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In Praise of Praze
 

Rule Britannia

So what is the plan with two models at different scales? To start with it’s a bit like our early years of marriage, having graduated and found a job, we found ourselves in the position of having time to travel but no money to do it.  Well now thirty years later with retirement on the horizon it is the reverse, more money but less free time.  So now is the time to buy the stock (rolling and otherwise) while I can afford it and tinker at modelling, while anticipating retirement. As menti
MullionPeter

MullionPeter

0
PannierTanker’s projects
 

Fictional liveries: the EWS Riddles 2-10-0

Once, during my many story making times, I imagined what it would be like if we started to use steam power again. A best designs would be both the Riddles WD 2-10-0 and the 9F. For this part of the story it involved freight movements of the 2025s where the WD 2-10-0 design was built to super-modern standards and runs on recycled coffee instead of coal (I don’t actually know if this would work, but it’s a nice idea) Since not being built for the WD, the re-designed WDs had to find a new
0.87
Another N7 goes to EM gauge

Another N7 goes to EM gauge

OK so I'm one of the (Oxford Rail) N7 fans.   I pretty much have to be, as I am working on this layout project.   Fortunately I already was a fan as I currently live in Homerton (on the east side of Hackney in London) not far from the  the Great Eastern Railway line on its viaduct running up through Cambridge Heath, London Fields and Hackney Downs. This was one of the chief routes on which the N7 was used and a little bit of reading got me interested in the whole history of t
readingtype

readingtype

1
Kelvinbank, a Caledonian Railway project.
A brake wagon, or two.....

A brake wagon, or two.....

Happy new year to everyone.   So not one for celebrations and fed up with the dead time twixt Christmas and New year I decided to make something. I looked about and ferreted in various boxes, what did I have at my disposal? One last sheet of 10 thou styrene. An idea formed, a brake wagon. Something that has been sitting in the back of my head for a while. So I dug out the wagon book, scanned and sized the the drawing and re-read the section about them in the book and the CR forum.
Dave John

Dave John

2
anroar53's Blog
Into the New Year, some more photos

Into the New Year, some more photos

A class 87 heads a Euston to Wolverhampton Express through Watford, as a 304 EMU sets off for Euston on a service from Birmingham via Northampton.     Out at Linslade the Southbound Manchester Pullman overtakes a Western Visitor on some loaded Hoppers.     The southbound Flasks pass Linslade on the Up Slow Line.     Giving the HST a spin, passing south through Watford on the Up Fast Line.     The Up Bletchley Mai
anroar53

anroar53

1
Jam's Workbench
Folding Workbench - Part 2: Cutting Out Components

Folding Workbench - Part 2: Cutting Out Components

With the design for the modelmaking desk sorted, it was time to start work on its construction. Being almost useless at cutting wood straight, this means some sort of power tool is the order of the day; especially with these 12mm and 18mm thick lengths of plywood to cut through. The answer is a Skilsaw; a battery-powered one to be specific. Essentially a hand-held circular saw, it makes light work of most woods, including engineered wood like MDF and plywood; which is notoriously tough. Fir
In Praise of Praze
 

A fresh start after 30+ years

At last, after over 30 years’ absence from model railways I have begun to model the Helston Branch line.  In my late teens I chose to model the Helston Branch Line because I grew up in Mullion and attended Helston Comprehensive School.  Every day for many years I would pass the former site of the station to and from school, in a “routemaster” bus just like the one in some of the archived photos of the station.  It is probable that it was the very same bus.  In addition, when I endured the agony
MullionPeter

MullionPeter

2
Sandy Shores - A sunbleached seaside railway
Sandy Shores - Wooden Platform Shelter

Sandy Shores - Wooden Platform Shelter

A tiny freelance platform shelter for Sandy Shores Even on the blissful fictional spit of Sandy Shores, where it's seemingly sunny year-round, the passengers of the SSLR still need a roof over their heads. As would be expected from such a fledgling line run by volunteers, there simply isn't the money to build anything grand; so all buildings are built on a shoestring budget. When it was proposed that the tiny halt at the end of the spit would need a small waiting shelter, a local carpenter
Leith Central
Leith Central Bachmann 45t Crane Review

Leith Central Bachmann 45t Crane Review

Bachmann 38-803 Crane RS1097 BR Breakdown Red   RRP: £249.95 Paid: £224,95 Length: 33cm Box: Card/Blister Plastic Scale: 00   So I finally braved getting one of these and first reaction is WOW!!!   Getting it out of the box and just placing it on the bench was impressive. At over 30cm long and around 15cm with the jib up it does have a great sense of size to it. Moving in closer you realise the level of detail we have come to expect is
Leith Centrl

Leith Centrl

0
Bredon / Talyllyn inspired 6' x 4' family layout
00 track finalisation - Where to isolate?

00 track finalisation - Where to isolate?

