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  1. Hi all, Thanks Phil - just to add a little more detail and context.. It's fair to say that so far we have noticed no significant change, but it is early days. And the caveat is that on a day to day basis we don't really see consistent orders coming in. They tend to come in surges when we open up the order book for a new product, or have an order deadline coming up. We'll get a stronger feel for whether this has had any appreciable impact on our supporters from the response to the Mk5 coaches in N, which have just opened for ordering, and the IPA car carriers in 00 which will be opening for orders soon. Naturally we have sympathy to anyone who may have lost money with the various DJM projects, but as far as Revolution goes we would point to a track record of transparency and delivery. Crowdfunding certainly *can* work, especially for niche projects, the important thing is how it's managed. cheers Ben A.
    37 points
  2. It won't and such sweeping statements are unfair on other parties who demonstrate an ethical and transparent approach. It could be considered a good thing that, to avoid comparisons, businesses who utilise the method will work harder to communicate with stakeholders about progress and mean more clarity. If they can't do that then, yes, some will suffer if they cannot adapt to the environment.
    28 points
  3. It's raining again, and the peonies have been battered to death. Smart meter to be fitted today, but I pity the poor person who has to work outside on it in this weather. Still, by this evening I should have yet another gadget which is smarter than me. At PN, A4s rule again. Silver Fox has backed onto the Glasgow. and then Mallard rolls through with the Talisman.
    24 points
  4. Morning all. A 'guest' monochrome image from Ivor Peterborough this morning. Rob.
    24 points
  5. It's time to announce our next wagon in 4mm scale; the iconic Redpath Dorman Long built PTA/JTA/JUA bogie iron-ore/stone tippler wagons. These characterful wagons were built in three batches by the British Steel subsidiary Redpath Dorman Long from 1972 for transporting iron ore to Consett, Llanwern, and Ravenscraig. The tough looking tipplers stood out further with attractive liveries and rode on distinctive BSC ‘Axle Motion’ bogies soon became a favourite of the enthusiast as they became synonymous with the heaviest trains on the British Rail network. The Port Talbot to Llanwern trains saw 27 British Steel PTA tippers triple headed by Class 37s, before the introduction of pairs of the then new Class 56 on 30 wagon trains. Following the closure of Consett in 1980, a batch of PTAs became temporarily redundant before being snapped up by Procor. These soon found work on Mendip stone trains, going both to Foster Yeoman and ARC. Their use was in block formations from quarries at Merehead, Whatley and Tytherington to depots in London and the home counties. Once again, the PTAs found fame as wagons in the heaviest regular freight trains in the UK, with 43 wagons being hauled by a pair of class-56 locomotives from Merehead to Acton for Foster Yeoman. The wagons would be painted in distinctive house liveries of Yeoman grey and ARC mustard, and see service behind the then new Class 59, as well as a wide range of BR locos, much like their British Steel counterparts which were enjoying electric traction haulage on the WCML with pairs of Class 86 and Class 87 locomotives. The PTAs continued to provide sterling service for British Steel across Britain as well as Yeoman, ARC and its successor Mendip Rail into the 2000s when age began to catch up on them. Wagon leasing company VTG took on rakes of JTA/JUAs in the mid-2000s and they were used on spoil trains as well as sand and sea dredged aggregates until withdrawal. These long lived and widely travelled wagons are the subject of the fifth new 4mm wagon model from us here at Accurascale. like all our previous wagon announcements, this pattern of PTA/JTA/JUA is a wagon never done in RTR format in 4mm scale before. CAD for the wagons