2mm Adrian's 2mm workbench.

adrian

Flying Squad
A quick update as a small amount of progress to report.

The roof for the rail motor was trimmed to length and soldered on and a length of copper wire soldered on to represent the beading. Still a bit more detailing required to finish the roof off. Also the transfers turned up for the various wagons so cutting out ridiculously small letters and poking them around with a cocktail stick occupied a few hours this morning.
transfers - 2.jpg

It just needs a coat of satin varnish to seal them on now and take off the gloss sheen.

transfers - 3.jpg
 

adrian

Flying Squad
The 2mm lounge is flying today :)
Isn't it just.

One thing I forgot to mention - earlier in the thread I was querying the colour of the roof for the LNWR van and photo's show appear to show a wide variation from near white to almost black - so I guess it was entirely down to time in service.

Then yesterday I was checking the livery details for a couple of Midland wagons and so I was flicking through Bob Essery's book History of Midland wagons Vol 1 when I stumbled across this cracking photo. It was looking at the MR loco coal wagon but it was all the other wagons that I noticed - especially the LNWR van with what I think is a distinct dirty white roof. So great to find LNWR detail in a MR book. The mix of MR, LNWR and GWR is a great illustration of the wide variety of wagons possible with the pre-grouping era. The upper left hand side is one wagon marked NS with a crest in the middle - any body recognise this company livery? My guess is North Staffordshire railway - but it is a complete guess on my part.
lnwr_van copy.jpg
 

ceejaydee

Western Thunderer
I think that you may correct Adrian and the crest is probably the Staffordshire knot.

I've not looked at this book for some time.

There is also a very nice GE van with cupboard doors above the MR brake; I built one of those in 3mm scale many years ago.

Having just taken another look at your LNWR van I noticed the paint on the plate on the solebar :thumbs:
Seeing the pic on the screen made me forget just bow small this is - impressive.
 
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It is a Knotty wagon in the later livery of N knot S, which came into use about 1914 I think. I'd have to check the Chadwick book to be certain. There's one of the very late MR vans behind and to the left of the Midland brake so the photo must be just prior to the Grouping. The Midland did seem to take a lot of photographs c 1922.
Steve
 

Mike W

Western Thunderer
You are quite right about the LNWR van. Your model has strips across the roof which represent joints between steel plates. Earlier examples had canvas roofs which were (it is said) painted white lead. I believe the steel roofs were painted the same grey as the body - just as you have done. However, and sorry to say this , solebars in LNWR times were grey. In fact everything above bottom-of-solebar level was grey except for a very short period c1900 which is a bit more complicated.

As an aside, having re-canvased a real carriage using white lead, it is anything but white! Think cream cheese and you're almost right for colour and texture!

Very nice models indeed and I look forward to seeing more.

Mike
 

adrian

Flying Squad
You are quite right about the LNWR van. Your model has strips across the roof which represent joints between steel plates. Earlier examples had canvas roofs which were (it is said) painted white lead. I believe the steel roofs were painted the same grey as the body - just as you have done. However, and sorry to say this , solebars in LNWR times were grey. In fact everything above bottom-of-solebar level was grey except for a very short period c1900 which is a bit more complicated.
Thanks for that - I wasn't aware of the variations in the roof and thanks for the info on the solebar colour. Fortunately the van body is screwed to the chassis so another little paint job later this week.
 

adrian

Flying Squad
A quick update on the wagons, I managed to repaint the sole bars grey rather than black and then decided to have a go a some weathering on them.

Encouraged by the advice on the Whether to weather thread I got a few different paints to have a go. Fortunately the local model shop has a small cabinet with various secondhand models for sale and they had a Peco 2mm van for £1 which I thought was worth it for a little experimentation. So this was my first effort.
2mm - 2.jpg

Encouraged by this I tackled the 2mmFS kits I've been building.

The LNWR van, shuffling the numbers around with a toothpick was a job and a half!
2mm - 3.jpg

A Midland/LMS wagon

2mm - 4.jpg

and finally the Midland brake van

2mm - 5.jpg

I couldn't get transfers for the number so these were made up from printing a black panel on white transfer paper and then careful cutting out.

They are rather cruel close ups and I'm still undecided on the weathering. The weathering magazine guides show them daubing brown and grey streaks on and then blending and feathering out the colours. When I tried it, it just seemed to rub out the streaks rather than blend them together! I've a couple more wagons in the pipeline so I might try something different next time. I was quite pleased with the rusting effect on the end of the Peco van, this was one of Simon's suggestions - "wet on wet". I used a thin brown wash over all the the end panel, then whilst still wet I dabbed a few spots of base rust colour across the panel and worked them into the brown wash. So for the minute I think from normal viewing angles they look passable but no doubt will look different again when on a layout so I'm going to leave them as is for the minute.

