Alex3410's Workbench

[alex3410]

K & ESR Terrier - Hornby Club loco
hey guys, i grabbed this as a way of using up the Hornby voucher i got for signing up to the club (can only spend it on these club specials ) but i rather like it i have given it a used but fairly looked after weathering appearance which i am rather pleased with. I have also fitted a DCC chip although it barely fits so may look into a small one at some point - the smokebox door is not fitted correctly its about 1mm out due to the chip being in the way. I was happy with the result as its been sometime since i last had the airbrush out and even longer since i had to hard wire in a DCC chip.

Untitled by Alex Wells, on Flickr
Untitled by Alex Wells, on Flickr
Untitled by Alex Wells, on Flickr


some 'before and afters' thanks to the second one i ended up with (my mistake in ordering but kept it incase the weathering went wrong )
Untitled by Alex Wells, on Flickr
Untitled by Alex Wells, on Flickr
Untitled by Alex Wells, on Flickr
Untitled by Alex Wells, on Flickr

[Lysander]

Good well-used look there. Clearly, the Shed Master does not take his duties that seriously !

Tony

[alex3410]

I was supposed to be digging out my suit for a wedding on Sunday but got side tracked cleaning my modelling desk, the other half did catch wind of the distraction when i got the power tools out to build my new desk shelves

Untitled by Alex Wells, on Flickr


Lets see how long it lasts for this time!

[Ex-Pat]

Glad I dropped in on your thread. I noticed the compressor and then read through from start to finish. A lot of lovely work there.

Are you still happy with your Harder & Steenbeck Ultra airbrush, and has it been problem-free apart the nozzle clogging?

Did the compressor come with it, and where did you get it from please?

[alex3410]

Thank you

The airbrush was from https://www.everythingairbrush.com/ and the compressor was from eBay - it came with two cheap airbrushes as well which i swiftly got rid of the tank on the compressor makes allot of difference to the noise levels & is well worth the cost difference (at the time was only around £15 more)

as to the airbrush, i cant recommend it enough its such a pleasure to use & puts up really well with my not so careful cleaning of it! it does get blocked a fair bit but its more down to me not cleaning it out well enough each time i put it away (normally because i think i will use it again soon but ends up being weeks between sometimes).

The airbrush comes to bits easily but more importantly goes back together easily as well, it strips down into about 5-6 bits when cleaning it & its obvious where it all goes when putting it back together again - i can strip it down and put it back together in a few minutes.

when it gets blocked & it wont clear with white spirit etc i have taken to threading a very fine bit of wire through the nozzle and running it back and forth which clears it out really well - just make sure the wire is smaller then the nozzle size!

The only issue i have had (my fault entirely) is the original nozzle split while i was trying to clean it out / unblock it with a toothpick - i must have given it to much pressure and it split the nozzle. It does highlight another brilliant thing about it however - spare parts are available!

Simple answer is the only reason i still use my airbrush is thanks to the ease of use of the Ultra, i had got very fed up with the cheap nasty ones which very nearly put me off.

[Ex-Pat]

Thanks a lot Alex - must put buying research into action.

What make/model is the compressor please?

[alex3410]

its a Chinese made thing, they tend to pop up on eBay allot eg: link but its not a branded one (even if some people list them as a brand on ebay)

[Ex-Pat]

Thanks again Alex.

In the meantime I've been in touch with https://www.everythingairbrush.com/ , and they do full airbrush/compressor packages, so rather than a "Cheapo Chinese" I think I'll be guided by them.

[alex3410]

very good idea

glad i could help

[alex3410]

Class D16/3 -> SECR repaint
Before i start i know this is not historically accurate - its a true case of its my railway and i will run what i want

anyway i got myself a Hornby R3235 Class D16/3 'Claud Hamilton' 4-4-0 E2524 in early BR Black and am in the process of repainting it into SECR green. I am trying to get it to look the part next to my C class loco i repainted previously.

Starting point
Untitled by Alex, on Flickr

I stripped it down and primed it, then attempted to spray it in SECR green - its been awhile and first attempts with the airbrush was not exactly successful:
Untitled by Alex, on Flickr

After giving the airbrush a really good clean out and a few more experiments i got back into the swing of things:
Untitled by Alex, on Flickr


I also dug out a C class tender from a white metal kit i didnt get on with which i think fits the loco better (gets it a little closer to SECR loco anyway!)
Untitled by Alex, on Flickr

Untitled by Alex, on Flickr

I have been brush painting the other colours as its less effort then masking and airbrushing
Untitled by Alex, on Flickr

Untitled by Alex, on Flickr


The next job is to try and rescue the windows as i forgot to take them out when priming the loco so are currently a nice flat grey colour

[m.levin]

Your tank weathering is to notch,
Do you plan to weather your 4-4-0?

[alex3410]

Thank you

I don't know yet, I might if I need to cover up a few areas

I have managed to get the windows looking ok again by sanding them with very fine sanding sticks but they are a royal pain when trying to fit them back into place