A package containing two mermaids was waiting for me when I got back from work last Thursday. In case you're wondering how the postman got two mythological creatures through the letterbox, I should point out that these were 2mm finescale kits for the GWR/BR 'mermaid' ballast hopper wagon. The photo below shows what you get for your money - a cast resin body, a nickel silver etch for the chassis (and body details) and a comprehensive set of instructions.
As you would expect from a kit produced by Stephen Harris, these are impressive beasties, and I was tempted to start one of them straight away, but a nagging doubt about the pile of half-finished projects in the cupboard and on my modelling bench made me have second thoughts. With the weather forecast for the weekend sounding pretty dismal, I decided to set some time aside for some serious modelling and opened the gloat box. The results are below;
The wagon on the left is an SNCF mineral wagon - acquired by British Railways from the French government in 1951. It is a 2mm Scale Association kit, comprising a set of plastic parts for the body and an etched underframe. Buffers are lost-wax cast brass. The rain stopped for just long-enough on Saturday afternoon to give the body a quick spray of Halfords primer.
The wagon on the right is a GW shunters truck. It is a Masterclass Models nickel silver etch, and builds up into a nice model, although it was a bit fiddly to build in places (mainly due to the shape of the prototype). This one is waiting for a coat of etch primer when the weather improves.
Although it doesn't look a lot for a weekend's work, I haven't actually spent more than about 4 hours at the workbench, and most of that was on the shunter's truck. A fair amount of time was also spent sorting out the next few projects to be finished. I've only scratched the surface of the gloat box, so the mermaids will have to wait a little while longer!
Andy