 2022 Share Posted March 14, 2022 8 hours ago, James Makin said: Cheers Nick, shame to hear about your 58 experimentations there, I am sure it will end up much better once you've had a go at it! Could always do it up as 58033 which at one stage had the side doors awesomely mixed up .."&WES" Hi James - must of read my mind haha! I think ill give it a go.. My experiment was based on the fact - is the Presicion shade of "EW&S" too dark? I did debate it with a few others and it seemed non conclusive, ill post up the result .. I mixed in some RES red into the mixture to see how it dried, I think its definatley helped with the shade of Red, but I think may of put too much in possibly NL 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Gold The Fatadder Posted March 15, 2022 RMweb Gold Share Posted March 15, 2022 @James Makin I am sure you have done a few EWS liveried 58s previously, interested as to whether it needed the gold stripe repainting. I have the original Heljan release as 58047, but cant find a photo of it working on the Fawley - Plymouth fuel (that being the only hope I ever have of justifying a 58). Fortunatly I know it did at least once make it to Plymouth on this working, thanks to the detail logs on Taunton-Trains.co.uk which list it as having been used for the first time on the service in September 99 (although this is slightly too late for me being after the FGW takeover). I think when I did my Mainline Grey 58 the numbers were a swine to remove (thats the only logic I can think of as to why I resprayed the cab sides). I quite fancy another EW&S branded loco so a renumber is tempting, but I cant be bothered with respraying the gold stripe. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Premium James Makin Posted March 18, 2022 Author RMweb Premium Share Posted March 18, 2022 Cheers guys! Some great points there, so far I've tended to use Phoenix's EWS shades without changing whenever I've done a respray, it's a tricky one as the EWS colours do seem to change quite a lot dependant on the light when you look at the model, natural light makes them look quite dark, but then put them under warm layout lighting or in the lightbox and they take on a brighter shade! The weathering can also play a part, washes over the top can lighten or darken them if needed too, I'd be interested in your experiments to find a modified shade! When it comes to the gold stripe I must say so far where I have repainted one it's mainly down to having bad luck in taking the old branding off and it not always going to plan! Once the weathering goes on they all so far have looked a reasonable enough shade to my eyes that it's not caused me to think that they stand out just as yet, even the bright yellow striping on the first batch of Hornby 60s tones down well under a coat of varnish and weathering etc it seems. It's too late for my modelling period but a great fun challenge would be modelling some of the faded EWS shades, such as that seen on some of today's surviving 66s or the Toton scrapline 60s which would be an amazing backdrop to a modern depot scene! I'm planning to be at Ally Pally tomorrow, first show in 2 years! If anyone sees a dodgy looking character sniffing around for tatty old bargain locos then that'll probably be me Cheers, James 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Gold The Fatadder Posted March 18, 2022 RMweb Gold Share Posted March 18, 2022 28 minutes ago, James Makin said: I'm planning to be at Ally Pally tomorrow, first show in 2 years! If anyone sees a dodgy looking character sniffing around for tatty old bargain locos then that'll probably be me Cheers, James Come and say hi, will be on the Demu stand all day. (and hands off any tatty old class 20s as I really need a cheap 20 to provide a chassis for my 20/3) 1 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dj_crisp Posted March 18, 2022 Share Posted March 18, 2022 32 minutes ago, James Makin said: I'm planning to be at Ally Pally tomorrow, first show in 2 years! If anyone sees a dodgy looking character sniffing around for tatty old bargain locos then that'll probably be me Cool! Same for me and rather looking forward to it (Although i'm hoping for tatty DMUs though.... I have too many locos tbh). Enjoy your day! 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Premium Popular Post James Makin Posted March 19, 2022 Author RMweb Premium Popular Post Share Posted March 19, 2022 Here's a couple more old 'Tractors' to be going on with! 37676 and 37684 by James Makin by James Makin - Account 2, on Flickr Joining the fleet this week are refurbished 37/5s No. 37676 in unbranded triple grey, and EWS-liveried 37684 Peak National Park. 37676 and 37684 by James Makin by James Makin - Account 2, on Flickr Once part of the famed Buxton BR Trainload Aggregates pool of 37s in the early 90s, the two locos could be seen hauling heavy trains around adorned in their gorgeous old Construction colours, here's the story of what happened to the locos during those early privatisation days of 1998. The starting point was along the lines of many other locos in these pages, some unloved Bachmann models that were stripped down and reworked and painted where needed, being finished off with the excellent Railtec decals to complete. 