7mm Project 31: Laughing In The Face Of Adversity

[SteveO]

Good idea Jordan, I'll photograph them later tonight when the littleman is in bed.

According to the boxes they are both limited edition Tower models. He said they both cost nearly £700 each! He's looking for as close to £500 each as he can get. He wants a bit more for the N7 and coaches.

I'll try them here for a couple days then try eBay if there's no interest.

 

[SteveO]

The next candidate for The Clinic could have booked itself in. My mate said as long as I sold the other two for £1100-1200 I could keep this one! He's a gem of a bloke (or is he...)
(the other two: http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Heljan-Cl...ilway_Models&hash=item3f18467ea2#ht_500wt_951 and http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/BR-N7-5-l...ilway_Models&hash=item3f184692c5#ht_500wt_951)
There is a caveat: it's awful! Even he admits it. After Tower did a fine weathering job on it he decided to 'improve' upon it. You can judge the results for yourself...



What in hell's name can I do to get this back in shape? At least it's not as bad as the 31!
Steve

 

[Phill Dyson]

I would have thought getting £1100 -£1200 for a pair of Heljan 47's bit optimistic Steve ? ................ the abused one is an absolute disgrace ......... easily salvageable though.

 

[SteveO]

Phill, one is another 47, a ScotRail version, and the other item is an LNER/BR N7 loco with a couple of coaches. I have no idea what the kettle is worth but I found the 47 was selling for £670 direct from Tower and it's in absolute mint condition. Fingers crossed on the numbers though as I'm quite looking forward to owning another loco, even if it's a basket case!

I'll start another thread on this if things go well on eBay so I'll hopefully find out what you mean by "easily salvageable"

 

[Phill Dyson]

Ah, I see what you mean

The 47 looks bad at the moment, but with a handful of bits & paint it would soon be looking great

 

[Simon Dunkley]

There is a caveat: it's awful! Even he admits it. After Tower did a fine weathering job on it he decided to 'improve' upon it. You can judge the results for yourself...

What in hell's name can I do to get this back in shape?

What was it weathered with? Acrylics? Enamels?
What is the base paint of the model? What type of paint was used for weathering by Tower Models?

The reason for the questions is to identify which solvents would be safe to use: if it was weathered with enamels and the rest is acrylic, then you can use enamel thinners. If the final coat was acrylic, and so was everything else, then you will need to use something like isopropyl alcohol (IPA), but with a great degree of care - which might produce a better job anyway.

Technique-wise, it is a case of cotton buds and solvent, rubbing downwards (only, for the most part) on the sides and ends and cross-wise on the roof. Use damp or even moistened buds, rather than soaking them in the solvent.

 

[Phill Dyson]

Is there any damage to the bodyshell Steve or is it simply daubed with a thick coat of paint ?

The windscreens & headcode panels are fogged, which could suggest enamels were used ?......... although you might be able to find out what paint was used by your friend ?

I would initially try to 'T Cut' it back very carefully to the original paint forward of the cab doors with cotton buds, as the rest of the paint doesn't look in too bad shape from the pics, if most of the paint could be successfully removed you might get away covering the rest with full yellow ends without having to resort to a full respray ?

Howes Models will be able to provide whatever spares are available, I have always found them very helpfully

Phill

 

[SteveO]

Simon, Phill, thanks for the tips. I can't deny that, with a bit of chemical wizardry, the fact I could have a pristine model hiding under that atrocity has sent a small fizz down to the trouser department. I will get on to my buddy first thing to see if he remembers what sort of paint it was.

I guess the key is understanding the layers involved. Heljan put their layer on, Tower weathered it with their layer and Monet has put his on. I guess it's fairly easy to ascertain what Heljan used, but is this the same for Tower; do they have a common weathering paint type/technique/method?

Phill, there doesn't appear to be any physical 'damage' at all (I'm not counting the affect on the value...). It's in pretty good shape. You can tell it's been run as the wheels have that tell-tale oily mark from the rails.

I will have to reapply the transfers, builder's plate, wipers, probably the glazing too. The roof has a really thick layer of paint for some reason. I haven't tested it on my rolling road yet so I'll do that at some point and check all the electricals are working, including the lights. I haven't taken the body off yet - does this have a DCC socket? Something with sound would be special.

