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Showing content with the highest reputation on 26/12/20 in all areas

  1. Photos of stopping trains on the Newcastle to Carlisle line at Stocksfield and Riding Mill for today. Riding Mill Class 119 and 116 Sunderland to Hexham Sept 87 J9281.jpg Stocksfield Class 101 Hexham to Sunderland 28th Oct 88 C11588.jpg Stocksfield Class 108 Newcastle to Hexham 28th Oct 88 C11590.jpg Stocksfield 143018 Newcastle to Hexham15th April 89 C11865.jpg Stocksfield 156469 Hexham to Newcastle 26th Aug 92 C17953.jpg
    26 points
  2. Onwards the No.8 wanders, stopping every now and then for its picture to be taken.....? With the morning sun catching the glazing she moves on Not far as that pesky signal is at stop again!!!! but still the sun shines.... Looking up from the lane we see the passengers waiting, patiently, to reach their destination
    24 points
  3. A surprise present for me this xmas was this display case from my brother-in-law, hand made by him in his shed. My Boxing day job was fixing it to the wall of the railway room and filling it with locos. What a lovely present. Graham
    23 points
  4. Dia 45 BG update, whilst the 113 has been progressing through the paint shop, I've been fitting the scratch built roof to the dia. 45 van. A bit of rubbing down and fettling was required to get the right fit and shape, I'm now quite happy with the results. Here again, the dia. 45 BG diverges from the usual Gresley practice, the roof is steel rather than canvas over a wooden frame, it was ribbed were the steel plates that form the roof are jointed. I went off- piste as far as the kit instructions was concerned, with regard to the number and location of the joints and also the position of the roof torpedo ventilators. Another little quirk is that the dia. 45 has many more torpedo vents than the usual arrangement found on 61' 6'' BG's. Perhaps it was felt that a large steel box required more ventilation than the teak and later steel panelled BG's. This sort of diversity is what makes carriage models so fascinating to build. There were two batches of a total of thirty three dia. 45 BG's. Being of all steel construction, they weighed in at two tons heavier than the contemporary dia. 43 teak BG's. They were running alongside over sixty 61' 6'' teak BG's, with turnbuckle underframes and with fox bogies. In addition, there were thirty five later style steel panelled BG's, equipped with angle iron trussing and eight foot Gresley HD bogies. The type of BG that Hornby mangled a model of, was very much in the minority prior to the War. Though they came to dominate, most were built after 1939 and many were steel panelled and some had plywood panelling. It was important for the fit of the roof to replicate the harsh cut off were the roof meets the ends and also the rap round of the cornice. In teak BG's and the latter style steel panelled BG's, the continuation of the cornice follows the roof line. Finally finished and into the paint shop. The kit provides for a working gangway. Not necessary for my needs, as the gangways were not often in use. In addition, my prototype is noted as sealed in the CWN's, this was because it was carrying tobacco products from Nottingham to the Western region. I substituted Comet castings and etched end plates, esthetical they look much better. G 45 gets its Banana van livery. After the photo was taken, the underframes have been painted black and beech brown. A couple of days drying time and the body will be ready for teaking. The base coat is a more golden hue due to the different requirements of painting steel sided carriages teak.
    23 points
  5. Those day trippers are getting restless, but help has arrived, in the form of an Ivatt, the B17 having been removed in disgrace. It really had failed, by the way. I suspect the decoder. The next question is whether it is going to get to leave before the Grimsby, whose starting time is nigh? Down the other end of the station, Sun Stream is waiting for the off.