is compete and is now in China with tooling underway. As with all Accurascale models, a high specification model laden with separately applied detail will be produced with the following specification: OO Gauge / 1:76.2 Scale Models NEM Standard Coupler Pockets in ‘kinematic’ Fittings NEM Narrow Tension Lock Couplers Provided on outer wagons, with knuckle couplers on inner wagons as per prototype Sprung Buffers BSC Axle Motion bogies Designed for easy conversion to EM and P4 gauges Etched metal factory fitted detailing Extra fine factory fitted detail plastic parts Extra fine factory fitted Pipework Individual lettering, logos and codes from real wagons for authenticity Flashing tail-light on one outer wagon per pack A whole host of liveries will be catered for in the first run, including British Steel, Yeoman, ARC and VTG. The wagons will be sold in ‘book’ sets of 5, with both outer and inner wagons. There will be additional book sets of 5 inner wagons in both Yeoman and ARC liveries to boost rakes to prototypical lengths. The price of each book set is £149.95, with a 10% discount if you buy both the outer and inner sets of the yeoman or ARC wagons. Delivery is expected in January 2020. You can place your order now by clicking here! Cheers! Fran
    22 points
  6. North of Newcastle today, with some photos taken from Heaton Depot on an arranged visit in January 1990 ago and a couple around Benton. An explanation of the lines at Benton Quarry Junction is included in the caption. For those who don't know the area a railway atlas might be useful. Heaton Depot 43038 up ex pass going away 20th Jan 90 C13952.jpg Heaton Depot 43197 Kings x to Edinburgh 20th Jan 90 C13941.jpg Heaton Depot Class 143 Newcastle to Morpeth 20th Jan 90 C13943.jpg Benton Quarry Junction 43070 up 15th Feb 88 C9322.jpg The line going off to the right is the Blyth and Tyne to South Newsham, North Blyth, Lynemouth and Morpeth. The HST is on the main line. The line to the left was the line to South Gosforth, Rowntrees factory, Callerton and originally Ponteland. The connection, which also gave the Tyne and Wear Metro a connection to (in those days) BR has since been removed. The line itself is now part of the Metro system, to Newcastle Airport. The next photo is a little further north and shows the Metro line from Tynemouth to South Gosforth going over the ECML, then through Newcastle and across the Tyne to Sunderland and South Shields. Benton Metro Tynemouth to Heworth crossing ECML May 83 J7957.jpg
    21 points
  7. Hi everyone Here’s a quick update on the Class 55 Deltic to keep you all up to speed on progress on Accurascale’s first locomotive. Tooling of the locomotive is continuing but has taken longer than originally anticipated due to the sheer number of detail variations we are doing, which as you know, has not been attempted on the Deltic before! We also made several corrections to the CAD along the way as we want to get it 100% correct. We’re quite fussy like that! The aim was to have the models for the end November, in time for Warley, but we will miss this deadline by a couple of months. Updated timeline is as follows: EP Sample due early October Decorated Samples: Mid November (in time for Warley) Delivery: Late March 2020. (allowing for Chinese New Year break in early 2020) We apologise for the slight delay, but as we explained we want to do the definitive Deltic model, and it’s very important we deliver a first-class model that we can be proud of. It must be right, and it must cover the entire history of the class, from construction to modern preservation. We will of course keep you up to speed with development as it progresses further. Cheers! Fran
    20 points
  8. No trains were seen or heard at Rothley, probably because none were running. There is always something going on at PN, except when there isn't, and at 5.03pm the J11 starts away to Grimsby, and passes the D16 still waiting in the carriage siding. The D16 can't go anywhere yet, as the Glasgow takes priority, and duly arrives behind Duke of Rothesay, in normal New England condition.
