Right Away

The Bachmann Fairburn will also benefit visually with the addition of front footsteps; this one has home made footsteps and SR smokebox lamp irons. (Will get round to replacing those glued on plastic route discs for removable etched brass ones eventually).

Agree with your remark about the 8F loco to tender distance. Having generous track curvature, I produced a replacement drawbar from thin brass strip; in the case of a Fowler tender this new drawbar must replicate the angles of the factory fitted version. (Note: Tension locks have also been modified for closer coupling of vehicles)

For anyone’s interest, I settled on an Atten ST-1016, does the job and not too noisy at all. https://www.switchelectronics.co.uk/products/desktop-solder-fume-extractor-absorber-st-1016 Moderators, can close this now if you wish. RA

That Bulleid oil bath …….! Seriously though, the problem does look as if it might be related to the paint finish Hornby use on metal bodies as whenever I’ve had the misfortune to transfer oil to a plastic body from any manufacturer, a gentle wipe with a tissue or cotton bud moistened with a very minute dab of washing up liquid always resolves. (It also works well on crudded up mobile phone screens). It would be interesting to hear from others with afflicted models and of their solutions.

Could any member recommend a free standing solder fume fan/extractor which is reasonably quiet in operation and inexpensive. People have commented on unfavourable noise levels on some and that is something I’m looking to avoid.

Hi Spamcan61, my usual rosin-cored lead-free solder is fine for occasional electrical work. Seeking to do more prolonged work, I have been advised to use a solder that is free of both. Online searches show that such solder is available but it is relatively expensive.

Could any member recommend a “Lead Free-Rosin Free” solder which would be suitable for brass modelling tasks, etchings and small kits etc. Similarly, a Rosin-Free flux. The reason for the “safer” specs is because of a respiratory condition. Any help would be greatly appreciated.

Does this help…..? Photo dated August ‘61.

Both. I lay new track and give it an all over “base” colour, followed by ballasting, finally selectively spraying (with airbrush) to represent the build up of differing levels of grime, brake dust etc where appropriate. I gently clean rail heads between each process to avoid a thick build up of paint and adhesive at the end. Reference to good quality colour photographs can be helpful in achieving your final result but beware of any colour cast which can give an inappropriate tint.

I had some initial reservation in 2022 about buying the Hornby R3564 as their “latest” Stanier 8F, a class of engine I had not owned before. As previously mentioned, had it not been for a very reasonable asking price and the news of a forthcoming, new (er expensive!) Black Five and fearing which might follow regarding a possible overdue, newly tooled and equally pricey 8F, I would have forgone the purchase. However prototypical of this particular engine, I feel a Fowler tender gives a disproportionate appearance of size to the ensemble from whichever viewpoint it is seen. I really required a Stanier tender which I was unable to source at the time, pending a change of locomotive identity. I undertook to try and improve the Fowler version by trimming at a slight angle the top edges of the tender sides and rear behind the coal bunker to give an illusion of reduced thickness, where it is particularly prominent. Another visual enhancement was the fitting of a shortened drawbar made from brass strip, bringing the tender much closer to the engine. I followed the angles of the original “cranked” drawbar when forming the new, shorter brass version and then drilled the pivot holes. The grinding away of some of the leading truck casting has been mentioned previously. Given weathering and a few other tweaks, the model gives a reasonably acceptable appearance of a “foreigner” when working in on a freight from the LMR on my BR (SR) railway.

Perhaps not to everyone’s taste, for convenience I compiled folders entitled “Bachmann Sheets”, “Dapol Sheets”, “EFE Sheets” and “Hornby Sheets” containing the Service Sheets for my items which I can access on iPad and iPhone, the latter always being at hand. Hornby’s can be a bit “hit and miss”, as not every release seems to have a corresponding sheet, some seemingly being unavailable.

Please see close up of R3564, purchased Spring 2022. (If I can dig the box out of the attic later, I’ll check the supplied sheet.)

