And here's the video:
Monday, January 19, 2026
Traxx HLE 29 - part 9 and done
Here's how it looks after the varnish:
Removing the masking was very easy with a toothpick:
I fixed the couple of issues on the roof and started to look into the DCC decoder:
Here's the final result:
Sunday, January 11, 2026
Wednesday, January 7, 2026
Traxx HLE 29 - part 7
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| Worked on the other side |
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| Unfortunately, after drying, the decal shrunk somehow ... Probably too much Ammo Fix #2 |
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| Let's start again, glad I have more decals ... |
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| Clean again |
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| Just a drop of Ammo Fix #2 |
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| Much better! |
Next step the two fronts!
Monday, January 5, 2026
Traxx HLE 29 - part 6
After painting, decals ...
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| Very happy with this repaint job! |
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| Masking the windows before the gloss coat |
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| After the gloss coat is dry, we can put the decals |
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| Still wet with the Decal Fixer |
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| And now dry. Not perfect, but okay for a second decal experience. |
Sunday, January 4, 2026
Traxx HLE 29 - part 5
After masking, painting ...
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| This is the first coat and I didn't like it because of some dust or something similar |
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| Interestingly under a certain angle, you can still see the old numbers AFTER the paint ... |
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| Once fully dry, I did a quick sanding with a 5000 paper for a second coat |
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| This is the second coat - very wet, needs to dry! |
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| Once fully cured! |
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| It looks pretty nice - only a couple of small defects! |
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| The aftermath ... |
Saturday, January 3, 2026
Traxx HLE 29 - part 4
Well, I found the miracle product for removing the numbers: I tried the "Solution Anti Adhésif - GILBERT" on a cotton swab, not to much, then use the other side that is dry to rub and slowly remove the numbers.
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| That's the side with my first attempt with sandpaper |
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| That's before |
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| That's after, very clean! |
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| That's after on the other side, very clean, and we see a bit of shine with the light |
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| But it looks very good without direct light |
The other task is now to repaint the side with the sandpaper "mistake". First step is masking:
I bought Tamiya Spray Lacquer TS-83 Metallic Silver. We shall see ...
Sunday, December 21, 2025
Traxx HLE 29 - part 3
Picking up this project again ...
The designer of my custom decals suggested this technique to remove marking:
I followed those instructions: once for 12 minutes and once more for another 12 minutes but no luck.
So I went back to the sanding technique with 5000 sand paper and water:
Sadly, it did remove some of the metallic paint ....
So, I'm left with repainting the sides and I believe I will also paint the red nose over the markings. This is stock pictures to show the colors:
I was able to remove the roof, so masking should be fairly easy. Now I need to find the right colors either in spray cans or for the airbrush ...





















