    20 points
  9. There have been some very thought-provoking, honest and open posts here in the last day or two which touch on (or more than touch on) topics not often discussed. One of the best decisions I have ever made was not to marry. I was 28 when I broke things off and have never regretted it. I feel I would have ended up on a similarly difficult position to some others who have posted here recently. Perhaps if someone else had come along, things might have been different. Another very good decision I made was to get going on my layout project, which involved having a building constructed to kick things off. That was 23 years ago at a time when, without knowing it then, I was suffering from depression. The layout was built a couple of years or so later by Brian Kirby. It's been fully operational for 19 years now and still going strong. Life has its ups and downs and for me that included another period of depression in the mid-2000s, again without at the time having a clue what it was. The big thing I did then was to set up my Yahoo group on coaching stock, which has succeeded far beyond what I had imagined it could do. It's cost me a fortune in collecting carriage workings, though. I have come to understand a lot more about mental well-being in the last 9 years, much of which stemmed from a colleague having a breakdown. He called me into a room and said "I have been diagnosed with depression." That was the first time anyone had said anything like that to me. It took me about the next five years to really process the things that had happened to me and others in my family but now I understand it all much better. I also know the power of doing things, especially hobbies. If you used to enjoy something, try doing it again and it might help you out of a bad spot. A few years ago the late and much missed Roy Jackson gave a talk at Expo EM when he opened up about his mental struggles. The key thing that helped him to recover was to build 'Retford'! It's also important I think to have a few different angles on a hobby, or even two or more separate ones, so you can mix and match and not get too bogged down. It's also important not to let perfectionism become a curse. In my job, that can be a major issue too. Plus, have some downtime to just relax. I have taken to watching train videos on YouTube to help with that - much better than television. And, there is always someone to talk to, message or whatever. Mental ill health affects lots of people. You are not alone. In extremis, the Samaritans are there 24/7. Do not underestimate the power of talking and of listening to others without judging or mocking. You may not know how close to the edge they are.
    20 points
  10. I've spoken to the liquidators this morning to ask why no consumer creditors were shown. Firstly it should be noted that this Statement of Affairs is that put forward by the Director and CG's investigatory process remains to be completed. At this stage they would not know an accurate list of who, and to to what value, are consumer creditors until any payment card refunds have gone through. The message is to keep pressing card isssuers for refunds as, whatever happens, there's not going to be realisable refunds from the process - if you don't get a refund you could become listed as a consumer creditor but it won't get you anything back.
    18 points
  11. I think everyone, no matter what their skill-set, is in 'danger' of falling into the trap of wanting to do that extra bit to get it better. However, is it always a 'trap'? I long ago gave up trying to build my 'best-ever model'. Not because they couldn't be bettered; no not at all, but because of getting older and, naturally, the bodily 'tools' for modelling diminishing in their usefulness. But that doesn't mean to say I still don't 'try', even though my 'best-ever model' was built years ago. Yes, it can be frustrating, but I have no alternative. My faculties will not improve, and I still have loads of projects I need to complete, so I'll keep on going. That said, your wise words will be heeded. I'll frequently finish a model and think to myself 'there's something about that I'm not entirely happy with'. However, perhaps with greater acceptance, I'll now leave it. Lo and behold, by the time I've finished the next one or two, I'll have forgotten what bugged me about a previous one! Is this my best-ever loco I wonder? Built nearly 20 years ago (when I was still in my 50s) from a Tower kit in O Gauge. Ian Rathbone painted it to perfection, of course. Regards, Tony.
    17 points
  12. As stated much earlier I believe this had had a big effect on the industry as a whole. Does anybody honestly think that Hattons can throw away nearly £20,000? Feel for them and everyone else who have lost money.
    17 points
  13. I have had my Black Dog periods but eventually was able to deal with it through the Model Railway, Tai Chi and meditation and it sounds stupid but by analytical self analysis. Now, my wife of 45 years is starting to exhibit fairly strong signs of Alzheimers. It is complicated because she refuses to see her doctor and due to the 'Privacy' Laws her Doctor cannot discuss it with me and cannot bring it up unless my wife does. At first I did not know what was going on because I would say something and a bit later (a day, an hour, ?) she would ask the same question or a variation on it and I reactly badly because I thought she was ignoring me. There was and is her attack response that really hurt but I now understand were a self defense denial type response. So now as i understand things for the most part I react OK but occasionally I blow it and then I feel really bad. The worst though is the profound sense of sadness because as the saying goes we will not be able to grow old together. Our children are all aware but they live several thousands of Km away. The situation is helped somewhat because there a few friends who are aware and willing to listen and talk about it, but as when my first wife died so many years ago in the end you have to deal with it yourself. I joined the local 'Nerd' group a couple of years ago when I wanted to learn about Arduinos and that helps because the discussions keep the mind active. The Model Railway is a fantastic because I can do it in the basement meaning that I am always around and also because it lets me plan for some future changes. In addition it, like the Nerd club keeps my mind active with new ideas. Finally I find Tai Chi is an effective escape because as one lady put it for a couple of hours you have to concentrate so hard that everything else is gone. Enough.
