coaches build IR/ NIR

[Robert Shrives]

Today started well with a tidy up and I thought it will not take long to finish some long outstanding coaches.  Several diversions along the way and this was all that got done.  Bill Beford sides let into a lima mk 2 and given a quick spray of Halford`s  Peugeot Seville orange  which gives to my old eyes a match to pictures.   The yellow beast is a case of can you guess ! painted in Halford`s Rover Inca yellow. Also a lima coach where model has truly mimicked real life with a MK2c SO hacked to  suit along with a casting from MIR let into the outer end and etched drivers window frame - which is a bit chunky but is mid-train so hopefully not too noticeable.    

Has to be said the Bill Beford Etch was first fitted over a decade ago. And the driver trailer about eight years - wheels do turn very slowly.

    

[NIR]

Yellow is Sandite 80 Class?

[Robert Shrives]

yes that is it in one !  I recon that if I make the three yellow unpowered and use the "facelifted" one as the powered - I can use that for two consists.  Following on the good works on some on here I will chop up coaches for these vehicles nad keep the NIR etches for passenger sets . Lots of bright idea plans once wagon fleet is progressed and the crate stored away. 

[Robert Shrives]

Had a chance to progess some more with thanks to the info from members of the forum. 

NIR 8911  roof vents, side grills and roof holes  this built up on an older airfix MK 2D  BSO with roof hatch removed, side grills are BR class 37 refurb nose grills chopped about a bit , the round grill is an N gauge class 47 roof etch , long grill has been glued on for a long time and I think was from  A1 models

Model from the ark - yes I have two of them !  MTK brass etch, plasticard roof hatch as etched item was armour plate thick but made a template for roof lift lugs- Mine not totally identical but having seen pic of tortured ones they pass ok. Top air intake had some fine mesh bought a model boat show. The Exhaust elbows exercised the mind and electrons but in end a light bulb moment got me to tomix N gauge sprue  from a lorry. - it had 2.5mm dia sprue with nicely moulded elbows. I also cut and bent out door steps and infilled resulting slots with thinish plasticard from offcuts box - but strong backed with a 30 thou evergreen strip . All that is missing are the roe-vac roof vents - on order from Southern pride models.  Both models to same condition.

A set of three NIR Mk 2s in various states of experimentation Decals from Darius on the SO - blue no white line on Halfords ford pale grey. The Gen brake is an early model and flawed with a door missing - the haste of youth shell mods over a decade in the making. Painted in precison NIR coach  grey with Railtec Enterprise livery - white edges, available as shown or with coach numbers already added.  The top coach one of the NIR second hand buys ex FK into SO painted in Halford  Audi Ibis white - which is just slightly off white and matches the coaches when photo`ed in bright sun . I think this is easily the best and being an acrylic is easy and safer to apply to the enamels. It might be close enough for bumble bee livery. several rattle cans of blue to try. 

And finally  a can you guess what it is yet picture - a late yesterday cut and hakcenbash to start of window blanks. The real one is preserved as more than a hint.  

It was a bit of a shock yesterday to realise I had done something to 12 body shells.  For those who recall the Vic Berry coaches for scrap stack the bench when tidied and bodies stacked.  I did think well ok on the lids what about the wheels etc. So this morning dug out chassis  some had lima wheels out and Peters spares 12.6mm coach wheels on lima length 24.5 mm axles code is PS 34 but out of stock - some inbound from China Peter reported last week.  Kaydee No5s built up and plasticard packers used  to test height and spacing.  

No glazing  at the mo but some Eastern Finecast vaccumm formed packs to hand and for suitable ones some shawplan lazer glaze in bags, but I guess these will not get used for a while.                 

[Robert Shrives]

This is 5408 again after makeover no xx! Dealt with etch end gaps - nearly and filled the gutter gap which was very obvious. A primer and orange but on very close inspection the end joins still open up little.

Close up of end of EGV showing tomix exhausts.

The etch sort of provides for the foot steps - but the end slots only half etched - a few careful dremel cuts and scoring of etch with hook bladed scorer and these folded out, fractionally short but certainly better than nothing. Of course this left a gap in the body shell,  30 thou strong back visible on other side and a bit cut  to fill slot. I was quite pleased with this improvement.  Clearly "kit" had no instructions by this stage - if ever.

RSS1800 in UK money or 546 in the NIR version of the pound!  A Lima Air con MK2D as donor. Windows blanked and filler applied several times hopefully the last as a couple of joins refuse to die! Another old age mod going back three many years! But with annual leave and long weekends of work giving 21 days away from the real one allows quite a bash. 

finally 548  the NIR version of the TSOT. It did occur how close the RR blue was to NIR bumble bee blue, it would be possible just to slap on a decal - but for that lovely feature of a lima coach the rasied bead used to form the white"line" in banger blue liveries for the printing process.- Tampo printing moved on so far now not required, a few minutes per side with a scaple blade used vertically to scrape -and does not dig in soon removes the "feature!" Window hole filed square to make blanking easier. 

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Window-Fillers-for-Bachmann-OO-scale-Mk1-Coach-conversions/233776130  But these might be adaptable - MK 2 air cons also available  certainly useful for  GSV conversions! before the boys do one - as it were! 

On the bench for later are 8 lima mK2 floor pans to get Kaydees fitted , two pads 10x12mm centrally behind buffer beam, slight scrape of bottom of beam on central 12mm and a second overlaying pad makes mounting - I got some "truss head" self tappers to provide a mechanical anchor for the No5 but it could be glued.  Should say of course pads are 1.5mm thick. No 5 coupling stash to take a hammering later.  I plan that when a chassis gets allocated to a body then any undergubbins can be added as required.   

