Model Rail 248 June 2018

[dibber25]

MODEL RAIL June 2018 Issue No. 248

 

Publication date: 10 May 2018

 

Dust your layout and green-up your scenery, because Spring is here!

 

Here’s what we’ve got for you this month:

Opening the box:

This month’s news includes a first glimpse of the Dapol Class 29, another Model Rail ‘J70’ sample to examine, plus 3D printed Leek & Manifold structures, Oxford’a GWR signalbox and a crowd-funded APT-P. Kelly Harding talks about DEMU and Chris Leigh’s Spring Clean becomes a demolition job.

 

Layouts and features:

Patience prevails on Farnham MRC’s Wickwar layout in ‘N’ gauge, while Coxbridge and Drayton features Middle England in ‘OO’.

Holiday Haunts. Layout designs by Paul Lunn

Loco Spotlight: Stroudley’s ‘Terriers’

 

Workbench

20 pages of Workbench includes:

Model Spring landscapes (Peter Marriott)

Choose 5 great trees (PM)

Make trees fast (Paul Marshall-Potter)

Spring clean your layout (Chris Leigh)

Make an inexpensive windmill (Chris Nevard)

 

WIN!

A Bachmann Class 66, superbly re-finished by Dave Lowery as 66783 in GBRf Biffa livery as The Flying Dustman

 

Reviews:

Dapol ‘57xx’ 0-6-0PT in ‘O’.

Bachmann Class 70 (modified)

 

Regulars:

Know your stuff, Show & Tell, The Club Room, Exhibition Diary, Backscene. 

Edited May 9, 2018 by dibber25

[gwrrob]

No review of the Heljan 47xx yet then Chris ?

[dibber25]

No review of the Heljan 47xx yet then Chris ?

 

Should there be? (CJL)

[kevinlms]

Can you fix the thread title?

[dibber25]

Can you fix the thread title?

 

Done. Should be 248 - slip of the finger. (CJL)

Edited May 9, 2018 by dibber25

[gwrrob]

Should there be? (CJL)

 

I was rather hoping someone would as it's a new release.

[dibber25]

There will be a '47XX' review - next issue. A lot going through the system at present. (CJL)

[Clearwater]

I was rather hoping someone would as it's a new release.

Looking at the preview screen, there’s a review in RM of the 47xx.

 

David

[grahame]

An enjoyable issue.

 

My modelling doesn't involve a lot of pastoral green stuff like trees and grass (being mainly urban) but I'm going to get one of those Gaugemaster starter static sets for the little greenery I do need to model.

 

G

[Legend]

I was rather hoping someone would as it's a new release.

It’s in this months Hornby Mag too, along with the first review I’ve seen of Hornbys 87

[rue_d_etropal]

Still too much devoted to reviews of new r2r. Sorry but a page is enough, and would give more space for real modelling articles.

[dibber25]

Still too much devoted to reviews of new r2r. Sorry but a page is enough, and would give more space for real modelling articles.

 

There's at least 20pp of modelling articles and - from memory about 8pp of reviews, which still come top of all our surveys. No reviewer can do justice to a new locomotive model in one page. (CJL)

[grahame]

Still too much devoted to reviews of new r2r. Sorry but a page is enough, and would give more space for real modelling articles.

That's one opinion, but I'd assume there are other alternative ones. And, AFAIA, there are no rules stating that one page is enough and any more is 'too much'.

 

As Chris says, it's a matter of doing justice and MR does have a reputation for the best in-depth reviews. There is the option of taking alternative magazines whose reviews are more brief, but I'd like to see MR continue to lead the way with worthwhile and more extensive detailed ones.

 

G

[dibber25]

That's one opinion, but I'd assume there are other alternative ones. And, AFAIA, there are no rules stating that one page is enough and any more is 'too much'.

 

As Chris says, it's a matter of doing justice and MR does have a reputation for the best in-depth reviews. There is the option of taking alternative magazines whose reviews are more brief, but I'd like to see MR continue to lead the way with worthwhile and more extensive detailed ones.

 

G

 

We certainly intend to! (CJL)

[ColinK]

I took up the 26 digital issues for £26 and had the order confirmed. Also recieved an email saying I’ll be getting an issue soon. But I haven’t recieved anything since. I’ve installed the app too and the new magazine is not there. So wondering where my copy is.

[rue_d_etropal]

I have been active in hobby for over 40 years, and followed most of the magazines over the years. I know a lot of people in the hobby, and I am not the only one who thinks the reviews are too long. There might not be rules on how long a review can be, but the norm used to be no more than a page. Also these reviews are mainly on r2r models from big companies and maybe there should be more to promote the smaller operations, many being run by one person .

Granted Chris did a good piece about my inset track system a couple of years ago, but there is a lot going on out there. If these smaller outfits were to get more coverage, then some of them might get more attention(and custom), and then be able to advertise more in magazines. Advertising in magazines does work, but to increase number of adverts there needs to be enough custom. Magazines need more smaller outfits advertising. Far more big companies (especially retail) seem to be closing, so they can't be depended on, long term. 

We all need to help each other. In fact I worked on something when Paul mentioned to me that he was doing the current article , and had included more info about what I had done for him, but due to lack of space, it was cut. I am always happy to help anyone who asks, assuming I am not too busy. Luckily most requests seem to come in at the right time. If I costed my timeI could afford to employ myself.

