TIMBER TALES

Private Owner wagons gain some bare wood effects

In the past week, I've been working on a range of ex-Private Owner mineral wagons, with a pair of Bachmann RTR models being two good examples. Above is a 5-plank open in the livery of Joshua Gray coal merchants, Haworth. I bought this from the NRM shop when I was working there (I miss my staff discount!) and it's been in the attic ever since, awaiting some attention. The grey interior has been treated to a weathered, bare wood finish using Lifecolor acrylics, with a few bodyside planks also picked out with the same effect, suggesting a few replacement timbers.

The overall finish is quite pleasing, and the wagon is now just lacking a new running number and replacement of the tension locks with my preferred 3-links.

This wagon is also in the Bachmann Branchlines range, being a 7-plank mineral in BR grey and complete with ex-Private Owner 'P' number prefix. Again, the interior has been upgraded with a mock timber finish, with a few external planks in bare wood and mis-matched shades of grey for a bit of variety. As with both wagons, a bit of weathering - with acrylics, enamel washes and powders - the best qualities of these wagons are greatly enhanced.

Look out for a demo of these techniques in Model Rail magazine in the near future...