    15 points
  14. In case you have been wondering why it has been so quiet on this thread, we have been away for a few days We have been here.... here.... and here...... and back to something relevant.....
    14 points
  15. The statement of affairs makes interesting, if depressing, reading, and I'm really sorry for the unsecured creditors. The chief points seem to be: - The business owner funded principally through debt rather than equity. His lost equity stake is £101. His director's loan is £50K, making him owed nearly as much as everyone else. Everyone else here appears to be Hattons and the Funding Circle. - There are no preferential or secured creditors - £103K of debt and less than £5K of assets. - The tooling and the "laser scans/plans" are worthless/unrealisable It leaves me with 3 questions: - Does the "laser scans/plans" include the infamous protected CADs? Were these registered to the company or was this the personal IP of Dave Jones? - Was the crowdfunding undertaken via the Funding Circle? I would have thought not, as I had understood the FC to be a source of private business loans, as opposed to banks who have more or less given up making money available to any small business who might actually need a loan. This quote from the Funding Circle website prompted some hollow laughter: "Rigorous credit assessment so you lend to creditworthy businesses and loans perform in line with our expectations". Yeah, right. - I don't know what the £15K deposit with supplier might be or why it's "uncertain". Perhaps money on deposit in China, or is this crowd-funder deposits? Whatever the reasons for this result, the rights and wrongs etc, surely no one in this industry will ever do business with the former proprietor of this company again.
    14 points
  16. Following on from my last post I have been test running the layout and assessing the new fiddle yard and on the whole the exercise has achieved a more 'user' friendly system. It did however become clear that further storage was needed as I started to work out a running order just to free up some extra space on the traverser. By adding some head shunt type roads I have managed to create an extra 5 loco spaces making a total of 11 storage roads. I'm certainly glad that I have numbered each storage siding as it would have been difficult to keep track of each individual road. The above pictures show roads 6,7,8, 9 and the road for the Brewery Shunter. I have also installed a locking device for the traverser On a locomotive depot that is controller by DCC it is important that one can identify which locomotive is where especially when the locomotive is a distance away from the operating area or at the back of the loco shed. When the layout was operated from the rear it was fairly easy to see the locomotive numbers ( I use a four digit ID ie the first two and last two numbers from the loco number ) but operating from the front of the layout at the fiddle yard end it is difficult to identify every number . To get over this challenge I have made up a loco ID marker which has a magnetic strip on the backing so that it can be placed on a board. The fiddle yard ID chart is located on the left hand side with each locomotive under it's respective shed location. I have made up a track diagram of the layout which is located on the lighting pelmet above the fiddle yard so that I can track the movement of each locomotive whilst it is on shed. It should add some extra interest to the operation of the layout during exhibition Just to finish tonight's update I have taken a couple photo's of the shed area with some classic CLC locomotives on shed. Two 4-4-2T C13 's outside the shed and a 0-6-2T N5 on the turn table ready for it's next duty.
    14 points
  17. Vestibule doors have been painted and weathered to be filthy like the real units were in their last months of service pending the late arrival of the Class 442s. Route blinds to follow with directional lighting and interiors.
