Graham Farish Mk 1 BR Green vs Dapol Maunsell BR Green

RWJP · February 09, 2026, 04:52:01 PM

Hi all,

My google searching appears to have failed me so here I am. I'm looking for a comparison of the BR Greens on the Farish Mk 1 coaches (2010 tooling) and the Dapol Maunsell coaches.

Does anyone have a photo they could share?

Thanks.

Bob G · February 09, 2026, 05:16:01 PM

I think you will find they are pretty similar if you compare both firms BR(S) greens post 1956.

SR Olive (Dapol Maunsell coaches 1930s-40s) is darker and SR malachite (some Farish Bulleid coaches) (1940s-mostly early 50s) is lighter.

They would look different in real life in any case because the Maunsell stock is wooden and the Mk 1 stock is steel, so the surface finish would give a different appearance.

The southern used to run Mk 1s, Bulleid, and Maunsell stock in semi-permanently coupled sets with set numbers, so it would be rare (but not unknown) to see a mix of different designer's coaches in the same train.

For example, some boat train stock could be all Maunsell in the 1950s, but by the 1960s you could see a mix of Bulleid and BR Mk1 coaches.

Bob

Southerngooner · February 09, 2026, 05:45:01 PM

In my eyes the Dapol green used on the low window Maunsells is quite a bit lighter than that on the Bachmann Farish coaches. I intend to respray mine when I get round to spraying a rake of high windows that have had their SR livery taken off.

Dave

Bealman · February 09, 2026, 11:39:07 PM

Wouldn't the real thing be variable anyway because of being out in the weather?

Southerngooner · February 10, 2026, 08:41:23 AM

From all the colour pictures I have even weathered stock wouldn't be as different as the two colours we are discussing. Hopefully Dapol will get it right when they finally do some high windows in BR green. I think Adam mentioned that the green would be better this time, or words to that effect.

Dave

chrism · February 10, 2026, 11:17:03 AM

Quote from: Bealman on February 09, 2026, 11:39:07 PMWouldn't the real thing be variable anyway because of being out in the weather?

Very much so.

I remember seeing a pic (not sure if it was in here or not) of two preserved GWR vans in completely different shades of grey. The photographer said that he'd asked the people who'd restored them what the difference was and got the reply "About six months".

martyn · February 10, 2026, 12:38:15 PM

The Southern Railway/Region was very good at just revarnishing rather than a full repaint, so presumably this would also lead to variation in the green.

Martyn

Cols · February 10, 2026, 02:26:00 PM

I will not set myself up as an expert. (My late father's definition of that term was, "X is an unknown quantity, and a spurt us a drip under pressure!") However, as I am an artist, colour is somewhat important to me. (Apparently, I have very good colour vision.)

Dapol's interpretation of BR(SR) BR Stock Green is several tones too light, and I'm not very sure whether they have got the hue right. When Farish first introduced their Mk.1 stock they got the Stock Green spot on, and were praised for this at the time; however, when Farish introduced their excellent Bulleid stock, they had again achieved the correct hue but not the correct tone - it is slightly too dark, though I find the error to be so very small as to be acceptable.

From nearly sixty years' experience, I have found that the very best colour match for BR Stock Green is Precision Paints enamel BR Stock Green. I too have a repaint job looming to correct the very anaemic Dapol colour!

A couple of months ago, I raised this matter as an aside when I welcomed the prospect of Dapol producing ex-LMS non-gangwayed stock. @Adam1701D commented on my aside, and made a hint that the Dapol Maunsell High Window stock may reappear, this time in BR Stock Green (of the CORRECT hue and shade!)

My fingers are very, very firmly crossed!

bluedepot · February 10, 2026, 02:49:50 PM

didn't farish produce mk1s in two different shades of green??

or did i imagine that?!

I don't think it matters that much because paint did fade in real life anyway. I don't think a rake of coaches needs to match perfectly!