156. A Start on Reassembly.
I’ve put this picture first as it makes the best header photo for the blog and it shows the model as it now stands.
Previously, I had masked off the footplate in front of the splashers and also the splasher tops. The L/H front splasher has 2 spare lamp irons in front of it and these were also covered with masking tape. I brush painted the splasher sides with slightly thinned Railmatch touch up paint basically by dipping the tip of my brush in white spirit, then the paint and applying it. Probably not a recommend procedure but it worked well on these small areas. I removed the tape after 20 minutes as, if you leave the paint harden, it will crumble and crack along the edge of the tape.
I then fed the three pipes from the injectors through the holes in the cab front and bent the injectors upwards until the bottom drain pipes could be fed through the footplate, taking care not to scratch any paintwork. The 2 handrails on the tank/boiler assembly were then likewise carefully threaded through the cab front and the tank assembly lowered into position threading the 2 injector water feed pipes into the holes underneath the rear of the tank.
The picture shows the effect of the now trapped injector and pipe work.
The 2 retaining screws from inside the cab into the rear of the firebox were carefully threaded into their captive nuts along with the 2 which pass through from underneath the front footplate into the smoke box. The firebox was eased into its location in the cab front and the 2 cab screws tightened along with the 2 underneath the smoke box. Unfortunately one of the nuts underneath the smoke box had come adrift but the single screw holds it securely. I had wondered what was rattling around when I was painting the model!
There’s still a lot of detail to add and some minor touching up of the paintwork but I could feel some of the paint was still soft so I’ll leave things as they are for a few days to let it harden up.
The chassis was fitted to give a preview of the finished model. I’ll probably attach the cab side plates next so it can then be known as 726 and not the Barry F Class.
I have only seen one other of these models completed, which was in a reddish Barry Railway livery, and found a picture of another in what looked like black livery on the internet. Do any readers own or know of any others? Please let me know if you do.