Jump to content
 

jonas

Members
 View Profile  See their activity

  • Posts

    786

  • Joined

  • Last visited

 Content Type 

Blog Entries posted by jonas

  1. jonas
    I have been asked how I lower my Farish 37s; I hope this helps explain it. Descriptions are in each photos caption. It's not that hard to do but worth it in my opinion. I've never had any issues with running but I don't use settrack curves, and obviously anyone following this does so at their own risk!
     

     
    Comparison between modified and unmodified Farish Class 37s. I also painted the visible brass bits of the pickup strips black whilst the loco is disassembled.
     

     
    Body off and cab interiors removed - these just pull out. If anyone needs any I have about 12 in my bits box now!
     

     
    The contact board slides up and out of the chassis: careful not to break any solder joints. I have painted 2 white dots onto mine above - file this away. It's about 2mm, about half way up the brass circles under the lighting contacts. You're basically extending the cut out. It's important that both sides (and ends) have the same amount filed so the body sits level. They then just slot back in.
     

     
    Chop the lugs off the battery box; this will no longer clip onto the bottom of the chassis block. I fix mine back on the chassis with blue tack, but you could use double sided tape if you prefer.
     

     
    Reassembled, it'll look something like this! I hope this helps anyone looking to do a similar mod.
  2. jonas
    Happy new year to you all!
     

    3x Farish Class 37s - detailed, weathered and lowered by me.
     
    It’s been a good year for me - bought a house and welcomed a baby (and a puppy!) to the world. I’ve also got a fair bit of modelling done considering, although they layout I’ve been threatening I’ve still to make any significant progress on. But I have been lucky enough to start working on other people’s models for them as well as my own which is very rewarding. So thanks to anyone who’s allowed me to slap paint on their precious models and for all the likes and comments on my work over the last 12 months. Cheers!
  3. jonas
    Managed to get another couple of wagons done for my privatisation era engineers train between DIY jobs this weekend! The MTAs are all still numbered the same, but I figured I was better getting on with the weathering whilst the mojo was there to get them done - I can always go back and amend the TOPs panels later. For now I'm turning a blind eye!
     
    Here they are posed with my grubby grey 08, as seen on my other blog entries.
     

     

     
    I've since added the remnants of a ballast load to the sides and corners of the wagons...I knew they were missing something!
  4. jonas

    Finished Farish Forty

    By jonas,

    My 40 finally landed this week and I’ve got to say I’m massively impressed with the model Farish have produced! Currently the pinnacle of UK N gauge diesel models out there? I think so.
     
    Of course, I couldn’t just leave it even if the the factory finish is a lovely matt shade of BR blue! So I’ve been adding my own grime washes, some powders and picking out details here and there. Still some refining to do, but she’s getting there!
     


  5. jonas
    I’ve recently picked up the old limited edition Class 08 produced for ModelZone a few years back by Farish, 97800 Ivor in its unique RTC livery. It’s a loco that only existed in this livery for a very specific time but it looks smart and I’ve kept my eyes peeled for one at the right price for a while! I’ve given it my usual weathering treatment of enamel washes and powders, although I went for a satin finish rather than my usual matt finish for more well weathered locos. It’ll need a decoder at some point which will be fun!
  6. jonas
    Latest addition to the fleet is this Farish duff in original parcels livery. I’ve always been a fan of this livery (and the later RES version) so have had my eyes peeled for one for a while to pull my growing collection of parcels vans. Given the usual weathering treatment of enamel washes, details picked out in acrylics, a coat of matt varnish and a few powders to add a bit of texture. NEM pocket removed from the leading bogie so it doesn’t foul the bufferbeam gubbins. Happy with this!
  10. jonas
    My 2 latest models. 37514 in Metals and 37239 in Coal sector liveries. Lowered on bogies, detail fitted both ends, NEM pockets removed and weathered. Couple of etched bits on the way for 514, and oval buffers required for 239 but otherwise done!
  11. jonas
    My latest tractor. Detail fitted both ends and nem pockets removed, lowered on its bogies to reduce the gap between the body and the bogies. Workstained weathering job on triple grey metal sector livery, just as I remember seeing them as kid rumbling through Hereford. Etched plaques and arrows on order from Fox, so not quite finished, but I couldn't resist sharing!
  12. jonas

    Western joins the fleet

    By jonas,

    I managed to get this finished over the weekend. I struck lucky on eBay and snared this gorgeous Dapol Western. One of the finest N gauge models out there IMO; we will see if the new 40 from Farish knocks it from top spot! Although I think the factory weathered versions are great, I wanted to do my own so weathering was consistent across the fleet. So a mix of paints and powders and a coat of flat matt and she's ready for service.
     
    I also managed to get some ballasting done over the weekend, but no photos as it is the worlds most tedious job.
  14. jonas

    EWS tractor gets grubby

    By jonas,

    I've recently been lucky enough to get hold of a Farish 37 in EWS livery, so it's been through the shops to get lowered to reduce the gap between body and bogies and to get a dose of weathering. Usual mix of enamel washes and powders and a spray of dullcote. Still some details to still pick out, but I'm pleased with how it's come out - it's already become one of my favourite locos!
     

