Prime Time

It seems a shame to cover up all the nice brass on the Y6 with primer but I guess it has to be done.

OK, so the metal is a bit tarnished from sitting around uncovered, but there is something about a kit "in the metal" that appeals to me. This model is especially special as you can peer through the doorways at the insides, something not normal on a steam engine. Even diesels, which have "insides" to peer at tend to provide only little portals to gawp through.

I'm not alone as anyone who has seen a collection of Korean brass engines owned by an American, will see yellow metal and only very rarely a painted engine. I know those things are expensive (and lovely) but it seems a shame that they often never get painted to fulfill their potential as excellent models.

Anyway, the first problem I hit was that folding the draw hook back against the buffer beam and soldering stops the chassis from being removed. A proper modeller would have spotted this, or at least do something about it. I've just masked the visible mechanical bits.

After that it's a quick blast with etching primer from Halfords and then a good look at the model to see if I need to fix anything before paint.