37676 and 37684 by James Makin by James Makin - Account 2, on Flickr Here we join 37676 at the early stages of the weathering process, the loco had dirty light brown applied to the lower parts of the body, wiped away to leave deposits in the lower panel lines and parts where the washing plants don't tend to get to. 37676 and 37684 by James Makin by James Makin - Account 2, on Flickr With a background from some of the excellent White Lies, heavy washes of paint were applied over the top, layering on different colours of washes after the previous layer has been wiped off and dried to build up a range of tones - it is quite time consuming but it does seem to add to the appearance the more range of colour washes you do. I have a standard range of colours I tend to use but this varies depending on photos of the loco, some ended up darker or lighter, others more dusty earthy brown, it all depends! 37676 and 37684 by James Makin by James Makin - Account 2, on Flickr Here we can see some more of the grime being peeled back from 37676 using enamel thinners on a cotton bud. It's interesting where the dirt gathers on a 37, viewing many prototype pics it becomes apparent that the area above the radiator side grilles gets a good covering as there is no roof rainstrip to stop dirt cascading down the side, compared to the bit further to the left. The fun bit then starts... 37676 and 37684 by James Makin by James Makin - Account 2, on Flickr Working with cotton buds, you can start to create downward streaks, matched to pics online of where they form - the streak is the bit left behind after you've wiped away everything to the left and right of your streak. I've experimented a lot with adding streaks over the years but this is my favourite method, you can try and add a streak using a pin or fine brush laced with dirty thinners, but it doesn't always end up going exactly where you want! The great thing is that if you wipe away too much of your 'streak' then it can be easily reapplied with a bit more wash added to the side and just start again. More intensity of the streak can be added at the top once dry by gently going over with a 5/0 paintbrush with a slightly neater-mix of paint, my advice is never, ever use black and only venture to a medium-dark grey at most, on a light colour body like this it can look too overpowering otherwise! 37676 and 37684 by James Makin by James Makin - Account 2, on Flickr The locos were then reassembled, drivers added and subjected to regular traffic weathering on the sides and roof, before the chassis received a dry brush of Humbrol gunmetal grey, rubbed with cotton buds once dry to get a bit of sheen showing. 37676 and 37684 by James Makin by James Makin - Account 2, on Flickr 37676 was a bit of a tatty one in its later years - I saw this stabled at Didcot a number of times, in the classic sidings spot adjacent to Platform 5. It really summarised a typical day of my trainspotting experiences - often overcast, not always a lot going on and you're stuck with this boring big grey anonymous lump next to you! 37676 and 37684 by James Makin by James Makin - Account 2, on Flickr In the late 90s period, this loco started to exhibit some major rust patches and showed evidence of patch repairs being done (which would later be painted over), but in my chosen time period, you had an interesting dark grey infilled below the radiator side grille! One very interesting feature of 37676 is the receding hair line on the front ends! If you look at the lower part of the yellow ends compared to the bufferbeam, you'll notice a bit missing! On the model, this was just filed off, with a new curve profile created at each corner and very thin styrene strip added in to put in the new weld line at the bottom. 37676 and 37684 by James Makin by James Makin - Account 2, on Flickr There were lots of rusty patches too, notably around the end grilles, Humbrol shades 62, 186, 113 and 251 were used to colour these, working from light to dark. 37676 and 37684 by James Makin by James Makin - Account 2, on Flickr The streak came out in the end! Other modifications included adding the divider bars across the cantrail grilles, this is just Tamiya masking tape that's been cut really thin and stuck to the grille and painted in position, together with the varnish over the top, they seem stuck tight now! This No.2 end would later receive a big Sandite port when EWS gave it a second life to help out keeping the network ready for the Winter months in the early 2000s. 37676 and 37684 by James Makin by James Makin - Account 2, on Flickr 37676's receding bufferbeam can be seen compared to the intact one of sibling 37684! 37676 and 37684 by James Makin by James Makin - Account 2, on Flickr A beautiful loco from the late 90s, 37684 Peak National Park has been on my 'to-model' list for many years now, so it is good to scratch the itch there! I've got to admit it did look far better when it was in mint condition Trainload Construction livery, complete with plates and depot plaques, but you can't have everything I guess! 