 

Back to the magazine, nice to see articles such as one on the old Airfix(now Dapol) windmill. good to see someone else knows about Halfords acryllic primers, as the grey one is reconned to be the best and is recommended by many military modellers and wargamers. I find mos acryllic grey primers work well, as a primer on plastic, and you only need to be outside if you are usng the spray cans. I use what I can find, but it has to be matt. Once dry I can then paint over with any paint, even emulsion. I would describe my technique more wet than dry, but I believe gravity and water are main forces that create the muck  on buildings.   Image at top of my website shows what can be done this way.

[grahame]

I have been active in hobby for over 40 years, and followed most of the magazines over the years. I know a lot of people in the hobby, and I am not the only one who thinks the reviews are too long. There might not be rules on how long a review can be, but the norm used to be no more than a page.

Oddly enough I too have been active in the hobby for over 40 years and so too have a lot of other railway modellers. And, yep, I've followed, read and subscribed to just about all the commercial magazines over the years.

 

However, I don't think the MR reviews are too long and I know of many who would also agree with that. I'm thankful that MR break the mould with regards to reviewing in depth and detail especially if the norm is less than a page, although I've not noticed that myself. But, of course, if anyone wants a pared down review they can read the magazines that offer reduced ones.

 

Personally I prefer that magazines provide a choice and that there are lengthy reviews as well as skimpy ones. If they were all the same and followed 'rules', such as no more than a page for a review, it would make them all similar and basically clones. Be thankful for differences and choice.

 

G

[dibber25]

Reviews are not based on the size of the company but it is a fact that 90% of the products that come in for review are ready-to-run items, and they tend to be from the larger manufacturers. Many of the products from smaller manufacturers get passed out to George or to one of our contributors and they then appear in an article - usually in the Workbench section - which enables us to give better coverage on how the product is used. We also feature products from smaller manufacturers in our news pages, where we'll publish a picture of a product and the availability details if, perhaps, the model is not available to us for a more extended coverage. Reviews-wise, I think if we are talking experience, I have around 55 years experience in writing reviews and I learned how to do it as a teenager, from my then Editor, Alan Williams who (with his predecessor Geoff Kichenside) was actually responsible for making detailed and authoritative reviews a feature of the model railway press. I frequently have to cut my reviews to make them fit the allotted space (even sometimes with 4pp allowed) and I certainly would not consider that I had done my job if all I produced was a 200-word precis of a review. 

It used to annoy me that certain magazines would use a manufacturer's photo and publicity blurb as a 'review' - particularly in the heyday of white metal kits - as I knew that they had done no more than just look at the bits in the box. So, when we started Model Rail and I was asked what my policy on reviews would be, I said "if it's a kit we'll build it. If it isn't we'll take it apart." We rarely see any kits these days, and if we do, they get built for Workbench, but I still take rtr models apart, witness my analysis and cure of the derailment issue with the recent Hornby IET. That was a model which certainly could not be done justice in one page. (CJL)

[PMP]

 

Back to the magazine, nice to see articles such as one on the old Airfix(now Dapol) windmill. good to see someone else knows about Halfords acryllic primers, .

The article on fast trees using Woodland Scenics armatures also uses Halfords acrylics. It seems you’re suggesting that people in the Model Railway hobby don’t know about using the Halfords acrylics primers, when in fact they are very widely used in my experience.

An example here http://www.rmweb.co.uk/community/index.php?/topic/55966-raf-kinloss-mrc-halfords-paint-list-2012-version/

 

And this example where a good part of both soft and hard landscape has been painted using Halfords primers and paint from the standard car colour range.

[LBRJ]

Picking up on PMP's point above, there seems to be a whole renaissance  of people using idea that were in vogue 15 years ago and claiming they are new.

 

I reckon someday soon someone will be using ply girders for baseboards and medical lint for ground cover - probably on a layout they call Apetherick

[Hroth]

The article on fast trees using Woodland Scenics armatures also uses Halfords acrylics. It seems you’re suggesting that people in the Model Railway hobby don’t know about using the Halfords acrylics primers, when in fact they are very widely used in my experience.

An example here http://www.rmweb.co.uk/community/index.php?/topic/55966-raf-kinloss-mrc-halfords-paint-list-2012-version/

 

A3A098BF-7A40-44CD-AE8B-2D75752B7CA0.jpeg

And this example where a good part of both soft and hard landscape has been painted using Halfords primers and paint from the standard car colour range.

And the nice use of the Airfix/Dapol platform canopy in the foreground!

[Ruffnut Thorston]

I have bought my copy of Model Rail today....I went to Tescos, hoping that the bundle with Steam Railway that I bought last monyh would be available again....

 

Unfortunately not!

 

This issue was bought mainly for the Terrier (part 2) article.

[ColinK]

I took up the 26 digital issues for £26 and had the order confirmed. Also recieved an email saying I’ll be getting an issue soon. But I haven’t recieved anything since. I’ve installed the app too and the new magazine is not there. So wondering where my copy is.

Still heard nothing, when I get a day off work I’ll have to phone the publisher, will probably cancel subscription and ask for my money back.

[dibber25]

Still heard nothing, when I get a day off work I’ll have to phone the publisher, will probably cancel subscription and ask for my money back.

 

digitalmagazinesupport@bauermedia.co.uk