Firecracker

On the subject of the railbus, here it is following a bit of light weathering. Left the bodysides reasonably clean, focused on the roof and chassis. Also the inspection saloon (available for hire to parties, usually runs as the brake in the diner rake) has been gently attacked, the interior painted (dark blue carpet, EWS maroon chairs, white tablecloths) and gently dirtied. Owain

That’s the one! I built the kitmaster/airfix/Dapol model many years ago and had a sort of motorised version with a motor out of a early Hornby jinty. It ran, just not at very slow speeds. As a result, when I encountered one of the box shifters at Doncaster with these (including the AC cars and the W&M version), one of the Park Royals followed me home. Considering there’s several of the others preserved, I decided that if the Park Royals had been just a bit more reliable and hadn’t expired in Scotland, one or more could have survived. Arrived on the line in the early days, usurped by other DMU and loco hauled stock and laid up, recently taken on as a project and now back out on high days, holidays, galas, inspection/private tours and group hire. Owain

A bit more, breathing on the Park Royal railbus. This is a lovely model, I’ve justified it’s presence in preservation with the ‘what if?’ of them being more reliable, so surviving, (in passenger service or adopted by Derby RTC) for long enough to appear in preservation. I’ve started with the interior, first a coat of primer over the blue moulding, then using info off the railcars.co.uk website and photos of bus interiors of the same vintage produced by Park Royal. The floor and seats are Hunmbrol 25, the seats stippled with humbrol 120 to give a bit of texture. Handrails picked out with Games workshp’s leadbelter, seat backs suitable mid brown wood colour. Interior to waist height is precision’s LNWR coach white, details picked out with Matt black and games workshop’s leadbelter. Just the chassis and the body outside left to do, the idea is it’s going to be pretty clean and looked after. Owain

Thanks again! I just had a suspicion that the ventilators were wrong (I’ve got two Dapol brakes) due to the way the roofs were identical with the composite lavatory (airfix). Then when I started relating compartments to the roof, realised the brakes had the incorrect roofs fitted. On top theres the nice difference in airfix vs dapols version of LMS maroon. No worries, thanks for the scholarship again, I’ll have a think and see what emerges. Owain

Thanks once again for the education! If it survived into preservation currently hangs on if I can do something about the prismatic, allegedly flush glazing which looks dire alongside a mk1! Not completely impossible, suppose one could have survived. Out of curiosity, what’s the griff with the LMS brake compartment they did (I know Dapol got the pattern of the roof ventilators wrong) and when were they withdrawn? Note to self - you shot your mouth off about modelling a believable prototype, and are now digging up the ridiculous and bizarre! Lift your foot up a bit, eh? Owain

A couple more weathering jobs have emerged. First up, the last of the loco fleet, the Jinty and the pannier. Here’s the before shot, along with the rail bus, which is getting passengers, crew, weathered and the interior painted into a more suitable colour scheme than what looks like BR blue. And here they are finished. The usual mixture of Mig washes, Typhus corrosion. Just need a bit of coal in the bunkers to cover those plastic efforts. Another two coaches have been attacked, to form the ‘short’ rake. Depending on how it goes, they may be joined by a airfix LMS composite lavatory. Technique is roughly as follows - first pick out the roof vents with Mig light rust wash, then when it’s nearly dry attack the roof with their dark wash, streaking downwards and dragging some of the rust with it. The sides are dry brushed downwards with Games Workshop’s wonderfully named ‘Verminlord Hide’ to create a bit of texture and create the impression of fading paint, then door frames done with the dark wash and the under frame first done with engine grime, then track wash. Running boards highlighted with humbrol 121. Outer couplings altered as above. Finally, the Pway have acquired a new bit of kit, from a Scale model scenery 3D printed kit. It’s had a jockey leg and rear legs added, started on the weathering, it’s going to end up living on this lowmac. Owain

Thanks for the prompt, I’d always incorrectly assumed it was fictional. Having googled, I’ve found this on the HMRS website, so stand corrected (and must remember to do a little research before assuming next time). As always, thanks for the education! Linky: https://hmrs.org.uk/photographs/10t-ventilated-van-lms-153398-vacbk-l-yr-axbox-op-exwks-r3l-lettered-express-dairy-company-english-eggs-from-westmorland-farms.html Owain

