Archive 4mm of past work, and is retained to illustrate work in the smaller scales.
The images are not in a naturalistic setting, they are in the nuts and bolts stages that took place in the studio, and it will not be until these models are placed into a naturalistic setting that the weathering will properly come to life; thus the weathering process has to be undertaken mindful of the landscape the models will go into, and it helps to know the type of layout a client is building and if any factors in that landscape will influence the weathering, for example a colliery or phurnacite plant, or a cement works where the filth and air pollution will have a significant effect upon the delineation of the weathering. I usually ask the client for any photographic reference material that shows the real life scenario they wish to recreate on their model railway; I also spend many hours researching on the internet for locations and visual information that will inform a work that will meet or surpass the client's expectation through the many small nuances that are built into the weathering.
The above two images are of a client's 5328, this is an early example converted to DCC. The basic under-painting has been sprayed on to kill the shiny black plastic and provide tooth; all later stages involve hand finishing as can be seen started on the loco itself, the tender has not been started yet. The cab detail has been picked out and weathered by hand. Like so many of these early models the vulnerable whistles are missing and this will need to be addressed. The weathering is based upon photographic research of the class.
Again a pair of images above, this time of 6417, again a light working condition was required typical of the class in everyday use. The cab windows have been cleaned, and someone has cleaned the front number plate; pretty much complete, just needs a weathered auto-coach.
Above two images: a client's wagon stock ready for spraying fixative over the hand finishing; the sheeted loads have been distressed and aged by the use of filters, note all three follow BR practise of using a single wagon sheet which just manages to reach over the end of the wagon; whilst the two nearest mineral wagons depict the variable output from a near exhausted private mine, probably in the Forest of Dean. The rearmost 21 tonner has a good load of stacking coal. The two V2's have come out of storage to be experimented upon using some new weathering materials obtained from Poland; both locomotives are latter BR era with poor quality coal loads apeice, so no doubt the firemen won't be very happy when they see that lot, and the two drivers will cast their eyes skyward to each other and be quietly thankful they've only got plodding freight jobs to work, since the type 3's took over their passenger work.
The turntable is made from cake stands on top of a section of circular kitchen worktop left over from fitting a round kitchen sink, and the whole affixed to an old computer swivel base; the ensemble is nice and heavy and rotates comfortably by hand. The cake stands, which are available in a variety of sizes, are easily replaced without dismantling the turntable should the need arise. This is my weathering turntable.
The turntable is made from cake stands on top of a section of circular kitchen worktop left over from fitting a round kitchen sink, and the whole affixed to an old computer swivel base; the ensemble is nice and heavy and rotates comfortably by hand. The cake stands, which are available in a variety of sizes, are easily replaced without dismantling the turntable should the need arise. This is my weathering turntable.
The ubiquitous 0-6-0 freight locomotive appeared almost everywhere at one time, nearly all railway companies had their version of this type at some time or other; reasonable adhesion with sufficient coal and water to work a decent mileage with a revenue earning load.
This is the Hornby 4F in BR days somewhat completely transformed since coming out of the box, and will feature in the November issue of The Railway Magazine guide to Modelling (RMM) as a starter model for beginners to weathering; the model has since received more advanced techniques on the smokebox, the cab detail picked out and a rusted fire-iron slung on the tender; and soon to be reunited with its owner, along with a number of other models that have been progressing through the studio. I'm quite pleased with this one.
This is the Hornby 4F in BR days somewhat completely transformed since coming out of the box, and will feature in the November issue of The Railway Magazine guide to Modelling (RMM) as a starter model for beginners to weathering; the model has since received more advanced techniques on the smokebox, the cab detail picked out and a rusted fire-iron slung on the tender; and soon to be reunited with its owner, along with a number of other models that have been progressing through the studio. I'm quite pleased with this one.
Somewhat larger on the freight front the 9F 2-10-0 appearing in earlier BR days in good condition for those mileage freight jobs on the main line; there's little to say about the 'Nine' that hasn't already been said: after the teething troubles subsided a superb machine resulted.
A couple of well-used 21 ton coal wagons; in the upper photograph the farthest wagon has received a replacement end door sometime.