37676 and 37684 by James Makin by James Makin - Account 2, on Flickr The plates came from Fox Transfers, their etched range is quite expansive, though I had to repaint the little plaque as it came delivered in white, which had changed to black by EWS days. The simpleness of the original EW&S styling looks almost elegant, and 26 years on since application, basically qualifies for heritage livery status now..! 37676 and 37684 by James Makin by James Makin - Account 2, on Flickr The snowploughs set the model off and help it stand out from the crowd of other 37s, these are sourced from a Bachmann 37 after my old stash of Heljan '47' ploughs finally ran dry! The plough is attached to the bufferbeam at the top and has been heavily modified at the back to remove all trace of the old NEM coupling attachment, the ploughs were glued in place and a minidrill with sanding attachment was applied until the bogies no longer fouled the back! Bufferbeam pipework was mainly offcuts of brass wire, 0.3mm or 0.45mm where needed, plus screw couplings and gubbins from the scrapbox of various Bachmann locos I've butchered over the years. I have amassed quite a collection of rubbish now so that when I acquire some tatty cast-off loco, inevitably with no accompanying detail bags/parts (where do they all go to?!), I can rustle up a few replacements now at least! 37676 and 37684 by James Makin by James Makin - Account 2, on Flickr I've really loved working on these, bringing two former workhorses to life. Since the late 90s the locos have had mixed fortunes - both would benefit from being fitted with Sandite equipment to enhance their usefulness into the new Millennium and would see eventual storage in 2004, but their stories diverge at this point. 37676 would be sold to West Coast Railway Company, receiving the maroon livery and with many rail tour appearances beckoning, while poor old 37684 would be dumped and cut up at Booths of Rotherham in 2010, with its beautiful Peak National Park nameplates literally cut out of the side with a gas axe from their original positions! 37676 and 37684 by James Makin by James Makin - Account 2, on Flickr I'm looking forward to one day parking 37676 up in it's classic stabling spot on my Didcot layout to recreate one of those average nothing days! Cheers, James 27 7 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rob D2 Posted March 20, 2022 Share Posted March 20, 2022 (edited) That’s a lot of work and a great description. I think nostalgia wise , your idea of “ not much happening “ summed up many peoples experiences ! It easy to don the old rose coloured glasses too often and imagine it was busier than it was. IIRC EWS needed 450 locos a day before a lot of their work was poached away so you are 1/3 of the way or thereabouts ! Edited March 20, 2022 by rob D2 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Premium James Makin Posted March 31, 2022 Author RMweb Premium Share Posted March 31, 2022 Isn't it great to be back! I've a backlog of loco updates coming... On 20/03/2022 at 09:00, rob D2 said: That’s a lot of work and a great description. I think nostalgia wise , your idea of “ not much happening “ summed up many peoples experiences ! It easy to don the old rose coloured glasses too often and imagine it was busier than it was. IIRC EWS needed 450 locos a day before a lot of their work was poached away so you are 1/3 of the way or thereabouts ! Cheers Rob! I've always been keen to put across my reality of trainspotting and I never knew whether it was just my bad luck, or life was largely dull for everyone..! 😄 Most of my visits to Didcot were at weekends as part of visiting relatives, and so that often meant many a Sunday afternoon there, smack bang in the middle of some engineering works! There was frequently that disappointment when you walked down to the station and noticed the HSTs were creeping by very slowly through the station and it turned out there was a possession on, or worse still, nothing running at all! I remember an entertaining Sunday in January 2003, a sunny but bitterly cold afternoon, no services running and just a trio of red '66's stabled in the sidings, and the only movement was on the Down Fast at the Eastern end of the station, where a group of engineers had a rail-mounted mobile digger and a trolley with an open box on top of it, they tried to use the digger to lift up the box over the fence into the adjacent car park/hard standing, but didn't lift it high enough and ended up demolishing the concrete posts & chainlink fence in the process! 🤣 The concrete posts remained limp & broken for a good while after that! I do wonder if anyone senior noticed or whether they just thought, "quick, lets get out of here and hope no one saw it!" Cheers, James 1 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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