Very strongly agree. I attacked mine with a Dremel in an attempt to disguise it.

My “H” 0-4-4T (one of the first releases) was quite reluctant to move at times when first received, requiring the odd nudge into motion. I discovered by loosening slightly, the four motor top housing screws the problem went away. I cut out and placed a thin “gasket” of paper around under the face of the motor top housing which has the effect of raising it very minutely. Clearly, as originally fitted, the top housing was fouling but this simple mod has proved most successful.

Like the Bachmann coaches shown departing in the background here …. Hands up, they’re renumbered Eastern Region stock; set number was chosen as it was one of the last to be repainted into green.

Thank you al for your replies.

Relieved that I decided to grab a “5” and an “8” for just over £100 each new, two years ago when a local shop was having a “clear out”. Once home and tested, various mods were undertaken to improve their appearances (I renumbered the “5”) - please see photos. Overall, relatively pleased with, what nowadays, might be considered two “cheap” acquisitions.

Charfield?

Whilst trawling through some photos which I took in the early ‘80s, I was comparing Phase One and Phase Two 4CIG EMUs and noticed the latter’s motor brake coach was devoid of a guard’s periscope. My questions are essentially: 1. Were Phase Two 4 CIGs not built with periscopes? 2. When was the decision taken to relieve Guards of the responsibility of providing “another pair of eyes” in preference to revenue collection duties? In the past, where “incidents” have arisen, guards had been admonished/criticised by Inspectorate where it had been established they failed to assist a driver in signal sighting.

Exactly the same here (Note: I don’t require sound). My Lenz decoders have proven most reliable, but the finesse with which the slow running characteristics obtained from Zimo decoders now make their “budget” version my weapon of choice - when I can get them! Zimo decoders are particularly useful where mechanisms and/or gearing ratios are not of the first order. Example 1: Hornby “Castle” 4-6-0 (R3619) fitted with a Lenz Standard V2 decoder - cannot be configured to creep away from standstill, always going from around a scale 0 - 3mph. Replace with Zimo MX600R and the wheels easing gently into motion. Example 2: Dapol D1 4-4-0 (4S-028-004) fitted with Lenz Next18 decoder - same as above. Hard wired with Zimo MX600R and she starts away beautifully.

An Iwata CS Eclipse has served me very well over the years. Easy to clean, lovely to use, but take care when cleaning as parts ain’t cheap if they decide to go walkabouts!

Here’s a couple of photos of “pre CAP” HAPs which I took at Fishersgate and Portslade in 1981

Off topic, sorry, but mention of the Littlehampton “shuttles”; a photo of my father changing ends at Ford in 1968.

With regards to using a magnifier, I am unable to offer advice, but the following information might be useful in the interim as your eye adjusts after the surgery. I well remember the initial difficulty after surgery when a new intra- ocular lens was implanted for “normal” distance. My existing glasses were varifocal. (astigmatism correction was not available on NHS prescription intra-ocular lenses at that time.) I even resorted to removing the spectacle lens but it did get some odd looks! After the requisite six seeks, an eye test resulted in a new set of spectacle lenses, one for the “new” eye and one for that which had not been operated on. After that things were fine. Four months later the other eye had its cataract removed and so I underwent the same palaver. I still wear varifocal glasses for closer viewing as both eyes are effectively now “long sighted” and also for astigmatism correction. PS When my wife required cataract surgery 2 years ago, both eyes were operated on, on the same day so she never had the initial issue of mismatched spectacle lenses.

Our hobby continues to come in for much debate over the rising costs of products. However… as far as percentage increases go, the email received today from Ring (video doorbell) informing of a hike in their subscription from £3.49/month to £4.99/month was an eye opener. There must be something dreadfully amiss with their current business model for their need to impose such a huge, 30% rise. Some will say another £1.50/month will probably hurt few, but there is principle at play here. We can live in hope that such a drastic pricing change won’t find itself encroaching on the model railway market to the same degree.