Velopeur

So much depends though on the position of the crossing nose relative to the diamond. On Ian's model, the left hand crossing noses are relatively close together, whereas the right hand two are noticeably further apart. Scissors crossings are often more symmetrical than that, so require a slightly different solution. The role of the checkrail is to keep the wheelset flange from hitting the end of the crossing nose, or even the wrong side of the crossing nose. It is more to do with function than appearance. For the LH lower crossing nose in particular, there just isn't enough checkrail to absolutely prevent the flangess from hitting the very end of the crossing nose, or going the wrong way. That is why I suggested he ought to make the checkrail marked in red a little longer.

Ian, I feel the diamond in the middle of your formation should really have longer check rails so that the adjacent crossing noses are properly checked. If you compare what you have done with what you would normally see on a plain turnout, you will hopefully immediately realise the difference. I have crudely drawn the missing bits below for the near end. I think the red extension is necessary, the yellow one more for tidiness. Should probably be the same at the far end of the diamond too, though maybe not quite as essential. Otherwise, it looks a great piece of work. Well done.

I have a faint recollection of seeing Helsby, Tumill & Haddon at a 2mm do in Birmingham (I think), a while before it hit the normal exhibition circuit. I don't remember the glass being up then and the scenery looked a little bare. IIRC, its first proper public exhibition was in Northampton. The York exhibition used to only be open on Sunday mornings in the days when it ran for 4 days. The exhibitors all went on a tour on the Sunday afternoon.

Ah, Bilton Wednesday's football ground! I wonder what league they are playing in these days?

Ian, best of luck! If you hit further problems, do bring your work along to one of our Thursday evening meetings at Laurie's Lair in Clayworth. I am sure that between us, we can give you a lot of help and advice. Unfortunately, the Sunday meetings currently all seem to be arranged on days when I am out rambling, so I can only do the evening meetings at the moment. Richard

I am afraid I take the opposite view. I have been using my faithful 12W iron for 2mm trackwork for at least 25-30 years with complete success. It can't cope with 4mm track, but for 2mm track it works perfectly for me. I guess a lot depends on what you are used to.

How powerful is your soldering iron? Maybe you would be better using one with a lower wattage/temperature. My experience is that pcb only delaminates under excessive heat.

Wide canals in foreign lands existed long before the UK built its network of narrow canals. The narrow canals were more a question of economics and water supply. On the Chesterfield Canal, for example, wide and narrow sections were built at the same time.

Sorry, only just got back to this. Guilty of too much shorthand! By KX, longhand, this would be the connection from the GNR terminus (Kings X) to the Met. which was done as part of the widening (Widened Lines) and extension to Moorgate. The original line to the terminus at Farringdon, via Kings Cross Met was 2 track only. The 4 track line was only opened throughout in 1866 IIRC - 3 years after the initial opening. I have walked any number of times from St Pancras to Farringdon and beyond. The most ambitious was a walk via Tower Bridge to Limehouse basin, round the Regents Canal to Little Venice and down the branch to Paddington, then back to St Pancras. On that walk alone, I effectively walked the entire length of the Metropolitan from Paddington to Aldgate. I am well aware of the geography therefore, though I can understand how i must have confused you. A well known map site has a map of (supposedly!) 1851 showing the route of the Met around Kings Cross. I have compared this with the 1874 map, roughly at the same scale. It is interesting that whilst the footprint of the trackbed either side of Kings Cross Met station appears only wide enough for 2 tracks on the earlier map, the footprint of the station itself is just as wide as on the 1874 map.

The original line was only to Farringdon. KX came a little later. EDIT I think the GWR had withdrawn from running trains before the Farringdon- KX extension was opened. Wikepedia' Metropolitan Railway page has its dates all wrong, so don't quote that. The page on Farringdon is better - it says The station was opened on 10 January 1863 as the terminus of the original Metropolitan Railway, the world's first underground metro line. The station, initially named Farringdon Street, was originally a short distance from the present station building. The line ran from the Farringdon area to Paddington, a distance of 4 mi (6 km). The station was relocated on 23 December 1865 when the Metropolitan Railway opened an extension to Moorgate.

The use of existing engravings to "illustrate" new things was not entirely unknown. Incidentally, that centre image in #411 alleged to be KX includes what looks like 3 running lines between the platforms.

A couple of suggestions 1. The deck of the structure looks clean and white because it has been raining. Everything is wet - or at least damp, so the platform is reflecting daylight. 2. The "structure" we all think we see holding the platform up looks more to me like tape tied or stuck to the structure. I suspect the actual structure is much darker and doesn't show up in the photo. Why the tape? Maybe so the structure shows up better in the dark?

London Road Models sell kits of LNWR tenders https://traders.scalefour.org/LondonRoadModels/locos-tenders-chassis/lnwr/

A really delightful show, full of quality layouts - and all for five quid. Vastly underrated. I thoroughly enjoyed it.

The front end looks almost like a prequel to the Kerr Stuart Victory class - though the Victory class had side tanks. On the other hand, the Belgians built a number of locos that looked almost 'British', but not quite 100%. The photo suggests a lack of aesthetic care that might just make it of foreign origin - like the awkward position of the cylinders and the strange overlap of the side sheets at the front edge of the cab.