Lifeboat rescue

Lifeboat pin cushion
Originally uploaded by Phil_Parker

I'm a bit of a sucker for lifeboats and lifeboat memorabilia. Worse, I often feel sorry for old and battered things and want to repair them no matter how much more sensible it would be to check them away.

So, when I spotted this little lifeboat pin cushion on eBay a few weeks ago it ticked all the boxes. Ten pounds later I was the proud owner of a valuable antique. After a few days my ship came in, 10cm long and as you can see, a little bit battered.

Nevertheless, we have the technology to revive this boat. Fortunately the cushion part is in good condition and none of the sawdust it's stuffed with has leaked out. That just means I need to repaint the lead (as in lead soldiers) casting. First stop was a dunk in some Nitromoors to get the remains of the old paint off. The basic casting is lovely and sharp. Better still, all the lines delineating the different colours are moulded in so no masking required !

I'll be hand painting this as it was originally. This is partly for authenticity but mostly because it's going to kick around my modelling bench while I work on other things being picked up and put down for odd moments.