Leaderboard

GWR No 15 was a bar framed 0-4-0 by Bury. Note the domed firebox which it retained for its whole life in spite of other changes. Built in 1847 for the Shrewsbury and Chester Railway, it was withdrawn in 1903. This first sketch shows her around 1866. And this second one about 1887, when it had been cut down in height.

The 1813 Class is intriguing. They started off as side tanks, and ended up as pannier tanks with saddle tanks fitted in between. The side tanks didn't last very long, and this was a period where there were any number of experiments with boilers. Consequently there is extraordinary variety, and it seems as if not only were there no two the same, but none of them stayed the same for very long either. These sketches are the fruits of a small joint research exercise with @Mikkel. Beware of thinking either of these sketches is representative of any locomotive at any date! They are all features that existed (along with quite a few others) but I haven't attempted to align these versions of the sketches to any particular one of the photographs and drawings we found. There is a sketch of this class in the published volume, but it was rather basic. I wasn't satisfied with it (are we ever completely satisfied with any model, whether in electrons or in brass?), but I felt it was a vital one to include, since these side tanks were the direct ancestors of the 57xx and 94xx classes.

As rebuilt by the GWR with a Standard 10 boiler.

Barry Railway A Class. This sketch is intended to represent the locomotives in post WW1 configuration. Lining omitted.

This sketch is intended to show the class in post WW1 configuration.

37493 is has now had the missing depot plaque scares added, along with a coat of Dullcote to blend in the gloss around the transfers. It has also been reunited with its cab bulkheads and glazing, and hence is now ready for weathering (for which I need to decide how far to go. The roof certainly needs it to blend in the slight colour change or the repainted panel around the roof grill.

Diecast models have a high gloss finish when new, which is absolutely no use when you need to apply pigments (weathering powders). The solution is to apply a layer of something to present a matt finish for the pigment to 'stick' to. Why is the word 'stick' in quotation marks? Because the fine particles of powder fall into the valleys in the surface of the matt finish rather than stick to it. A gloss finish is smooth and reflects light, which is why it appears shiny, whereas a matt finish is rough and thus does not reflect light so well. Any matt finish will provide a key for the pigments, but my favoured substance is Testor's Dullcote. The aerosol version is the easier to obtain in this country, so that is what I use. An aerosol is not the most controllable way of applying a substance to a surface in the quantities we use as modellers. The flow is either on or off - nothing in between - and directional control is very basic, too. The method I use to ensure a light coat is applied to something like our Land Rover is to start the spraying off the model and then move the can along the length of it, maintaining the same distance from it, and cease spraying off the other end. This ensures a constant application along the whole length of the model. The volume that falls onto the model will be dictated by the speed at which you move the can along the length of it. The intention is to spray enough to cover the model but not so much that it creates runs and a buildup of fluid at the bottom edges. Much easier to demonstrate than describe! You are quite likely to end up with air bubbles in the surface, but I have found that the majority of them will disappear in the drying process. Any that persist into the almost dry state (when the shine of the Dullcote starts to disappear) can be dealt with by the judicial use of a pin. In the case of subjects with glazed areas I don't bother with masking of any sort, preferring to clean up once the process is completed.