Roddy Angus

From what I remember from physics at school, if you wire 2 speakers in parallel, but with opposite polarity, then the sound produced by them will be 180 degrees out of phase. If this happens, then an interference pattern will be established which will cause some sounds to be louder and others to be quieter, depending on where it is heard from. In extreme cases, theoretically, the interference could cancel out the sound and nothing would be heard. I hope I am remembering my second year physics correctly. Roddy Ps this is theoretical and might not be noticeable in practice.

I have not seen the England match, so don't know what happened, but in those circumstances, I would run it. Kicking it would not change the position but running it would show the hunger for a try. Roddy

That's how I got drawn in. Advertised for those interested in computer games, back in 1983, and I ended up as a Blowpipe operator. For those not in the know, Blowpipe was a manually guided anti-aircraft missile, with a limited anti-vehicle capability. Roddy

I do hope you will be in a position to help them. Youngsters just starting work nowadays, have it very hard due to the high cost of either renting or buying accommodation without them also being loaded down with debt. Best wishes Roddy

I am surprised that you find the idea of parents wanting to avoid their children being stuck with large debts when they graduate "amazing". As a parent with one child who has graduated and is now in a good job and a second due, hopefully, to graduate in the summer, I would do whatever possible to help them financially so that they can concentrate on their studies. Both also had part time jobs whilst at Uni but, like many students, only on the minimum wage. Regards Roddy PS my parents were unable to assist me when I went to Uni in the 80s and it was extremely hard to budget.

And there was me thinking that the drug problem had got a lot worse. Roddy

Hopefully that will be the case, it sounds the fairest way. Presumably those on the waiting list will get the first opportunity to bagsy any left over after existing customer orders are fulfilled. I am presuming that Hattons will have retained some models for returns, etc, but that may not be the case. Roddy

Presumably, since Hattons will no longer need the Accurascale products which they ordered to cover pre-orders, Accurascale will now have additional stock to sell, either direct to the public or to retailers. Regards Roddy

Yes, lots of people will see them and buy them for presents or gifts. You won't be able to stop them all. Best wishes Roddy

Did someone successfully overtake Verstappen? Roddy

Just to add, I don't necessarily want a catalogue, a leaflet setting out proposed models would meet my desires. Roddy

But at least the "proposed digital renders" tell you what is to come and allows you to compare it to other manufacturers plans. Roddy

What would be the purpose of a retrospective catalogue which tells you what was produced and may now be sold out? It would be as useless as the Bachmann catalogue, which effectively highlights slow moving models. Roddy

The problem with the walkways, on the 6 I have, is that some of the support legs are not glued properly and the holes in the walkways are catching on the edges of the tank hatches. Not all the supports fit into holes, only those that do need to be secured. My solution was to place a little PVA adhesive on the back of the loose support legs using a pin, not much is needed, and then use masking tape to secure the walkway in place whilst the glue dries. I didn't want to remove the tank hatches, so I applied pressure to the relevant part of the walkway to straighten it a bit. They are not perfectly straight but look fine using the 2 foot test. This only took a couple of minutes for each wagon. I hope that this infprmation is of help to some people. Another thing to mention, is that in each tank there is a large metal bar to add weight. In one of mine, this bar had broken it's plastic mount and was loose inside the tank. It was easy to pop of one of the tank ends, glue the bar in place, with 5 minute epoxy, and then pop the tank end back on, no glue required. If you are not confident with doing these repairs yourself, then you can discuss with your dealer, but the fix is not that difficult. Regards Roddy

Just looking at mine now and I can confirm that the walkway is photo-etched metal. The ladders at the end are plastic. Roddy

They also look a bit different as they have, presumably, some sort of oversized protective covering strapped over the open rear and driving position. Presumably to reduce the risk of water ingress when crossing the Atlantic. Roddy

They might get them again when the new models become available. Roddy

Does the forum have a vogon poetry section? Roddy

Downside of such an approach is a 1 to 2 year period between the announcement and the model arriving. A production slot can't be booked before they know how many models they want made. This is the approach of the newer entrants to the market but there are already complaints about how long it takes Hornby to deliver on catalogue models. Roddy

It may well be that ESU have included a resistor in the speaker circuit to increase the total resistance to 4 ohms or greater. Just speculating. Roddy

Thanks Ian, that is really helpful advice. I'll let you know how I get on with the buffers, I suspect that my fall back position will be to use Lanarkshire Models and Supplies bufferheads and shanks. However, that will depend on whether there is sufficient meat on the buffer housings to allow for a cylinder to hold the springs to be drilled. I have found that 3D printed items can be very prone to shattering, like resin. Thanks once again. Roddy

Hi Ian Could you possibly provide links or names for these internet sites? I've got a few of these kits and any advice on assembling them would be helpful. Thanks Roddy

Sound was only available directly from Dapol. Roddy

The only difference was in the length of the material. The WW1 version was longer so that it could be wrapper round your leg in a spiral up to the knee, the WW2 version was shorter and only wrapped round your ankle. Thanks for confirmation of when they went out of use. They weren't required with hi-leg boots, but a lot of units still issued a pair of short boots and puttees in the mid 80s, for parade use. Best wishes Roddy

Puttes were still being issued and used in the 1980s. I wouldn't be at all surprised if they are still issued by the army for use with low legged boots. Roddy