SD85

Have some more of my homebrewed ones, again all made up by me: When did the man know he was nearing Brighton? When it Hove into view on the horizon. What happened when the indecisive man set off from the capital city for Cork? He kept Dublin back. Many centuries ago a large sea creature rose from the depths and tried to invade Wales, that's why they installed a Fishguard. I like the middle of Scotland, the cities are just Perthect there. What board game was so popular people were lining up around the block to play it? Queuedo. A man goes into a restaurant and orders a coffee. It's served to him in less than 5 seconds. He's stunned and enquires to the waiter how this is possible. "Well" says the waiter "you did order an expresso." How did the Ancient Celts find their way around? They used woad signs. Did you hear that Yorkshire has declared independence and acquired its own air force? They now have squadrons of Whitby jets. Apparently The Grateful Dead wrote a concept album about marmalade once. It didn't sell that well though as they were known as more of a jam band. What did the man do before eating the snow? He gritted his teeth. When did humanity develop its sophisticated sense of humour? The Irony Age. Why were WW1 aircraft construction workers often high? They were working with doped fabric. Why is there a statue of the Emperor Franz Josef standing in the main town square in Builth Wells? Because he was an important figure in the Central Powys. Where did the monarch get his bread made? At the King's Mill. What bread is made in Brighton? Hove-is. What did King Arthur do when he won the lottery? He bought Camelot. What's the most untrustworthy financial institution found in Shakespeare? Wells Iago. I'm sorry. I can't play Chopin that loud. Piano is not my forte.... What happened when the pilgrim progressed? He got a bunion. What did Sherlock Holmes say at the end of spring? Elementary my dear Whitsun. Why did the mathemetician take a trigonometric calculator to the beach? BeCOS there were SINs that it was going to be sunny and he wanted to get a TAN.

And this one: A mathematician is working on a new formula that involves many complimentary shapes. He's worked out the correct dimensions for the square, the circle and the rectangle, but the correct triangle for the equation is still needed. However, he's also busy doing the formulae for the existing shapes, and so he delegates the task of drawing up the correct triangle to his assistant. He gives the assistant the necessary instructions, and leaves him to it. An hour later the assistant appears with a triangle drawn on a bit of paper. "No!" the mathematician cries. "That's an isosceles triangle you've drawn! Not what I need for my formula! Please go back and try again." Grudgingly, the assistant returns to his desk and spend the next few hours studying the set up and the instructions. He returns to the mathematician once again. "NO!!!" the mathematician cries. "That's an equilateral triangle you've drawn! Please study the formula carefully and get it correct! I laid down specific requirements!" The assistant is getting annoyed now, but he silently goes back to his desk and draws up another triangle which he shows to the mathematician by the end of the working day. "NOOOO!!!" the mathematician groans. "That's a scalene triangle! The degrees are all wrong!" He pauses to regain composure. "OK" he says to his assistant. "Let's sleep on this. Go home and get some rest and tomorrow we can start again." He shuts up his office and him and the assistant go home. Next morning, the assistant arrives early and drawns up yet another triangle carefully. But when the mathematician arrives, he's still not satisfied. "NO!" he wails. "That's yet another equilateral triangle you've drawn! Please, please, please just study the formula and get this correct!" The assistant is very fed up, but perseveres. He returns to his desk and spends a good few hours drawing up the perfect triangle for the formula. This time, when he presents it, the mathematician responds with a deep sigh of relief. "Finally!" he smiles. "That's the right angled triangle."

I invent my own jokes. Here's an example: A man is looking for a new car, but he doesn't have much money. He tries all round the local second hand car dealerships but without success. Even the most basic car is out of his budget. Then, he comes across a curious new car dealership that has just opened on the edge of town. The forecourt is full of gleaming high-end sports cars - Mercs, BMWs, Ferarris, Mclarens, you name it, and they're not even secondhand - they're new. He stops in amazement, and then notices a sign taped to the door of the dealership. "These cars cannot be bought with money, but instead can be exchanged for one bag of herbs." He reads the notice several times, in stunned silence, then goes inside and speaks to the dealer. Yes, the notice is real. No, it's not a joke, the cars on the forecourt genuinely are for sale for the price of one bag of any herb of the buyer's choice. In a tremendous excitement, he sprints back home and raids the spice cupboard. Eventually he manages to accumulate several jars worth of thyme into a small carrier bag, and races back to the dealership for his new car. There's no problem at all. The bag of herbs is taken, examined, weighed and judged by the dealer to be adequate in quantity and quality. The man is ecstatic. He signs the necessary paperwork, and drives off in a shiny new Lamborghini. He cannot believe he's managed to get such a great car for a bag of thyme, and he immediately decides to go and show off his new acquisition to his friend who lives nearby. When he arrives at his friend's house, he is surprised to see that his friend has also acquired a sports car - a gleaming Bugatti, which he's carefully washing down in the driveway. The man pulls up and gets out of the Lamborghini, and greets his friend. "I see you've got a new motor too!" he exclaims. His friend nods. "Yeah. Funny thing really. Got it from a little dealership on the edge of town. They were giving cars away in exchange for a bag of herbs." "No way!" the man exclaims. "That's what I did too!" He points to his Lamborghini. "This cost me just one bag of thyme. Amazing, isn't it?" His friend nods in agreement. "Yeah. This Bugatti cost me a mint."