2mm - 6.jpg

In between this I've been doing a little more on the rail motor. The roof has been soldered on and rain strips added. The next part was the exhaust vent/chimney. On the rail motor there are a couple of "chimneys", one for the exhaust and one for the safety valve (?)

2mm - 1.jpg

The exhaust chimney is circular but the second one is longer. I'm reluctant to call it oval as the sides are quite flat, however a bit of round brass tube squeezed in a pair of pliers seems to have done the trick.

2mm - 7.jpg

I've got some plastic roof ventilators from the 2mmFS association to fit but wanted to get all the metal work finished first. I think the next job will be to build up some of the under frame detail.
 

AJC

Western Thunderer
I like the railmotor very much indeed and admire the attempts at weathering, though perhaps it is a bit heavier than I might expect in the days before power brakes, especially in the case of the brakevan which looks as though something has been tipped over the top and then washed off in the rain which is obviously right for some things.

The question I always believe should be asked about weathering effects is: how would the real thing have got dirty?

Observation of the pictures on Paul Bartlett's pages suggests that beyond a fair amount of grime from the bottom up and a bit of soot from top down, brake vans stayed reasonably clean externally but the ends - not higher than solebar level really - collected brake dust in line with the wheels. Brakes, even road vans, weren't loaded with anything terribly mucky, because the guards would complain and in the case of vans, customers would complain. In other words, there is no mechanism to get that amount of dirt that far up the bodyside. One other thing that you might want to think about is that paint hasn't got into the plank gaps on the ends and around the buffers; even at this tiny size that looks a little odd. Never be afraid to take weathering off - I find that it often looks better for it.*

Size also plays a part - the fancy effects of streaking and so on loose their impact the smaller you get - many of the advanced things that work in 1/35 are a struggle to make subtle in 1/76 and may not work at all in the smaller scales (I haven't tried, I'm afraid). Much the same thing applies to discretionary detail as Jerry Clifford has suggested.

Adam

* It's the lesson of Martyn Welch's work that lots of people forget or ignore in my view.
 

queensquare

Western Thunderer
Lovely work Adrian, the rail motor really is going to be a little gem.

Regarding weathering wagons, mine are done in two stages. The first is in the initial painting stage in that I tend to knock back the colours I use - particularly black. I never use black out of the pot but always let it down considerably with Matt Leather, humbrol 62. Once initial painting and lettering is done I add further weathering with powders, I use a combination of a sort of rusty brown, pale grey and sooty black, this process takes about five minutes and that's it.

Regarding small lettering I gave up worrying about 2mm wagons having the correct number long ago. Most of the transfer sheets have groups of numbers and I simply select one with the correct number of characters, not even worrying if the two sides have different numbers. Getting wagon numbers straight and evenly spaced is far more important than the correct number. If somebody can read the wagon number on both sides of a 2mm wagon as it rolls by and compute it's authenticity then I'm not sure if I should feel admiration or pity:)) As for very small numbers and letters, I tend to just do a series of tiny dots and dashes.

I realise this is all very cavalier but, as I've said before, in my opinion 2mm modelling requires a very different approach to the larger scales.

Jerry
 

adrian

Flying Squad
Looking very good Adrian have you seen the new 2mm LNWR wagons with the latest newsletter letter
I have thank you and will be putting an order in, with those and Chris Higgs has just uploaded a few more onto Shapeways for 3D printing then it must be Christmas!! Plenty to keep me busy.

though perhaps it is a bit heavier than I might expect in the days before power brakes,
Thanks for feedback it is appreciated - I had been trying to base it on the photo based earlier in the thread. The photo on the forum looks lighter than in the book but I think deep down I felt I had gone too far which was why I mentioned my doubts. From a distance the weathering doesn't look quite so heavy so I might do as you suggest and cut it back on one side to see how it looks from a normal viewing distance.

One other thing that you might want to think about is that paint hasn't got into the plank gaps on the ends and around the buffers; even at this tiny size that looks a little odd. Never be afraid to take weathering off - I find that it often looks better for it.*
Thanks for the tip - I'll have another little play with it in that area, as mentioned I'm still experimenting.

Regarding small lettering I gave up worrying about 2mm wagons having the correct number long ago. Most of the transfer sheets have groups of numbers and I simply select one with the correct number of characters, not even worrying if the two sides have different numbers. Getting wagon numbers straight and evenly spaced is far more important than the correct number.
Again thanks for the pointers, to be honest I've no idea if the numbers are correct for the vehicle in question, it was just a case of getting something the right number of digits and size to fit. Unfortunately the transfer numbers weren't grouped and are about a scale 18" apart on the transfer sheet so it was a case of prodding individual numbers around with a toothpick.
 