Surfing the wave of a functioning layout to look at the 'nice to haves' ...   Currently trains can be parked in the sidings or the lower space between points 9 and 10, but there are a couple of glitches that prevent more flexibility:   Between points 8 - 6. It would be nice to have a train waiting at the platform while another could shunt out of the sidings onto track 2, however this is currently impossible as the LH Point 8 and RH point 6 means that the track between them is
metijg

metijg

4
Barry Ten's Blog
 

Western Pullman - recap and progress

Over the last few years I've dipped in and out of a very long-term project to create an 8-car Western Pullman set. As the model is now close to completion, and there is interest in the 6-car WR sets due to Bachmann's new version of their original Midland Pullman, I thought it wouldn't hurt to do a bit of a recap of the story so far.   Back in 2007 there wasn't any hint of an RTR Blue Pullman on the horizon from any of the manufacturers, with most commentators of the view that it would
Barry Ten

Barry Ten

10
Southern Fabricator's Blog
The Long Drag to Garsdale – Out In The Country 4

The Long Drag to Garsdale – Out In The Country 4

Grazing in the grass is a gas, baby,can you dig it: from The Friends of Distinction was going to be my other title as I’ve been laying down quite a bit of Woodland Scenics fine turf as my base before I get into more detail using static grass to build up my diorama. On my first module it was by pure luck it went so well, but some time had past since I’d completed it and I had to relearn the technique used then ‘cause I’d forgotten it!   Therefore for my own edification I thought be
Southern Fabricator

Southern Fabricator

0
From the bench of the Firecracker
 

Having a woody good time!

Here’s my quick, easy and dirty way to get plastic to look more like wood.   Here were attacking the interior of three wagons, two Hornby and one Bachman.   Most of the ideas were nicked off various YouTube tutorials and demonstrations of various products.  One important thing is that this will give a grain to the finish, so identify which way this is running (usually along the length of a plank) and your brushstrokes should be in that direction.   First, here’s what we start with.  Th
Firecracker

Firecracker

0
Jam's Workbench
Folding Workbench - Part 1: The Design

Folding Workbench - Part 1: The Design

6th JAN 2020 - NOW UPDATED WITH CUTTING LIST AND DRAWINGS   If you’re anything like me, you’ll have spent a long time over the years causing mischief and annoyance by commandeering any available workspace, so that you can carry on modelmaking (or making a mess, according to those less-versed in the intricacies of… OK, yeah, it’s usually a mess!). Anyway, the point is, now that I've started doing the odd commissions for a magazine, it was about time I had a dedicated work surface which
SouthernRegionSteam

SouthernRegionSteam

0
Fen End Pit's Blog
New 3d printer - Ender 5 Pro

New 3d printer - Ender 5 Pro

My clever wife bought me a new 3D printer for Christmas (how did she guess what I wanted?)   I was a bit concerned because the box was shipped direct from China by FedEx via what appears to be a puddle at Cologne Airport. Creality customer service were very helpful and we decided it was worth trying to build it and just replace any bits if we found they had been damaged. In the end everything went together very easily ( about 30-45 minutes assembly to first print) and I managed t
Fen End Pit

Fen End Pit

3
rockershovel's Blog
 

Goodbye, Mr Chips..

I’m not a great watcher of tv at Xmas or any other time, but I do enjoy it occasionally. This year’s unsung gem was Martin Clunes’ rather touching performance as the eponymous Mr Chips.    I first read the book long ago, when it was banned at the Perse School. The author had been a pupil at The Leys School, across town, and much of the setting (a rather outdated, High Church, minor public school in decaying, historic buildings amid an East Anglian setting) was a poke at the Perse Schoo
rockershovel

rockershovel

0
The Sayersbridge and Penmouth Railway
 

A Run Along The Line (Version 2) and History (Version 2)

Due to changes in the way I've interpreted landscape and geology, I've modified the line's route, so below is the new Run Along The Line: "From the large market town of Sayersbridge situated on the north-east bank of the River Stur, the main line to Exeter crosses the river by a low embankment to reach the south-west side where the line to Penmouth diverges to the south. It passes through the wooded area of Cold Holt before emerging onto low rolling arable farming land. Further south it
Ian J.

Ian J.

0
Sands Road Workbench
Sands Road - Winter Maintenance

Sands Road - Winter Maintenance

Whilst the tracks were out of use on Sands Road over Christmas I've taken the time to do some repairs and work on the existing fleet. The tracks are currently drying from being ballasted and other ongoing scenery work that prevents me from running trains at the moment. A number of repairs on the loco front have been made to make sure everything is in good condition.   Locos:  The Prototype HST has had new traction tyres and brushes as I had quite a few more tyres over from the
AlexHolt

AlexHolt

0
The Fatadder's Modern Workbench
1998 Fleet: Other locos - A Summary

1998 Fleet: Other locos - A Summary

Finally its on to the "other" classes for which the fleet doesn't contain enough locos to make up a whole page.  As per the Class 37s and 47s in each case locos are fitted with P4 wheels (Maygib or Ultrascale) and a Lenz Gold decoder, plus etched names where needed.  Photos have all been taken from previous blog posts and are not necessarily in current condition, the intention is that everything will be re-photographed on my photo plank to get a decent image of each loco.  Putting the loco numbe
The Fatadder

The Fatadder

0
Bredon / Talyllyn inspired 6' x 4' family layout
OO Track laying V4 - Breakthrough!

OO Track laying V4 - Breakthrough!

