Paint damage to my 1:12 Routemaster

[TK59]

In moving my Hachette partwork Routemaster to the new house yesterday I inadvertently damaged the paintwork. I am heartbroken! Can anyone advise on (a) what type & colour paint do I need to effect a repair and (b) what technique would you recommend to invisibly repair it.

Thanks for any help you can give, Tony.

[cmatthewbacon]

https://www.hiroboy.com/London_Routemaster_Bus_Red_Paint_60ml--product--4644.html
 

best,

M.

[fightersweep]

Remembering back to my build, I think I would remove that rear roof panel and re-spray the whole section and re-fit. One benefit of it being built up with screws. I seem to recall that the shade of red didn't match on my roof panels as supplied by Hachette anyway!

[Paul821]

Firstly - welcome to Britmodeller

 

To fully answer the question in the OP, there are a number of other issues:

 

what material is the model roof made of?

how was the original paint applied and what type is it?

how deep are the marks?

what is your skill level regarding preparation and painting?

do you have an airbrush?

 

I am assuming that you want a quality repair so it depends how much money you want to spend on the repair. If you have a friendly automotive repair / paint shop and someone there is a model enthusiast they might be ably to do a repair. 

 

A word of warning about LT paints, the shade used by LT was not always the same and different models have slightly different shades, so any commercial pre-mixed paint might differ, I don't know how accurate they are but there are a number of smart-phone app;s that claim to be able to match RAL codes as it would be sest to try to get the code of the red Hachette  used.

[TK59]

Thanks for all the comments guys. 

 

I haven't used an airbrush previously. I guess I'll have to get one, and some of the paint linked to above, and take it from there.

[Vince1159]

I know this sounds a bit extreme but would it be worth getting a company who repairs bumpers etc on cars to do it they'd be able to match up the paint with the rest of your Routemaster...

[Spiny]

Not answering your question specifically, but it would be worth getting some plastic spoons (if you can still find them, although Poundstretcher seem to still be selling them) so have a practice airbrushing on before you touch your model. It will also give you a chance to check the colour match without risking causing further damage.

[Toftdale]

6 hours ago, Vince1159 said:

I know this sounds a bit extreme but would it be worth getting a company who repairs bumpers etc on cars to do it they'd be able to match up the paint with the rest of your Routemaster...

I'm with Vincent, if you've not used an airbrush before it would be very easy to make the situation worse.   There are lots of companies who will repair paint chips on your on your driveway.  I've no idea of the cost, however once you've brought an airbrush your going to need either a can of propellant or a compressor.  You definitely don't want to be spraying out side at this time of year, so your going to need a suitable mask and somewhere to spray so the cost will soon escalate.   

23 minutes ago, Spiny said:

Not answering your question specifically, but it would be worth getting some plastic spoons (if you can still find them, although Poundstretcher seem to still be selling them) so have a practice airbrushing on before you touch your model. It will also give you a chance to check the colour match without risking causing further damage.

If you are going to attempt it yourself,  do as Spiny suggests and practice and when you think you've got the hang of it practice a lot more.

 

Good luck with what ever route you take - Andy 

[TK59]

Thanks for all the observations. It would probably be better if I could find someone else to do the respray. If not, replacing the entire part might be the next best option. I will look into both options.

[Dave Swindell]

1 hour ago, TK59 said:

Thanks for all the observations. It would probably be better if I could find someone else to do the respray. If not, replacing the entire part might be the next best option. I will look into both options.

Hi Tony

You might find someone able to help you out at your local IPMS model club

https://ipmsuk.org/directory/milton-keynes/

[TK59]

Thanks very much Dave. They are meeting tomorrow night so I will try to get along.

 

I have looked into replacing the part (109A) but it does not appear to be available anywhere. Hatchette are out of stock and I've had no joy on eBay.

[NigelD]

This kit is currently being released by Agora. They have only just started but surely must have future parts somewhere. There will be no harm in asking them. Their customer service is known to be excellent.

Nigel

[richellis]

Take it to a car paint shop, they can scan the model and supply a custom can of spray

[TK59]

Agora said they can't assist. The car paint shop is certainly an idea worth investigating.

[TK59]

I am pleased to be able to report that I am close to resolving this problem. I went onto eBay over the weekend to set up a search for issue 109 of the Hatchette Routemaster series and to my astonishment it came back with a result immediately! I clicked 'buy now' instantly and the magazine with the necessary part has just arrived in the post. I will fit it later today.

 

Thanks for all your comments/suggestions.

 

regards,

 

Tony