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Ian Smith

Western Thunderer
Adrian,
When adding transfers I tend to use a small sable paint brush to poke them around - I did use something a bit sharper once and managed to tear the transfer so now employ patience, a good light and headband magnifier (along with said brush). I have found that you have to be careful not to have the brush too wet otherwise the transfers just float around, although the corner of a tissue or the brush wiped dry at the edge of the "puddle" to suck up the excess tends to sort that issue out. When putting something like a number together I tend to keep each of the digits damp until all are in place and evenly spaced before pressing the whole firmly into place (when having a light source that gives off heat, you do have to keep dampening the earlier digits though).

For me, I think the weathering looks pretty good - probably a lot better than mine! Although it may be a little "heavy" as others have said.

Love the rail motor.

Ian
 

adrian

Flying Squad
Thanks for the feedback - a few tweaks to be done on the wagons. So in a slight change of tack and given the resurgent activity on PMVs I did a little more work on a slightly smaller version.

Earlier in the year the 2mm Association released a chassis etch for the Chivers or Dapol CCT, so rather than build up the Chivers chassis as supplied I got a etched chassis from the Association.
pmv - 1.jpg

It seems that many of the 2mm kits build up the various overlays in the flat state, this certainly does make it easier soldering on all the layers to make up the axleboxes etc.

pmv - 2.jpg

Once folded up it was a case of folding up and fitting the brake units, quite a nice little 2 piece etch that fits perfectly.

pmv - 3.jpg

Finishing off with the vacuum cylinder and the brake rigging.

pmv - 4.jpg

After a little fettling to get it to fit to the body work, I think it is now ready to start the painting. I remember buying some transfers, rather appropriately from Cambridge Custom Transfers (CCT!!) for the kit but damned if I could find them so as I was buying some more transfers I bought another set from CCT. They arrived last week so I thought I'd put them in a secure place, in which I found the first set I ordered!!

pmv - 5.jpg
 

adrian

Flying Squad
Well I tried to pull back some of the weathering on the wagons but it just seemed to remove the base colour, so I'll touch it up and leave them alone for a while. As mentioned the close-ups are cruel and from a distance (and if you forget your glasses and scrunch up your eyes) they look ok! Perhaps mixed in with the next batch of wagons, lightly weathered they'll provide a little variation rather than them all looking the same.

Anyway whilst looking at weathering techniques, reading the weathering magazine and internet browsing I thought I needed something to have an experiment on. Rather than more rolling stock and really inspired by what @Ian Smith achieved with his Modbury signal box I decided to have a go at a lineside structure. For Holywell Town I only need half a dozen buildings, one of them just before the line disappears into the tree is the ubiquitous platelayers hut. I have been trying to find more information on LNWR buildings and I'd also found an article on creating weathered wood, this reckoned in the smaller scales then plastic sheet is the best medium rather than wood. I'm still working the research so for the moment I just went freelance and guessed at the dimensions and arrangements. Hence for the last couple of days I've been fiddling with stupidly small bit of plastic and painting away. Anyway from small acorns etc. etc.

hut - 1.jpg


hut - 2.jpg

Basically the grooves were cut with an olfa cutter and then a steel burnishing brush used to add the texture. Various layers of paint followed by a thin wash to blend in a little black. Finished off with a dry brushing of various greens for the lichen. I couldn't decide whether the roof should have slates or not. However I couldn't find any thin paper suitable so I decided to make a felt roof from a paper sticky label. For the window I used the Cobex sheets I have and I got a scalpel with an old blade. I used a diamond dressing plate to blunt the blade, which I could then use to create a groove in the cobex without cutting it. This was then painted with a pale grey paint and the excess wiped off to leave an impression of the glazing bars. Any other queries then please ask.

I'm still trying to get used to the scale after years of 7mm stuff so as a final reminder of the size of this!

hut - 3.jpg

Today brought another parcel from the 2mm Association shop with lots of track building bits so I might switch to a bit of track building over the Christmas break.
 

Dikitriki

Flying Squad
C'mon Adrian, you've pulled that old trick with the oversize fake penny.....

Excellent model. I can't get over how tiny 2mm is, and given how ruthlessly the camera shows up blemishes, your hut is tremendous.

Richard
 

David Varley

Western Thunderer
Looks good Adrian :thumbs:

If you haven't already got a copy, I'd recommend trying to get your hands on 'LNWR Portrayed' by Jack Nelson - has all sorts of interesting stuff in it, including, I think, drawings of lineside structures (sorry I can't be more specific as to the contents but my copy has gone into hiding - really must get my books into some sort of order).

David
 
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