Johnsy

The spreadsheet opens happily into Open Office for those (like me) who are too mean to buy Microsoft Office and too old-fashioned to update to Libre Office. My thanks also to the OP.

My father fought on the Western Front in the Great War. Like many soldiers in any war, he spoke about it only rarely. He did tell, however, of a time when his mates were being moved about France in a train with no information given about where they were bound. After many hours the train stopped. They opened the door of the van they were in and saw that there was a file of French cavalry beside the track. As the only man present who could make himself understood in French, my father was delegated to ask where they were. The reply came back immediately from one of the French soldiers - "Yer jist ootside Lille - - - and whit part o' Fife dae ye come fae, Jock?"* At that point the train set off again, so they never found out how that guy ended up in a French cavalry regiment. * I picked Lille here at random. I heard the tale nearly 60 years ago and have long since forgotten the actual location. For the record, my Dad came from Ferryport-on-Craig. Try finding it on a map: there is a railway connection to the name! Johnsy

Cupboard door wagons were, indeed, rarely seen outside of Scotland. Models of cupboard door wagon are even more rarely seen on RM web – so this thread gives an excuse to show three all at once. Wagon on the left represents the wagon that started this thread. This is the 00 gauge version of the Ian Kirk kit that is shown a few posts above in 0 gauge. Middle wagon represents a PO version of the same wagon. The model is a Three Aitch kit (is anyone else old enough to remember them?) with all the details filed off and the sides, ends and solebars covered with overlays. The lettering is genuine, from an HMRS photograph, but I cannot justify the livery. Right hand wagon is also a kit, but I have forgotten the manufacturer (it was a very long time ago) and there is no hint on the vehicle itself. The photo probably shows more c-d wagons than have appeared on RMweb for a long time (ever?), but that's quite enough for now. Johnsy from deep in GSWR country.

To follow-on from Dave John’s posting earlier, here is another Caledonian crane tank for your delectation. I should perhaps give warning that what follows is a matter of base bodging rather than precision model making. The loco looks delightful, but when it comes to making it run, the weight distribution is diabolical. The wheelbase is (correctly) well to the front of the engine, which means that there is a long and heavy rear overhang. The kit came with a choice of two white-metal cabs, a simple one that is rather heavy and would make things worse, and a bigger one that is even heavier! By good fortune the Caledonian’s crane tank had a cab different from either of these two, so I fitted a lightweight brass version. Despite this, and other attempts to adjust the balance, the loco tends to drop its rear wheels into any crossing gap, generally lose electrical contact and jerk to a halt in a most undignified fashion (well, it did on Peco code 100 insulfrogs anyway). As you can see, the crane has acquired a tender. This would not have been unusual on the Caledonian. Many of the Caley’s 0-4-0 and smaller 0-6-0 pugs ran with a simple tender to carry extra coal, tools and spares and to provide the crew with somewhere to keep their jeely pieces (aka – jam sandwiches). I must confess that I have no reason to believe that this crane tank ran with such a tender: equally, I have no reason to believe that it did not and that is good enough for me. The loco and the tender are joined by a heavy brass drawbar that pivots at both ends. The pivot screw under the tender is tightened to the extent that horizontal rotation is free but there is only slight vertical movement of the drawbar. The relative heights of the pivot points on the loco and tender are set so that whenever the rear of the loco drops by more than a tiny amount the weight is transferred to the drawbar. The tender is built on an old Bachmann wagon chassis (it was new at the time!) with their split-axle wheels. These stub axles are used to provide extra electrical pick-up for the loco. The loco now runs smoothly over pointwork, with only a delicate dip of her derriere as she negotiates the crossings. I know that it is rather anachronistic for the St Rollox works shunter in 1904ish to be pulling a wagon with an RCH chassis from 1923, but the Caledonian were always in the forefront of developments (and it was easy place to start from!). Johnsy (A fifer in exile on the Costa Clyde)