The above two photographs show a client's Class 14 in primer, ready for the first application of colour; this locomotive is undergoing transformation from BR green livery into NCB orange and black livery. The model is full DCC sound fitted.
The next two images, above, show the Class 14 in a mid-stage with some early streaking and weathering begun in places; whilst the second image above shows the same loco in an almost finished state, but with some highlighting and scraping of boots revealing bare metal still to be applied on steps etc. Windscreen wipers are put back on, and extensive wheel cleaning will get the model running again with full sound.
A couple of client horse boxes in the image above; both these are being worked upon using artists' traditional oil paints suitably thinned and with an accelerator added to the mix, these are brush applied and worked to create a lightly weathered condition. All the wagons in this batch are to be lightly weathered to provide contrast among the client's other more weathered stock, and using oils gives tremendous control over the effect; this method I have been developing over recent months from my parallel interest in military modelling.
No attempt has yet been made to work upon the roof area of either horse box, and this will be undertaken only when the chassis is finished and the wheels have been cleaned ready for a return to the rails; this order of working prevents damage to the roof weathering, and in any case a foam cradle should always be used to support an inverted vehicle during wheel cleaning operations. These two images have been taken with a hand-held anti-shake Panasonic camera that I am experimenting with; as opposed to my normal tripod Olympus camera.
No attempt has yet been made to work upon the roof area of either horse box, and this will be undertaken only when the chassis is finished and the wheels have been cleaned ready for a return to the rails; this order of working prevents damage to the roof weathering, and in any case a foam cradle should always be used to support an inverted vehicle during wheel cleaning operations. These two images have been taken with a hand-held anti-shake Panasonic camera that I am experimenting with; as opposed to my normal tripod Olympus camera.
Two conflats with containers, lightly weathered using traditional oil paint to delineate the detail, yet keeping a relatively clean appearance; as before the roof area of both vehicles will be worked upon at a later stage. Panasonic camera again, but mounted this time on a tripod.
The Gresley Passenger Brake Van, which according to my reference book is Dia.No-245; Order No-777; dimensions 61'6" x 9'0" built at York under carriage building program dated 1937. Build dates ranging from 1938 to 1943. Original running numbers 2426-39; later 70412-25, and most interestingly listed for Racing Pigeon Traffic, making this originally a BGP if my reference book serves me well.
I must admit to a fascination with these type of vehicles, teak panelled, and although fitted with pigeon shelves along each interior side they were generally used for parcels and mails, many survived into the mid-1970s.
The model above belongs to a client whose brief was to weather the model lightly; this I have done by paying most attention to the under frame and ends, leaving the sides very light except for the grime trapped in the panel edges, and keeping the roof also lightly weathered. The panel edges have all been done individually by hand, and everything you see is hand finished with brushes; the airbrush having only a minor role during the early stages. I'm quite pleased with the result, and one can easily imagine the vehicle lurking in the gloom of some parcels platform somewhere in BR days.
I must admit to a fascination with these type of vehicles, teak panelled, and although fitted with pigeon shelves along each interior side they were generally used for parcels and mails, many survived into the mid-1970s.
The model above belongs to a client whose brief was to weather the model lightly; this I have done by paying most attention to the under frame and ends, leaving the sides very light except for the grime trapped in the panel edges, and keeping the roof also lightly weathered. The panel edges have all been done individually by hand, and everything you see is hand finished with brushes; the airbrush having only a minor role during the early stages. I'm quite pleased with the result, and one can easily imagine the vehicle lurking in the gloom of some parcels platform somewhere in BR days.
WD locomotives are always interesting to work upon, and I've done quite a few now, so I am always looking for new avenues to pursue with them, as it is important not to homogenize one's work and produce clones of previous work. Most people have a mental image of a begrimed WD but that is not always the case depending upon the time in history; and even in BR days I have images of them in surprisingly good external condition. Given that the client wanted the WD heavily weathered, and with the Allied extra 7 added to the numbering I have settled upon somewhere post-war between February 1947 when placed on loan to the LNER and when it acquired BR numbering post 1948. At some unknown point, after return from Europe, 77003 probably lost its air pump on the right hand smoke-box side, as this was originally provided for working in Europe post D-Day; some readers may have useful information on this matter. Potted history below:
7003 was built under order L943 placed August 1942 with North British Loco Co., of Glasgow, and delivered January to May 1943 the batch consisting of WD 7000 to 7049 (50 locos). 7003 was on loan to Eastfield Shed for running in during 1943/44 and appears to have remained at Eastfield; unlike other locos that, once run in, were cascaded to other LNER sheds on government loan Feb 1943 to January 1944 before D-Day. During the summer of 1944, prior to D-Day all Allied war locomotives going abroad were given the suffix 7xxxx to prevent confusion with existing locomotives in Europe that may have the same number; thus 7003 became 77003 and was shipped to France in December 1944, and appears to have ended up working in Holland.