           

[Robert Shrives]

What I have found is that airfix bogies and triang B4 and Southerpride B5  all take peter spares  PS108 12.6mm wheels on 25.6 long axles a dream.  PS33  out of stock which do lima bogies but expected soon  

Fitting Kaydee no 5s to lima chassis I found these really good 

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Fast-delivery-M1-4-x8mm-20-off-Truss-head-Phillips-Nickel-plated-selftap-screw/3242478 

and ordered 40 more just now along with some others for stock.

[Robert Shrives]

The two steps back one forward this morning, my yellow offering to the 80 gods is the wrong shell it is 752  but this got some differing mods when converted from loco hauled to demu  stock - the passenger door at leading end got BR suburban style small vertical windows - same on BR 310 / 312 stock- which was handy as Southern pride had a end of line brass 310 body set. " Just a case of letting in" a bit of brass into the bodyside !  More later hopefully but morning taken up with more 5408 spraying - happy now and the earlier buffet mods have has primer and second filling sessions.

Stripped paint of 5 shells ready for 80 class  or gen brake works and cleaned off the EGV with the paint runs  and wrong black stripe. It was a good job as shell is hardly clean and I think any masking tape use would have caused disaster.      

The other sandite prep task this morning a bit of a scaling fudge as I have used Southern pride bogie inner mouldings at 8`6" to hold the MIR resin MK6 ish bogie frames  and now as Darius spotted on his 80 build the cast bogie sides are bomb proof thickness so these have had 1.5mm sawn of back by hand .. labourious but first one matches the thinner resin version. I plan ( strong words sorry ! ) that the two yellow power cars on the sandite will be dummies so using the Southern pride  bogies does mean free wheeling vehicles, the powered one will be in the 3000 style body at least only have to paint one!   

[Robert Shrives]

Air brush set up today for NIR blue on two and black for 4 CIE coaches. As well as can be expected.

Airfix, filler and grills, slight touch on left end and ends to sort but much better from 6 years ago.

Silver Fox DBSO , when yellow on front done an MM headlight to add. The MIR blue  looks ok on the Ibis white but lighter than 8911 on a ford ivory. I will have to re do the middle coaches to match the ivory - currently in BR Intercity beige.

This one of the EGV shown earlier The etched grills are over size but now better placed, I will do in the super train livery as it will not emphasise the grills  but black has gone on well. all the bobbly details of hinges and handles to add plus now got some roevac roof vents to glue on - hopefully a bit of exhaust grot will tone down the roof.

Bill Bedford GSV based on the BCK batch with offset van doors.Based around a Triang overlength BG and will get Southern Pride B5 bogies but no rush it got the black today after perhaps a decade in a box..

A coach that was part done and of course inspired Mr Murphy to bring out rtr version ! This too has sat in a box for donkeys years but got a flashover of orange rattle a few days back and black gloss from airbrush after lunch today.  Based on two airfix coaches and will benefit from correct roof vent positons and wheels ! but no rush is there.       

[Robert Shrives]

Update 16/12 - got some transfers on .  The Mk 1 got white stripes and glazed oneside. The two NIR coaches are the blue stripe and stripe with white edges - the Blue stripe is on MIR tinlet of NIR grey and the blue/white is on audi Ibis white which reflect images in research in books and web - open to comments.

 Top blue stripe decals a big thanks to Darius, test application as you can see Lima rib not fully removed and lower from Steve at Railtec. 

[Robert Shrives]

NIR 903, glazed with the vacc formed Eastern finecast units - not totally convinced so any body got contacts for getting lazer cut ones?

The ends- a small conundrum. I have seen a pic of 547  nee M1800 with black ends in the Intercity stripe livery - I guess a hang over from BR import. Did the other coaches follow suit ?  The Lima detail in ends stops getting a flush fit transfer - loads of microsol and it is only average - I can scrape off end details of course and add hadnrails - you know proper modelling but being the impatient soul I was wondering if the black paint brush would give a work around. Needless to say even searching "Belfast CSD" in flikr has only found later timeframe pics , coach searches show lovely train shots but not enough to say 903 got black ends.

Also Kadee straightened.   little project used to hold up coach !   

      

[Dhu Varren]

For the end blue stripe I cut the decal off at the door edge/handrail, matched up some blue paint and hand painted the blue. I then applied white edges using white lining of a suitable width, which then covered the edge of the brush painted blue. Much easier to apply narrow white stripes than the full width transfer.

[Robert Shrives]

6 minutes ago, Dhu Varren said:

For the end blue stripe I cut the decal off at the door edge/handrail, matched up some blue paint and hand painted the blue. I then applied white edges using white lining of a suitable width, which then covered the edge of the brush painted blue. Much easier to apply narrow white stripes than the full width transfer.

Yes Where I was going  but then spotted 547s black end which seemed  a godsend!   

[Robert Shrives]

I will have to take some pics tomorrow of progress on the coaches but could not resist starting another - an old MIR etched NIR buffet car 547, I know the good boys in the bunker have one well on its way but to spur on the 101s and the original livery this lima based coach will be in the first enterprise livery and go with 4 others I bought from the web, I also need to do a DBSO  and number all the coaches.  Day off tomorrow so might get a bit more done on 547 to make worth taking a pic.

Robert  

[Robert Shrives]

 Hurst etch primed  vehicle 547

10thou overlay on lima door end to match overlay holes drilled for grab and door handle- to be fitted later .

To help the 80 class project first build DTS in primer - been sort of on its way for 2 years just needed some filler sanding back.

547 in NIR maroon , the Hymek not moved for a while.

Robert 

[murphaph]

Looking well Robert!