What a difference a Jigsaw and a pair of Xuron cutters makes!   After the frustration of last time we shifted tactics:  Locate point motors directly onto the track rather than going through the board, by Jigsawing holes big enough for the whole motor. Massive win in terms of ease of installation and having the perfect actuation and electrical contact.  Easily worth the small loss of credibility for not doing things the hard wayl!   Goodbye Hornby, hello Peco! I'm still d
metijg

metijg

0
rockershovel's Blog
Early 60s comparison ..

Early 60s comparison ..

Given the threads about older Hornby models and coarse scale O Gauge, I thought I’d toss this one in. Saw it on eBay. I’m not interested in this particular loco, but it’s an unusually pristine example of what Lionel were actually producing between WW2 and the 1960s. This might be described as “the top of their mainstream range” as opposed to the rare, much-coveted and very expensive “Scale Hudson”     
rockershovel

rockershovel

0
The Fatadder's Modern Workbench
1998 Class 47s: A summary

1998 Class 47s: A summary

Having summarised my Class 37 fleet, now its time for my Class 47s, this is intended to serve as something of an index, as well as a record of the fleet.  If you use the search in this blog function and search for the loco number it should take you to the right page.     47xxx Railfreight Distribution I need a second Railfreight liveried 47, if I can source another body it will likely be a mashup of Bachmann body on Heljan gear towers / motor and an etched brass chassis frame
The Fatadder

The Fatadder

0
The Fatadder's Modern Workbench
1998 Class 37s: A Summary

1998 Class 37s: A Summary

37230: Transrail Dutch - Resprayed from a BR Blue Bachmann 37/0 with the ends modernised with high intensity headlights, fitted with Extreme Etchings roof and frost grills.  Photo taken before the glazing was refitted   37057 Viking EW&S - I need to source a cheap Bachmann split box loco ideally in EWS to renumber / rebuild the roof.  If I cant source a Bachmann model at the right price, it will eventually get made from the Accurascale model.   37403: BR Green - Res
The Fatadder

The Fatadder

0

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    • Richard Jones
      A pair of brake wagons , part 2

      By Richard Jones · Posted

      It wasn't me - I've retired!   Oddly, about 20 years ago I was interviewed for a transfer to HMRI (as it was then) and would have moved had it not been for a clerical error within HSE... on the positive side, staying with HM NII did enable me to retire 2 years early and RI suffered somewhat following the Kings X fire being split off from HSE....
    • JRamsden
      Backscenes

      By JRamsden · Posted

      I didn't want to put the actual manufacturer in the main post otherwise it would just be "look at this cool product from so-an-so!" But since you asked... they came from this website: PremierPrint I have no affiliation with the company, just a very happy customer There are loads of places online that offer the same service so I spent a while looking at prices. Prices vary from somewhere in the £30 region for my biggest panel(!) right down to closer to £10 for one panel. PremierPrint appear
    • JRamsden
      Backscenes

      By JRamsden · Posted

      Thanks, I'm really plaesed. Hoping to get them attached to the board today   I will be clear though, the print does not go around the edge of the Foamex. What they contacted me about was the photo not fitting exactly to the top surface because I had made a miscalculation. Edge printing would have been amazing, however I don't think it would be possible with this material.    
    • DBC90024
      i dooooooo not belieeeeeeeeeve it

      By DBC90024 · Posted

      Hi Dave,   Thank you for your message, I was beginning to think did anyone actually see the ramblings of an electric traction enthusiast? but fortunately it would appear that they do... yes, its a bit strange, Bachmann have launched four new Class 90s yet none are suitable for my genre, Hornby launch my dream class 90 after i had only just got rid of all of my Hornby Class 90s. Am i a bit miffed? you bet i am... bear in mind that at one point, i had:   90017 EWS 90019 DB
    • micklner
      Remotoring a Hornby Q6

      By micklner · Posted

      Ray,        I have just looked at my secondhand Hornby Q6 63443 which appears to be virtually new. I have run it on a rolling road for a hour so far, the body is very slightly warm at this stage, the motor runs well in all of the speed range. How long did yours take ( approx ) to get to the stage that it required it to be changed please. I am undecided whether to leave mine as it is now.      I have already bought the replacement motor you mentioned above earlier , this has been tested

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