After the fall of Berlin a large number of 2-10-0's were cascaded from Germany, thus releasing 77003 and 49 other locos for return to the UK in a batch that arrived back from Holland in June 1946 and were placed into storage at Northampton with the LMS for assessment of condition. 77003 must have been in good condition because in February 1947 it was loaned to the LNER until sold by the government and taken into ownership and later becoming a BR locomotive upon Nationalization. 77003 became 90103 it appears from records.
Unless the info is wrong or I've misread the columns of numbers, this is how 77003 came into being, saw war service abroad after D-Day, came back to the UK and ended up on the LNER before being absorbed into the BR fleet of post-war WD 2-8-0 locos.
In response to my question: 'If any reader has any enlightening info regarding 77003 please get in touch; particularly when the loco went to Mexborough Shed?'
Well, Richard Carding has kindly responded with the information that 77003 was at Mexborough Shed from April 1947 to November 1947, after which it was transferred to New England Shed. Many thanks to Richard for this information; this builds upon the information that after assessment 77003 was transferred, presumably on paper, in February 1947 to the LNER whilst still standing at Northampton; this begs the question did the actual physical transfer of 77003 not take place until April 1947 when it went to Mexborough, or did 77003 arrive at Mexborough after passing through LNER works sometime between February and April 1947 for overhaul before being let loose on the main line? Maybe there is still more work to be done, before hanging up the Sherlock hat.
7003 was built under order L943 placed August 1942 with North British Loco Co., of Glasgow, and delivered January to May 1943 the batch consisting of WD 7000 to 7049 (50 locos). 7003 was on loan to Eastfield Shed for running in during 1943/44 and appears to have remained at Eastfield; unlike other locos that, once run in, were cascaded to other LNER sheds on government loan Feb 1943 to January 1944 before D-Day. During the summer of 1944, prior to D-Day all Allied war locomotives going abroad were given the suffix 7xxxx to prevent confusion with existing locomotives in Europe that may have the same number; thus 7003 became 77003 and was shipped to France in December 1944, and appears to have ended up working in Holland.
After the fall of Berlin a large number of 2-10-0's were cascaded from Germany, thus releasing 77003 and 49 other locos for return to the UK in a batch that arrived back from Holland in June 1946 and were placed into storage at Northampton with the LMS for assessment of condition. 77003 must have been in good condition because in February 1947 it was loaned to the LNER until sold by the government and taken into ownership and later becoming a BR locomotive upon Nationalization. 77003 became 90103 it appears from records.
Unless the info is wrong or I've misread the columns of numbers, this is how 77003 came into being, saw war service abroad after D-Day, came back to the UK and ended up on the LNER before being absorbed into the BR fleet of post-war WD 2-8-0 locos.
In response to my question: 'If any reader has any enlightening info regarding 77003 please get in touch; particularly when the loco went to Mexborough Shed?'
Well, Richard Carding has kindly responded with the information that 77003 was at Mexborough Shed from April 1947 to November 1947, after which it was transferred to New England Shed. Many thanks to Richard for this information; this builds upon the information that after assessment 77003 was transferred, presumably on paper, in February 1947 to the LNER whilst still standing at Northampton; this begs the question did the actual physical transfer of 77003 not take place until April 1947 when it went to Mexborough, or did 77003 arrive at Mexborough after passing through LNER works sometime between February and April 1947 for overhaul before being let loose on the main line? Maybe there is still more work to be done, before hanging up the Sherlock hat.
