4mm Llanfair ....

LarryG

Western Thunderer
I do think B&C is an underrated and little seen livery on layouts. I understand it didn't work well on the really thing (dirt and fading) but hey still looks good on your models Larry.
I'm not sure if it was a case of blood & custard not working well, or if it was overtaken by events in 1956 wen the regions were given more autonomy over their affairs. As expected, the Southern Region adopted green, which was a mostly green region anyway becasue of its re-varnishing malachite stock. The London Midland adopted the old LMS "maroon", as did the Eastern and the the Western ~ except for a flirtation with brown & cream.

Blood & custard actually had a long life on three of the regions. I recall run-down looking Gresleys on Sunday Manchester Exchange to Abergele Sanatorium trains around 1960, LMS 2-window open stock on Bangor-Afon Wen trains around 1962 and GWR sunshine coaches on the Cambrian in 1963.
 
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LarryG

Western Thunderer
A coach often seen on railway videos is the GWR D121 corridor brake third, easily identified by it's high and low waist windows. As an experiment, the baffle plates were added to the sliding windows and they have worked out well as seen here...
WEB GWR D121 7.jpgWEB GWR D121 8.jpgWEB GWR D121 9.jpg
 

LarryG

Western Thunderer
I cut strips of plastikard 10thou square and use pieces for hinges, destination board brackets and the sliding window baffles. Attached with Loctite Ehthyl-2-Cyanoasrylate, they won't budge afterwards.
 

LarryG

Western Thunderer
The GWR D121 corridor brake third completed two days ago had the lower edge of the deep corridor windows on a slightly lower waist line than the D124 which followed, and this is clearly seen by the increased depth of cream above the windows when compared with the D124...

WEB GWR D121 11.jpg

The D124 had a slightly higher waistline. This coach was completed today....
WEB GWR D124 3.jpg

Baffles were fitted to the sliding vents as previously and also on the lavatory window. This coach is more heavily weathered than the D121...
WEB GWR D124 4.jpg
 
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LarryG

Western Thunderer
Further to the above, This picture of a D121 clearly shows the lower waistline than on the two adjacent coaches. The bottom edge of the windows was roughly 2ft 8ins, give or take a few fractions, on most coaches built after the D121's.

The middle coach also shows the lower roof profile of Collett's 'yellow disc' stock which was acceptable widely across the country on other railways lines...

WEB GWR D121 12.jpg
 

LarryG

Western Thunderer
GWR D121 and D124 on the layout showing the different waists....
WEB GWR D121 14.jpg

The GWR E147 B-set has been back-engineered into carmine. Lined maroon didn't do it for me even though I dont mind it on corridor stock...
WEB GWR E147 9B.jpg

Photographed this morning on the layout with sunlight (apparently) streaming across the hillside...
WEB GWR E147 9.jpg
 
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LarryG

Western Thunderer
Latest addition is the GWR C70 corridor third, which introduced the low waist and deep windows. The coach sides are barely weathered this time, but the chassis has gone the usual colour and the grey roof is no longer pristine...
WEB GWR C70 6.jpg

Both sides were identical except for lack of lavatory windows and is almost LMS in appearance...
WEB GWR C70 6B.jpg
 

LarryG

Western Thunderer
The last of the brass coaches built during 2021 was completed today although painted yesterday. This C81 corridor third introduced more changes to windows. Of note is the compartment with an external door. The design was continued on a longer underframe after the war under Hawksworth...
WEB GWR C81 3.jpg

No wonder they were christened 'Sunshine Coaches' with all that glass. To my eyes, there wasn't much structural strength on this side. The droplights were etched into the Comet sides, something I much prefer as they make for more secure glazing.....
WEB GWR C81 4.jpg

I consider these late 1930's coaches epitomise the Western Region in the mid to late 1950s and i will consider building a few more at the end of the summer...
WEB GWR C81 5.jpg
 
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LarryG

Western Thunderer
As always, beautiful work, Larry. Are the pair running on Hornby bogies?

Kind regards,

Nick.
Thanks Nick, This pair are running on Bachmann bogies. They look a bit clunky on some coaches and not others. The coach furthest away in the above picture (Dia. C77) might get a pair of Hornby bogies seeing as I am scrapping a Hornby Hawksworth.
 

Nick Rogers

Western Thunderer
Thanks Nick, This pair are running on Bachmann bogies. They look a bit clunky on some coaches and not others. The coach furthest away in the above picture (Dia. C77) might get a pair of Hornby bogies seeing as I am scrapping a Hornby Hawksworth.

Thanks, Larry.

As you have said before, it is such a shame that Hornby doesn't offer the 9' pressed steel bogies as a 'spare': I think they would sell very well.

All the best,

Nick.
 

LarryG

Western Thunderer
I got carried away with BR lined maroon in 2021 and finished too many in this livery. So this model of an LMS D1751 corridor composite has had its BR lined maroon replaced with carmine & cream. It looks much better to me, but this is probably because I saw so many real coaches of this kind in sidings awaiting the call of summer holiday traffic...
WEB LMS D1751 10.jpg
 

LarryG

Western Thunderer
This D1916/1946 open brake 3rd coach was the final repaint into carmine & cream. The remaining coaches will stay in BR maroon.

The current coaching stock position is as follows:-
12) in BR carmine & cream
5) in BR lined maroon
8) in plain carmine red

A new gangway connector has since been fitted. This plastic one had curled up...
WEB LMS D1946 3.jpg

Close up of the open lavatory window
WEB LMS D1946 4.jpg
 
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LarryG

Western Thunderer
I have deleted my reference to the goods shed being at the back of the layout. It didn't work! Everything is back together in the yard apart from cattle. Livestock was often loaded on a short stub off the running line so it could be readily attached to a passing cattle train, so that remains.

The goods shed no longer blocks the view of passenger trains in the station. Track renewal is minimal, the aim being to work with the present track layout as much as possible. All I can show is a photoshopped image of the intended new arrangements...
WEB Llanfair revised 2.jpg
 

paulc

Western Thunderer
I have deleted my reference to the goods shed being at the back of the layout. It didn't work! Everything is back together in the yard apart from cattle. Livestock was often loaded on a short stub off the running line so it could be readily attached to a passing cattle train, so that remains.

The goods shed no longer blocks the view of passenger trains in the station. Track renewal is minimal, the aim being to work with the present track layout as much as possible. All I can show is a photoshopped image of the intended new arrangements...
View attachment 155721
Hi Larry , i quite liked the goods shed at the rear as it broke up the view of the backscene but you are there so can see the layout from all different angles , also its your layout so rule one applys .
Beautiful work on the coaches . I have just sprayed the plum on four LNWR coaches and heeded your avice to someone else about a brown being applied before the actual colour . They can sit now for week then mask them off and apply the white ish colour then the lining . My fingernails are bitten off just thinking about doing that but in for a penny etc .
Cheers Paul
 

LarryG

Western Thunderer
Hi Paul. I sprayed my cellulose 'plum' on top of red oxide primer. It covered well because the plum mix was LMS crimson lake plus black. It's a good while since I sprayed LNWR coaches, but I remember I sprayed the darker colour on first when doing Toplight coaches. Initially I added a hint of blue to the white until David Jenkinson told me one of the restored coaches at the NRM was turning greenish because of the yellowing affect of copal varnish.

I agree with you about the good shed. It did look neat there.
 
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