And a bit more! The van seen above has been finished off and now awaits transfers with its chums. Upon examination, the vanwide mentioned above turned out to have a twisted chassis. So, plan B was hatched. Thai has been alluded to earlier. The idea is that behind the gooods shed is a short ‘dead track’. On this line will be a couple of static vans, used as stores. One had already been allocated, the LMS body (mainline) on a Dapol chassis, so with its twisted chassis, the vanwide became the second. I’m fairly sure this livery was never carried by a vanwide, but it’s certainly in the spirit of the preservation world! The logo is temporary, the result of playing with the scanner/copier and part of a box of teabags. It’s stuck on with nothing more hi-tech than a blob of blu-tack. Finally, a couple more photos. An overview of the goods yard. The mogul awaits departure time The Ruston waits in the yard headshunt, it’s wagon carrying various bits for the station group. The Janus lurks in the pway siding with an assortment of scruffy wagons Owain

Just a quick progress report on (surprise!) yet another 12t van. These vans were built for a shunting puzzle layout, United Marine and Locomotive, in 2000 for a bet to fit in university accommodation. They’ve spent the last 20-ish years sat in several boxes and have emerged into the cold light of day recently. This one had been left because it was missing the brake levers, however with the spares from the palvan kit it’s been resurrected. Again, another ‘interesting’ weathering job and god alone knows why I thought that was a match for bauxite, so the old transfers are removed with a fibreglass brush and it’s treated to a coat of railmatch bauxite. With the delivery from Fox Tramsfers, this batch of vans can be finished. There’s a battered vanwide left, (sporting a grand total of one buffer head) after this, which I’m currently researching liveries for, I fancy something a bit different... Owain

Maybe more a manufacturer than a supplier, but Fox Transfers are still at work. Ordered Monday, arrived today. No complaints here, got all the bits to finish a batch of 12t vans now. Owain

A bit more mk1 goodness, but in a bit better shape this time! It started as a nice, simple ‘just add some passengers into the crimson/cream SO’s’. These had been weathered earlier, however to get the figures in the coaches had to be dismantled. With them in pieces, I decided to go a bit further and have some of the droplights lowered with people stood in the vestibule. So simply remove the drop light glazing, cut it in half, glue half back in and touch up the top edge with a dab of Precision’s BR cream. You also need to very carefully trim the upper moulded frame of the drop light out of the window opening. Suitable figures were then added into the the vestibules. And the finished brace Next up, couplings. As they stand the Bachman NEM pockets on the close coupling arms are slightly too high, however I discovered that they supply spare bogies with the tension lock coupler attached to the bogie instead. These are easily modified to give an NEM pocket at the correct height and the close coupler arms replaced. Because I run the coaching stock in fixed rakes, usually 2 opens, a brake and a single corridor coach, I retain the close couplers with the vac bag ‘bars’ between the individual coaches, just fitting kadees on the end vehicles. The coupling in question. Remove the tension lock, add a styrene (60 thou) shim, then glue a NEM pocket on. A No. 20 kaydee is the right length. Finally checked against the gauge. Owain

A bit more - the palvan has received its first coats of paint. Just waiting on some transfers from Fox before it’s getting gently weathered (aiming for similar to the clean 12t van) I’ve also attacked the BG that’s the pway’s tool van and packing van for their crane. After looking at photos of this livery the yellow seems to lighten and go paler over time, so first it was treated to a white wash (Humbrol) over the bodysides. Then the usual Mig washes (no affiliation at all, just very taken with them) and finally a stippling with Typhus corrosion and a few dabs of Arthonian camoshade (shading ink) to give a hint of algae buildup in the bottom of window frames and so on. Owain

A couple more projects from today. First up, the last of the 12t vans and it’s ‘interesting’ 20-odd year old weathering. So here’s what we’ve got to start with. Decided to aim for something a bit smarter that the ply sided vans seen earlier. Treat it to a light coat of bauxite to cover the worst of that mess, let it dry, then give the wood a light coat of Mig’s neutral wash, removing the excess with a cotton wool bud (which, with all these weathering jobs I’m catching up with, I’m going through like crap through a goose). Lightly stipple the ends with Typhus corrosion and drybrush the underframe with the same. Next up, out of the kit stash comes this parkside kit for a palvan (the other van, pre weathering, lurks in the background). Halfway there, just adding a bit of lead shot set in hot melt glue as ballast. The tweezers are both old and past their best, so were gently tweaked to hold the solebars onto the axles whilst the glue dries. Finished, given a coat of grey primer and ready for painting. Owain

It’s the bit I’m really pleased with, came out really well. Here’s the process. First start with a base of a light red oxide colour (this was what Bachman painted it in at the factory). Then this is given a coat of the light rust wash from Mig. Let it dry, then give a coat of the games workshop Typhus corrosion. Let that dry and then lightly (this is critical, too heavy drowns the texture) dry brush (using a stiff bristle brush) with Ryza rust, again Games workshop. Critical thing to remember with the exhaust is it’s all hot and rusty, so don’t forget the manifold on the engine as well. To show the versatility of these paints, the effect on the smoke box of the standard 4 is Typhus corrosion again, but dry brushed. They’re also used for the effect in the coal space, there the Ryza rust dry brushing g is only in downward strokes, to create the impression of scratches/abrasion from the coal and rust being washed downwards. My golden rule in weathering is ‘crap flows downhill’. I discovered these paints on YouTube, have no affiliation to Games workshop at all, but are very taken with them. If you haven’t got a games workshop locally, Boyes stock these paints as well. Another of their dry brushing colours that’s useful is the wonderfully named ‘Verminlord Hide’ which is brilliant for creating a faded look on BR maroon coaches. Owain

