I was not sure were to post this thread  :new so hopefully it is in the right place.

I was up bright and early on Boxing day (04:45) to crack on with the work I wanted to do on my engines and trucks that I was lucky enough to have for Christmas, the weathering had all been done before they were wrapped up.
  
 I started with the easiest, my Heljan 128. I only had to fit the coupling hooks and crew. The body was easy to remove and the drivers seat easy to access. Once this was done I put her on my oval of track to run her in.
  
 This is a wonderful model, exquisitely detailed, heavy and boy oh boy, that motor! Quiet, smooth and very responsive.

Next up and a little more work was my Bachmann Class 37. I say a little more work because there was slightly more detailing bits to add and a driver to remove before I could add mine own crew.
 She is factory weathered but I did add a little more to the bogies, fuel tanks etc.
  
 She was then placed on the running in lay out, a little stiff at first but she soon smoothed down and proved to be very smooth with little noise.

The next model to be worked on was my Bachmann Class 43 'Warship'. 
 
There are a lot of detailing parts to add to this one including some very tiny hooks so I decided to add the crew and paint the interior first. Once this was done I put it to one side to dry while I started the hooks and vents. After a few hours of going boogly eyed the hooks were all in place and I had only lost one!
 
The vacuum pipes etc were ten added, however not the drivers steps, these were left off until the engine was run in. The running in was uneventful and once again a very smooth and quite unit emerged after an hour.
 
Steps were added, the new detail bits weathered and she was ready to go on my lay out.
 

 

 

 

 

 

I had saved the hardest model till last. The Dapol 121.
  
 I love this model, the 122 also, however I do not like the way the floor looks, being high due to the position of the motor. This problem is accentuated when running in the dark with lights on, which just happens to be how I like to run them most.
  
 I am no where near a good enough modeller to move the floor and motor so I set about disguising the problem as best I could. 
  
 First off the body was removed. I painted the floor matt black allowing to dry between coats, 3 in all. Once dry, I added some passengers then set aside to make sure there would be no super glue fumes to damage the glazing on the body.
  
 The hardest part and by far and away the most time consuming was adding the crew. The vacuum pipes were a little fiddly too, however by 11pm all was finished and she was run in. She was very very tight to start off but she soon loosened up and the noisy motor quietened down.
  
 One thing to note was the lack of a fixing hole in the boogie for the 'Speedometer' easy to sort with a thin drill bit but annoying on a £125 model. I checked with my friend who has 3 of these and his are the same, no fixing hole!
  
 I do not have many clean models on my lay out, this one is. I did want to add a touch of 'weathering' and mindful of the times I have washed my car only for it to get a direct hit from a marauding Sea Gull or starling, I decided to add such a 'package' to this engine.