As noted in my previous post the fret of lamp brackets is truly beyond my capabilities. A decent desk light from Maplins helped to prove this as I could actually see that it wasn't going to work out to my satisfaction. The lamp brackets on the Dean Goods require an L shaped piece of brass which is then bent twice, one on each limb, to create the required shape. The fitting is then glued with CA to the front of the buffer beam. Well, this is the theory. In practice I simply could not get it
A quick update. Back in England and some progress has been made. Smokebox dart fitted, a great improvement. But the brass fret of lamp brackets, oh dear, so small and fragile and my eyesight not good enough and my fingers like lamb chops. I need to buy a desk lamp for my workbench before trying again.
I finally bought some Isopropyl alcohol at Maplins and have removed the BR lion, lining and number. I have also fitted the Comet PCBs for eventual electrical pickup.
Once the lamp brac
Well, the Dean Goods may be in France but some of the key parts are still in England, hence the hiatus.
But I have managed to test the motor and gearbox and everything is OK. Except that I need to add those all important extra washers to keep the gear in the correct position above the worm. I also need to add a couple of PECO fiber washers outside the frame to limit the sideways play, but I can't seem to locate them (they must have been left behind), so I am reluctant to start dissembling
I am almost speechless at the recently announced loss to this world of the owner of Comet Models, Geoff Brewin.
My condolences go to his family and close friends. I met him once, at Leamington this Spring, and am very glad I did. Comet's service was second to none, that was Geoff's way.
I have placed my pre-order for the recently announced Dave Jones / Hattons King Henry V, 6019.
There is a wide range of choice, so why this model? Well, it was shedded at Wolverhampton Stafford Road in the mid 1930s which coincides with the time period for the Shipston Branch. But 6019 was severely restricted as to route availability, so it won't be showing up at Shipston on a reality basis!
My affection for the King 60XX Class goes back to my early days as a train spotter, certainly b
The Dean Goods project has gone overseas, just like the prototype, to France. But unlike the prototype, its tender has had major surgery to remove that hideous lump of plastic coal.
The first area was the main lump. I decided to work on this and leave the front of the tender until later as the structural integrity of the plastic "box" was none too secure. So here is the result of much drilling, snipping, cutting and then rebuilding:
Then I tackled the front end. I am very happy to s
Having set the tender aside, and with Bank Holiday rain to prevent any outdoor activity, I started on the loco chassis.
All in all, things have gone well, barring a couple of silly mistakes which were easily rectified. The chassis fits nicely into the Hornby shell with a few minor adjustments with the craft knife. The tiny Mashima motor and gearbox were not too difficult to assemble and the mechanism is ready for testing before being stripped down for painting. The coupling rods and crank
I have started on the Dean Goods 0-6-0 and the tender is basically built, minus the rear buffer beam, so here is an update. The Comet kit comes in two parts, tender chassis and tender frame. The Hornby shell sits on top of the frame after some whittling and still needs that hideous pile of coal to be excised.
The chassis includes the brake gear and could have a water pickup but this has been excluded:
The frame contains the rest of the undercarriage:
The two bolt together b
Bank Holiday Weekend, cold, cloudy, oh well, what to do?
We drove over to Burton Dasset and then selected a random area to explore, namely the crest of the Oxford Canal near Fenny Compton. Fenny Compton was where the GWR and the S&MJR lines crossed and we were just south of the twin stations, neither of which now stands. The Oxford Canal is considered to be one of the country's most scenic and in this area it certainly lives up to its reputation.
As at Watford Gap, the canal, railw
As some of you may know, Geoff Brewin at Comet Models is recovering from an illness but continues to serve his customers on a more gentle regimen than usual. Having met Geoff at the Leamington Show earlier this year I have found his products and customer service to be right up there at the top. I have several kits waiting to be started on and the latest is the chassis kits for the Hornby Dean Goods 0-6-0:
The photo shows the two body shells from the Hornby model - I was able to purcha
All the research is slowly coming together, though there still remain some leads that may help sort out details.
Given the upgrade of the entire tramway to steam operation in the 1930s (probably late 1930s as this allows for a wider selection of available rolling stock), and with the GWR afforded running rights into Stratford and beyond, most of the line’s locomotive power would have been GWR origin though with some inevitable running from the LMS motive power at Stratford 21D. It is probable
On returning home today this second hand book was waiting on the doormat and a useful resource it is too! There is certainly some overlap with other volumes available but also some new material that supports the theoretical expansion of the Shipston Branch that I am contemplating. The wider picture is always useful when asking the question "what if"?
Three more wagons/vans have been modified with three link couplings and as usual one was difficult, but the other two relatively easy.
