Galteemore

There’s a lot in this. I think the best we can generally hope for as modellers is an acceptable range of a particular colour. I have recently been experimenting with GN loco blue on a HD body, and there’s an inexact sweet spot which just looks right based on taking some kind of average of published pics! My own experiments are a work in progress. Ian Rathbone, who is the guru of model loco painting, says in his book that GNRI blue is basically impossible to define! And he’s painted a few. Two of his paint jobs below. One of these looks too light, but is what his client supplied. The other looks more on the money. Fred Graham’s were painted with genuine Dundalk paint but actually look a if anything little dark.

Try @Past-Avenue @jhb171achill

Thanks Patrick. I picked 74 as it was both a regular Enniskillen engine, and the last PP of all to survive in service. Although, famously, she wasn’t scrapped bearing the number 74 but rather 42. About 1961, UTA HQ decreed that 74 should be withdrawn and 42 kept running. Newry shed was horrified - 74 had the newest boiler in the PP fleet and was a superior engine. So they simply painted over the numbers on each engine and sent the real 42 off to be scrapped. 74/42 ran her last years with an x suffix meaning she would be withdrawn when any major fault developed and would not be repaired. She lasted long enough to do a fabulous railtour to Omagh. The sound of her getting away from Pomeroy must have been something else. Were you there @leslie10646?

Well after much fettling and fiddling the PP is done. Thanks to the helical gearbox she floats along very nicely and runs very smoothly. Haulage seems adequate. Little bit more subtle weathering to do but that’s it I think. video of her rolling - and hitting the buffers! https://youtu.be/65vNarq38KY?feature=shared Also fascinating to see how tiny PPs were. Look how she (in the middle) stacks up against a JT and SG2… My thanks to @Rob R and @Colin R for alerting the forum to the box of bits on eBay!

That’s most interesting David. One assumes that Gordon just imagines something and it appears perfectly formed in front of him! I know I’ve been guilty of the ‘it’ll do’ approach too often..

John - both sorry and pleased to hear this. Sorry on account of your health issues but pleased that you are actually taking positive action to look after yourself.

Have to say that you have brought more than a touch of Gravett magic to the Irish scene David! The locos look fabulous.

The ‘Drew Donaldson’ edition runs to several volumes.

You realise that now you are modelling in brass, the carpet monster has arrived. This creature survives by consuming small parts of etched kits dropped on the floor.

Looking great already Alan!

What technique did you try? For vents, sweating is normally the way. Tin both surfaces lightly and then use plenty of flux. Although in 4mm I’d be tempted to superglue them on once the main carcass is done!

Good to hear Joe. What a lot of us do is have a little ‘pot boiler’ layout on the go to keep the juices flowing. Lots of firms do small laser cut baseboards which provide a firm base for a little shunting plank of a few square feet. Easy and quick to build, and provides a test track to develop scenic skills etc while you work on the magnum opus! Building a large layout is a bit like doing a PhD - lots of effort but without tangible results for quite a while. Having a small set up in which you can run trains whilst the grand plan is under way helps keep your interest up and reminds you of what you can achieve. This kind of idea….it’s N gauge but Google ‘00 Micro Layout’ and see what appears….

Agreed. Will save a lot of cleaning up…..

Joe - sounds a great idea all round. What’s your layout building experience thus far? Only asking as this is quite a technical challenge to take on, especially if a lone wolf modeller. If this is your first layout, I’d suggest trying something more conventional first to practice basic skills. As a basic learner myself, I’ve learned at first hand how dispiriting it can be when a grand plan hits a snag. A small first layout will teach you a lot, and the frustrations/disappointments will not be on a titanic scale

Love the way you bring these things back to life Darius. Great work

Interesting resemblance to an RUC Tangi. Just imagine that patrolling the GN main line….

Somehow I think you always nail it in the end Alan….;)

Shows the power of a convincing paint finish. Looks very effective

Oh yes you would…..

Could be delays in getting the etches done. Des is one of the good guys and not a scammer.

Great work. Massive improvement!

The SG2 at Mullingar has a Dundalk-built tender - no lozenge cut-outs. A very considerate gesture towards modellers !

Probably 2 Compounds for an SG3! CIE seem to have found the 0-6-0s reasonably useful and of the passenger locos only the Us and Qs seem to have strayed much onto the wider CIE system

Pun-ishment will surely come. Spectacular work Kevin.

Maybe Kieran Lagan?