    23 points
  6. We have been working on panniers: Source: Getty Images. Embedding permitted. Caption: Sparks Fly As Rail Workers Using Oxy-acetylene Torches Start Cutting And Breaking Down Older Great Western Railway GWR 1076 Class Steam Locomotives At The Locomotive Graveyard Of The Swindon Railway Works On 14 May 1935 There has been progress on the “nostalgia” project to backdate a Hornby 2721 body, using a Bachmann 57xx chassis. The original aim was an early 2721 PT, but I have decided to go for a 1854 PT instead. These were Southern division locos and thus more appropriate for Farthing, and technically the model matches an 1854 PT better (e.g. the fairly tall Hornby cab and the plain Bachmann conrods). I'm aiming for ca. 1914-19, a period I have a growing interest in. Unfortunately the earliest 1854 PT photos I have found so far are from the early 1920s. Here’s how I left it earlier this year: The Hornby balance pipe is a blob one each side of the motor block, so I made some new blobs . New firebox sides and rear tank supports (adapted to allow room for the injectors) were also made. Swindon diagrams of the first 1854 and 2721 PTs show the balance pipe fitted behind the front splasher, but even if this was actually done in practice, photos suggest that they were soon relocated to a position near the center of the tanks - so that’s what I have done. Now for a query: Removal of the “skirts” on the Hornby body exposes the Bachmann motor and lets too much light in. Below I have curved some 10 thou plastikard and trial fitted it to the motor to represent the rear portion of the boiler. But I haven’t run it yet as I’m wondering about (i) overheating, and (ii) shorting (does styrene isolate in practice, and what effect will the glue have?). Any thoughts? I have also worked on the tank fittings. The Hornby tank top isn’t that bad, but the chimney (odd shape), tank fillers (too small) and grab rails (moulded lump) had to go. I'm wondering what the small pipes/cables running along the top are for, and when they were fitted. The chimney was sawn off, and the tank fillers removed (vertical slices in both directions, followed by a parallel cut along the bottom). The bluetack is for protecting details. Dry fit of the Finney chimney and tank fillers. The safety valve cover is so far an RTR item, can’t seem to find the appropriate shape in brass. The lower part of the Hornby cabside is too narrow. I’m working on that and the bunker. Regarding rivets: I understand that up to ca. 1917 they were flush-riveted, then snap head riveted until ca. 1924, then welded seams. So for ca. 1914-1919 I’m thinking flush riveted. Looking at photos, am I correct that this means removing only what is marked below – or should the tanks be completely flush? I do dislike working without a specific photo.
    22 points
  7. Yes, it is Boxing Day, which means cricket from the MCG so that's on the radio while I carry on with signals. For the short fixed distant, I rooted through the spares box for a suitable post to shorten. I found that for some reason, lost in the mists of time, I had a spare two-armed post from an old Ratio 462 kit. I measured it up and found that if I cut the post just above the lower lamp the post height would be about a scale 19ft 6in, so that's what I've done. I also cut the finial from the top of the original post, fitted it to the shortened post and removed the arm pivot. Here it is before final assembly, with the stub of the original post next to it. Big Brother and Little Brother stand side by side, looking just as I thought they would.
    22 points
  8. Some from today, first up Christmas dinner under spaghetti junction! then it was off to the loco which was on the line next to washwood Heath, nothing left standing now 66747 on the first train we took that to bescot then went back in a taxi for the 2nd train which was the one we took in last night, 66761 on it waiting in tame bridge for the road into bescot and into bescot where another rmwebber took over to shunt the train into the sidings that’s me until Tuesday now then New Year’s Eve
    22 points
  9. Morning all. An elevated view of Bleat Wharf this morning. I think 'Penny' looks the part. Rob.
    21 points
  10. Now we're in business! Body went together very well. Don't look too hard just yet at the ends; needs cleaning up yet. And roof just plonked on for now. But we have ourselves a vehicle of sorts.
    18 points
  11. Brew time! There's more details to add but I'll make the bogies up next ...
    18 points
  12. I clearly forgot to post a pic this morning, so here is a nice pair of Choppers for Boxing Day.
    17 points
  13. Mine usually runs with a maximum of eight on, seen here on a Crewe- Penzance turn with LMS coaches at the front. What are the chances of a new version being announced by Hornby ?
