john new

I think Hattons in house DCC fitting is suspended, I’m fairly certain I’ve read that on their website in last few days.

With the missus out all day working on the Weymouth Pavilion Panto, (one of the only four professional one’s running in the country - Weymouth, Wimborne, Plymouth and Liverpool) a day working on the layout and stock. First up - the missing feed wire dropper to the rear siding added, I had drilled the hole for it, just not added the wire so that section is no longer prone to loss of continuity through the fishplate. Secondly - A control panel switch had obviously had the soldering iron on too long, I thought the wire had simply come unsoldered, but no, the wire was still soldered onto the tag, the tag had fallen off! Switch completely replaced. Memo to self next time revert to the big chunky Halfords car panel type as I have previously used. The solder spade is a slide on fit to the tag. Outcome the layout now running properly. Third - a dabble with fitting sprung PECO uncoupling ramps - not successful, the home made clear plastic type will be the next attempt. Finally - find where I put the spare pick up parts from Pete’s Spares I bought a while back for the Hornby Caley Pug but didn’t get around to fitting. It has been stuck in the get a round to it sometime box for conversion to a GN15 loco and so hasn’t run for about 20 years! I decided to try to get that going again as a OO runner. Spares found, motor checked as Ok, and the fiddly parts finally in. Sadly the tiny little motor support fixing screw that comes through from underneath is missing, which I hadn’t noticed was lost so didn’t order replacements when I’d ordered the pick-up parts. Without it the gears don’t stay meshed. Progress but not yet a completed job.

Drummond's book on Southampton Docks is not very clear about working the ECS trains although it does state getting main line locos out of the docks was a priority.

That was the trojans I mentioned.

Having watched it with the commentary on, the view was don't buy a model at the cheaper end - it is/they are c**p with hacked software packed with trojans and these have extremely high maintenance costs if not used almost daily as the ink sets with expensive consequences. Not an option for occasional hobbyists. Very good warning message.

Looks like it has worked through from London with a rake of Network Southeast coaches. A precursor to the current container train - Victoria - JININGNAN - TONGLIAO via DABAN.

As it does for many modellers, as an example the toy/model shops near here in Weymouth, Dorchester and Bridport are not bad for basics and have a wide range of kits across multi-genres but in the r-t-r railway section rarely stock diesels/electrics being steam only. If the demand was there I guess they would have them in stock.

Wishing all our regulars a happy Christmas Day, let’s hope as we head into 2021 that there is an easing of this crisis.

A temporary change from the end to end - with the dining table opened out ready for tomorrow a bit of Christmas Eve frivolity with last year’s HobbyCraft January sale bargain. £15 down from £50 was not to be sniffed at. Hopefully, as off duty for the SLS for a couple of days, I will have time to add some ‘Magic Rounabout/cartoon style, scenery.

It was, one of several problems of the system from memory of reading up on it was twisted track I guess uneven torque (f that is the right word) with the power always being on the same side would do that twisting. A modern cast wheel set, but from the original patterns so is a genuine Blenkinsop wheel set, is in the NRM at York. It was on display last time I was there but that was a while back now due to COVID stopping my York family visits this year.

I've voted, but would love to see Gladstone done r-t-r, the reason is obvious from the SLS icon in my signature - back in the day we got it preserved..

Not sure of the full rakes without looking in a lot of books but Stuart Morris’ film on YouTube of the Last Train to Easton also has a still shot of a pannier with a Bullied coach. As it was two Ivatt tanks that worked the last train top and tail (with at least two Bulled brake ends in the excursion set) the pannier had to be on an earlier date service train.

Probably the OS maps on the Nat Library of Scotland web site for free.

The (some?) funding may have been via the City of London but my understanding is it was a Bristol inspired scheme to shift goods out of the port.

Agree, underwhelming end, expected more than a video.

The 9F, a demonstration load out of Merehead IIRC and there is some (poor quality) video of it on YouTube.

Hopefully as well as Sky not as a sole live vision broadcaster.

Are you going with the current straight slats on the ends or the older wooden one’s it still had in the fifties? I only ask as your box picture is the modern set. I can’t remember the year they got swapped over but it was fairly recent. The last of the old style were (are?) over the roof end linking the station buildings to the hotel where the short stay car park is now by the Scarborough side bays.

Bloomfield Terrace complete with footbridge access over the lines.

Modern Weymouth drops from the double track main approach, including points off the UP line for the Jubilee Sidings. The final section including the junction for the Harbour stub is a short bi-directional single track approach section over the last 100-200 yards or so. Then it re splits and feeds into three platforms. Loco release crossover no longer used. link to my image -

It has already occurred for me, not a blanket no but as the budget available for hobbies is finite definitely a reduction in numbers of items bought which are new, possibly more for second hand when shows restart and undoubtedly retention of my older items rather than an upgrade to a new item.

If the LNWR era is not the one you specifically model, but you want one of these, you could always buy Hardwicke and run it with four BR blue grey mark1s. It may well look odd but would be correct (number of coaches is from memory but won’t be far out).

Either depending on my mood, I will even tackle basic brass and tinplate work but could not envisage tackling anything with complex valve gear and the mass of fiddly bits that come with most etched kits. There is a barrier to get through, I am not yet ready to try and overcome partly due to cost. I think where card kits have got their bad reputation from is because they are a beginners medium and beginners, being kind, often haven't the right eye for blending the right kits to make a scene convincing. Getting the 'look' right is not down to the medium the model is made from but to paraphrase someone's strap line on here 'right bricks, right design style, right location'. Pendon is the ultimate got it right. How often do we see layouts with, as an example, the Walthers factory, and it just screams American if you have an eye that notices that sort of thing.

Although cross channel ferry traffic is not directly comparable one of the main financial losses to Weymouth's local economy when Condor pulled out was the considerable overnight stays with people arriving the night before ready for the early morning (stupid o-clock) boat. As for facilities aimed at serving departure passengers it still is, perfectly logically, the case. As examples both Bournemouth and Poole have the remaining buffet facilities on the up side, where far more people wait for a train going east/north than do so prior to boarding in Bournemouth for the onward leg to Weymouth. On the down side the predominant pax flow is definitely off the train and out of the station whether that is from terminating X country services or from the SW main line. Conversely, from memory as I've not changed trains there for a while, at Southampton the flows each way are far more balanced and there are buffet facilities for both the main up & the down platforms.

Definitely both the K1 and 44767 in the early 1980s. My wife and I worked together on NELPG specials as stewards and that has to be between 1981 (the year we got together) and 1986 when we moved out of the N East. For the same reason I can confirm Leander ran in that same time period. Not listed was the 9F that ran on the Southern Region (Black Prince?), late 80's the M7 was also at the Salisbury 150 Gala events. Was the green Black 5 one of those listed above, that was running about then too. When was the S15 Greene King running mainline?