The first took over an hour with a lot of drilling and cutting to make space for the springing, but the result is pleasing, a fine model by Dapol of the Fruit D:
After lunch and a nap, I tackled two Bachmanns. The first is an LMS cattle wagon and I found the installation quite straightforward:
Pleased with progress, another Bachmann, t
Here's an interesting piece of history in South Warwickshire. Who would have thought that two Stroudley A1X Terriers found their way to the region? They were purchased by the Edge Hill Light Railway from the LB&SCR to work on shuttling iron ore to the Stratford and Midland Joint Railway. Ironically the workings were uneconomic and the two tank engines languished until finally being scrapped in 1946.
The tanks could have been perfect for working the theoretical Stratford-Shipston light
My first ever visit to Peco in Beer, East Devon. Why have I waited so long? Really comprehensive stock (including some non Peco brands and hard to find bits "kept under the counter"). The touchy feely aspect of a large model shop, coupled with helpful staff, makes one realize that the mail order business model does lack a certain "je ne sais quoi".
I now know that Ratio sells some coach kits that will fit right in (4 wheel GWR, Suburban Midland, grounded coach) while it was really useful
I don't like any of the available easy couplers offered by the RTR manufacturers. One caveat, Kadees are perfect for North American models because they emulate the real thing. But for OO gauge the options vary from bent wire to the Nem style.
I prefer screw and three link couplers, but modifying many models can be a real pain. There is no hard and fast rule but I have found that Bachmann are possibly the easiest to modify. Dapol glue some of their vans together which have to be prized ap
Classic Train and Motor Bus sponsored a special Bachmann TOAD guards van, modeled on one stationed at Stratford on Avon, which will look right on the expanded Shipston Branch (it may have even got there anyway, via Honeybourne and Moreton). Here it is with 3 link couplings, fitted this afternoon during a thunderstorm.
A quick and low quality shot of the two 4 wheel composites acquired on Wednesday, now with 3 link couplings and paired with the out of the box Bachmann 57XX. Nice to be able to show a photo for a change!
Visited Mark at Classic Trains and Motor Bus in Leamington this afternoon. Lots of useful information about the branch line and some future contacts who may have more. Bought a Hornby Dean Goods (new) as well as two second hand 4 wheel GWR composites, the sort that would have been around in the 1930s, having been relegated to one of the company's least important branches. Also a GW horse box. Mark has commissioned another Bachmann wagon which will be available "soon". A local Leamington coa
I finally got hold of the definitive book "Shipston-on-Stour Branch" by S C Jenkins and R S Carpenter. It is a well written history of both the original Tramway and the light railway which is the focus of this blog. Many of the photos are already published on the internet but in some cases the quality is better and the descriptions perhaps more accurate.
The politics of branch lines keeps cropping up throughout the history and it does seem quite practical to make a "what if" assumption abo
My purist sentiment says that I should persevere with a 1935 era accurate rendering of a GWR branch. And there is no reason why this should not be the initial aim for the project.
But what then, when the layout is finished. Well, there are two options. The first is to make a bold assumption that Dr. Beeching never existed, that old branch lines were encouraged to exist, that Ernest Marples was never Minister of Transport and road taxes on trucks became exorbitant. So not only did passeng
I have access to both Google and Apple mapping apps so it is always worth a look to see what remains of a branch line that ceased to exist a looooong time ago!
Sometimes the line is easily recognized as two rows of overgrown hedges. Sometimes the line disappears across a ploughed field. The worst case is when a housing development completely eradicates history, as in Shipston-on-Stour.
It is also interesting to see the old crossing cottages, sold off 40 years ago or more. In one case the
Thanks to rmweb.co.uk I have been able to meet a fellow member SteveNCB7754 who lived in Shipston and measured many of the old station buildings and then made beautiful models of them. They were without a home but now have one as I picked them up today. They will appear from time to time in future posts and I will always remember to give the true origin of the artisan workmanship that went into them. Thank you, Steve, for getting in touch. I have a lot to live up to now.
Yesterday I received the 14XX chassis kit from Comet. So now I have two Airfix 14XX locos and one chassis. The scope of the project is to make one locomotive bearing a pre-1946 GWR number in the 48XX series.Here are the two locos and the Comet kit:
The recently purchased GWR 14XX is in reasonable condition but not complete:
The original BR 14XX I purchased new many years ago with front buffer beam damage and many bits missing:
The Comet kit includes motor, gearbox, whe
I put this together from screen captures on the Windows on Warwickshire website:
What the map doesn't show is that west of the abandoned Longdon Station (Halt) the original tramway joined from the north.
In the past we have noted several of the road crossings of the now abandoned line with the usual clues. Some of the crossing cottages will no doubt hold clues as to the local architecture, choice of brick, etc. employed by the owners of the line.
