What did you do to your trains today?

[Super]

@Da-lag

Wow, I had forgotten all about the TooMuchThomas Channel and this does bring back memories for me but not so long ago. I think we had discussions about this YouTuber's videos and custom Layout pieces quite a while back but I can't find them. I know I was amazed at that huge bridge spanning a gorge and the center piece of the Layout in this video.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2uCAsfJIzzQ

Also in this video at around the 3:00 minute mark we can see Harold with the red tail banner that we had quite the discussion about some time ago. It was really nice watching these again, thanks for posting about them.

YESS DALAG YOU FOUND IT. Oh that video brings back so many memories. Thank you very much

I got a bit more work done on a replica I started a few days ago.

Ah, TooMuchThomas, that takes me back. I'm not sure if it's still up, but I remember a similar scale of exhibition layout that had a video set to Nena's 99 Red Balloons. I went through my liked videos and found it, although the music choice means I'm blocked from viewing it




Anyways, I've been working on Daisy, who I ended up remodeling from more or less scratch.


I haven't come up with a great face yet, my first completely freehand attempt using the "scribble" tool in TinkerCad resulted in this

The Henry that replaces Spencer is now finished except for the face, coal and smokebox supports. For the coal load, I tried leaving the impression of the TM Edward's coal on a piece of air drying clay to see if it will give the effect I desire. If that won't help, I'll get some tiny black marbles or powder and glue them into place instead. While detailing, I was delighted to find that Spencer and even the TM Edward are suddenly functional again (!). Now I won't have to risk doing motor swaps or voltage upgrades that could easily backfire.

[Super]

@Duck
Looks like your possibilities are endless with that scribble tool.

He's done! After (more or less) 15 years, the one member I never had can finally join my powered Steam Team (in a way). It's near impossible to tell he's actually a Spencer in disguise, and he was well worth the effort. I'll even leave it as Henry by default since I would need him much more often (despite being more fragile than official engines). I got even more excited after managing to duplicate the coal and face, and it's the first time I ever tried it in practice. Apart from cases where I don't have a suitable moulded face, this is how I'll make them from now on. Only the eyebrows didn't quite turn out how I expected, and I forgot one boiler band since I (still) tried to base him on Gordon's proportions. One disadvantage is the wheel stickers don't make him roll very well and the right front one is a bit off, but they still do a good job. I would've used Custom TrackMasters tender stickers if I were allowed to buy them, but I had to get them from a side photo of the TOMY version instead. I'm highly impressed with the green spray paint I bought for him given it's close to Percy, though some areas turned out brighter/darker than others. For TOMY accuracy, the handrails and boiler bands will not be painted. Nevertheless, I got an exceptional result for my first scratch built piece of rolling stock, and I've gained enough confidence to build more replacement engines like this. For the interested, I've documented the full progress here. To finish off, here's the inevitable Three Railway Engines reunion:



(Sorry about Edward; I might make a new smokebox for him until I could fix the TOMY version).

[Super]

Looks very nice Da-lag. Did you complete all this work in your new train shed?

Sadly, no. That shed is not a garage where I can use spray paint within a closed space. Apart from having no desk or workbench, it doesn't have the right ventilation for that. The progress photos show the priming and green parts were done outdoors, with all the rest being done inside the house.

I had an extra blue box car sitting at home.  I decided to test if it is feasible to put a "pac man" on the side of the car to resembling the PAC man symbol on some of the Canadian Pacific Rolling stock.  I was happy with the prototype but I should make the "pac man" face a bit smaller next time.  For the paint, I literally used white out and a black sharpie ha ha.  My advice is use the paint tape instead of scotch tape, it won't leave residues on the body.  Paint the white portion first, it will be easier to fix when you apply the black paint.  I was contemplating if I should apply the letter since it is very difficult to do it properly.  

Edit: I realize i messed up with the position of the pac man logo ha ha. It was a learning experience.  I may test it on a tanker but that will be very complicated.