The WD 2-10-0 would be a niche model but nice to have. Also I reckon an obvious first production run of it would be the LMR's Gordon, and that would sell out fast I reckon (it's been used on the LMR, mainline railtours and on preserved lines). Apparently Kitmaster might have been planning to do one of the WD locos in the 60s (I think it was the 2-8-0 version perhaps) which would have been interesting. I'll reiterate the desire for a U Class; I don't personally need one but it's just utterly illogical that no manufacturer AT ALL seems to have produced it and no retailer has commissioned one. People claim that it's too similar to the N but that's sort of like saying there's no point producing a 78xxx class because it's basically a slightly updated Ivatt 2MT, yet Hornby are producing one.

This is a good nostalgia trip. I especially like the 39th edition of the catalogue as that was my first Hornby one and I spent ages looking through it at the time. I also remember the 1998 one which was when Hornby started to refine their products a bit and reintroduce some of the old Mainline/Airfix tooling they had acquired as a prelude to their transformation from a mainly train set oriented company into one supplying precision models.

When it comes to EMUs the absolute elephant in the room is the lack of a 4-CIG. If you model the Brighton line or indeed anywhere in Surrey, South London or Sussex between the mid 1960s and the early 2000s then one of these units is an absolute necessity IMO.

I did manage to sort out my collection of RMs though. Got rid of most of them but also bought some more back issues so I now have complete sets for 1996 and 1997 (when I first started reading the magazine). Those are vintage years. I often re-read those old issues.

I like the idea of a plan with purpose. My main issue with planning my own loco shed layout is that I can't seem to come up with a rewarding plan, or one that doesn't seem totally boring. There are some unusual prototypes in terms of track layout etc (Camden for example), but I don't want to copy them wholesale.

Revisiting this thread to add an update. For various reasons which I don't feel like going into my modelling has been inactive for the last six months or so. Admittedly I have been prioritising my fishing more (although struggling to do that at times). I feel that a good way to cheer myself up is through buying locos; however this is expensive and I have been exercising some discipline in this regard (I don't need a Heljan Garratt no matter how much I like big freight engines with lots of wheels). I actually have been making an effort to acquire bits and pieces for my layout project. I have managed fortunately to acquire 25 yards of Peco Code 75 bullhead, and have accumulated various things to assist in weathering and painting etc. But I can't seem to get started on anything. The items I buy just sit there and gather dust. I don't know why or how but I always find a way to put it off. TBH this seems to be applying to everything right now, I just don't start it or don't really get myself to do it. A lot of people on these forums have produced quite a bit of modelling this year with the time available to them; despite having the same amount of time available I haven't done anything. The last serious modelling project I did was probably back in October 2019. Not really sure what to do. This inertia is, as mentioned, something I have generally, it's not just my interests which it's applying to.

This book might have the relevant photographs perhaps? Not read it so can't be sure... https://www.amazon.co.uk/2-6-2s-Including-Coster-Nov-01-2008-Hardback/dp/B0092I1BKE

Agreed, how exactly was that done? I've been considering a model of a Paddlebox but didn't realise you could make one from a B12.

I think also that the photographs are taken from either an auto coach or an inspection saloon.

Having looked at the NLS maps further, I would guess that No. 8 is taken from inside the west end of Perridge Tunnel (as suggested earlier) owing to the curvature. 15 is a bit harder to pin down but I would suggest that it is taken looking west on the line somewhere between half a mile to a mile and a half east of Perridge Tunnel, going on the contours and tree coverage indicated on the map.

The mystery has been solved - the station is Chudleigh Knighton Halt on the Teign Valley Line. See original thread for more details. Thanks to all who suggested/helped.

Well done, brilliant research! I must admit that I had looked over the Teign Valley line before but not identified the station - the photograph on that site only just shows the bridge. I think that the first bridge immediately after the halt must have been replaced by a more modern girder one at some point judging by the photo (which was taken in the 1950s according to the website). This means that photo 12 is very probably taken pre-war, and 8 and 15 are likely to be so as well as I think they are taken on the same journey. EDIT - actually, according to the Disused Stations website the platform was originally of timber construction but was replaced in concrete after the war. Therefore I would speculate the photo to have been taken in the late 1940s or early 1950s. Also the fact that the bridge had been replaced probably confused me further in my initial search as I can't find any other photos of Chudleigh Knighton Halt with the original bridge - only the more modern one.

