Zunnan

Incomplete address doesn’t stop them from dumping it on some random doorstep and emailing you a picture of where it was left in the middle of the night!

Bear in mind that in abd's photo, the 47 is lower than the Accura Mk2b, which at 1.2mm low itself is already outside that 'allowable variation'. But the general consensus is that a model which measures up pretty much spot on with the agreed standard in this area is too tall, and a model that is shorter to this measurement than a model which measures somewhere over 1.2mm low is within allowable variation. Gotcha.

If the Heljan 47 buffers lign up with the Accurascale Mk2b buffers, then they’re too low. The accepted correct buffer height for 4mm is 3’6” or 14mm. My Accura Mk2b coaches buffers are ALL under 13mm to centre, I’d say around 12.7-12.8mm Now a bit more curious of the matter, I dug out one of the new Bachmann 47s and measured its buffer height… I’d say a smidge under 14mm, but noticeably tall to an (incorrect apparently) Accurascale Mk2b.

I had the chance to mull over whether to pick up one of these 47s in Kernow the other day. Up until then I was still willing to buy 47450, but after seeing the 47s on display and giving them a good once over in person, I'll take a hard pass. Does it look like a class 47? You can make a Brio block of wood recognisable as a class 47.

I must admit I've enjoyed building a slew of the Parkside kit of these over the years, chassis variations left right and centre. This was probably the first wagon kit I built. I'm glad to see an RTR model on the horizon though, and will be only too glad to extend the fleet a bit.

I agree entirely. The internal user wagons are just that, and are pretty much as restricted in their sphere of operation as the typical industrial locomotive is. I still think that the precedent set by the way those internal user wagons were offered would be well applied to the Rapido wagon range at large, al la Accurascale. Three packs of the various liveries on offer would be literally eaten up for fleet building, whether they were all from one fleet or a mix of geographically linked wagons.

According to my uncles spotting notes, two were transferred away 7126 and 7127 (12039 and 12040) in 66 but broken at Great Bridge during late 69/early 70. The rest of the original Saltley LMS allocation languished there until August 68 with 7128 (12041) to Swindon and 7129 (12042) to Newport, 7130 (12043) and 7131 (12044) went to Great Bridge to be scrapped during 69.

I couldn’t resist this one, being a lifelong Saltley resident. I’m sorely tempted to add its stablemate 7128, especially with photos existing of the two together bearing BRITISH RAILWAYS on 7130M (12043) and LMS on 7128

Hopefully it is proven to be the latter, as that is just a case of tightening up on assembly (no pun intended). That and it also means that we as customers aren't likely to initiate these failures should we need to store the models away in their own packaging; I've lost count of the minor damage from simply rushing to clear away at the end of an exhibition over the years. It really is the only thing which has taken the gloss of what is a quite significant step forward in the British RTR market. As much as I can't wait for the SLW Rats to arrive as my most anticipated model for many years, I just don't see them surpassing the quality of the Grids you've produced, if they're even close I'll be more than chuffed. Roll on the next batch, and the logical choice of a class 58 after the 60!

When one of mine arrived with telltale skewed bogies on the cradle I pretty much expected traction issues straight away. It could barely move itself on level track and stalled out entirely on slips. I’ve not yet got into the gear towers to check the clips, but I can tell it’s gear related as it sounds like a cheese grater. The affected bogie was also sitting a good 5mm forward of where it belongs too. Overall a really impressive model, but I’m not so impressed with the cradle which is capable of allowing such drivetrain damage. I would not be surprised that if I store a model back in its box and the act of screwing it back into its cradle pops the gear tower if the bogies aren’t aligned properly while it’s inverted to get the screws back in…

These days I tend to associate rivet counting with those who ignore the shape but gush about all of the rivets and fine details that are applied to the otherwise rather Le Bonnotte offering we seem to get from certain stables.

Bescot was awash with 31s, in every colour under the sun. Used to see a lot of them from further afield around here as well.