A group of four beautifully hand built (not my build) in brass LNER Pacifics (well, actually, three 4-6-2 Pacifics and one 4-6-4 Baltic) nearing completion; great care has been taken with the weathering to ensure that four individual portraits are the result, with four slightly different stages of weathering depicting a cared for working condition that research suggests typical of these BR Eastern Region locomotives in better times. These images are deliberately of the upper parts, and there are more picturesque images added to the 4mm Gallery. The casings represent oily rag shed cleaning, real polish having been sprayed on, allowed to dry naturally, and then buffed with a soft brush; fixative having been applied as a final finish to all weathered areas, highlights having been created manually. As usual over 90% of the work is hand finishing using a range of brushes and materials.
And now for something completely different : fitting DCC Sound (Loksound V4) and installing additional tender electrical pickups into a split-chassis Bachmann 53xx 2-6-0, and modifying the brake rigging to allow easy installation and removal of a Kadee Coupler, plus also a semi-permanent coupling (re-engineered from a Tri-ang R54 coupler 1960s vintage) between loco and tender to protect the delicate wiring. Curved Fall-plate also fitted between loco and tender, just visible in the lower picture in its bare metal unpainted form. This client loco is now in the studio acquiring its oily rag working finish.
The above two images show the completed split-chassis 5321 in a deliberately smart condition having been well-cared for on shed. Additions include glazed cab windows, fall plate between loco and tender, fire irons, real Welsh coal, picked out cab detail and rolled canvas sheeting to cab roof, plus hand painted crew, with a particularly energetic fireman in the tender, made possible by the metal fall plate. The loco sounds great and will soon be on its way back to the owner, where a large layout offers the opportunity to run-in this virtually unused chassis. All in all a lovely little loco, and one with which I am pleased, quite a lot of work having gone into the transformation.
By way of contrast in the above two images, a not so well looked after locomotive, in this case the Bachmann 31-339 BR Class 04 diesel shunter, formerly the black liveried example running number 11217 with early emblem; this loco was sold on eBay under the guise of having never been out of the box, when it arrived all the handrails were broken or missing, one sandbox and pipe were completely missing, along with the top front lamp bracket, the roof rain strip was damaged on one side, and the chassis interior was full of carpet fibres; so clearly in 'never been out of the box' condition if you ignore the likelihood that it had been given to a small child to play with upon the carpet - unless this is how Bachmann had tested it off the production line. Fortunately, after stripping the chassis and removing all the carpet fibres, with reassembly it run beautifully, so the decision was taken to pass it into private ownership where it had undergone local modification to handrails, and suffered some operational damage. After applying the modifications thoughts turned to a nice weathered blue, so I started by spraying a Humbrol gloss blue mix, allowed this to fully harden over a few days, and then assaulted everything with some military modelling techniques; the result you see above, given the identity No-8 but resisted giving it NCB insignia in case it found a use outside of a colliery; although I must say it would look very at home in NCB colliery sidings; however, it does carry the correct BR lamp code of 'one white and one red lamp' over each buffer, at each end, of a Pilot shunting locomotive; in the case of the front a battered oil lamp displaying a red shade has been substituted for a failed electric lamp. Damage, like the cab roof rain strip, has been incorporated into the weathering rather than try to repair it, and it is often my design to let things live with the damage, as in real life. Super little model, runs beautifully slowly.
In the above six images, arranged in pairs showing each side of the wagon, so three wagons in total, you see a client's cut down Coke Wagons, actually Hornby R6731 LMS 20 ton Coke Hoppers as modified by the NCB for internal colliery use. The metal chassis was drilled out on a pillar drill to take three-link couplings, and the coke rails were carefully sawn off with a razor saw and made good with gentle filing and scraping with a scalpel, then sprayed with primer which, after curing for a few days, was top coated with a number of thin layers of gloss black; after further curing the transformation continued using the client's supplied photographs as reference to the varied condition of these wagons in service; one wagon is in quite good condition, the next less so, and the last less so again, the intention being to give a variety allowing the wagons to be turned around to enjoy the other side for a while, showing also patched repair work past and more recent: see the first wagon (second image - I forgot to hang the coupling after handling the wagon) with a patch recently painted to renew the words 'FOR INTERNAL USE ONLY' on one side only. I have gone to some pains to depict these wagons in the rough and ready condition of daily colliery life, the practical approach to mining coal from the Earth I have witnessed here in South Wales, the hard proud force of labour which remained true everywhere of NCB operations, and miners and their families in general shared in this great feat of human endeavour; no wonder that miners and railwaymen shared such a close bond in the ordeal of work, and their respective Trade Unions stood shoulder to shoulder where coal was concerned.