Dover shed was opened in the 1920s and not closed until well after nationalisation, though, so the wagons in Big Four livery mean it's a 1920s shot.

The apparent lack of a slope at the platform end is an illusion due to the angle; look closely and it can just be made out.

I thought it might be around that area, but I checked Ruspidge already and I don't think it's that.

Have posted some of the unlocated photographs in the thread below to try and get any further help on the matter: https://www.rmweb.co.uk/community/index.php?/topic/103405-jonnys-where-are-these-photo-album/page/65/

double post apologies

I have been trying to do some of my own research on the following photos, which were posted on a similar enquiry thread on the MM&M forum by carlwebus - thread linked here: https://www.rmweb.co.uk/community/index.php?/topic/156346-unknown-locations/ In particular the two following photographs are proving very difficult to track down for me personally. I think that they are taken in GWR territory, from an autocoach/DMU/inspection saloon, and possibly on the same journey. The station photograph at the top shows a cast iron notice but this is out of focus and cannot be read, however I think it may be a GWR one. Someone on the original thread noted that the track appears to have GWR two hole chairs, and I think the platform is of a concrete type found on some GWR branch lines. But I just cannot locate the station, and believe me I have tried. I have looked across the GWR network extensively via Google, old OS maps and GWR route maps and I still cannot place where it is at all. I am pretty sure it is a GWR station, and probably not in the London or the SE, but I have checked literally every branch line in Wales, Devon, Cornwall and Wessex and still cannot find a match. I also checked all the branch lines in Shropshire, the Marches and Gloucestershire, again nothing. Really could do with some assistance on this one as the evidence strongly suggests it's GWR but nothing is turning up. The key to the photograph is that after the station the line goes under two bridges (the second one can be seen in the distance) and I wonder if it's also at the summit of a particular line. The track seems to peak into the distance. Any help would be gratefully received. Thanks

Bredegar & Wormshill No. 6 'Eigau' 0-4-0 well tank Built by Orenstein & Koppel in Berlin, Germany 1912 Works No 5668 "No6 Eigiau, originally named ‘Sunlight’, is an 0-4-0 well tank, built by Orenstein & Koppel of Berlin in 1912 (works number 5668) for Mr C L Warren, a Cheshire contractor – one of very few steam locos built overseas for industrial service in the UK. It was brought for the construction of the garden village at Port Sunlight on the Wirral and when work there was ceased during the First World War, it was sold for use in building Cowlyd reservoir in the mountains north of Capel Curig in the north of Wales. Here it was renamed Eigiau after a nearby lake. In 1928 it moved to Penryhn Quarry, the huge opencast pit at Bethesda which was the largest producer of slate in Wales. Eigiau worked here until 1949, was brought for preservation in 1963 and ran at Bressingham Gardens for many years before moving to Bredgar in 1995." https://bwlr.co.uk/railway-php-html/locomotives/no6/ Photo of loco at Bressingham: https://www.flickr.com/photos/trains-travel/50154858501

The time to introduce British HO would have been in the 70s TBH, Airfix and Mainline missed a trick there. If they'd concentrated on the higher end of the market with more detailed HO models then Hornby might possibly have switched scales eventually, particularly when they moved production to China. Then again they might not have done, so who knows. Peco are already making EM gauge track aren't they? RTR P4 would be possible, although I think it's unlikely to happen. (Actually, don't SLW offer their Class 24 in 00, EM and P4?) On a related note the main problem with P4 seems to be the hair's width wheel flanges requiring careful track laying and running to avoid derailment. I've often wondered why you can't just compromise a little by having slightly coarser 18.83mm gauge track and EM/00 wheel flanges, so stuff doesn't derail. I've heard that this leads to clearance issues in wheel splashers etc (less of a problem in diesel and electric outline modelling, though), but if the Americans could do 19mm gauge with no problem.... The game changer for me, though, would be practical radio control for 4mm scale. The only problem is that the battery packs would require charging, and where do you store them in smaller locos? But the idea of just doing away with conventional layout electricity supply would be very interesting.

I don't think it is Wall Grange as that seems to have had two platforms. I did wonder if it could be Winkhill Halt on the Waterhouses branch, but after looking at the location closely I don't think it's that either.

Kitmaster were planning an A3, a USA tank and possibly a WD 2-8-0. I can't believe no manufacturer has made a U Class as yet, it's the big missing item on the Southern scene.