doktorstamp

I collected mine today from the post office, on unpacking the chimney was found to be detached, however further scrutiny shows that it can be re-glued. The packaging was excellent and more than sufficient. I would suggest the problem lies with Dapol's quality control, and clearly it was not checked by Rails prior to despatch, although , to be fair, they expect everything to be ok, clearly things are not, and as stated it would appear Dapol's quality control needs tightening. In fairness I have to say this is the first item of many purchased over the course of the years that has had a problem, and I only looked because of what others had reported in this thread. kind regards Nigel

My guess is that Bachmann's crane acted as impetus for Roco to produce this. Click on the subtitles icon if your German (Austrian) isn't up to it. Price anyones guess, I for one haven't looked. regards Nigel

Can we expect a "Market Guide to Model Railway Collectables" appearing in a Smiths near you any time soon? regards Nigel

I, along with many others look forward to attending MR exhibitions, at a liesurely pace, viewing the exhibits, chatting to friends, seeking out my preferred dealers, traders, without being viewed as a pariah. I also work at a number of exhibitions in Germany, many of which have been understandably cancelled, an exhibition due to be held near Stuttgart in October, will, now not take place. We, who work there have said the rules would hamper us in our work, likewise the traders, dealers have said no, many we deal with are those who have questions, they are also, fairly elderly, many who are hard of hearing need to lip read to understand, a face mask, puts paid to that. Clear visors are not permitted. The loss to the hospitality trade is significant. We have taken the decision to see how things will be next year, rather than going forward in the hope things will be okay. We need to be patient, I understand people chomping at the bit to get going, but not at any price. My own feeling is that things are not as bad as they are currently painted, however, no one wants to take responsibility for relaxing restrictions, ultimately they will have to, for the economy has been mightily and royally screwed. Stay healthy, Nigel A paid up member of "Coffin Dodgers United".

I find the prospect of such a loco being produced in model form quite interesting, even if others have exhibited preferences for further locos to take precedence. A 100 wagon train on a model railway would be an inspiring sight, assuming (don't stone me, statitisticians do it all the time), that each wagon measures approx 3" in length, we arrive at a length of 25 ft., without loco or brake van. Then there is the weight to be considered, allowing 50 grammes per wagon, we arrive at a weight of 5kg,(about 12½ lbs in old money), not including loco or brake van, assuming our loco has sufficient grunt to pull this lot , plus itself, and the obligatory brake van, I surmise derailments would occur with alarming frequency, also, how many layouts have this kind of size to accommodate such a behemoth? The weight would also rise were the wagons to have a representative load. Perhaps it would prove necessary to motorise the tender, thus accommodating the power element of the booster, even if it's in the wrong place. A compromise, that may well prove to be necessary to protect the loco from "burn out". regards to all stay safe Nigel

Hi Matt Thank you for keeping us all informed. I hope you get the website up and running soon, I do though realise, you are operating as a sole everything, and that there is, at present only one pair of hands, and insufficient hours in the day, I wish you every success, and look forward to some of the SR and GWR wagons (4mm) becoming available. kind regards, onwards and upwards Nigel

Irrespective of their being regionally constrained, I, for one will be purchasing some. My only hope, is that the price will be sensible. Will they only be in black or will we see olive green too? regards to all Nigel

It may well be the case. I imagine they are a smallish outfit with few staff, and a cash-flow crisis as a result of the lockdown, and while much has been done to minimise effects, it certainly is not a "one size fits all solution", and a good number may well fall through the cracks. Sad, but true. Let's just hope they can rebound after things are over, and some degree of normality returns. Nigel

There is a longish video on YouTube giving a history of the 9F. Link here; Watch, listen, and digest. the real life ones suffered from similar problems. regards Nigel

When I was based in Germany in the early '70's, we noted that in one of the hypermarkets, in its screws, nails, small nuts and bolts section, together with loads of items we men buy impulsively, on the grounds they may come in useful one day, sold these pre-packaged in little plastic boxes, of several sizes. The idea being that these slotted together, ultimately forming a useful, if expensively acquired, multi drawer storage cabinet. I still have a few left doing sterling service. Viewed with the benefit of hindsight, they now strike me as being aptly Teutonic. It's an idea I can't say I have ever seen in this country. mfG Nigel

Whilst the matter of the jib runner for the GWR has been largely resolved. I, and I believe, quite possibly others, would be interested in what the other three companies cobbled together, or was something provided by Cowans. I imagine for instance that delivery took place by rail thus necessitating a jib runner. I cannot imagine them being delivered as some kind of oversize Meccano set. Could some kind soul, without fear of breaking copyright, provide photos, preferably dateable, of these. mfG Nigel with thanks in advance.

Would my assumption that some of these may have made it into preservation be wide of the mark?

Although I have no great interest in the LNER, I can envisage the purchase of one, even if it only sits in the sidings next to one of the Bachmann cranes I have regards Nigel

Well there are a few items of interest at moderate cost, so my credit card feels relieved. regards Nigel

Incredibly brave or incredibly foolish. Only time will tell. I can only say 'Steampunk' holds no attraction for me. I wish them well with this venture, in how far it will reduce their operating deficit will also have to wait and see. Limb and saw spring to mind. regards to all Nigel