    17 points
  14. As my work on Yelverton progressed, I learned more about the site. I found out that the loading bank at the south end of the station was more extensive than I had originally thought, and decided to rework the area. At the same time I decided to model the shed for the WIckham trolley, omitted from the original design. First up, a picture of the area before I made the changes. The new loading bank, with the shelter for the Wickham trolley(s) in the background. The Yelverton shed appears to have been a three road on - I can't think why. An aerial view of the site, with the private lane running behind the station. I still need to do the base of the hedgrow on the right. The site looking towards the station, with the signal box under construction. The gap is because the boards are not currently bolted together so they can be moved about while the layout is being worked on.. 4658 shunts a van into the loading bay. Hoping to get the boards set up this week to test through running. Alex
    16 points
  15. Well it might not seem like much progress in the last hour or so but there's a helluva lot of drilling and filing to get to this stage - and I've had a brew. Assembly should be rapid henceforth (ha!)
    16 points
  16. A last look at a typically well kept engine from 34A. followed, once the 02 had got out of the way, by an engine based at 50A, sadly also in a condition typical of its home shed. Hope everyone has had a good day.
    16 points
  17. Interestingly I have just had lunch with John, we wound the company up in official terms permanently on the 23rd of December. Lack of supplies did for us, thank you for nothing Covid! if the business is all we lose then it isn't too bad really, things could be so much worse as it has been for many, but we are Covid free on the island now so our lives are pretty much normal. Thank you for your business in the past!
    15 points
  18. An element of productionisation going on ... And now whole underframe passed the roll-away test. Time for another brew. And then we'll tackle some bodywork
    15 points
  19. Well, it looks like this years projects will be the W&U inspired Outwool layout and a small {very!} S&DJR terminus. First up will be Outwool. In addition to the articles acquired by way of the 'wanted ad' placed on Western Thunder (thanks due to Rob Rayer) , I have also added to the library....... I think I have enough reference material now..and therefore no excuses for not producing something that looks the part.......ish.
    15 points
  20. Just passed the Shap Bank roll-away test!
    15 points
  21. My father said that during WW2 some Canadian forces had training in the north of Scotland the first winter. (He was in radar.) A lot of them applied for Middle East duty. We went out to buy a newspaper today; empty racks. Later we went for a walk in the Village. We stayed on the sidewalks, which were plowed, but one court didn't have a sidewalk and I managed to land flat on my back. No hurt apparent, but I had cold, damp pants until I got home. Temperature about freezing.
    15 points
  22. Well, not one to hang around..... Out came the solid core telephone wire and
    14 points
  23. Wow - I'd forgotten how tricky those LMS underframes could be. One of the sole bars was going awry so I unsoldered it and started again. Not the quickest of starts but important to get the basic underframe square n true otherwise you're not building on solid foundations.
    14 points
  24. Music for funerals - aha [no, not the Norwegian boy band with ridiculously high voices] The last funeral that I attended was that of my Aunt Joan, who passed away in February 2019. Cwm Rhondda was one of the hymns and we did our level best to raise the roof of the chapel at Bridgwater crematorium, mindful as ever of Max Boyce who alluded to the ability of rugby crowds to make it sound the same as Delilah. If you are going to celebrate someone's life, sing in a celebratory way! My father's funeral in 2005 did not work quite like that. The three pieces of music were not intended fo singing but to aid reflection - Over the Rainbow, sung by Eva Cassidy: an instrumental version of You'll Never walk Alone because I heard the Gerry and the Pacemakers version on the radio a week after we learned that Dad had lung cancer and I bawled my eyes out: and the well-known bit of Riverdance because Dad loved the show, to the extent that he went by train to Brighton to see it only a couple of years before he died. Chris
    14 points
  25. Thank you for your warm festive wishes guys. We hope that you are enjoying your Christmas too. This year arrangements have been a bit different, Mrs. S. is spending her first Christmas away from her moms! However stepdad decided this was too hard on mom and has done the driving instead. After visiting my brother-in-law they came by for a visit on the front porch. Not as bad as it seems, we could hold a party on our porch! We have a small ham, parsnip-potato dish, yam-brussel sprout dish and the pigs in blankets all baking as I type. A couple of good quality ales on the go and a very cozy warm log fire to boot! This year I have been baking for a week instead of modeling. Mince pies, boozy rum & brandy pud and rum truffles for all the family. They all say the same thing " You Brits sure know how to do Christmas". I'll leave you with that thought and a picture of my present from my wife along with some recent festive related images of an Oregon Christmas tree hunt and a train on the layout (Got to keep on topic. right). Warmest Wishes To You And All Your Loved Ones. Shaun.
