This morning I got a load of wonderful underframe pictures from a kind member on RMWeb.  I spent today so far correcting my howlers.



I removed the vacuum and steam pipes and made corrections.  I kept the old vacuum pipe but bent it to crossover nearer the vacuum cylinder.  I replaced the steam pipe with tube of the next larger OD and arranged it to have a low spot where I made up a drain valve.

The pipes did not run along the structure but were inset.  I glued on brass strips similar to what the photos show and soldered the pipes to those.

I also noticed that the outer V hanger near the cylinder should be cranked outward so I did that.  I also refined the cylinder itself and added a safety loop over the actuating crank.

John

Is it a coach or a loco?

Got this today:



AC Railbus from Heljan.  Lovely thing and surprisingly heavy.  I gave it a quick run on DC and it goes nicely.  I'll have to get a sound decoder but not yet, it's been a dear month.

Heljan maintain their reputation for bits falling off and I have a baggie with all the parts that were lying at the bottom of the box.  No worries they'll easily go back on.

Completely wrong for my sort of Eastern themed layout, being WR, but I'm going to invoke rule 1 and besides, I like it and it was 100 pounds off.

John

OK, back to the serious stuff.

I think construction of the underframe is now done:



Things added since yesterday:

- safety chains on the brake yokes
- safety loops on the outer manual brake actuators
- trusses
- brake handle s and guides
- spring and axleboxes.



Lovely side view showing all the busyness, just what I like.   :pathead

Yes it STILL runs.

Last night I began to turn my thoughts to the body.  I reviewed my window bars against the photos and realized I was the victim of an optical illusion.  The verticals should be behind the window frame and not visible.  I therefore refined what I had by repositioning my verticals 1mm to the side.



I also cleaned them up ready to install.  I think I'll leave the light grey primer as the final colour.

John

I did the roof the other night.  Not as drama free as other projects.  The rainstrips are provided in the kit but are thin and brittle.  When I started to clean one up it broke so I abandoned the notion and, instead, used Evergreen 0.040" x 0.040" (1mm x 1mm) strip.  This is flexible and can be teased into a curve easily.



The other dramatic moment was that as I rummaged in the box for the roof vents, I couldn't find them.  I can't say whether they were missing from the kit or whether I lost them.  Anyway, I attacked my now bulging spares box and came up with some.

I used UP Dark Grey (it was handy) on top of grey primer.  I don't get bent out of shape trying to use the official BR colour.  Whatever colour the roof was when outshopped it would quickly get filthy.

I've also done some work on the sides and ends:



Outside is currently in red oxide primer.  I was advised by an RMWeb member that the insides of these were painted a pale green after consultations with union.  I have no idea whether the green I used is correct.  I was in the hardware store buying wood to complete my layout boards and bought a can of Krylon Catalina Mist.  It quite a pleasing colour.

I hope to tack one side to the underframe (still in paint) and to make sure things fit.  Fingers crossed.

John

Looking very like the aftermath of a battle with Vlad of Wallachia, I washed the figures using window cleaner and stuck them on toothpicks.  These were sprayed with grey primer:



Already the casting definition is much improved.

John

It's amazing how being able to actually see them after the coat of primer improves them no end. The bare plastic seems to dispel the everyday shadows that become apparent after a coat of paint.

Yes I do agree Rob.  Perhaps its the shininess of the bare resin that does that.  I've made a start and will show how I get on later.

John

After a lot of faffing I got the body sides assembled to the chassis and painted:



I'm really quite pleased with this.  I used Humbrol acrylic brush painted.  A surprisingly good finish and yet to be varnished.

There was some concern expressed by other builders of this kit that there would be gaps and poor fit.  I did take care to offer up the sides to the chassis and fettled areas where I thought there would conflict.  In the end I got a good fit.

I also added weight using G0G guidelines on 1g/mm of length, or about 225 gms.

The question now is whether the ends should be crimson or black.

John

That's looking very promising, John.   :thumbs

It's been a struggle but I got the figures painted:



From normal viewing distances and certainly a coach they look OK I think.  My biggest problem was getting the faces to look credible.  I did try to detail eyeballs but these are just too small for that.  They say you're supposed to mix your own flesh tone and I reviewed an article on painting 7mm figures in MRJ 230.  However I use acrylics which behave differently from enamels.  I used Tamiya Flesh.