I'll let you know what happens with the phone call. By the way, have you seen the price the ScotRail has got to so far? Amazing! I had no idea. No bids on the N7 yet so this could all be hypothetical jib jab.
Steve

 

[Jim S-W]

Blimey!

I know its a different scale but that makes the Hornby 31 (on the right) look almost acceptable!

You chaps sure need a vivid imagination to model some of the 7mm stuff

Cheers

Jim

 

[Dog Star]

In best Douglas Adams/Hitch-hikers Guide to the Galaxy tradition, I have to say - that is a new definition of the word "improve" that I was previously unaware of......

I do wonder if Steve's mate is known to Dikitriki... who is renowned for his one-liners on improving existing models.

 

[SteveO]

Well, after a quick chat with Picasso, he says he can't remember what paint he used, he just pulled something out of his dad's model box. Some experimentation should reveal whether this will be a simple job or something a little more complicated.

I really should start another thread on the 47, if or when it's mine, and there's still no guarantee of that yet. This is a distraction until the 31's cabs arrive later this week. I'm a little excited about that, I must admit. I'll also contact DJH about a lighting kit and their pick-up kit, unless anyone can suggest any alternatives for either?
Steve

 

[lancer1027]

Steve, you say your waiting for the 31 cabs to arrive, have you ordered some cabs from somewhere?? please post pics of this thread i would be interested in what challenge lies ahead of you and how your going to tackle it

Rob

 

[marsa69]

Yeah Rob pay attention!

 

[lancer1027]

Look im at the back of the class for a reason you know

 

[SteveO]

back of the class

Master Rob, perhaps we should bring you to the front of the class to be made an example of?...
Although I like your question;

...and how your going to tackle it

It's going to be somewhere between 'Badly' and 'With Profanity' I should imagine. Needless to say, it shall be documented in full, x-rated, blow-by-blow account exclusively right here.

The ScotRail 47 sold for £645. My mate offered it to me for £300 and I turned him down... Doh!

 

[SteveO]

The cabs arrived yesterday but this is the first time I've had a chance of photographing them. A quick offer up to the body seems to suggest there may be a width difference between the resin cabs and the brass body. I'm measuring it with the resin bar in the cab in place. I'm not sure if this is to be removed or not - if it's a casting aid or if it keeps the body width to the correct dimension?

I wonder if I can sell the old cabs on fleabay for a scrap yard? Working out how I'm going to fit these is going to be interesting. The chassis rails obviously run up to the buffer beam and are tucked into the sills of the body. Somehow (I haven't looked yet) I'll have to separate the body from the chassis at the cabs. I like the inset flaps on the resin bodies as I can simply glue them to the inside of the body, without learning to solder just yet.

It's the girlfriend's birthday this weekend so we're off to the Metrop to meet up with friends, which of course means I won't be doing anything on it until next week. I'm not even sure if I'll be able to watch a game of footy on the box as we're staying with conscientious objectors to sport...

 

[40126]

Well Steve, the first main footy game is on Monday 5pm Ko.

I'll be watching first England game in Derby, second in London & the rest in sunny Mexico !!!!!.

The new resin cabs look good.

Steve

 

[Phill Dyson]

Those cabs would certainly transform the look of the loco, but you will need to be damn sure that you are confident you can make them fit before you make the cuts in the bodyshell though..........once you've made the cuts there's no going back!
I do think it can be made to work, but as Jordan says it was never going to be a case of just cutting the old ones of & gluing the new ones on...........looks a lot more do-able than correcting the originals though to me

 

[SteveO]

It was never going to be that easy, was it..???

Unfortunately it never is...

& the rest in sunny Mexico !!!!!.

You lucky bugger! The closest to that I can get is I have Brazilian neighbours. Bootylicious!

Those cabs would certainly transform the look of the loco

Agreed, they look great. The width difference does concern me though. It's about 4-5mm each side, so quite a lot. Also, they are missing those little boxes in front of the windows. Am I correct in thinking both cabs are identical? The ones on the model at the moment are different - one has been cut short by about 5mm at the back where it joins the body.

I need some interiors and replacement buffer beams - the ones with the fairing round them. A quick look has proved fruitless for the buffer beams but Steve Beattie makes some resin interiors. Will I have the same problem with the widths if get them though?

 

[Phill Dyson]

Unfortunately it never is...

The width difference does concern me though. It's about 4-5mm each side, so quite a lot.

That sounds like a BIG difference .....have you got a scale drawing ?