How Green Is Your Garratt?

It appears my eyes may have deceived me, after all.

I posted a few days ago about how Himself had asked me to help choose an appropriate tin of paint for 143 - because he's not too good with his greens.

In the tin, and on a test patch, it looked like it might do a passable impression of the current colour of the WHR's youngest Garratt, but now I've seen it with the first two coats applied I'm no longer so sure.

It looks a bit too much like an LNER apple green to me.

So, with a little harrumphing, I've sent Himself back to search through his paint store to see if he has anything a few shades darker.

Picture Window

After many months in abeyance there has been progress on 152.

I'd reached the stage with the body that I couldn't do much more without Himself making up the roof and the front window pillars.

Usually when I build a superbarn I still put in a false ceiling to support the top rail of the body and strengthen the structure, but that's not possible on the observation cars because of the huge window in the end which goes all the way up to the roof, which would give the game away.

The pillars are soldered in position at the top and will be glued to the bodyside at the bottom once we've decided that we're 100% satisfied with their positions.

At the moment I've still not seen it for real - I've only got these two snaps to go on - but Himself is planning to bring it over later this week where I shall run my beady eyes over it before we commit to fixing it all in place.

Ready To Paint

The last of the superbarns is ready to get a coat of primer.

This is our model of 120, made the same as the rest of the fleet from a resin cast body with a styrene chassis and a brass roof, plus various other details in wire such as the handrails (not fitted in this view) and the gutter downpipes.

When I say 'the last' what I mean is that we've finally caught up with the prodigious output from Boston Lodge and our FR carriage fleet will be up to date when we've got this out outshopped.

Red And Green

Himself has begun the process of painting 143.

We'd had a debate about whether grey or red oxide primer was the way to go and it appears he's chosen the latter.

I've also been called upon to make the decision on the shade of green it will be finished in.

That's something of a poisoned chalice because it's one of those colours which, to me at least, appears different depending on the light conditions, and even more so if involves a photograph rather than using the naked eye.

There's also the issue that over the years the colour on some parts of the locomotive have faded.

At these points my mind always goes back to the discussions we had on what colour to paint our DLG many years ago.

Various mixes were brushed onto a piece of card which was posted up to me to peruse.

Unfortunately the colour I chose looked very much lighter and brighter when painted on the model that it appeared on the test card, and I've never lived it down.

Brass Roofs

Himself is doing that thing he often does where he's progressing multiple projects at the same time.

As well as preparing 143 for painting and assembling the body of bowsider 20, he's also got around to cutting and bending the brass roofs for a couple of superbarns I built last year.

Nearest the camera is the latest observation car, 152, which is quite a complex job.

As well as making the sure the front edge of the roof followings the curvy profile of the carriage body he's also going to solder in the two window pillars made from brass, create a lip along the underside which will keep the top rail of the sides nice and straight and also add some depth to the underside to represent the ornate ceiling on these latest luxury carriages.

Phew!

The one behind is rather more straightforward.

It's 120, the latest of the second series of third class saloons.

Most of the other details have been completed on this carriage, such as the interior and under floor detail.

Once the roof is fixed in place he'll be adding the finishing touches like the vac pipes and the handrails either side of the entrance doors before moving on to paint it.

152 will be heading back in my direction for the fitting of its exceptionally posh interior, the parts of which are already cast in resin.

Twenty Twenty

After my (assisted) efforts to construct a Worsley carriage body Himself has continued with another of the batch I have bought, which is an additional model of bowsider 20.

Our existing model, which is also a Worsley one, is finished in the two-tone red and ivory livery the carriage was turned out in back in 1988 - which was the original nominal year setting for Dduallt.

If my memory is correct, 20 was the only one of the bowsiders which escaped having all its beading stripped off in the 1970s, and so when the 'Mountain Prince' livery was introduced the ivory went in the panels aping the green and ivory livery so familiar from the revival era in the 1950s.

Now, of course, 20 wears the incredibly depressing pain dark green livery of the Col. Stephens era.

As such it will make a nice wee set for the layouts running with our model of 16 and van 2 (I still call it 10).

In Bits

143 has moved into the paint shop (sort of).

The last detailing parts have been added to the main boiler unit and it's been split into the sub-assemblies readying for a coat of primer.

The issue with the two motor units running at different speeds has been resolved by exchanging the slower running one for a spare we had in stock.

Himself did manage to get the metal worm gear off the shaft with the application of brute strength, but it was damaged in the process, so he's ended up robbing one of the unbuilt kits for a nylon replacement and begun scouring the internet to find a source for another one of those.

The only one he's found is from a supplier in Germany who don't ship to the UK - has Brexit already happened? I think we should be told!