    14 points
  18. Train now arriving is the....
    13 points
  19. Two at South Shields: This is the BR station in 1980, with a DMU waiting to leave for Newcastle. The station closed the following year to allow construction work for the new Tyne&Wear metro to continue, and has since been demolished. The new South Shields metro station was built just beyond the crossover ahead of the DMU in the earlier picture and opened in 1984. This is the view in 2017. Trevor
    12 points
  20. I am a Chartered Accountant but have never seen or been involved in any crowdfunding schemes and so don't know the specific accounting requirements for it . However I am very surprised that crowdfunders don't appear anywhere in this statement . That to me is basic. At the receipt of money the basic accounting transaction would be Debit Cash , Credit Liability to Crowdfunder . The company can then go on to do what it wants with the cash eg spend money on CADS , tooling etc , the money is either expensed or its an asset (eg tooling). However the fundamental point I'm getting at is that the initial record remains ie Credit Liability to Crowdfunders , so I would have expected an amount made up of all the £30 deposits for 92s and whetever it was for APTS (£250?) to be shown in the statement . And there should be a list by name of who paid deposits . And now I think back to the somewhat chaotic requests for deposits, paypal refunds etc and wonder if all these receipts have been properly accounted for . Crowdfunding was surely fundamental to the DJM business, I would have expected basic enquiries to reveal that , so where is the record of all monies received? I think CG really need to investigate more. At the most basic level they may need to go back to bank statements to see what money was received and figure out where it came from . This might be an Initial Statement of Affairs but , at best its incomplete, there must be more to come.
    12 points
  21. Ah well, the best laid plans, and all that. Ten minutes after posting this morning's photos, the phone rang. Golf club stuff again, and an hour and thirty five minutes were lost. I did manage to do some running though, so we have more pictures in reserve. First up tonight though is yet another view of the goods. My intention is always to take several, post the best and bin the rest, but I always finish up showing the lot, as you often seem to like the ones I don't. We'll have a change now though. 60003 was followed on the Down goods by more coal empties, this time starting from New Southgate. Same old WD and minerals, but a new viewpoint, from the Midland lines below the bridge. I rather like this.
    12 points
  22. Does anyone on this thread decry beginners, John? I don't thinks so and I certainly hope note, though, in fairness, I think your point is general, and I agree with it entirely. I also agree about your analogy about amateur sport. For decades I played club cricket (too old now!), and I derived much more pleasure out of participating in it than I did watching, even going to test matches (I get even less pleasure watching England right now. Tournament favourites? Who's kidding whom?). What I do decry is those who won't try; those who put up barriers as to why they shouldn't do their railway modelling for themselves. Those who are almost entirely reliant on others. I don't have the slightest problem with the guy/girl who just opens boxes, places everything down temporarily and has huge fun just 'playing trains'. They never claim to be anything they're not. Unlike those who, one might say, 'bask in reflected glory'. Now, and showing yet again my hypocrisy, I've just taken delivery of this 'Britannia' which Geoff Haynes has painted beautifully........................ It started out as a Hornby Limited Edition 70000 in 1951 black (the box and certificate have already been chucked away!), and I've added new deflectors and done a bit of detailing. As part of bartering, a friendly gardener/Jack of all trades mate is working on the garden for Mo, and this is by way of an exchange. I certainly can't paint to this standard (hence my reliance on others in this respect - hypocrisy rules!), and I'm sure he'll be very happy. He has Hornby track, so I haven't replaced the bogie wheels. I think it's turned out rather well............... As well as this? Bob Alderman started this DJH 'Britannia' and I made it go and finished it. Ian Rathbone painted it. I know which I prefer, of course, but as layout locos? When Geoff came around today, he picked up the completed DJH 'Princess Coronation' for painting. I've built it and painted all the chassis bits, but that lovely red will be beyond me......... Regards, Tony.
    11 points
  23. While we are in South Shields, here are a couple of views which show a drastic change! Loco No 13 in the St. Hilda Sidings yard of the NCB's 'Harton Electric Railway' system in 1981. The railway closed in 1989, although Westoe Colliery lasted until 1993 The modern view in 2016, showing the small business units which now occupy the site. The only link between the two pictures is the frame for the gas holder, top right Cheers Trevor
    11 points
  24. Not only is my wife supportive of my hobby, she was one of the regular operators when I was exhibiting Clinkerford. She also takes great delight in showing off my current layout, Worseter, to visitors. Wot a lucky chap I am.