    14 points
  26. Ladies and gentlemen of the jury - please allow me to present "Exhibit A" care of the owner, the RCTS, from whom I produce this image of Wrexham, Croes Newydd "West" . Brian R
    13 points
  27. The Q4 tender now finished, loco on test on Wentworth Junction. Checking it on the colliery branch, thw Wentworth Silkstone trip to Barnsley Junction will be its usual duty. This tender is one of the ones built with open coal rails, later plated over on the outside - done by laminating the two options from the kit together with the beading on the sheet raves to the inside, there was no beading on the outside of these. All the Q4 tenders had had their water scoops removed by the early 50s but I don't know whether all the boxes in the coal space were taken out. The scoop wheel was gone but the filler remained - top views of these tenders don't seem to be very common. The buffer heads will be fitted after grit blasting but before painting.
    13 points
  28. Side and end prep in progress. At least there's only four sets of droplights and hinges to worry about. Probably going to have to stop for tea soon. But there's always this evening yet to come...
    13 points
  29. Valour is coasting into Kings Cross having had a good run from Sheffield on the new Pullman service. Both driver and firemen can relax now, and the gauge glass shows the boiler well topped up. The driver is from ? Preiser (much modified); the fireman from Modelu - he was too big to fit in the cab. Obligatory thumbnail image Tim
    13 points
  30. Something a bit different today in the form of a crossing keeper's hut but I feel it is includable as it has a signal box type name board. It's at Meardsall Crossing on the Midland's Lincoln line. Not manned when I saw it in 1983.
    13 points
  31. In case anyone (who's not already seen it) is interested, for a bit of festive fun I've set myself a 'build a coach in a day' challenge. Will be updates throughout the day on the Hills of the North thread in the Layout Topics area. I'll post an 'end of day' report on here this evening.
    13 points
  32. My Minister acquaintance (who embraced Methodism in later life, we originally know each other through sometime Labour Party membership) won’t countenance “My Way” or “Bright Side of Life” on the grounds that he is thoroughly fed up with both, and it’s inappropriate to ask people why they choose them at such a time, because they are never able to answer coherently. My sister-in-law was cremated to the latter, which I thought entirely inappropriate for someone much troubled by the mental after-effects of an abusive marriage, and a subsequent long and unpleasant degenerative illness. Her daughter also found it distressing; I don’t know who chose it.
