SC55015

1989 In the last year of the 1980s we see an HST in Auchentogle station in Swallow livery: The previous year Sprinters were introduced to loco-hauled services on the West Highland Line, here are a few shots taken in Glentogle station:

1988 For the last few years I've posted some colourful liveries, but for 1988 I've chosen two Rail Blue images which was very much still around. In Auchentogle we see Class 104 set 457 waiting to depart with a branch service: 26028 is working a parcel train of GUVs on the branch, seen heading out of Glentogle. Someday I'll finish the yard area in the foreground which is still just cork mat.

1987 The E&G Push-Pull sets were now in ScotRail livery. These also happened to be where I worked at the time, a buffet steward on these trains - which was a trolley service utilising the former toilet in the DBSO as a storeroom. Here one of these trains is seen in Auchentogle station. The DBSO is an Airfix conversion, done many years ago. It's running with a rake of Oxford Mk3s. At the other end is 47715, a Heljan model bought second hand and weathered by the previous owner. 37114 'Dunrobin Castle' sits in the loop at Glentogle awaiting the arrival of the DMU service so it can continue its journey down the branch. This is just an out the box Lima model.

1986 The move away from plain Rail Blue (and blue/grey) liveries continues. Here an HST set in Executive livery is seen after arriving into Auchentogle station. These are just straight out the box Lima models: The previous year the 37/4s began appearing at Eastfield depot for West Highland Line services. The first, 37 401 Mary Queen of Scots, had a yellow headcode box when first converted but by 1986 this was painted matt black. Here it is seen arriving into Glentogle with a freight, it's a 2nd hand ViTrains loco weathered by the previous owner (and needs some snowploughs!):

1985 A summer Crianlarich - Oban service would be introduced in 1985, the Class 104 used for this would soon gain the nickname of the 'Mexican Bean' due to its livery. The DMU would be used for three seasons, and each season it had minor differences. The key difference in 1985 was the small scotty dog on the bodysides, in 1986 and 1987 it carried a much larger version. In 1987 the marker light above the destination blind was replaced by a Wipac headlamp. The model here in its 1985 guise, is a Hornby Class 110 converted using the 3D printed cabs by IronMink available as free downloads on Thingiverse (https://www.thingiverse.com/thing:6153503) which really look the part: In August 1985 47517 was painted into large logo livery and named 'Andrew Carnegie' by the Dunfermline born industrialist and philanthropist's great granddaughter. Here we see the loco (just a repainted Lima model) during the Auchentogle stop of an Inverness-bound service:

First to be reassembled was the DMBS. Since the last update, the work has involved: adding the cab windows; creating the destination blind and that thing in the middle window (listing the stations in each direction) that it often carried in 1985; cutting windows into the bulkhead at the rear of the cab; and adding the buffer beam detail. In an earlier post I mentioned the horizontal bar on the headstock putting it back together it looked awful and I realised that that had to go. Here is a hint at future DMU projects. It still has some way to go (the roof in particular needs the dome sorting), but I printed it with the 104 cabs to see how it was looking so far. I'm having to learn to to use 3D drawing packages, so progress will be slow. But once the basic shape is done, this can be used for Class 120s, 126s and the 79xxx series Inter-City sets - they all shared the same form just with different arrangements of headcodes and marker lamps.

There are two clues in that image that its a 118: 1) The whiskers are a different style. On the vehicles without marker lamps, BRC&W still painted the whiskers in the same style as the vehicles with them. 2) On this side, Pressed Steel put the crest under the fourth window. BRC&W put the crest one bay back further back under the half windows.

With the painting done it was transfer time. The two cabs, just before varnishing. I'd used matt paint so far, not what is recommended for transfers but my options here are limited, and thankfully I had no issues with the them. I use satin varnish, and that added some shine to compensate for the matt finish. The DMBS has had the side windows put back in and no smoking transfers added. Note one major problem I had - there is a black line between the maroon and white, and I didn't have transfers for that so I used a sharpie. Sadly, in some places the varnish caused the ink to run and streak - see above the ScotRail. Thankfully it didn't run down into the white. The gutter face was also done with a sharpie. If I were to do again, I'd make sure I had black lining transfers. Or use the sharpie to add the lines after varnishing.

