[MGWR E Class - Part 1]

Best of luck Nestor, I am about to begin an O Gauge kit of the same loco, my first brass kit too. Des from SSM is very approachable if you have any queries via email. You can also get a hold of him on the Irish Railway modeller site and I think also here on RMWeb. Best of luck! 

[Hornby Apollo versus Duke of Gloucester – a fair comparison?]

Interesting comparison. The sad thing is I would've paid Brit + prices for a top notch Duke no problem at all. Such a wonderful loco deserved to be done to Hornby Brit/Clan/A4 standards. Instead we got something not that cheap but pretty nasty in places. I can even handle upgrading external details and the moulded plumbing but skimping on the chassis with so few pick ups and poor bearings is a huge leap back. I'm seriously considering cancelling my P2 now and not bothering with future Hornby steam releases if this is the path they're trodding down. More of my money will be heading to Barwell and kit manufacturers.

[Bruckless Junction update]

First I've seen of this and its very impressive, well done! Good to see there are trains running in Donegal after all!