Garden Railway Forum

Don't know how long this has been on the website but just had a look now and roundhouse have said that their locos will now come with a matt smokebox and cab roof, a definate improvement i think. Their other new products look good too, I'm interested in the works plates.

Oooh those do look good. Its certainly an improvement going matt, thankfully they did they change when they made my Linda, even the frames are too.

Black domes as well from now on I have heard?

Pendo Pilot:49609 wrote:Black domes as well from now on I have heard?

Nah, body colour coded...

Nice, but I don't like the coloured domes

As 'paint it black' is the S&CLR&T default when it come to motive power, the matt black for cab and smokebox will eliminate one detailing job if I ever buy a Roundhouse loco. I am not sure about the painted domes, though, I like my shiny stuff.

Peter in AZ

I prefer the painted domes. I also always replace the brass handrails with steel ones as few prototypes ever had them brass.

That matte colour in the picture is more like what I would call "satin". I have seen now and then a bit of a controversy when it comes to matte smokeboxes, some people love them, others insist that real engines have gloss smokeboxes. Even though there are plenty of pictures of engines with decidedly matte-looking smokeboxes.  :lol: I decided to go with a high-temp satin on "Billy", in order to split the difference, although once it was baked it turned a little shinier than I wanted. The finish Roundhouse has chosen should please almost everyone.

The domes look good coloured, I suppose in the "old days" it was probably more common to paint them unless an engine was all tarted up for the tourist haul. I wonder what the kits will come with now. They can't very well paint them when they don't know what colour the engine is to be. I'm glad mine came shiny: my engine is all tarted up for the tourist haul.

Even though I just finished building one, whenever I see a promotional picture of a Roundhouse engine I want to buy it. I love them.

I just noticed their new photo of "Billy" shows a red one. They must have liked mine.

Keith S:49632 wrote:That matte colour in the picture is more like what I would call "satin". I have seen now and then a bit of a controversy when it comes to matte smokeboxes, some people love them, others insist that real engines have gloss smokeboxes. Even though there are plenty of pictures of engines with decidedly matte-looking smokeboxes.  :lol:

We've had this discussion in another thread, there are prototypes for both matt and gloss smokeboxes. Personally I'm quite happy with my gloss-smokebox Russell.

It also occurs to me that it might look a bit odd now if people buy brass saftey valve bonnets for their Lady Annes - they won't match the dome!

the W&L locos have painted domes and brass safety valve covers and I think they look nicer like that, it's all a matter of opinion

Keith&Joanna:49637 wrote:I think the painted domes should be "optional" as i dont like them.

I'd suggest that stripping and polishing a painted dome would be a doddle for anyone wanting a shiny one- compared to paint matching (plus actually priming and painting) a brass one for folks prefering a painted one, so it's a good move by RH on my books!