    11 points
  25. Nah, he meant before this all went wrong; Dave always maintained that monies raised through crowdfunding were always ringfenced, rather than being used to fund parallel projects. Given there are several projects for which significant funds have been raised, but outlay has been minimal (92s, King, APT etc) there should be a healthy pot of money. Clearly this has been pissed away on other things whilst Dave told everyone tooling was imminent for years, literally. Those figures are a disaster, that’s been on the cards for a long time and he knew it. Funding Circle is peer-to-peer lending too, so people who invested in Dave via FC lose out there.
    11 points
  26. I am one of Tim's 75% who have been divorced but thankfully not because of model railways. She didn't know when she should keep her knickers on. All in the past, and the present Mrs M and I (not allowed to say me and Mrs M) have been together 33 years. Mrs M was also divorced when we met, we were both doing our nurse training and lived in hospital accommodation. Both being adults we sort of skipped some of the build up that happens in many relationships. At the end of one of our early dates she agreed to come back to my room. As she entered any intentions of what was to follow were soon diminished when she saw Southbridge. We just chatted about the train set and her like of horse riding. As for depression, I have been dipping in and out of it for most my adult life. I find when I am really ill I cannot model make, I lose all interest. It is at that point where hiding my craft knife is a good idea. An odd thing is when I am becoming ill and when I am recovering I am more creative than when I am well. Some people call depression their black dog, this is my black dog He is called Gus the Gundog. Walking Gus and the other dogs who have lived with him over the years has been as good as all the meds and counseling I have had.
    11 points
  27. Very excited about these! Regarding the TOPs classification on the ARC wagons. Are you wedded to having them as JUAs/JTAs (rather than PTAs as they were up until 1990ish?). Hopefully will complement my scratch-built ones on Whatley! Thanks, Guy
    10 points
  28. Here is a thought. If all the crowdfunders cash was deposited in DJM’s personal account/PayPal rather than a business account and he subsequently transferred that cash into the business, could that not explain the £50k Director loan? In the books, the money came from him, but it was actually YOUR cash and he becomes the creditor a bit further up the tree from the individuals. IIRC, the £50k could also be what he thinks he is owed by the business for his time/salary/dividend from the business.
    10 points
  29. As you might not have noticed in my post above Mrs Stationmaster has money in Funding Circle. I have told her this morning to get it out PDQ because if they lend to concerns like DJM (without, to my mind, any sort of proper or extensive due diligence) goodness only knows who else they are giving money to. As it happens their returns on investment have dropped significantly over the past 18 months (more bad decisions?) and our friend who originally recommended them has already taken his money out. If I'd known they were going to lend money to DJM I would have told her to get her's out a long time ago.
    10 points
  30. The problem with accounts like these are that they only show the state of affairs on the final day. It's possible that the £50,000 director input was money put in right at the start to enable the J94 to be produced. It doesn't explain why he needed to increase borrowing from FC when the projects were 'self funded' nor does it explain why he was owing money to Hattons when as a seller of products it should be the other way around. Carrying that much debt with no new models for some times and nothing to be received for at least 9 months, it was fairly obvious that the company was unsustainable and had been for some time. Quite what he said when he applied to FC for a loan is anyones guess but I doubt it was the truth or they wouldn't have lent. What we all would want to see is where the income from the 'Crowdfunding' went, just what sort of day to day expenses were soaking this up as there is none left now from the J94, 71 plus the other projects for 3rd parties. Or was it really a case of the projects never really having enough sponsors behind them to get off the ground. I suspect the latter and DJM were gambling that they would pick up more as the projects progressed. It's always easy to gamble with other peoples money.
    10 points
  31. It seems to me that it is massively to the credit of this thread and its contributors that people feel so willing and able to share their innermost problems with others, most of whom they cannot know. What I get is a great sense of mutual support and goodwill which contrasts strongly with what one hears so often about the "interweb and social meeja". I have never suffered depression in the way that others have described it, but I certainly find strength through sharing life's problems with supportive friends.
    10 points
  32. How do you think version 2 looks in primer? (Still tweaking a few printer settings) Personally I think the dome and safety valve have come out absolutely beautifully, although I need to have a poke at why the bufferbeam is coming out not-quite-straight... That seems to be a printing error, not a problem with the file. [Edit: Apologies for the dust!]
