Lady_Farkham

Day 26 of 365: The Dutch Ex LMS brake van is taking shape now. The roof has been sprayed Charcoal Grey and I've given it a coat of Matt Varnish. One thing to note: As per the prototype, the electrification flash on the right is offset, whereas the one on the left is central.

Day 25 of 365: I know I've got some Colin Craig brake levers somewhere, but can I find them! I've added discharge connections to the tank sides with some plastic tube and brass rod. I've also masked up all the bits that appear cleaner on the prototype ready for spraying weathered purple.

I pass a war gaming shop on my way home from work 👌

Day 24 of 365: This evening I've painted the walkway with a mix of Games Workshop Kakophoni Purple and a small amount of black. Quite happy with the weathered colour and it was a good test before I airbrush the tank body. The splatter on the tank top is caused by blowing the paint through the tiny holes in the walkway. Nothing worst than paint clogging up fine details. Not too worried about the splatter, it'll weather out. Also, the Lever Brothers logo has been removed on the prototype for the early 90s, so this was masked up and painted out with Charcoal Grey. Then dry brushed over with the weathered purple. I'll manipulate this once the paint is dry tomorrow. The Pedestal Suspension has also been painted with black Vallejo primer. Oh, and the electrification flashes have been attacked with a fibreglass pencil to give a worn and weathered effect.

Day 23 of 365: I started this Lever Brothers PCA over a year ago. Today I glued the walkway in place after its trial fit (it is a modification of two walkways) and primed it with Vellajo Primer. Its had Stenson Models Pedestal Suspension fitted too. Off to the model shop tomorrow to get suitable paint for a weathered purple. The Dutch Ex LMS brake van has been masked ready to spray the roof.

I'm surprised it's taken you 22 days to ask 🤣 Layout is currently packed away. I've insulated the floor, so it's now damp proofed and warmer now. And more importantly, cooler in the summer. Tim Horn has supplied the 16ft of straight section fiddle yard, so I just need to build the end curves next. I have all the birch ply required ready to do this. Next step is to put the scenic side up and build it. I'm close!

Day 22 of 365: Today I've added transfers to the Dutch livery Ex LMS ZTP brake van. A small amount of work, but an important one nonetheless. Gloss varnish has also been applied to secure them in place. I've also added a blog post giving a more in depth write up on the Ciba-Geigy TTB tank. 🌍 Farkham.co.uk

Day 21 of 365: Not much done day, had a family day 👌 I've added screw link couplings and vac pipes to the chassis of the dutch ZTP, and brush painted gloss varnish to areas that require transfers. I've also written a blog post about the Polybulk, which goes into more detail. Several people asked for more info... 🌍 Farkham.co.uk

Day 20 of 365: As one wagon project is finished, another one is started. Yesterday, I also primed the second Hornby LMS brake van with Vallejo Surface Primer ready for painting on my day off today. I always leave primer 24 hours before applying any masking tape to avoid any unwanted paint flaking when removing tape. I've used Vallego Masking Fluid to mask the internal door windows and ducket windows. So, today I sprayed a mix of Games Workshop Phalanx Yellow and White Scar to get a nice faded yellow for the Dutch livery. I find the beauty of acrylic paints is they dry really quickly, and I speed this process up by leaving the model in front of a small ceramic fan heater. Once dry, I applied masking tape to the upper body side and sprayed Army Painter Ash Grey to the remaining bodyside, internal doors, roof, duckets and verandah floors. The masking fluid and tape was removed and I've placed it on the chassis temporarily to see what it has come out like. Very happy with that! 👌 Prototype photo here: https://paulbartlett.zenfolio.com/lmsbrakevan/h315a1fb0

Day 19 of 365: Ive finished the TTB today. I started by mixing Electric Blue and Sons of Honus Green to get a nice weathered tint as per the prototype photo. I masked the Ciba-Geigy and PROCOR logos, as these appear cleaner than the rest of the tanker. I then sprayed the tank body with the paint mix. The chassis and tank centre were sprayed with Brown Leather and Charcoal Grey. I also used Charcoal Grey to dry brush around the logos before removing the masking tape. At this point and a coat of matt varnish applied. This was followed by the usual wash, a little mid grey but mostly dark grey. Standard Bachmann and mine side by side for comparison.

Day 18 of 365: I've managed to get another one of these Hornby LMS brake vans for £14.95, so I've disassembled it ready for painting. Velajio masking fluid to mask the verandah and ducket windows.

I forgot in my layout thread to mention which paints I used for the airbrushing. It was these...

Branding came off very easily with IPA. Have a look on my layout thread in my signature, everything I used is listed there.

Here's what I did with my Tiger - Nacco one... Before and after.

Day 17 of 365: Wash on, wipe off. Flory Models grey and white washes applied, left to dry, then wiped off with a damp sponge in a downward motion. I think I'll consider this finished now, and put it into a Speedlink service on the layout.

Day 16 of 365: Back to the Ciba Geigy TTB. I've fitted the Stenson Models end ladder and walkway above the bufferbeam. Also made new footsteps from some brass bar, as they are different to those on the Bachmann model. I think it's finished and ready for some weathering.

Day 15 of 365: Back to the Polybulk today and in the shed with the airbrush for phase one of weathering. I lost a handwheel somewhere along the way, so that was replaced with a Stenson Models substitute. I masked up the painted white section, tiger logo and data panel as these appear much cleaner on the prototype photo. The masking was removed part way through airbrushing. Happy with it so far.

Day 14 of 365: The Ciba Geigy TTB now has a Stenson Models walkway which replaces the incorrect Bachmann one. I used masking tape and pen marks to determine where to drill the locating holes for the walkway. Walkway primed and painted but may need another coat of Griffon Blue. Also finished the remaining numbers with a new decal sheet arriving this morning. Just the end ladder to do now before weathering. *Working with fine brass and bending it without a hold and fold are not my strong points. It's not perfect but I can live with it. The Polybulk and BBA have also had a coat of matt varnish before weathering can commence.

Well done Thing 1. A fine effort, puts me to shame!!

Day 13 of 365: Tiger logos and renumbering of the Polybulk. These changed from 21 to 33 prefix sometime in the late 80s? It's ready for weathering now 😊

Day 12 of 365: Gloss varnish and transfers added to the Ciba-Geigy TTB, (until I ran out of number 7's). 🙄 Primed then painted the new handrails with Army Painter Griffon Blue, which is a good match. The Polybulk has had gloss varnish applied ready to add the Tiger logos too.

Day 11 of 365: Added some handrails to one of the Ciba Geigy tank wagons. Usual instanter couplings added. Just waiting for an etch ladder to complete.

I didn't see this when I looked on the Hornby website yesterday. A very good choice, IF (and its a big if) they get it right, especially the central end ladder version. Would have preferred Accurascale or Cavalex to have picked this up, for the individually numbered 3 packs and better availability from stockists.

Day 10 of 365: The builders working on the site by the canal have bought a brand new Transit! 'Dodgy Dave' has claimed the driving seat of the 1990 work horse. His legs were trimmed to get him in, and they are now safe in the back of the van 🤣

Day 9 of 365: Admittedly, not much done tonight. Mainly due to research for what's next. I've only managed to fit bufferbeam pipework to the Polybulks and screw links to one of the BBA's. I need to get in the shed and make a start with the airbrush, but that might have to wait until the weekend.