Finishing Touches

A quick update on those cheap and tatty tank wagons I've been restoring.  These are four to which I've applied new decals, (the existing decals were either missing or had been partially erased by the paint removal process when cleaning the bad 'weathering' from some of them).  These are stickers, (as were many of the original Tri-ang and Hornby decals, although later issues like the three TTAs had printed logos), from Retrodecals, which have to be cut out from a sheet before application.  Cutting close enough to eliminate any of the surrounding white paper without damaging the decal isn't easy, but the results aren't bad.  (The lighting and angle of the shot don't show the applied decals to best effect, but when seen from a normal viewing distance, they are pretty effective).

I've still got another of the short wheelbase tankers to apply decals to, but I've yet to decide whether or not to strip and repaint it first.  I might also fit a new set of ladders to it before applying any decals.  There are also a pair of Jouef manufactured tankers in this batch of cheap tankers which need Tri-ang/Hornby type couplers fitted in place of their continental-type couplings.  Once all that is done, the whole lot will be ready to roll and join my freight stock roster.  Sure, they'll still look a bit scruffy, but they will still be far more presentable than when I first acquired them via eBay.  There's also another local Toy and Train fair coming up soon, so they might be joined by a few more items of cheap freight stock, as that, of late, has proven a fruitful hunting ground for me.