Will I be cancelling my AS order? No, Bachmann haven't announced the variants I have coming from that stable, which are perfect for the ECS workings I used to watch running past my aunts at Northfield and used to see pottering around the Black Country on engineering trains all the time. RF Red Stripe and Petroleum sector though...Those are the ones I wished AS had announced. Thank you Bachmann, they'll do very nicely indeed!

And F18 to stop the bogie chatter. Its quite a noisy beast even on drivehold tickover for running in!

I didn't have shipment confirmation from them until today, but still have nothing from the courier and its not showing on their tracking system as yet. By all accounts this was a rather large inventory for them to get through. I was starting to wonder when the model I've ordered disappeared from their site entirely on Saturday, rather than show as out of stock like others, but its finally on its way.

While I patiently await the knock at the door, my biggest problem is the internal whispers of “you need more HAAs”….swiftly followed by the less subtle realisation that SWMBO is going to be the one answering the door! With the SLW 25s also on the close horizon, I might not survive the month! This is going to be fun comparing my existing EM1 fitted Biffo Grids to the new guard.

For what its worth, I can see the intent and direction implied even if the wording was rather ambiguous in its interpretation. It applies to my choice of employment also, where I am highly skilled in what I do but those skills are only partially transferrable away from the area of engineering I work in. If for some reason I found myself in the situation where my employers no longer required my services, I'd be up the creek in a burning boat and would have to extensively re-train. Such is the cost of becoming too specialised. Its great while it works, less so when you have to move on.

I have to thank the exhibition organisers for everything they've done over the years, they sure did put on one heck of a show! Its a shame to see this one fall from the calendar, I've seen first hand the toll which hosting such events (admittedly on a smaller scale) has, and the volunteers don't tend to get younger as the years advance even if the enthusiasm to carry on remains. Being a rather local club of whom a few of my fellow Bournville members have also been a part of, I look forward to seeing what Warley come up with next. I must admit that as I've aged the gloss has worn off the larger venues, but I have my fingers crossed that we continue to see Warley continuing to host for many years to come. All the best for the clubs future endeavours, you have most certainly earned a major place in the history and development of this hobby.

I had to check that April hadn't come early, this news just doesn't seem real. Without doubt the go-to for so many of us, and with such a broad advertising presence they've been a major face of the hobby for longer than I can remember. I wonder what has triggered their action, it is hugely concerning towards the bigger picture. But cudos for recognising that things can't continue and making such a difficult decision so that the wind down can hopefully at least be managed in an organised way. My sympathies to all involved.

I’d not clocked the tender once! I wonder where and how they arrived at that work of complete fiction. It’s unlike anything I’ve seen on, well…anything. I suppose the closest being the oil fired modification done to 2P no 527, but that had a vent on either side. Not some magic mushroom sprouting from on top of a superfluous box!

Its great to see some progress finally, and news of the inclusion of a match truck is very welcome. I have my fingers crossed that as half of the proposed models are of Midland origin that the match truck will likewise be of Midland origin. Failing that I have my contingency plan lined up based on an ungodly mix from the Slaters long cattle van chassis and a stretched 3 plank body. That should at least lead to an approximation along the lines of the NSR, GN and the surviving UT vehicles.

I agree, to a point. Do it properly and its a huge forwards step. But I'm very much on the do it properly or don't do it at all side of the fence. The god awful lamps on Turbomotive turned what is otherwise a fantastic model into a not at any price model for me, and what is being shown on the Black 5 is several steps worse on current showing.

Are you sure thats not the oil lamps on Turbomotive? 🤣

Hornby seem to be moving into O gauge, given the size of those lamps.

KR just seem insistent on rewriting reality and feeding duff info to poor old JK. All five drive axles were flanged, except when an axle was dropped in works and she was moved around on the remaining axles. Fully flanged 0-10-0 have been done successfully and some of those models are quoted 415mm radius but will negotiate 1st radius, but the slightly longer wheelbase of a 00 model likely pushes the boundaries so I can sort of see why they've gone down that path.