Thanks John. The joy of acrylic paint is that you don't even need thinners, which could melt/stain the plastic - water is good enough. For the maroon on this one, it was still acrylic but came from a rattle can, so water wasn't good enough. However - the plastic is really shiny, and once the paint has set a cocktail stick that has been softened (i.e. the end has been in water) - was able to take the extra paint off as it didn't stick to the shine too well!

Thanks. You can also buy prints of these parts from ebay - just search for 104 cab!

Underframes These required some chopping away of the plastic at the cab end where it fits inside the new cab. I added the two vertical strips to the headstock, the horizontal one should not be there, it's a stopper for fitting the body. In hindsight I could have cut out the centre section between the new vertical section and it would still serve its purpose. A hole has been drilled for a hook / three link coupling. There are replacement buffers in the 3D files but they were the original style, the Mexican Bean a later Oleo type and although these 110 ones are still wrong these were a closer match. After I done all the fettling to fit work on the DMBS underframe I remembered I had a bunch of spare centre car underframes obtained at a model railway show for peanuts many moons ago. There are replacement underframe components in the 3D files, but require the big hollow chunk of 110 underframe to be removed, then build up a base for the new parts. I wasn't going to bother, but the centre car underframes make this much easier, just chop odd a few components and the base is already there. So the DMSL having this work done. Once flattened off the 3D parts were glued on. Maybe should have been a bit closer to the edge, but they look ok. The underframes, solebars, wheels and bogies were painted matt black to get rid of the plastic / bare metal look. The outer face of the tyres on the wheels were painted white, as were the axlebox covers as an undercoat for yellow. Windows The cab windows have to be made from scratch, and the first step was to cut them roughly to size. These are from a CD case. The numbers, as well as identify them for the correct window and which way round, makes them more visible when they are dropped on the carpet. The bodyside windows need the frames painting to match the body colours. Body Shells These have now had the cabs and roofs painted:

I was a very active traveller on the West Highland Line at the time, but I can't ever remember travelling on it, sadly. I do remember being on some of the Queen Street bound trains with it attached to the rear heading back to Eastfield for servicing though.

£35 for the second hand 2-car 110 £8 for Railtech transfers £5 for consumables (resin, paint, filler, glue, masking tape) £2 for Westhill Wagon Works buffer beam detailing. A whopping £50 total. It's not about the money though 1) making my own is a lot of fun, satisfying, and helps developing skills 2) the Mexican Bean has subtle differences each year. I haven't seen decorated samples of the Heljan one yet but the artwork suggests it will be in 1986 condition. This will be in the 1985 condition with the small scotty dog. 1986 and 1987 it had the large scotty, and in 1987 it had the top lamp on the cab replaced by by a square headlamp.

The next DMU on the workbench is another Class 104, just a two-car this time. The starting point was, predictably, a Hornby Class 110. Initially I intended to do a manual conversion and had started to reshape the cab windows and the roof done, but part way through I decided to try the 3D printed cab by IronMink available on Thingiverse (https://www.thingiverse.com/thing:6153503). So off with the cab: My initial hesitation with the 3D print had been with the top marker light. Jonny has done an amazing job with these parts but I felt this area could be improved, as the light should be mounted on an extension of the destination box and protrude from it, not be level with it. So I created a new box in Fusion 360, cut out the box on the cab print and added mine. The bodysides have had the window frames removed and the horrible ridge sanded out: Next I sprayed the while body in white primer, and the dome and relevant bodyside parts in white: Then it was the maroon, which should give a clue as to what the vehicles will be:

