Some models don't look "right"

[BobB]

I have a couple of Farish class 101 dmu's. They just do not look correct but I can't see what's wrong so I don't know what to do with them. On the other hand, I have class 108's and they look fine. Anybody got any idea ?

I would like to get the (old) Farish class 25 with the modified body style, but this is another model that doesn't look good to my eyes. Maybe it's the windows glazing but maybe something more basic and harder to correct. I'm going to wait until Farish bring out an updated version I think !

[railsquid]

The front window surrounds on the 101 are somewhat on the chunky side.

IIRC there was an article in the NGS journal a while back about rectifying that and various other issues.

PS this thread should be in the general N gauge discussion forum

[Bob G]

I have a couple of Farish class 101 dmu's. They just do not look correct but I can't see what's wrong so I don't know what to do with them. On the other hand, I have class 108's and they look fine. Anybody got any idea ?

I would like to get the (old) Farish class 25 with the modified body style, but this is another model that doesn't look good to my eyes. Maybe it's the windows glazing but maybe something more basic and harder to correct. I'm going to wait until Farish bring out an updated version I think !

Is your 101 the original 1982 version or the 2011 version? I assume its the modern version. That version has different front ends for different liveries, and its true that some liveries look better than others at achieving the "face" that everyone recognises. Both the 101 and 108 have really thick light surrounds. These lights were nothing like as prominent as they have been modelled.

The Poole Farish 25 is much easier to critique, however.
1. the vents which were moved on the 25/3 from the bodysides to the roof should be at cant rail level but they are further up the roofline. How that ever got through the design stages i cant imagine.
2. the front windows are too small, and the glass sits too far back, so they look even smaller.
Detailing the front buffer beam on these makes a huge difference too.
You can improve the look by either completely reshaping the front, slightly deepening the windows, or visually by painting the inside of the window frames black and cutting the front window inserts into individual panes and filing and mounting each window further forward, glueing it in flush with the front with PVA. The black paint makes the windows seem bigger, improving the "face".
When they were selling them off before the new 25/1/2 was released you could get them for £45. Now they seem to be somewhat dearer.
Below is a nice view of an unidentified 25/3 at Bescot in October 1975, and two original Poole versions, showing the issues i mentioned.

best
Bob

[LAandNQFan]

Yes, the face is wrong.  When I lived in what had been the station master's house at Heswall Hills, pairs of 24s or 25s would roar past several times a day dragging ore trains from Wallasey Docks destined for Shotton steel works.  To me, the horizontal line on the front of the engine is too low, exacerbating the window problem.  On the shot of the real loco, you can see that the roofline break is higher over the side window and door than it is on the rest of the loco, but on the model it is flush, leaving the window, and the line on the front sitting too low.  Sadly, it looks as if really major surgery would be needed to put that right.