The NCB Bates Class 10 diesel shunter reworked from the Hornby 08 model appears in the above two images, three-link couplings fitted to match the client's existing stock and renumbered to D3648; the ladders have been removed and the body made good, also the BR emblem has been removed from the battery box sides and a new emblem applied to the body sides as per the original. No vacuum pipes in NCB ownership. The client has sound fitted before sending the loco to me for alterations and weathering. This loco has been a pleasure to work upon due to the excellent body detail that lends so well to subtle weathering techniques. In the two images Maskol is yet to be removed from the lights and some other minor areas, but this has now been done and the lamp lens polished up quite nicely. The crossover been military modelling and railway modelling techniques has now started to show in my work, and I am keen to develop this further.
Continuing the NCB theme we have three NCB opens, all have three-link couplings fitted and have been renumbered for the client; all have been weathered externally and internally, the black wagon is a refurbished body on an existing chassis. Prototype location: NE England.
This kit built 21ton Twin Bolster has been fitted with the correct buffers and numbered into the diagram 1/415 21 ton Twin Bolster built by BR Shildon in 1949 using the LNER drawings with the numbering sequence B920000-920199; only 200 were built as the wartime traffic for these wagons was steel billets, and this traffic had reduced significantly with peacetime. The client required this kit to be rebuilt as some damage had occurred in the past, so replacement new steel buffers were obtained and fitted, Cooper couplings were modified to sit at the correct height and fitted, the stanchions were measured off the wagon drawing and made from wire, and everything including the load was primed, allowed to thoroughly cure, then sprayed LNER grey and allowed to cure again before creating the number panels. Numbering was made up from stock transfers and applied over a high gloss panel, which was subsequently sprayed matte over the applied transfers. After yet more curing the entire wagon and load was systematically weathered - the load treated separately before being reunited with the wagon - and then the entire model received a final matte sealing spray. A lot of time consuming work, drilling, filing and so on, went into this wagon and I am very pleased with the result, care being taken to control the level of weathering to produce a balanced colour composition. The load is weathered using advanced military modelling techniques, similar to those employed on armoured fighting vehicles (AFV).
Talking of advanced military modelling techniques applied to 4mm model railways we have this Bachmann Weltrol W41973 and, with a bit of license imagined it transferred, temporarily or otherwise, into the Engineering Department for the purpose of taking heavy plant into and out of major Engineering Possessions; the deck was usually covered with old sleepers for the plant to sit upon, and as such I have imagined this Weltrol to have suffered hard use in this role. AFV techniques have again been used on the flat surfaces to produce this heavily weathered and abused surface; but again, care is taken to ensure an attractive patina and colour harmony over the entire wagon.
A bit of fun here, the brief being to produce a post-Nationalization GW wagon that has been forgotten at the end of a very long siding, as such, and having recently read and enjoyed 'The Memoirs of H.I.Jay - The humorous Tales of a Victorian Branchline Stationmaster by Michael Jay ISBN 0-9515354-0-4, the decision was taken to make this an infamous manure wagon parked at the end of a very long siding indeed...well away from my client's station buildings; however, the unfortunate Carriage & Wagon fitters have been required to attend the wagon by road in their BR lorry 'In the field' so to speak to replace a defective buffer - no doubt the result of a particularly heavy and hurried shunt to propel the offending wagon as far away as possible. The client will have to provide his own 4mm manure though.
Finally, in this above group of four belonging to the same client, a Siphon G in BR livery, work stained and very travelled, as they were in life, seeing service in parcels and perishables trains, and also attached into passenger formations; I remember working the up Penzance Perishables one night and arriving in the early hours with so many of these on that the rearmost van stuck out beyond the platform ramp at Paddington, and A Pilot had to come on immediately to remove some of the vans to another platform for unloading: the rearmost vans full of daffodils from the Isles of Scilly I seem to remember, with such a beautiful aroma emanating from the louvres that my driver remarked upon it as we walked past; Ah well, that was another life many decades ago, when I was young.