After trying to do faces several times I finally scraped the paint off so as to reveal the detail.  Finally I hit on the solution which was to use heavily thinned paint on the faces so as not to obscure the detail.  (If you're using enamels, one method is to paint the figures black and dry brush colour on.  This way you've already got the shadows.) 

I finished the faces by applying a thin wash to highlight the shadow line detail - not ideal but the faces shouldn't have a flat texture. 

The trick with the bodies is to paint outwards.  For example for shirts you paint white on the area without even trying to stay in lines.  When dry, you can use a 000 brush to paint on the tie.  You then paint the suit away from the shirt area.

I dredged up all sorts of colours from my paint stash.  Primary colours but also tangerine, purple, maroon, catwhisker yellow, railroad tie brown, earth, dirt and so on.  Anything goes really I think.

When done, I used the Tamiya Panel Lining wash to highlight the shadows.

I sprayed the figures with matt clear coat although the lights still make things look shiny.

Glad that's done.  Phew!

John

Look very good to me John.

Hi John,

Looking very good.

Nigel

They look mighty fine from here, John.   :thumbs

Thanks all. Onwards and upwards.

John

I have some O Gauge pre painted Preiser figures here, John where no attempt has been made at painting in the face detail other than the overall face colour and they look brilliant. A lot of modellers attempt to paint in the eyes and eye brows and they really look terrible to say the least. Best left plain for best results I would say.

Here's an example


Allan

I've always liked Preiser O scale figures, Allan but they are hard to source from here.

Is there a good supplier in the UK?

Also, are they plastic?  I like to drill one leg and glue a Peco track pin into the hole.  I find the pewter ones really difficult to drill, so I've stuck with Bachmann; but they don't have much of a range.

That does look good Allan.  I may look at getting some for the platform where my poor efforts will show things up.  The figure could do with a brown wash just to bring out creases and crevices.  It's a subjective thing though.

John

Hi, Max. Hope this helps and, they are made out of plastic.

Allan


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The worlds top manufacturer of miniature model figures, family-outfit Preiser are based near the German city of Nürnburg.  They manufacture in all major scales, including G Gauge (1:22.5 scale), O Gauge (1:43), HO Gauge (1:76), N Gauge (1:160) and Z Gauge (1:220).
In addition they also manufacture figures in a variety of other scales for such interests as Military and Architectural modelling.
Preiser offer the most comprehensive range of model figures around.  Whichever scale you model, you will find that Preiser offer a varied selection of figures to liven up your layout.  All painted figures are detailed by hand and offer exceptional quality at a reasonable price.
You will also find that all types of scene are catered for and there are even â€˜Adam & Eve’ Combination Figure Kits available in many scales to allow you to create your own figures.
The HO range features two main series, the Exclusive Figure Series and the Standard Figure Series.
These cover the full range of scenes that you could wish to recreate, even including some Military and Period.
An unpainted selection including combination kits are also available.  A selection of HO Vehicles are also available, as well as Animal figures, both domestic animals, wild animals and some exotic species.
In N Gauge, a similar selection of figures can be found, and again in Z Gauge.
The G Scale selection caters for railway and many other modelling scenes, and the huge ‘Elastolin’ variety offers both painted and unpainted military figures from around the world and a number of different historical periods, including the Wild West, Prussia and WWII.  As in HO Gauge, there is also a large selection of animal figures, including many exotic animals that you might find at the Zoo or circus.

Preiser figures are also ideally suited to architectural models, in scales as small as 1:500, and so can be used for professional dioramas as well.

Finally, Preiser also manufacturer a range of accessories in most scales, and many of the figure packs also contain appropriate accessories.
CLICK HERE to view an article how to paint unpainted figures.
CLICK HERE to view an article on Preiser OO Scale Figures.
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Hi again, Max.

You'll find that most of the OO figures are repeated again in 7mm.


Also you'll get to see much more if you visit the Gaugemaster Site.


Allan

Thanks for your efforts, Allan.

I'll have a good look later.

Cheers