  15. jonas
    I've been busy tonight with the paints and powders! 2 new locos delivered today. The Farish DRS 37 has been lowered on its bogies a touch - I'm chuffed to have finally tracked one down in DRS livery. The EWS 66 a standard Dapol model - 66181, the kind of anonymous loco you see all over the country. I'm please with both, I gave them both a gloss coat before getting busy with enamel washes which really helped the washes flow. A squirt of Dullcote toned down the finish before I added powders from Humbrol and Forge World. Still a few details to pick out in the cold light of day tomorrow - such as the buffer shanks in silver. From my quick search tonight I can't see anyone who makes etched Lord Hinton nameplate in this scale, which is a shame!
     

  16. jonas
    Whilst I've been posting lots of pictures of my N gauge stock on my other blog, I've not been neglecting my 00 stuff. In fact quite the opposite, as I've been ploughing on with the tedious task of laying track, wiring, testing, wiring...repeat until confident all works. The track plan is a simple loop wth headshunt and siding, and it'll allow me to run trip freights into a simple private railhead somewhere to exchange wagons. The use of a brake van due to an unseen propelling move can also be thrown in to complicate shunting!

    My stock is mostly covered vans such as the cargowaggon seen here and VDA / VGA types: I'm imagining the facilities are pretty basic and the vans unloaded with forklifts.

    I'm looking forward to starting the scenery now. The trackwork will be quite overgrown with a hardstanding on the siding / headshunt side.
  17. jonas
    Like most modellers I find it difficult to remain focused on what project at a time and frequently jump from one project to another; I model in both N and 00 gauges, and whilst I've posted plenty of pictures on my N gauge blog I've not shared any of my bits in the larger scale.
     

     

     
    First up is 08648 in grubby BR general grey. For some reason I think this layout suits the workhorse nature of the humble grok. I've fitted Smith's screw links alongside Shawlplan etched arrows and windscreen wipers, but the biggest improvement for me was adding lazerglaze in place of the supplied clear parts. I've also hard wired a decoder into this one as it's an earlier release.
     
    Weathered using washes of Humbrol enamel, varnished using Citadel / Games Workshop purity seal spray and then worked in some weathering powders from Mig, Humbrol and Forge World.
     
    Next up is 03162, in battered old BR blue. I've always liked small shunters since I got a Hornby 06 for Christmas many years ago! This one started as a weathered latest release Bachmann example, although I used T-Cut gently applied with a cotton bud to ease back the factory applied weathering and used my own techniques as per the 08 above.
     

     

     
    Thanks for looking!
  18. jonas
    More modern images stuff now - the Arriva Trains Wales Premier Service is coming along nicely...
     
    I managed to get the DVT finished at the weekend so here's a line up of my Dapol 67s alongside it. I'm pretty pleased with how these have come together - I've used the usual combination enamels washes, a few passes of Citadel's purity seal varnish (available from Games Workshops) and a dash of powders. I've started work on the coaching stock now - I've one more mark 3 to arrive and complete the rake, so there is no rush as I want them to look consistent.
     

  19. jonas

    16 ton blues.

    By jonas,

    Everything I've posted recently has been pretty modern; here's my late 1970s Farish 24 posed with a few 16 tonners. These are a mix of pre-weathered and pristine, given the same weathering treatment of enamel washes, purity seal varnish, powders and real coal dust scraped into the inside of the wagons.
     

     
    The board is a test plank using finetrax code 40 rail that's had a few scenic experiments done on it; not the neatest but looks ok!
  20. jonas
    Here's the latest addition to the fleet - a Farish 25/2. I've been looking for an unweathered blue one for a while and spotted this in my local model shop on Wednesday...a Christmas present to myself!
     
    A little more work than the usual weathering job, as I decided I couldn't live with the very prominent handrails on the cab fronts. Theses were carefully pulled out, trimmed and reshaped to fit, which also required the holes to be opened out a smidge. I also stripped the thick paint and repainted them while they were out. Unfortunately they are just held in by the factory paint job, so a couple of touch ups were required to the warning yellow on the cab front.
     

     
    Weathering was then fine using my usual oil paint washes and powders, slightly heavier on the cab fronts than I'd like, but it hides a couple if sins! Running is perfect to a crawl after a bit if playing with the CVs; it's interesting I can get my 24, 25 and 37s to crawl and accelerate much more realistically than the later released pair of 20s I have. Different motors, I guess.
     