Well, this thread has been dormant for ten years or so. It was, however, the trigger for my wish to have a narrow gauge railcar in ON30 so it seems appropriate to show the ultimate result here. The start was a part-built Branchlines kit, bought from e-bay. This model has an interesting panel structure that is just screaming for an elaborate paint-job. The back-story here is that an up-market guest ranch called the Bar-L (the Dude Ranch to the locals) has been established in wildest Arizona, miles from any usable road. The ranch has a spur from a nearby NG short line and uses a railcar to transport its wealthy guests to and from the nearest junction with the main line and to fetch supplies. For those of you who do not recognise the name Bar-L, I suggest that you ask a Glaswegian, or look it up on the inter-webby-thingy. Then read the text on the photograph showing the back panel. The railcar panels were drawn using Open Office presentation software and printed onto white-backed transfer sheet. Open Office is much the same as MS PowerPoint, but it allows one to work at a much higher level of magnification (and it is free!). These packages allow the transfers to be draw to exact measurements from the model panels together with whatever lining, lettering and graphics you wish. The only difficulty is matching the colour printed onto the transfers with the colour painted onto the rest of the vehicle. You will drive yourself to drink trying to achieve a good match (harken to the voice of experience). My answer was to side-step the issue and make a clear contrast between the colours – well, that I my story and I am sticking to it. The transfers were spray varnished before applying them to the model; the rest of the model was then varnished to match the finish on the transfers. I think these transfers have worked well, although the vertical alignment could be better. To my shame and disgrace, I have failed to make the Branchlines chassis run smoothly through PECO insulfrog points. I eventually gave up and decided to use the mechanism from the Hornby Ruston 48DS diesel/flat wagon combo. The chassis from the Hornby flat wagon fits nicely (with a bit of butchery) under the railcar. It was straightforward to contrive a short trailer to fit over the Hornby drive unit: the packing cases (heavy white metal brutes) cover the motor and provide weight. It looks very cute, and now runs beautifully. My first thought was to post this in the Ruston 48DS thread, but it is probably better for my own safety to hide it here and hope that no-one from that thread spots what I have done. Johnsy A Fifer on the Costa Clyde PS How does one place a photo in a particular part of the text, please?

By far the best brambles (I am a Scot - we don't call then blackberries) that I have picked for many a year come from a site near Annan. The site used to be a WWII airfield and is somewhat contaminated with lub oil and aviation fuel around the hangers and spent machine gun bullets around the test-firing butts. The site was then used for one of the UK's first nuclear power stations - which is still there, more or less. I leave it to you to decide if the excellent size and flavour of these berries is the result of the previous uses of the site or the fact that not many people come to pick them!

I do not know of any examples of 45 degree planking on an entire vehicle, but here is a wagon with diagonal planking on cupboard doors. There must have been some reason for this, since the end result is a rather complicated door structure with the diagonal planking, heavy external wood frame and (?) vertical internal planking as well. If I feel particularly brave (and can find the livery) I would like to build this some day. HMRS have a couple of photos of this wagon and the Caledonian Railway Association have a proper drawing.

Cupboard door goods wagons and mineral wagons were very widely used in Scotland (they are very rarely modelled!). There were examples with vertical door planking and others that had horizontal door planks to match the body. It may not have been universal, but one construction method for horizontal door planks utilised an internal door lining of vertical planks that were bolted (screwed?) to the top and bottom straps from the hinges.

Well, I hope it is a J36 (which is odd, since I lean towards the Caledonian). This would let me replicate a scene from my youth…… Early one Monday morning in 1967 (ish) I was on the platform at Kirkcaldy waiting for a train to Edinburgh when a filthy J36 came slowly through with a line of empty minerals, probably for Seafield colliery. Nothing unusual in that, but then I noticed that all of the waiting passengers were giving the loco crew loud cheers and applause as it clattered past them. What on earth was going on here? To explain, you have to know that in those days everybody in Scotland was glued to their TV screens of a Sunday evening to watch Dr Finlay’s Casebook. It was compulsory; there was no escape; resistance was futile. Well, the previous night’s episode of Dr Finlay had included a sequence of a train pulling into Tannochbrae station hauled by, yes, a J36. When the engine reached my end of the platform I could see that the grime had been wiped off the middle splasher and this battered survivor was proudly carrying the name TANNOCHBRAE written in chalk. The crew were grinning like Cheshire cats: I joined in the applause; they deserved it. The engine must have been 65288 or 65345 since they were the only two BR steam engines left in Scotland. So when the inevitable discussion starts on which J36s should be modelled and what names should be carried – I know what I want! Johnsy

I'm not a cup-half-empty kind of guy: I'm not a cup-half-full kind of guy. I just want to know who wasted my money buying a cup that is twice as big as t needs to be! (Ah come fae Fife)

I like the description of Glassfords as "a bit eccentric". The proprietor seemed to regard customers as an unnecessary distraction to normal business. From my own experience, if you went in looking for something mainstream (say Humbrol paints or anything made of plastic) you were treated with disdain or downright rudeness: on the occasion however when I asked for a few specific number drills then pulled out my micrometer and proceeded to check the diameters of every one I was treated like a prince among men! The counter was always covered by a collection of weird tools and parts, but you were never allowed time to browse. I think the owner was into model engineering rather than railway modelling and regarded anything smaller than 7 inch live steam as somewhat inferior.