john dew

Hi Colin Very promising back scene. I see the revised Ordnance Survey map shows how the goods yard sidings terminate at the rear of the High Street - I guess some of these buildings will be represented in the back scene. I know there is no space for the river at that end of the layout but I wonder if you could suggests its presence by creating a low relief version of the bridge? I had not realised how close the Engine shed stop block would be to the river - good job the rear doorway of the shed is bricked up!

Thanks for the good wishes Neal and I hope you have a very Happy Christmas John

I am certain (as in I remember) weighing machines were red. I am less positive about vending machines but suspect red - its how I have painted mine. This may help https://www.warwickshirerailways.com/gwr/gwro1020.htm Regards

Ah that may be it - Accurascale have stay-alive wired into the Manor PCB

Thanks Paul that is very useful. Cv 17 and 18 read out as 222 and 121 but I guess I need to set Cv 29 to 34 before entering the 4 digit number? I can read the 4 digit number when on the programming track but when I switch to DCC running the throttle will not recognise the recently entered 4 digit number. What is so strange is that I am very familiar with Zimo decoders and have Next 18 Zimos in the Dapol Manor, two Dapol Moguls and the Bachmann 94xx all were installed with 4 digit numbers without any issue at all. The Next 18 I am attempting to install is brand new albeit not from my usual source. I will keep trying but I guess the last resort is to buy a Lokpilot from Accurascale. Thanks again for all your advice

Thank you - I think I follow the logic although I havent come across this problem before - how do I programme the decoder to operate off 7801 with 28 speed steps on Lenz DCC?

I think Lenz stores the loco#s in memory somehow. I always get that message if I enter a number that has not been set up - I have to turn the power off to get rid of it. If the default Cv 29 value is 14 does that mean long addresses are enabled? Its not something I have ever previously had to worry about.

I can enter 4 digit loco #s not on track without a problem. "Fetching Data" only shows for numbers not recognised by Lenz - typically when I make an errot keying in a number I dont use railcom and I disconnect DC hence the 34. I wondered if it could be the Accurascale PCB? have a Next 18 in my Dapol Manor maybe I should swap them over and see what happens?

I have programmed many Zimo decoders and this is definitely a first. I have fitted a Zimo 618 (non sound) Next 18 to my new Accurascale Manor. On the Lenz programming track I can read the address as 0003 - when I change the address to 7801 the loco does the usual little shuffle and I can subsequently read the address back as 7801. However when I enter 7801 in the Lenz throttle the number is not recognised - "Fetching data" message ie unrecognised number! The default CV 29 setting is 14 - I changed this to my normal setting of 34 but Lenz still failed to recognise 7801 I have reset the decoder a couple of times and if I do not change the default address of 0003 the Lenz throttle accepts that number and operates the loco perfectly (its amazingly smooth in fact) I suspect I am missing some very simple step but right now I am totally baffled - any help would be much appreciated Best wishes

Ah - now I understand why a 2016 post of mine just got acknowledged😀 Good for you Neal replacing the wiped photos - I am afraid I gave up about 2018, anything earlier is buried in a semi moribund laptop - maybe you will shame me into doing some more digging Best Wishes John PS so sorry to hear about the Manor decoder- will the replacement have to through your customs wall again?

Hi Neal My you have been busy! I will not be removing the body but the shots of the tender are very helpful - thank you! You make no mention of any snags when removing the coal load so I assume all was straight forward? Others have reported problems with the fire irons holder and I was a bit concerned Best wishes

Back to Granby: Finally we can see the freshly marshalled Up Parcels leaving Granby for the Midlands: The four leading vans run as a fixed formation whereas the two rear siphons and SR 4 wheelers rotate with each run of the routine. I have a couple of Lima/Hornby Siphon Hs and I may substitute one for two SR vans The three new AS siphons are separated by a Hawksworth PBV. As I have said before, I know such a van in this livery is pure fiction but needs must! You may have noted there are two in this train. Both have been weather, "WR" removed and twin city decals added. I dont think they look too out of place hopefully before not too long I will attempt to convert a Collet suburban or, better still a Toplight will arrive In the foreground the pilot can be seen pulling the recently released SR vans to the King St Parcels depot for unloading : During the course of the day the two vans will be shunted out of the depot building into the adjacent siding ready for the Down train. Next, at the other end of the train room and after manipulating tripod and DSLR under the duck under: 7807 Compton Manor hauling the 6 van Up Parcels over Granby viaduct: The LNER ran into Wrexham although I am not sure how often one would have see an LNER van on a southbound train? Regardless I do like that teak livery particularly in this setting followed by the contrasting GWR liveries. . To finish, some closeups of Compton Manor (Dapol) : The reverse slope of the firebox is a bit obvious. The brass safety valve cover would still pass muster on Horse Guards Parade - despite numerous applications of dullcote. Other than that, on the whole, I think she scrubs up rather well Usual treatment : Crew, Head lamps, Fire Irons and real coal. Wheels blackened, lightly weathered and for the first time I applied Pledge to the boiler and firebox. I think the experiment was rather successful. The depth of colour has been enhanced and I find the overall effect quite pleaasing. The running performance is superb, she handled all those slow (scale 10 mph) shunting moves without faltering - if my Accurascale Manors, when they arrive **, perform equally well I will be a very happy camper. ** I am afraid it will still be a few weeks before the, no doubt eagerly awaited, Canadian review is posted. Anthony Manor went into my Hatton's trunk on August 21 but, thinking Hinton Manor was imminent, I left it there. Now that I know Hinton Manor is unlikely to be at Hattons until early October I have bitten the bullet. Anthony Manor is now winging its solitary way across the Atlantic to Vancouver - continue to watch this space - but with patience Best wishes

Belated thank yous for all those nice posts congratulating us on our 60th anniversary - they were very much appreciated. It was definitely a memorable week end. We have only just recovered from Saturday's lunch. What we thought would be a quiet meal, with our two daughters and their spouses, turned out to be a multi course, four hour lunch with our entire extended family plus in-laws and a pair of old sailing friends. Our kids are masters of deception - we were totally flabbergasted when they lead us into the dining room and saw such a crowd. They had surreptitiously (I had to spell check that one) purloined photos taken over the 6 decades of our marriage and had a lot of fun devising captions and trivia questions - some of you can probably imagine the hilarious shots from the seventies - was my hair really that long, were flares ever that wide? When we finally got home it was time to watch England v Argentina which I had had the foresight to tape - the second time for me to be amazed that afternoon! Not a result that I expected, particularly after the red card. Not approaching the standard of France v New Zealand but as an example of how to win with only 14 men it was brilliant - super finale to a truly memorable day! Not often I go completly off topic but celebrating 60 memorable years should be a reasonable excuse. Best wishes

You and @Neal Ball have convinced me - I did not need much persuading - its on, or just about to be on, its way. Have you chipped yours Neal? If you have was it relatively straight forward?

Super photos Neal - definitely worth the "faff" of setting up the DSLR on this occasion. I am very envious. My Anthony Manor remains in my Hattons trunk - it seemed sensible to combine it with, what I thought was, the imminent arrival of Hinton Manor! Hattons tell me Hinton is now expected early in October. What value do I put on an "earlier" arrival of Anthony - Air freight looks about $20 cdn - decisions, decisions. Best wishes