This is my first locomotive build so it is taking me a lot longer than it normally would with an airplane build where I pretty much know where everything goes.The sand box cover and the steam dome came already painted brass but I didn't like it.Too shiny and it needed cleaning up of the flash along the seam lines.I stripped the old paint off,softly sanded them,scrubbed them clean and then applied gold paint which is close enough to a brass color for now.Later when I weather the whole thing I will adjust it as required. The running boards are gray in color and will likewise be weathered later.My final step on any model that is not meant to be handled a lot is the use of pastels.
I have mixed opinions about this kit.The accuracy I cannot vouch for one way or another because I simply do not know enough about locomotives of this era. The quality however shows its age.The main problems are the type of plastic used and the molds.The plastic is of a type that makes it very difficult to remove the all too present flash.Normally I like to do this with a sharp Xacto or some gentle sanding.This is a type of plastic that does not sand well as it is too soft.The larger parts are OK but the small parts are very difficult to work with and break very easily.I have spent a lot of time on repairs.The brass parts all require that the paint be removed, the flash removed ,and then repainted with acrylics.Nothing looks worse than seem lines on shiny brass.The acrylics do not stick to the surface very well and must be lightly sanded,then washed and undercoated with gesso before the final finish is applied. If I was doing this as a stand alone model as a new shiny example of a new locomotive of this era I would have to do a lot of scratch building.For what I am using it for as an old rusty and weathered piece it is adequate for my purposes and should look pretty good when finished properly. The plastic kit making industry has come a long way since this kit was manufactured especially in aircraft modeling in 1/32 scale.The new kits have perfect fits and almost build themselves but as an old time modeler I find that just painting someone else work can be a little boring.I enjoy a challenge and have the time to spend rebuilding stuff whereas most modelers today don't want to invest that much of their free time scratchbuilding. In todays fast paced world it is quite understandable. We are living in the golden era of the kit but it wouldn't last long as they are too expensive for kids now and the old now have the money but are just getting older.In the end our hobby will survive as man has always been fascinated by model making throughout the ages. Maybe scratchbuilding will make a comeback but with a lot fewer modelers doing it though.
Here is a pic of the great director himself in action on the set of Once upon a time......It is taken near the cab of a Spanish locomotive in Spain, by Angelo Novi Sergio's personal stills photographer. My locomotive will be a little different and is actually closer to the real thing in design.I have chosen to build a fake locomotive and use it as a prop as was commonly done back in earlier times.My General will be a shell built of wood and tin and depicted sitting on a track waiting for the actors return which never came. Although I don't believe it ever happened in this case, props were often built after the main movie was shot and used in re-takes.It was a lot less expensive this way.
I am just starting the interior sheathing of the forward cab wall using coffee stir stiks.This is a long procedure of cut and fit,cut and fit,filing around windows etc....These boards will be painted a weathered green . I have continued to dull the brass using a very thin wash of raw umber either brushed on or sprayed using the old toothbrush method. The exterior of the cab will be painted a weathered orange to look like a well faded red color and then worked over with pastels.This diorama represents a long abandoned movie set.
I have temporarily taped the cab together to make sure that it all fits together before doing the finishing.Now I will break it down again and finish each panel individually.What looks like green barnsiding in the next picture is my standard method of aging wood stir stiks that I have discussed many times before when building old hangars.The important thing to remember is not be too neat and tidy as you want to retain the human randomness element in this type of work for it to look natural.On the other hand,remember only man plants trees in rows.Play with it and above all have fun,don't be in a rush to finish .Treat each object you do as a individual model in itself.Every piece that you do deserves the same attention whether it is that board behind the toilet or the cab instruments or cockpit panel.The key here is consistency and pride in your work ! If you make a mistake, so what, 99% of your viewers will overlook any small errors if the story is good.