The Kernow 02 and Gate Stock appear in the above three images, again a time served working condition has been aimed for on both the loco and coaches; a large amount of time was spent researching the subject and obtaining photographic evidence, particularly in respect of the pull-push pipework on the 02 and the drive end of the coach, where additional reservoir air and brake pipes have been added below the buffer beam as per the photographic evidence I was able to obtain during research. This model formation is set to work upon the client's model branch line, and the route discs have been placed accordingly, the ensemble being known to run with the route discs in situ both ends throughout the day; presumably replaced with a white lamp after dark, or during fog or falling snow. A somewhat delicate and charming model of an interesting prototype that has been enjoyable to work upon over the Christmas period.
A recent request from a client to undertake some work in German N gauge has resulted in this Fleischmann BR50 in working condition, with the request to fit a bicycle upon the tender rear. I spent some hours watching 1960's colour film of these locomotives at work in Germany to inform the process before weathering was commenced; in 1:1 scale these machines appear supremely powerful on heavy freight, particularly on ore trains, and appear very free steaming and free running at all times: impressive. The film evidence shows these locomotives to be heavily work stained, with the occasional oddity like a heavily weathered loco running past the camera with an ex-works tender, sometimes a complete ex-works ensemble appears with a long rake of rusted ore wagons, so the impression gained is that whilst externally grimed the mechanical parts have been typically well-maintained and the BR50 performed its rostered duties reliably; therefore, with what I have seen in mind, I have been careful not to overdo the weathering process, especially on such a small model, and developed new techniques as I went along to scale down my working methods from the larger scales to produce what I feel is a good representation of locomotives that I have seen on film; overall this has been an interesting and satisfying experience working in N gauge.
This 28xx in the above two images has been with me for a long time, and has served as a test bed for various experiments with paints and other materials to develop and expand weathering techniques; the original spur to produce this model was seeing a 28xx held up at signals during a torrential downpour, with the crew sheltering as best they could under the tarp drawn out between loco and tender, and whilst I have seen many model railways depicting the various seasons, including winter scenes using flour or whatever came to hand to depict snow, I have never seen a model railway set in rainy weather, which is strange because rain would offer artistic scope to the back scene and landscape modelling; anyway, I digress, my recent foray into N gauge German - see Fleischmann BR50 above - gave rise to thinking about what if the GWR and later BR Western Region (in the early years simply the GWR under another name) had retained Indian Red in the paint schedule? So building upon the German red and black scheme I imagined the rather drab BR plain black livened up with WR Indian Red, in this case a weathered version that I mixed up for myself and sprayed through a 1.5 nozzle, later applying hand finishing using weathering powders and fixative solutions, the result I am most pleased with and transforms the model, which retains its Hornby firebox glow made more distinct under the shadow of the tarp. I have a feeling to leave this loco as it is from now on, having served for so many transformations and test spraying that it deserves to be rested from this process, perhaps its own particular pinnacle has been reached with this latest application of colour. Wheels cleaned and fully serviced it has now, after many years, been returned from studio to layout.
A slight exception to the rule: not a workshop/studio shot in the normal manner of things here, but a recent client's commission to transform the Hornby ex-LMS brake van into something more at home on the client's weathered 1960s layout. Taking the client at his word: 'Do what you can,' I did, and set about providing the client with what I hoped would be a surprise; after studying a great many photographs of the real thing, everything was tackled, even down to glazed duckets, to produce an Instanter-equipped van one end, and the standard Hornby coupling the other end; the Instanter allows easy coupling to the loco draw hook when shunting is required. The above photo shows the BV just prior to securing down the roof after the internal glazing was fitted. Before returning the BV to the client I fitted a Springside red-jewelled tail lamp to the Instanter end; no side lamps were required as this van only works fitted freight on the layout. The image here shows the intentionally distressed-looking BV placed on the small 'Coal Road Crossing' diorama for effect; the pointwork is 1960s Graham Farish from my schoolboy days. Yes, the client was happily surprised with the above result.