    13 points
  33. And in the mood of seasonal greetings I am pleased to introduce you to a new member of the LM staff He is my namesake got for me by my grandchildren..... Ladies and Gentlemen please be upstanding for Kevin the Carrot
    13 points
  34. Very impressive, Andy, Thanks for showing us. I don't have the know-how to put moving footage on here (I rely on others), so I'll have to make do this merry Christmas with a static sequence featuring my latest J6................. Complete with borrowed tender, 62477 prepares to stop at Little Bytham on a Down 'parly'. Quite what a Copley Hill-allocated J6 is doing on a Peterborough-Grantham stopper requires the use of Rule 1, but another rule is that I must have seen the loco - in this case, at Doncaster in 1958. The Up fast starter is 'on'. By the time the J6 gets away, the Up fast boards are now 'off' (as is the Down fast). In the distance is the recently-acquired J52. And, here's the reason for the respective Up and Down fast boards being 'off', as one of my latest Trice/Comet/Wright/Haynes V2s pounds past on a Down express. Not only that, 60014 (Wills/scratch/Wright/Rathbone) sweeps southwards on the Up 'Lizzie' (this should really be 1961 - Rule 1 again). Despite the J6's power of acceleration, the V2 is now well clear............... The Up fast home has already been returned to 'on'. The V2's train contains a Kitchen Car (Hornby/Trice/Wright) and the whole ensemble will be well away by the time the 'parly' reaches Corby Glen, its next stop. The non-corridor four-set is John Houlden's work (ex-Gamston). Thank goodness for imagination................ Regards, Tony.
    13 points
  35. Well, I'm still going but appreciate that not everyone is a night owl so here's where I'm up to as of a few minutes ago.
    12 points
  36. Bear's Tip of The Day: When choosing music for a Funeral, don't pick anything popular - it'll screw you up every time it comes on the radio, often when you're driving. Learnt the hard way, unfortunately.
    12 points
  37. Last time Bear managed that stunt was the winter of 2009 - the pavement outside the Dry Cleaners is sloped and was like an ice rink, and Bear bought it. Busted a couple of ribs for my trouble, and have never felt pain like it.....
    12 points
  38. Beasts of Mordor Here are a couple from New Street, which I see is sometimes referred to as Mordor. Memories of freezing cold feet in thin trainers and a duffle bag. The last of my money being spent on a styrofoam cup of travelers fare tea and a mars bar (when they were a proper size). Cold, a long way from home with a trip home in the dark but hanging around for as long as possible.
    12 points
  39. More coal traffic passing through Bridgend. 37223 passes Bridgend up the up line with a train load of coal in MDVs. 6/11/81. The locations to the west that supplied coal for Aberthaw power station included Onllwyn, Blaenant, and Steel Supply at Jersey Marine. A westbound set of empties passes Bridgend behind 37236 and 37255, 7/7/81. cheers
    11 points
  40. I almost forgot, at last, I wrangled this Thompson NG third through the paint shop. The usual crimson gloss varnish paint mix.
    11 points
  41. Here, the mood for the day is whatever you want. So, it will be cake, ( I only had two small slices yesterday), a walk down the lane which is now a cul-de-sac, so very quiet, and a spot of railway modelling. To clarify, that will not be drawing or reading, but really getting something out to build/repair/paint/damage depending on how clumsy I'm feeling. Remaking the baseboards from South Greenfield into Torri Gwynt territory might be a pleasant diversion, before the weather turns again. Plus it makes a fair amount of noise to annoy the annoying neighbour.
    11 points
  42. This may be of interest to followers of this thread. The Narrow Gauge Rly Museum posted this video of operating the original layout as a Christmas special. Enjoy
    11 points
  43. My son has threatened that I'm going out to AC/DC's Highway to Hell! Fortunately, I don't have a problem with the listening: It's just the singing I can't do. Mind you, if you have heard my singing voice, you'd probably be crying as well.
    11 points
  44. I am currently watching Dick and Angel on 4 plus 1. I have watched tge Italian job and the longest day. I have also tried out my new headphones with a few tracks from Treorchy welsh male voice choir including cwm rhonnda with Sir Harry Secombe. The boss has kindly bought me a lego crocodile loco kit as something to keep me our of mischief. Little does she realise it can be motorized.
    11 points
  45. G'day, all, Your wish, Sophia, is my command! Here's my 0-4-4T, converted from a Tri-ang Jinty, generally in accordance with an article in Railway Modeller, Jan 1978: More details of the conversion may be found here: http://www.gwr.org.uk/galevans.html Happy modelling! Regards, Rob
    10 points
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