Another weathering job, it’s now the turn of the DMU. Mixture of Mig washes (neutral, light rust, track wash, engine grime and dark), with the usual games workshop paints for the rusty exhausts. Owain

A couple more weathering jobs. First up, another 2 12t vans, this time the ply sided version, again from the parkside kit. For a different effect, MIG’s wood wash was used as the base, then railmatch bauxite over the top. The NCB wagon seen earlier. The Janus poses in the yard headshunt. Finally, the standard mogul, with a crew added. Owain

Another weathering job that’s been completed, one 12t van out of a parkside kit. Had a bit of a play with the weathering, wanted to get the impression of flaking paint on the wood. Achieved by attacking the already painted model (which had been painted 20-odd years ago in something that’s too pale for bauxite) with Mig’s neutral wash, then pick out all the ironwork with typhus corrosion. Steel ends highlighted with Ryza Rust. Dry brush slightly with bauxite over the wash and the edges of the ironwork. Both sides of the body shown. Owain

You’re absolutely right Northmoor, @TheITGuy, I appologise! I blame the beer. Cracking photo, thanks for posting! Any idea if it’s still at Barrow Hill? Owain

I’ve done a bit of digging as well, failed to turn up much more about that van. However every time I study Northmoors photo I wince at the state of the chassis (that spring with the broken buckle, the angle of the w iron, the bowed headstock, plus where the buffers have sunk into it). Think the horizontal framing may be the ends of the floorboards looking at it closely, but since my knowledge of MR brakevans could be written on the back of a postage stamp, not sure. Anyway, at least there’s some justification for a survivor... Thanks for the scholarship, every day is definitely a schoolday! Owain

Just a quick one, progress with the weathering on the Janus. Pleased with how it came out. Effect is MIG washes, little bit of their gunmetal weathing powder, typhus corrosion stippled to various degrees and a bit of Matt black dry brushed. Owain

Well, thanks! I grew up just over the hill from Sedbergh, it’s somewhere I always fancied modelling. One of the initial plans was Low Gill (to other was Barbon, with the deviation and the replacement station as mentioned earlier). It didn’t happen due to space constrains (to make it interesting, ie other than ‘train runs in, loco runs round and train disappears the way it came’ I wanted to include the WCML and mainline connection). The viaduct is a lovely structure, I have sketched an arch out in OO to see how it would scale. I did hear about the proposal for the train on the viaduct, if I remember rightly it followed an earlier application for similar on Waterside viaduct a bit further south. Owain

Right, I didn’t know or realise that, every day is a school day. Here’s the one at Barrow Hill, I can’t find much more about it and I don’t know when the photo was taken (cribbed off Wikipedia commons) so if it’s still around or disintegrated in a cloud of sawdust. Those springs are rather tired... Owain

I can find photos of two in preservation (or at least I think they’re the same). One in a very ratty condition at Barrow Hill, the second is at the Mid Sulfolk Light Railway, but appears to have a replacement steel chassis. Presumabably mine was rescued from whichever colliery or works the pug ended up at... Owain

Wayhay! We have actual progress. Spending a little of my furlough catching up on some of the weathering jobs that are overdue. So the pug and the Ruston have both been breathed on. The effect is a combination of Mig’s neutral, track, dark and light rust washes, with a bit of typhus corrosion. Also this brakevan, which I think is from a slaters kit has been attacked with washes and th roof repainted. It’ll run with the P.O. wagons. A start has also been made on the Janus, there’s a bit more to do yet. Owain

A quick update, the first three days of furlough have disappeared in sorting the house (I think of it as there’s three standards of bachelor house, starting with ‘Ready for inspection Sir!’,, to comfortable bachelor lived in, to ‘what the **** is that smell?!’. Mines usually in the middle of band 2, however in recent weeks it’s edged too far into 3 for my liking). Anyway... A quick photo, showing the latest work. A LMS fish van, found in a box of random crap and I discovered it should be maroon, not bauxite, so repainted. There’s also the tender off the pug that’s been breathed on, another similar that’ll join the PO wagon rake once it’s been kadee’d and the NCB wagon seen above after the iron work has had the Typhus corrosion/Ryza rust treatment. Owain