    9 points
  33. All layouts should be the ultimate one but then they are all temporary in the big scheme of things. The most important thing is they are fun to build and operate and at the same time the builder/owner/operator is learning new skills.
    9 points
  34. That implies that DJ had not included any crowdfunders/deposit placers in the statement whilst CG now believe they should have been. A black hole.
    9 points
  35. I note the words in the statement from the liquidators After the report was signed by the Director and circulated, further information came to fruition which brought ambiguity to the crowd funding scheme and it was then decided that the deposit creditors should be invited to prove in the Liquidation. That looks on the face of it to suggest that DJM were not wholly truthful in their declaration to the liquidators about monies owed or their source. But then it was paid in to his personal paypal and bank account for some time.
    9 points
  36. you never know hachette might do a part work on class 71s
    9 points
  37. Thanks to all who have opened up and shared their stories (and advice) about mental health problems and relationships over the last couple of days. It does seem to be a topic that is getting more discussion and no longer carries the stigma that it used to. I got into railway modelling just 10 years ago (rather late but never too late), and it has helped me to not only get over a health anxiety crisis, but to bring back fond memories of my father who passed away far too early. He was a Civil Engineer working for British Railways. It is only recently that I have realised how lucky I was to go 'walking the track' with him when I was a youngster. So railway modelling brings back happy times, has given me the chance to be creative which is a great medicine, and has brought me into contact with like-minded guys who are always willing to help and be supportive. I note the messages re not falling into the perfectionism trap and knowing when to stop and be satisfied. This can be difficult when you see superb modelling skills that you can only dream of getting close to. The other point I guess is to get the railway modelling / life balance right which is just as important as the work / life balance. So for me walking in the great outdoors and getting on the bike (push) are equally important. Having a partner who understands your needs is a bonus (still looking), and then it is only fair to understand their needs too. Was out walking in Nitherdale, Yorksire last week and spotted these two Would be great to include on the layout. I wonder if they would keep still long enough for a laser scan
    9 points
  38. From communications with China at very least it may be that ownership is disputed (legal title to such remains the property of xyz until settlement is made in full etc - a standard commercial term on invoices). Having seen communications offering production from such tooling to other parties this would seem to be the case - historical comments indicate that tooling costs were amortised over production runs by the factory and ownership may never have been transferable.
    9 points
  39. On the statement of affairs, ignoring any liquidators costs, the creditors will get 4.6p in the pound. So DJ would get about £230.00. Not exactly life changing is it especially as he is owed £50k by his company? Going on what has been said by him in the past I suspect he borrowed that £50k by way of a second mortgage on his house so he will have to continue to repay that. He is far deeper in to this than many folk seem to think. And I'm pretty sure the liquidators costs will eliminate the realisations.
    9 points
  40. Progress on the layout, I’ve ripped out a useless single slip that I had problems with and that I didn’t really need. Now a standard crossover is in place for the Nottingham line. Nice simple and effective. Now for something completely different, I’ve quit smoking, and to Tony’s disbelief I’m sure...... I’m getting a haircut. I know, my long flowing locks of hair will be gone by Friday!
    9 points
  41. More duck tonight. It would be nice to think that the lady knew enough to be able to point out the plaque on 60022's boiler as it passed by. I was going to say glided by, but I suppose poor Phil wouldn't be able to do that either.
    8 points
  42. I've said this before. If the APT had been made, the "once in a lifetime" purchase would have been £1k "lost" to other models. Thanks to the liquidation, there is now £750 that is "not lost". PS I'm obviously not saying the liquidation is a good thing. But thank goodness it happened before stages 2, 3 and 4 payments were made.