1984 A splash of colour came to the Scottish scene with the coaching stock for the Glasgow - Stranraer service being painted into the Sealink livery. Here a rake is seen in Auchentogle behind a Class 47. A Class 107 sits in the branch platform while a couple of Type 2s are on the fuelling point. I've finally gotten around to painting the pink Daz modelling clay that was in this area. The Kelvin Scottish bus is a little premature - that company was not formed until the following year. The West Highland Line now had Mark 3 sleepers on the Fort William - London service, and to provide ETH the three ETHELs were created from Class 25s. Here 37033 (a Lima model, which I still need to get round buffers for) and 97250 ETHEL 1 (Heljan) arrive into Glentogle station. With the sleepers at the front, this would be a northbound service.

1983 This was the last year of the Mark I sleepers on the West Highland Line. With no Sunday service at the time (in the summer there was an Edinburgh - Oban ADEX), the first train on a Monday morning could have a Class 20 added for extra adhesion. Eastfield depot had two Class 20s with through steam pipes, 20045 and 20085, which could be used. In a reproduction of another scene from one of my images (https://www.flickr.com/photos/bystuart/53886968536/), we have the 06:00 Glasgow Queen Street - Mallaig waiting to leave Auchentogle: Bubble cars would often substitute for other types of power cars in DMU sets to allow for maintenance / overhaul. Working the branch in this Glentogle view is SC55011 standing in for a Class 101 DMBS:

1982 Seen entering Glentogle with an MGR train are 20223 and 20226. This is a reproducing an image I took many years ago at Dunfermline - https://www.flickr.com/photos/bystuart/27421130251/ In Auchentogle station we have a Class 107 in the branch platform. The origin is a Bachmann 108, it still needs some work doing to it for the transformation. On this version of the Class 108, with the top headcode box, Bachmann never added the handrails between and under the two outer cab windows, also required for a 107. For this model I chose the number SC52019, which did not seem to carry a set number at the time (but was normally part of 107435) and unusually had those warning flashes on the lower cab. https://www.flickr.com/photos/134227013@N08/51713966962/ The 'sky replacement' didn't work to well with this image, but looks better than my kitchen...!

Here's a catch up on recent workbench activities. The Class 116 DMBS was completed, seen on the right. When I painted the yellow on the DMS (left) it crazed in the lower centre cab. Afterwards, when I was making the cab windows for the DMBS I noticed I was holding the body with my finger in thumb in the position it crazed, so for the DMBS before spraying it got a better cleaning, and no crazing this time. Both vehicles have Westhill Wagon Works buffer beam detailing. The (rigid) coupling hook supplied with this pack was fitted to the DMS (left), which just dangles down, something rarely seen on a DMU. DMUs have hooks under the headstock for the coupling to be located when not in use. So for the DMBS I fitted an Accurascale coupling, and although it won't bend backwards to go under the headstock, it can at least be hooked onto the coupling hook and not be dangling down. After the 116 was finished a couple of quick DMU changes were made. I had a Lima blue/grey Class 121 from years ago, no use on a Scottish Layout. But a simple cab dome alteration and number swap would make it into a Class 122 which was good for a ScR layout. I also added a few pieces of paper just above the cantrail before spraying to represent the repairs seen on these vehicles. The yellow cab end is still in it original condition and will probably be tackled later. Next was a Class 101, where this time only the yellow cab was the focus. This was the Lima 101 released by Hornby with the four lamps. It had a number of issues out the box, that line either side of the destination box, the destination box was too small. there was no insides to the two centre lamps: A number of these four-lamp versions ran in Scotland, so the lamps were kept but opened up so there was less plastic rim. The destination box was cut to the correct size, and the first class stripe carefully removed with kitchen cleaner/ cocktail stick, seen part done. The first class totems came off the windows with careful fingernail rubbing. The window frames were sanded down slightly as they were two proud. The cab was the only part requiring spraying: I cut off the glazing from the lamps and filled them with glue 'n' glaze instead, and printed a misaligned destination blind to match the prototype image I was working from. Westhill Wagon Works jumpers / vac pipes and an Accurascale coupling were fitted. I didn't replace the wiper as it is far two chunky, but will look for alternatives. Here is the finished item alongside the untouched other end - a big improvement for minimal effort!

