Matching Bachmann and Heljan green.

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Lord Colnago
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Matching Bachmann and Heljan green.

Postby Lord Colnago » Wed Aug 02, 2017 11:44 am

I have a couple of diesel locos with half yellow ends and I want to paint over the yellow. Can anyone help with information on which paints to use to best match both Bachmann and Heljan locos as both are different shades? Well, they would be, wouldn't they!
The second best priest

Mark Tatlow
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Re: Matching Bachmann and Heljan green.

Postby Mark Tatlow » Wed Aug 02, 2017 10:44 pm

Have you thought about taking it down your local DIY store or paint supplier and allowing their colour spectrometer tell you what the colour is.

It will give you the colour reference (a RAL code typically). With a bit of luck, you can then find out the RAL references of any near colour until you get a match?
Mark Tatlow

Terry Bendall
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Re: Matching Bachmann and Heljan green.

Postby Terry Bendall » Thu Aug 03, 2017 6:35 am

Someone I know well may know the BS number for the paint. I will check later. If you have that, a proper paint supplier, not a DIY store should, be able to match it exactly. It may of course mean re-painting the whole model. I did this recently when I wanted the Railfreight Flint Grey colour and it worked a treat.

RTR manufacturers are known for not using the correct shades of paint and it is a particular problem with BR Blue. Getting something close may work with a bit of weathering.

Terry Bendall

martinm

Re: Matching Bachmann and Heljan green.

Postby martinm » Thu Aug 03, 2017 10:26 am

Hi,
According to the BR data published by DEMU, the warning panel should be:

Warning Panel Yellow
Golden Yellow BS4800-08E51

Any change due to wear and tear, mechanical cleaning etc excepted.
For model, any perceptual change due to scale, distance etc also excepted

regards,
martin

David Knight
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Re: Matching Bachmann and Heljan green.

Postby David Knight » Thu Aug 03, 2017 1:37 pm

FWIW I found that Phoenix GWR Loco green 1945-1948 (dull) was a very close match for the Heljan green. A bit of subtle weathering should blend things in nicely. As for the Bachmann, dunno, but the same might work.

HTH

David

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Tim V
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Re: Matching Bachmann and Heljan green.

Postby Tim V » Fri Aug 04, 2017 7:39 pm

Try rubbing the paint off with Meths for example?
Tim V
(Not all railways in Somerset went to Dorset)

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Lord Colnago
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Re: Matching Bachmann and Heljan green.

Postby Lord Colnago » Sat Aug 05, 2017 10:21 am

Thanks for all your replies.

There is a specialist paint supplier in Dereham, but that must be close to a 50 mile round trip from here, so probably not an economical solution to the problem.

It has occurred to me to try rubbing off the panel with IPA, meths or similar, but I worry that I'll take off some of the colour underneath and defeat the object.

If you can get the BS number please Terry, that would be useful as I have a comparison chart, produced by Vallejo, which gives BS and RAL numbers for some of the more popular paint suppliers.

In the meantime, I have not been idle and have experimented with some of the greens that I have to hand. Railmatch Loco Green on a Vallejo Bronze Green base primer is very close indeed to both Hornby and Bachmann greens. I couldn't get a match to Heljan green but I'm at the Southwold show tomorrow and might pick up the Precision GW green suggested by David.

Thanks again to one and all.

John.
The second best priest


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