    8 points
  43. Just round the corner in Newcastle, the view from the new castle, about 1984/5 and again in 2015:
    8 points
  44. A couple of shots from my website courtesy of Bill Watson: John
    8 points
  45. The statement of affairs makes interesting reading but I'm not sure we have learnt anything unexpected and certainly the appearance of the owner of a failed business as one of the principal creditors is entirely consistent with many other similar businesses I've seen crash like this. I still think the question of where did all the money go is germane and that the soa doesn't leave us any the wiser on that. How much money did Dave Jones take out of the business? He did a good job of selling people a story of making things at zero profit, a company can quite accurately tell customers it will not make a profit on a project whilst at the same time the proprietor draws a salary and charges handsome fees so as to make a tidy profit out of it all personally. To me it all feels like DJM ended up as a form of ponzi scheme.
    8 points
  46. Eileens Emporium and ModelU are pleased to announce that Eileens are now stocking ModelU figures and accessories. The most popular lines are already in stock and more will be added in due course. They will be added to Eileens website over the Summer, meanwhile please enquire by phone or email.
    8 points
  47. Alex, elaborate on this if you please? Did you give it to them to weather, for you to then observe to help you with your own weathering? I love my H2, Will certainly be getting another when Bachy bring one out in malachite! The Hornby Schools are monsters They are so ridiculously heavy, and then on top of that, the driving wheels have traction tyres. I think they most i've had behind one was 16 coaches, made up of maunsells and pullmans - I only stopped because I ran out of coaches! Thanks Chris, I need to give Lacquers a go, I'm running into the issue of paint not really enjoying being handled - Often even after it's been varnished! Which one would you suggest for brass? I've managed to get a few more wagons to the final stages, they just need bits here and there, mainly the running gear painted black and numbers/lettering I have another load of Cambrian wagons, as well as some RTR stuff arriving for repainting soon, I've also been lucky enough to get my hands on 13 David Geen kits, which (for now) will go in the 'Round-tuit' pile, until I feel I can do them justice. Excuse the 'in-progress' shot, hoping to get these bolsters detailed and then finished off. I'm not sure which wheels are accurate though, is anyone able to shed some insight? SECR Wagons illustrated has photos of them with spoked wheels, but I can't tell if they're open spoke or not - i'm fairly sure that disc wheels are wrong regardless though Also worth mentioning, I managed to get a roll of 5g stick on wheel weights, used for car wheel balancing - i've been using these for adding weight to all my parcels stock and the kit-built wagons. I had been trying to find some locally, and finally managed to come across a roll of 1200 for $72 nzd! I can't imagine that i'll need any more (ever!) Finally, here is another in progress shot of 853!
    8 points
  48. Only one from last night, should have been a rail delivery train returning to Scunthorpe but it was just light loco from Landor st to Sheffield via Leicester, looking at real time trains it seems to have disappeared after hexthorpe jn so I suspect it went straight to Roberts road or Doncaster decoy rather than going to Scunthorpe for nothing 66782 this time
    8 points
  49. I've known personally 4 suicides. Two had work related problems, one was in a failing relationship and the fourth was a combination of work and relationship stresses. Personally I had a very black period when we had a dispute with a company which had done some work on our house. We had to get someone else to put it right and it took us two years to get redress. Finally when it got to the day before a pre-trial meeting with a judge they capitulated and made us an offer which covered the remedial work and our costs. One thing which helped me greatly at the time was talking to others. There was a woman nearby who Anne called my 'Morning Girlfriend'. We commuted by train together for several years and are still in touch over 40 years on. At the time of my problems she was in the middle of a messy divorce after her husband had left. She had been involved in some horseplay at her place of work and had got pregnant. The wife of the baby's father had found out somehow and gone ballistic. All in all she was in a far worse state than me, and it made me realise that my situation wasn't so bad after all. Later I was off work for a while with a mystery illness which the doctors eventually decided had been triggered by stress. Strangely this helped me a few years later when I was completely overdoing it work-wise. I realised that I was getting close to the edge and was in danger of imploding, so I had a long chat with my boss who I had known for about 25 years. We decided that my assistant would take over and I would move to another section which had a more stable working pattern for a break. As it happened the head of the section resigned about a month later and I took over his job.
    8 points
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