    Anyway, apologies for the ramble; typing this as my girlfriend catches up on sleep having just done a night shift delivering Christmas babies! Merry Christmas to you all, and here's to a productive modelling year for us all in 2016!
  21. jonas
    Hello,
     
    It's been a long time since I've posted! But I've been busy none the less, mostly with my N gauge models, but thanks to a kind offer of a Bachmann 08 in response to a wanted post I've got the most generic and useful loco of all - a BR blue 08. I've replaced the glazing with Shawplan laserglaze, some etched windscreen wipers and added Smith's screw-links, along with some other bits and bobs. Weathered using oil paint washes, a blast of Citadel Purity Seal spray varnish to tone down the finish and powders from Humbrol, Mig and Forge World. Really pleased to have 2 Gronks to a decent standard ready for shunting duties on my plank!
     

  22. jonas
    Continuing on a modern theme...
     
    These 3 JNA Falcon infrastructure wagons are from Dapol, picked up last week to go with my EWS 66. Weathered as usual using oil paint washes and powders. Burnt umber was liberally applied inside the wagons, and left to try for a bit - then dragged around with a large flat brush dampened with a touch of thinners to give a streaky rusted effect. I then added Mig 'light dust' powder inside. I was going to add a load, but I'm not so sure whether I will or not now.
     

     
     
    I found one of them wouldn't run without derailing - a look underneath showed some plastic flash on one of the bogies. Sliced off with a sharp knife and all was well again! There was also some flash present on the buffers, again worth looking out for if you've any waiting for some time on the workbench.
     

     
    Also of note, I'm giving the Dapol magnetic couplers another try on my modern stock. The non-NEM Farish 66 was an easy conversion - pop off the bogie and superglue into the Rapido slot!
  23. jonas
    Hmmmm. Sticking to BR blue didn't last long. Anyway...
     
    I sold my modern image stock a while back, with the intention of restricting my modelling to the late 70s / early 80s. However, like many of us, my interests flip from one thing to another and I started to regret letting go of my 2 EWS 66s, especially as they are so ubiquitous on the modern network. I also have a feeling the supply in this livery will dry up as DB starts to restrict models released to those in it's own corporate identity, as seen on the wagons in the latest Farish catalogue.
     

     
    So a cheeky 'best offer' on eBay last weekend was accepted, and I now have an EWS shed back in my collection. I've done the usual weathering and flattened the finish with varnish before hitting it with some powders. The real thing has a folded buckeye coupling on the bufferbeam; I've sort of represented this with one of the dummy buckeyes from a Mark 1 coach until I find something better. DCC decoder hardwired in and its ready for use.
     
    Now, I could do with some JNAs for it to pull really...
  24. jonas
    It's time I turned my attention to some rolling stock that isn't 16 ton mineral wagons. I started to think what else would look good hung behind a grubby blue diesel, give me a bit of variety yet not have a long fixed formation? A bit of searching helped me decide a mail rake would be useful - I could expand it later with some weird and wonderful additions, but for now enjoy weathering some of Farish's excellent coaching stock and still run it in a realistically short rake.
     

     
    I ordered a blue / grey BG, which seem to almost ever present in these type of trains, and an all-blue GUV van (with motorail branding, but small enough to ignore!). Then the fun bit - wash of black and burnt umber oil paints, Purity Seal varnish spray, then attention with some weathering powders. I tried not to go too overboard, even though photographs I've seen show these vehicles in some shocking external condition - presumably mostly running at night meant a wash wasn't the priority?! - although I found I needed to bring out the door detail with an additional wash of Citadel nuln oil (black ink to us mortals) carefully painted into the crevices. I was worried this wouldn't key to the surface (it really doesn't like glossy surfaces) but the varnish coat had prepared it.
     

     
    I couldn't resist trying this photo whilst the camera was out too, it really shows how far N gauge has come. These items are pretty much out of the box, with the only modification to the Class 24 is the cutting off the NEM coupling pocket and adding a Dapol dummy screw link. The rest are the details supplied in the box. I'm very happy with these, and itching to add a few more vehicles as I see them. I feel like there is a constant standard across my fleet, and I'm trying to make sure my latest purchases maintain this. I've moved on some of my modern stock to try and help me to focus on this era.
  25. jonas
    This is what has rolled off the workbench this week...
     
    I have been keeping my eyes peeled for a Farish plain BR blue 47 for a while; whilst selling on some other stock I got the chance to grab 47403 ' The Geordie' as part of a trade. 47403 was named in 1982, slightly after my rough time period for my blue stock so out came the T-cut! Very gentle rubbing removed the nameplates and also the logos above the numbers. My model didn't come with the detail pack, so I raided the spares box for a representation of the bufferbeam detail and added it to one end. The red buffer beam was repainted in black, and the whole model given a gentle wash of thinned oil paints. When semi dry these were pulled down the side of the loco with a large flat brush. A squirt of Citadel Purity Seal flattened the finish before I added powders to the rood, underframe and sides.
     
    .
     
    Overall, I'm really pleased with how this one has come out - a completely unremarkable and anonymous duff. Of course, later in life 47403 would have a Herefordshire connection - it was based at Moreton-on-Lugg and used as a training aid for the SAS for a few years...
×
×
  • Create New...