Commission: Hornby Scots Guardsman in OO gauge...

Re-working and detailing ready to run models can be a wonderful pastime. As a teenager I cut my teeth on my collection of Lima diesels and Bachmann and Mainline steamers…

This Hornby model has been re-worked to represent the prototype as in mainline service in recent years. This involved adding the warning flashes and then gloss treatment to the smoke deflectors. The nameplates were not right at all, and so I drew up some replacements to be custom etched as I was let down by Jackson Modelmaster who took my money and never sent the goods. The advantage of these I designed is they replace the whole splasher as one piece so look much neater and have the small stand off gap that isn’t present on the Hornby part.

Small details included fitting headlights and etched number and shed code to the front, along with a tiny custom decal I drew up for the SC (self cleaning) lane on the smokebox door. A study for photographs also identified a few details I needed to touch in different colours, the most obvious of which being the window frames. 

Detailing parts were added before I gave the whole model a spray of gloss lacquer. This was knocked back with some satin before weathering but the improvement in finish was worth the effort, it really deepens the bronze green paintwork. 

 

Weathering is a combination of washes and a light dusting with the airbrush designed to mirror the clean but dirty look of a used but well loved mainline steam locomotive. Real coal finished things off in the tender.

The end result is, I hope a believable miniature. One that evokes memories for my customer of his time with the locomotive. Putting a bit of ‘something special’ into our model railways is what moves us on from the train set. It’s the artistry of our hobby. This Hornby model now features added love, that surely is the measure of ‘a work of art’? If you’d like me to breathe life and a new story into your own box fresh model then get in touch for a no-obligation fixed price proposal. You can reach me using the contact form on the website or via email using the Facebook link on the ‘commissions’ page here. Until next time, more soon…

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