A first 006 diesel - painting

One of the disadvantages of the way this loco was built is that the one-piece construction makes painting just that little bit trickier. Masking tape was used inside the cab to protect the motor, and along the frame sides and underneath to stop paint getting into the bearings and onto the wheels. Then I squirted Hycote white acrylic car body primer, decanted from an aerosol, to the body using my Badger 200NH, primer makes a horrible mess inside a 'brush and the 200 is easier to clean that my other 'brushes.

Next I painted the engine Humbrol 3 Gloss Green. I chose green to give the engine a Ruston/Petter/Lister look even though it's none of those, remember the bonnet and engine detail are from a Matchbox Drott Excavator;

Once the green had dried I masked off the engine and sprayed the main body colour, Vallejo 70.926 Red;

This was, to be frank, a pain to apply. I probably should have given the loco an undercoat of orange first as I have done previously when using red, and the finish needed rubbing down in a couple of places. It's not my best paint job by a long mark, but right now I want this loco finished.

Once the red had dried for a few days I masked the body off ready to spray the footplate. Before reaching for the black (my usual Vallejo 70.862 Black Grey) I sprayed some varnish around the edges of the masking tape, to try to prevent any paint creeping under the tape. At the same time I sprayed the roof and exhaust.

On removing the masking tape I found that, despite my best efforts, there was a little paint creep on the left hand cab side and rear, removed with a damp paintbrush and a cocktail stick. Once I'd done that I masked off the cab window frames and brush painted them;

Once the paint had dried the masking around the windows was removed and the loco given a coat of gloss varnish to protect the paint whilst I removed the rest of the masking around the frames and brush painted the frame sides being careful not to get any paint into the bearings. Then, with a little masking tape over the axle ends and the exposed sections of the wheels the loco could be given a squirt of Testors Dullcoat;

I gave the engine a couple of washes of Citadel 'Nuln Oil' whilst I was painting the bodywork, which has toned down the green quite nicely, I was worried about the green and red clashing. The next job will be to glaze the cab, then add numberplates, the exhaust pipe and the cab roof.

Paul.