1981 This week's running year was the last full year of the Deltics. This is represented by 55015 seen rolling into Auchentogle station: When the Scottish Region dispensed with its two-car DMUs, sending the DTCL cars south, it received a number of DMCL vehicles many of which were ex-NER vehicles from the early builds with four lamps on the cab front. Here one of these is seen with a Dunblane service in Glentogle station. The vehicle number is higher than normal, based on the prototype (https://www.flickr.com/photos/134227013@N08/51715019878/). SC50197 had been a Darlington, Neville Hill, Newton Heath and Chester vehicle before moving to Dundee in Spring 1979 and would stay on the ScR (also allocated to Haymarket and Eastfield) until withdrawal in 1990, its last year being as a sandite / route learner. https://railcar.co.uk/data/vehicle/50197.

Email from Rails today with the Heljan delivery schedule has the Class 104 as Quarter 4 2024, so October - December? Not long now! "Subject to change" of course - as they are still tweaking it, there could still be some slippage and it I'm guessing the date will be firmed up until it enters production.

1980 The 47/7s took over from the 27s on the E&G service the previous year. Here we see one of these sets in Auchentogle station. It's a Bachmann DBSO and Oxford Rail Mark 3s: Note I've also finally made some developments with the station - first time I've been able to make progress since before xmas - with a start to blending in the platform end, and adding some 3D printed station lamps on the left platform. More on their way for the other platform, as are transfers from Railtec to add the station name to them. Looking at images of these lamps there were many variations in styles - continuing my mash up of different Scottish stations these were based on those at Dunfermline Lower (see https://www.flickr.com/photos/bystuart/32027184025/ and https://www.flickr.com/photos/108977492@N02/45474022012/). At the other end of the shove set is 47704, a Heljan model renumbered by its previous owner, it really needs a headlamp adding to finish it of: Working the branch is Gloucester Class122 SC55011, seen in Glentogle station. This is a Lima Class 121 with an easy mod changing the headcode to a destination box. I added some roof repairs at gutter level which were common on these vehicles before respraying the roof. Next round of work will be the cab front, still in its factory condition. In 1980 the vehicle was allocated to Dundee and did not have a destination blind fitted.

There is a page on the railcar website about the Preston - Colne service: https://railcar.co.uk/operations/london-midland-region/preston-colne The images there show that the Cravens were the main type until about 1981, after which many different types could be found with the 104s not being uncommon. Here is a Martyn Hilbert image of one at Bamber Bridge:

1979 26028 was an Inverness loco in 1979, looking at flickr there are plenty of images of it working in the Edinburgh area at the time. I found this image https://www.flickr.com/photos/130159849@N03/32516562406/ interesting and copied the coaches behind. The loco needs some snowploughs and dirt to match the image better. In the branch platform we have a Class 116 DMU with Greater Glasgow markings. This was a Lima 117 converted with Worsley Works etched sides:

1978 One exciting event this year was the first new diesel trains in Scotland for many years, with the HSTs being introduced on the ECML. Here a set is seen in Auchentogle. It's a Lima model with the numbers changed to reflect a Craigentinny set, I've also fitted lights and TTS sound. At the end of the year I moved from Fife to a house beside the West Highland Line, a few minutes walk from the former Rhu Halt. Here we have a 27 with Railfreight wagons passing through Glentogle station in what could be a West Highland Line scene:

1977 40159 was a Haymarket loco in 1977 and in July that year it gained the domino headcode. It's seen in Auchentogle station during a crew change on the way back from works. It looks like there's a wonky handrail into the cab that needs seeing to. Our Glentogle view for this year is an 08 shunting some CCTs into the goods shed for unloading. 08375 was never a Scottish loco so needs to be renumbered.