davidbr

We have a new bauble on our Christmas tree. Have a safe Christmas, everyone.

Yes!! Annoying is putting it mildly. They are irrelevant and intrusive. Sent an email to the administrators but not had a reply.

You mentioned nuts. I did a test build of a DD3 tank wagon in 4mm for Taff Vale Models and made one or two additions including nuts on the end of the diagonal braces. I used 16BA nuts. I have attached a picture and leave you to judge their suitability. The diagonal brace is 0.5mm nickel silver rod so the nut slips easily over th end, held with a minute dab of glue. There should be two but my supply of nuts is low so I economised. The second, lock nut, would have been thinner, so just file it down. Unfortunately, 16BA nuts are like hens' teeth at the moment but when they become available again, would someone please let me know??

The last exhibition I went to was at Houten on the outskirts of Utrecht, 22/23 February 2020. I was helping on the Modelu stand there but the exhibition was interesting. There was, naturally, a lot of HO but plenty of other thing one does not see very much at UK exhibitions - dioramas, a couple of stands with big ranges of Lifecolour and other acrylic paints and landscaping materials, some interesting tools and automated road vehicles. It is an exhibition I shall go back to, not every year but every so often.

Thanks, Dave. I quite understand fitting bits on to the etch economically. Some kits come with the body on one etch and chassis on another, which is why I asked.

I made one of these way back in the late 1970s. It was an Albion Models white metal kit with an etched brass chassis. I think the kit is now available from Roxey Mouldings. My model was made to OO. I forsook modelling for some 25 years and when I returned to the hobby, I did so working in P4. However, I have a soft spot for my 4-4-4 and want to make a new P4 chassis for it. Dave, will your chassis have spacers and be suitable for P4 and if so, would you make the chassis available separately?

hut 1. a small or humble dwelling of simple construction, esp. one made of natural materials, as logs or grass. 2. a simple roofed shelter, often with one or two sides left open. shed 1. a small structure, either freestanding or attached to a larger structure, serving for storage or shelter. 2. a large low structure often open on all sides. Take your pick! I think the terms are almost interchangeable in common usage today, though I feel 'hut' has more connection with a dwelling (albeit primitive) and 'shed', storage. We have become rather lax in recent years over the use of a lot of words which, in the past, would have had a more specific purpose but which are now used in a broader sense.

Yes, it is the 4mm version. All his kits turn out very well.

Of course! Lifecolour black range.

From a Severn Models platelayers' hut kit. Etched brass.

Are Matador Models still in business? I sent an order and cheque (not yet paid in) earlier in the year and followed it up with a letter a couple of months later. No response at all. The website says there may be a delay as they are a small outfit but if there is a long delay, they will contact you. To date, more than 3 months from the order going in, I have heard absolutely nothing. If anyone does know anything, I would appreciate knowing what it is.

There is now no mention or connection to the show through the website, so the only way to see anything is to go directly to the EMGS You Tube channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCiPgMfKWQJkJadbcJFFiqlg/videos

Unfortunately, if you go to the EMGS website and follow through to the exhibition page, it says the show is now closed. However, I went back in the History on my browser and came up with https://emgs.org/virtual-show-2021-welcome-closed/ which took (even though the address says 'closed') me to the show page and (at the time of writing) the 'Show Guide' button is giving links to the different sections. Many offerings are on YouTube, so by going there and looking for the EM Gauge Society channel, (or clicking this link: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCiPgMfKWQJkJadbcJFFiqlg/videos) you can also find offerings from today's show.

Thanks, Mikkel. It's the small things that bring scenes to life but all too often overlooked. Impressive research! You suggested droppings might be collected in rural areas. Indeed they were, valued for vegetable plots (anyone remember the competition there used to be in rural shows?) and for roses. Manure was also appreciated in some more built up areas. My mother grew up in the Rhondda valley and she remembered droppings being competed for. When a delivery vehicle or someone like the rag and bone man (there were no personal conveyances for their like) came along the street, the children were sent out with dustpan or shovel and brush to garner the sought after harvest. Even today, I prefer a load of horse dung to cattle manure for my garden.

As one of the organising team, I can answer this. The Scalefour Society has members across the globe and this being a virtual event, we have been able to include contributions from some of those overseas members, in particular from Australia and Canada. There are also contributions from different parts of the UK by people for whom a physical Scalefour North in Wakefield is too far to travel.

From Scaleforum 2012 at Leatherhead. DRAG helping The Baron out with Quay 87. Goodness, was it so many years ago?? The layout won the York Trophy which attendees vote for as being Best in Show.

That's chocolate. Any particular flavour? Mick - roof dirt and frame dirt??

What a shame that items formerly freely available (except one has been waiting a long time because of Adrian's illness) will now be restricted to members of the MBF.

Some very interesting and useful 'stuff' on the site. Well worth a visit.

Is this video the railway modellers' equivalent of Newton's Cradle?

A reminder to anyone who wants to register for any of the live events, you have to do so by this Thursday, the 15th October. The link to use is: https://www.missendenrailwaymodellers.org.uk/index.php/autumn-weekend-2020-online-event/ The event itself opens on Saturday morning. There is a shed load of stuff available, enough to keep you occupied for hours!

Hi Andy. Glad you found the video useful. Which codes are you saying are incorrect? I have checked them and they all appear correct.

Under normal circumstances, you could be right, but these were not. It very much depended on who has the skills to make a video as well as the willingness to do it. During the lockdown, one could not just ring a friend and ask them to come round with their kit. Some of those layouts will not be on the exhibition circuit as they are either too large, built in to particular spaces or the owners not interested in going through all the work involved with exhibiting, so it was good to have the opportunity to see what one would otherwise not see . . . unless invited, of course.

Thank you. I am glad you liked the video. It went down well on Saturday at Scaleforum and will be available, as someone put it, ad nauseam! The small vices I picked up from a second-hand tool shop, sadly no longer. The chap tried selling the business but there was no interest which I find a sad comment on life. However, you can see them again on the w/e 17/18th October when Missenden Railway Modellers are putting on a virtual Weekend. I have set out my tool box for everyone to see. There will be much more, different to most offerings. Details are here: https://www.missendenrailwaymodellers.org.uk/index.php/autumn-weekend-2020-online-event/ I hope people will put it in their diaries and spread the word. Modelling events are a rare species at the moment.

I have made a 30 minute guide to resistance soldering which is now available on Virtual Scaleforum 2020 The video is here: https://www.scaleforum.org/demonstrators/david-brandreth-resistance-soldering/ Everything else on offer at Scaleforum can be found here: https://www.scaleforum.org Just for today, questions can be asked on a special part of the Forum. The link is at the top of the Scaleforum page.