Captain Kernow

...Overhaul.... Regardless of what the Continental ones look like, I see these as a British 'Ludmilla'.....

Glad to hear you've recovered, Simon. Four weeks off sick sounds like quite a bout of 'flu, though....

Whilst one can kind of understand the disappointment that some folk are expressing about the livery, isn't the introduction of a new class of locomotive a very positive expression of confidence in the future of rail freight in this country?

Yep, I've got some of the MSE signal wire posts as well...

Interesting, I didn't see it at Stoke Gifford when I passed this morning going north, or on the way back this afternoon. You'll notice from the two return light loco schedules that the final one on Saturday morning is routed via Gloucester, due to a possession all weekend between Severn Tunnel Jct and Stoke Gifford for track renewals near Severn Tunnel Jct.

Just gorgeous Martin, fantastic....

Those who recall my layout and workbench threads on the old forum may remember the adaptation of a Hornby 'Thomas' range resin 'bookshop' to a chip shop to serve on 'Callow Lane'. I've now fitted part of the interior detail and a LED for interior illumination (the LED itself won't be visible from outside the building), plus some of the signs such as menus and a 'Closed' sign on the door. I've also done the main premises name board - 'Algy's Fish Bar'. This is the interior dividing wall prior to being glued into the main resin building: The wall is now glued in place: There a few more photos on my thread in the 'Buildings & Structures' section, but here are a couple, showing the building in position (temporarily) on the layout: I've now added some card 'ledges' to the base unit, on which the scenery surrounding the chip shop will be attached:

Very nice bit of footage! Glad to see that one of the results of leasing the yard to FLHH was such a grand-stand view of events!

I like the way the gearbox drives both the rear axle and the jackshaft axle. Good work UP, btw, sorry to hear about your snotty state...

The kettle one has just done the rounds at work - massive LOLs!!

Yes, each stool is drilled 0.5mm and a bit of 0.45mm brass rod glued in. This will then be located into a 1mm hole in the baseboard. The larger size of the hole is to ensure that you have a bit of leeway to move them in case the hole in the board is slightly out of kilter. Just glueing the stools down onto the bases on the board would, in my view, make the whole point rodding assembly too delicate and vulnerable to damage if it were accidentally knocked.

You naughty fellow, you!...

Hi Brian, Definitely, definitely install the stools and bases before ballasting, and the actual rodding afterwards, should be much easier. I didn't start work on the rodding on Bleakhouse Road until the ballasting and virtually all the scenery was completed, and that was a mistake, because the finished ground levels didn't make it that easy to get the rodding at the right level, so I think that this way will be easier. Oh, the stools are by Model Signal Engineering (aka Wizard Models).

But what has the Baby Deltic got to say about all this? Despite all the evidence about most other early diesels being found on the S&D in large numbers and on a frequent basis, even Class 15s, I just can't find any reference to Baby Deltics working over Masbury....

This is what almost 100 bases for point rodding stools look like before they are cut out of plasticard: And this is what they look like after they have been cut out! Here is a two-rodding stool mounted on a base: ....and with a 5p coin for size comparason: This is the jig that I'm planning to use to space the rodding stools and their bases at the correct distance from the track (9mm) and from each other (24mm - for pre-Grouping round rodding): Next up is to start drilling 1.0mm holes in the right locations in the baseboard, with the help of the jig, and to start glueing the bases and rodding stools in place. When they and the cranks and compensators are in position, but before the rodding itself is added, I shall paint them and do the track weathering and then the ballasting. Update 30/4/10 Well, I'm becoming more and more aware of the fact that nothing else has yet been done to the point rodding since I last posted this several months ago! Until I at least get the bases and stools down, plus the cranks and compensators, I can't really start the ballasting, and I certainly won't do anything permanent about scenery until the track is fully ballasted and weathered... So, hopefully we'll see a bit of action on the point rodding front in the next few weeks... Update 02/6/10 Well, it's certainly been 'a few weeks' since the last update, but I'm very happy to say now that work on installing the point rodding has at last commenced, with all locations marked out and drilled, and the bases and stools are now being epoxied in place. The cranks, compensators and actual rodding will then follow. Photos in due course... Update 08/6/10 I'm happy to report that I finally glued the last cranks, stools and compensators in position with epoxy this evening. I won't be adding the rodding itself (0.45mm brass wire) until the track has been weathered and ballasted. Update 24/6/10 Here are a couple of photos showing the current state of affairs - just awaiting painting and the actual rodding.

My guess is that the enterprising P4 modeller will find a way to convert it satisfactorily to P4, even if the clearances end up having to be a bit tight, due to manufacturing reasons. As Miss P says, the 23.5 distance ought to be easily achievable.

Yes, so would I (be hugely surprised if they didn't that is!! Some of us are working on a certain individual to achieve that aim!! I couldn't possibly comment... I agree that this is a fantastic choice for a small loco, and an ideal cross-over prototype between industry and 'main line' companies. Hopefully it will inspire more light railway and other similar type layouts too!

Craig - is this something to do with your RCH chassis etches?

Very well done there, Dave - what a great idea! Well done ModelRail too, of course!

You're not the only one tempted - and of course, all these locos were regulars all over the S&D...

You're not the only one tempted - and of course, all these locos were regulars all over the S&D...

Cheltenham (St Margarets Hall, Hatherley) - 24/25 October 2009 This was a really delightful little show and very friendly too. I have posted some photos of the show in the main exhibitions thread here: My link

Tuesday 27/10/09 Here are a few photos taken on Bleakhouse Road last weekend at the Cheltenham show. These two were taken during 'happy hour' towards the end of the Saturday, allowing Re6/6 to run his new Bachmann 150 and give us a glimpse of what BHR might have been like, had it survived to the modern day... Re6/6 has charge of the shunting at this time... I'll add to this particular blog as and when, but more information on this and my other layouts can be found at www.enginewood.co.uk

In fact, as my posture might suggest, that height doesn't do my back any favours!!!

Good luck with it either way, Nick. Adam makes some good points too, I guess if a better shaped hook but large enough was available, I'd switch to it, but I haven't got time these days to start filing Smiths hooks to shape, I'd rather direct what pedantry I have left in me, in a different direction!