Friday Update: Fifteen Three Twenty-four…

Warmer but wetter here in the Dee Valley and I’m sure a story echoed across much of the UK this week, and whilst that means my feet aren’t so cold, it still doesn’t feel much like meteorological Spring! That said, the daffs are out in full throw and between the gloom and glaw things are really quite beautiful…

This week has seen some existing work cross the finish line and new started. These cross-over weeks can become quite busy on the bench and throw in a Wednesday off (to collect Janey’s new car from South Wales) and a bad cold and it has been a real achievement to reach today!

Leatown has crossed the line. The finishing touches are in place, and all that remain this week is to do the overview video - being made a little harder by the lack of a DCC fitted British outline diesel in my collection! In fact I don’t really have any BR diesels, the blue 08 apart. You might all have to put up with some static shots! This project has really come alive in the past week with little details lifting the finish from mundane to atmospheric, I can’t wait to share it with you all.

New things on the bench! A cluster of 009 models - a pair of Fourdees ‘Peckett’ and a discontinued EuroNG Resita. The last time I built some Fourdees models I did as Dan suggested and painted them in sub-components - but for me, I found the assembly much more difficult without damaging the finish. This time I’ve assembled them before painting, we’ll see which I prefer when these are done! The Resita is a contrast, and I’ve enjoyed the chance to work on another of these characterful kits. 

Mid week saw a trip down to Cwmbran on the train to collect Janey’s new car. We decided to use the train as it was a 2h20 door to door trip versus the 3h drive, anyone who knows the A49 will appreciate why the train is to be preferred. Our steed was a 3 car Class 197/1. I’ve bemoaned the comfort of the seats on these units previously, they are much firmer than a 150/158/175 but they’re a comfortable ride on the whole (a few bumpy bits south of Shrewsbury but I’ve not done it in an older unit for 25 years so I can’t compare). The experience was as most of my recent train journeys, comfortable, on time, full of polite and professional staff… off peak travel at least, is a delight. Railway interest, it was fun to spot the old Golden Valley at Pontrilas, and speculate about rail freight at Shrewsbury and Hereford, Abergavenny too, all had enough siding space for a ‘wagon load’ intermodal swap body service… driving back I noticed the branch in the middle of Hereford still had track in place, it hadn’t been used for years when I last drove over it 15 years ago! 

I’m excited to be testing some prints for Will at Coventry Railworks. The first are some prints to rework the Peco grain wagon into a later rebuilt example with pedestal suspension. The parts include a new ‘top’ and ‘chassis’ and Will will be adding a third piece to represent the hopper discharge. My four have also had the Peco mouldings reworked to remove the ‘advertising’ framing from the body sides. They’ve been sprayed blue and await decals, this set is a trial but I’ll be supplying a reduced set of artwork for Will to include in the kits. I’m hoping to test a handful of his later cylindrical alumina hoppers later too, all good for the emerging backstory of an aluminium smelter on the Lochdubh branchline.

A quick note on these wagons finish. I noticed on Paul B’s useful site they seemed to be darker in the centre of each panel. I pre-faded the angle supports with white before spraying blue. This will all be toned down with weathering later - it looks quite garish at present!

Bringing this Friday update to a close is the Sweep. This kit has been a real labour of love, not in that it’s difficult, but it’s taken a lot of emotional energy to get it to this point. So where are we? The model is slowly emerging in colour as we see above. The red ends are done, tinged orange as the prototype is quite faded in its post CN ownership. The black has been applied, but toned down with dark grey, the chassis has had a first coat of a grimy black and at long last, she feels real and less toy like. I am hoping to get the bodywork paint finished this weekend with some patch painting over the ‘old’ CN logo and then on to detail painting things like window seals. Not long now.

As the weekend approaches I will be trying to catch up on rest, as I’m continuing to suffer with a virus that lingers and the long Covid symptoms that just seem to make these things drag out. I’ve a new book due tomorrow to enjoy with the dog on the sofa. There is some personal modelling I can do with low demand and enjoy becoming calm and mindful. Kohlenbachbrücke needs a little more structure modelling, a third Irish van is on the bench and the High Weald 009 is pottering along nicely. I hope you all can find the chance to loose yourself in this wonderful hobby for at least half an hour or so - in the meantime though, more soon.

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