Tullygrainey

Do I detect some customised figure sculpting here Patrick? I can't find Bertie or Sammy in the Dart Castings catalogue

Wow! That brings back some very distant memories. I remember, as a very young child, seeing locos appear out of the subway. And Harkness's horses, lined up by the side of the road with their noses in leather feed bags. Alan

Might be worth a try? Gino Severini: Suburban Train Arriving in Paris, 1915 (Tate Modern)

Perfect!

That is beautiful!

Thanks Patrick, and Happy New Year everyone The future’s bright. The future’s BCDR green Alan

Thanks David. Yes, the loco may be green but the air was decidedly blue here yesterday! And yes, I think we're looking at an enamel/acrylic reaction here. Clearly 3 or 4 days drying time for the colour coat wasn't enough! The fact that only one side was affected is odd but I think the culprit was an over-liberal dose of varnish on the affected side. For the record: the green body colour was Railmatch enamel, (GWR loco green 1601) the varnish was Humbrol Acrylic Varnish (Gloss 35) both applied from aerosol cans. The unaffected side shows it can be done without mishap but it needs care and plenty of drying time. Patience, in fact. I must order some of that Alan

Thanks GM. You’re right and I do need to walk away for a while or risk making it worse. Cheers

I decided to take the easier route and stick with what I know, using transfers for the lining. I was making good progress with the paint - a nice even coat of GWR green overall, left to harden for 3 or more days. Then a dusting of (acrylic) gloss varnish to provide a good surface for the lining transfers. And that's when the disaster arrived. It crazed the paint - on one side only, strangely enough. Trying to sand it out proved futile and I've now taken it back to the metal in places. The engine casing doors, complete with louvres proved unsavable and will need to be remade. Also the rivet strip at the bottom. It's going to be a challenge to blend this back in. I've so far resisted the temptation to bin it but It's certainly taken the shine off my day. Backwards and downwards Alan

Ingenious!

I'm enjoying watching this develop David. And I'm guessing it's been an enjoyable build too. I like your chassis and the Low Rider seems to fit the bill perfectly. Should be a smooth performer. I'm a fan of High Level's gearboxes. Best wishes, Alan

Wiggly tin is good

Looking forward to this one taking shape David

Yes. I've been thinking about trying a bow pen but there's going to need to be some practising done first! I've searched for smaller scale transfers but no joy as yet. Fox do some finer lines but not in the right colour, and no corners to match. Cheers, Alan

I'm approaching the painting and lining out stage with this project. My previous attempts at BCDR livery have involved red and white lining from Fox Transfers applied separately over Railmatch GWR post-1928 loco green (undercoated with Halfords Matt Black to darken the result). But even at 0.33mm, the lining is a bit broad and over-scale. I'm happy enough with that but are there other options that would produce a finer result? Grateful for any advice. Alan

Thank you Patrick. That's a nice idea. Maybe with a couple of Hattons Genesis coaches, suitably tweaked? I ordered a set 18 months ago and Hattons were finally able to despatch them last week. According to Royal Mail tracking, they've been at Warrington Sorting Centre since then, no doubt at the bottom of a very large pile of parcels. I suppose a few more weeks is neither here or there Thanks John, and I hope you do. H&W diesels are a neglected species.

Onwards and upwards in small steps.. (and sand boxes and a few rivets) Alan

Enjoyed your piece on Brookhall Mill in New Irish Lines, Patrick

Yes! Mind you, the "if in doubt, whack one in" overuse of the apostrophe is possibly even worse. On a recent holiday in Cumbria, I came across this sign in a shop window. I assume that if you go in, the staff will lick your face. Or maybe bite your ankle? Alan

Brilliant! Wonderful atmosphere. Alan

Thanks David. I have equally baffling experiences in Currys . I browse there every few months or so in a gradually failing attempt to guess what all those black boxes do. Maybe it doesn't really matter

Some detail added to the frames. These bits are probably perfect candidates for CAD and 3D printing but since I haven’t plotted even the first point on that particular learning curve, it’s had to be old tech for this one. A rummage in my garage turned up some brass tacks (no, really ) with domed heads which, filed down a bit, could be soldered inside some short lengths of brass tubing to make the basis of the axleboxes. Plastic card and slices of plastic tubing did the rest. The springs were made using cut down MJT white metal castings (MJT 2258, GWR Spring Axlebox), 0.45mm brass rod and slivers of fine wire insulation. None of this is precisely accurate but close enough to convey a sense of the thing, I think. Onwards with superglued fingers, Alan

Frames separated and some details added before they got soldered into the running plate. Alan

Beautiful. A really fine bit of modelling. Alan

Piercing saw in play again. Outside frames cut as a pair. Some tricky stuff coming up soon - wheel hubs, springs and brakes Alan