2mmMark

So would it be fair to describe your workbench as Chapel Swarf?

I know that Yesterday look at what else is scheduled on other channels before deciding when to transmit a brand new show. That was the case with "Secrets Of The Transport Museum" which for Series 1, Episode 1 was 4th in the TV ratings for that day.

If you have access to the 2mm Magazine archive, the January 1962 edition has an article by Stewart Hine on building a 45xx body. The techniques are still valid today. It's part of a series of articles on building a 45xx, from the time in which everything was scratchbuilt. The articles were republished by the Association as a small booklet. David Eveleigh offers a 45xx chassis kit which is designed for the Dapol body but would equally suit a scratchbuilt body. This might be to 1:148 scale though, giving a small discrepancy on the wheel spacing from a 2mm scale model. http://www.2mm.org.uk/small_suppliers/davideveleigh/index.htm

Having just watched the 1st episode, it looks like being an interesting series again. The TT120 launch is obviously a key feature and there's a lot riding on it for Hornby. Without spoiling it for those who've not yet watched it, I'll just say that filming 1:120 scale appears rather tricky! Mark

I would very highly recommend the Transport Video Publishing (TVP) DVD "Pick Up Freight". It's a fascinating glimpse into traditional era branch line freight operations. https://railwayrecollections.com/shop/price-range/15-00-19-99/pick-up-freight-dvd/ The nice thing about East Anglia is that is was quite extensively dieselised before the Beeching cuts so became a steam era railway operated by some of more interesting early diesel classes. Fortunately extensively covered by Dr. Ian Allen's photos, as in this book https://www.booklaw.co.uk/transport-treasury/first-generation-diesels-in-east-anglia.html "Diesels In East Anglia" is also very worthwhile and not that expensive as a used book https://www.amazon.co.uk/Diesels-East-Anglia-Ian-Allen/dp/0860931056 Mark

I do already have a couple of proper 1¾" Centrix model engineering lathes but I bought one of these micro lathes as a project to see how they might match up to the concept of the 'fonly lathe which was designed my late friend and highly respected model engineer Peter Clarke. Were Peter still around, I'd expect him to be looking at these mini lathes with some interest. http://www.2mm.org.uk/articles/fonly/fonlypt1b.htm Mine cost about £25 a while back. I added a PWM speed control for another £5 or so. I haven't yet had time to fiddle about with it but the initial inspection showed that the chuck and tailstock centre lined up, and the chuck has an acceptable degree of accuracy. It fits in a small toolbox and I think it's a viable option for casual occasional turning jobs, even simple things like cleaning up castings. I've seen descriptions of turning being done using an electric drill held in a vice, using hand files. My feeling is that for 2mm, 3mm & 4mm scale items, these micro lathes offer a safer option. Realistically, for the money, you're not going to get a precision machine tool but for modelling, it's got more going for it than the Lidl Parkside wood lathe.

Save your money and try something like this: https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/334664681392 for about £30. With the addition of some gravers and a speed control, it can be used to turn small metal items like boiler fittings.

On reflection, I think it was Scaleforum 1991.

It was definitely before 1992 as we had a pre-Scaleforum photo session for MRJ in the house previous to where we live now. A proper old school photo session by Philip Hall, 35mm and 500 watt photofloods! My guess is 1988 or 1989. Mark

I'm aware of that. The word "completely" ought give the context of my remark. Removed from sale entirely and any still being used confiscated and crushed, as per any uninsured illegal motor vehicle

E-scooters should be banned completely. They are purely toys for the lazy & feckless.

Another route is to go second hand. I found a decent used Freego Eagle on Ebay by searching for "nearest ebike, collection only". Collection-only deters buyers so I was the only bidder and got it for £410. It came with a refurbished battery pack, which alone is worth about £350-400. As it was local, about 3 miles away, the seller allowed me to test ride it before bidding. It is quite a heavy bike but the stepthru design makes it easy to manage. It needed some regular bicycle servicing, gears re-indexing (I replaced the Shimano shifter in the end), new brake pads and a little tidying up. I fitted new gear and brake cables just to be on the safe side and also a frame lock, as the frame had the fittings for one. A GPS bicycle speedo shows speed and distance. All in all, I was on the road with a serviceable practical e-bike for less than £500. Something else I found were shopping "bags for life" with built-in rack clips made by Madison. Incredibly handy things. Mark

Our postie is a diamond and it's others of his ilk that often make up for the shortcomings of the company and service provided. As my own experience showed in a long career with a Big Airline, the key to success for a service industry is a well motivated workforce. This depends much on retaining goodwill between management and staff. Sadly, goodwill is easily spent and fresh supplies are expensive.

The royal mail post is rather odd right now. We had a delivery really early this morning of a whole load of letters, cards and my subs MRJ293. Much earlier than our regular postie delivers.

That was a quick off-the-cuff phone camera shot I took at Railex 2019 as I thought it very characteristic of Iain. Very glad I did. I wasn't aware Don had died. Another piece of sad news. 2019 seems a world away now. Mark

Some initial work was undertaken but the person leading the work became quite seriously ill and had to suspend all their model railway manufacturing activity.

Nigel makes a very good point. Large layouts need a home and proper storage. The reason why Copenhagen Fields has survived well is that the scenic sections have protected storage boxes. I'm not sure that Chee Tor did as I once helped the team load up their truck and from memory, the layout simply rested on the floor of a 7.5T lorry. It was also extraordinarily heavy, the scenery consisting of carved plaster. My impression is that the layout served it's purpose, pleased the public and builders and then came to the end of that particular phase of its life. Mark

It's also got a lever throttle which takes a bit of getting used to, bearing in mind the muscle memory developed from using a twistgrip.

Video of the Rudge's intial run now available

The front wheel is also a dummy belt rim but the shoe is missing in the photos as the securing pin shook out on the rough concrete track. The brakes are "of their era"... i.e. not very good! However on a speed bowl track like Brooklands during a record breaking attempt, braking isn't of great importance. It just slows you down... The Rudge is one of the few genuine Brooklands bikes still around. It is still registered and on the DVLA computer so it could be ridden on the road.

Brooklands Museum is commemorating the last record run of 1922 which took place on 25th Nov that year. Rudge got 3 world records, 500 mile at 74.96.mph, 600 mile at 71.27mph and 6 hour record at 66.65mph. Riders Bert Mathers and Bob Dicker ran in 1½ hour stints for total of 8½ hours. The machine used was a Rudge V twin inlet over exhaust 998cc running on Shell aviation fuel. The riding was punishing, Bob Dicker reports that he had to be lifted off the bike at the finish and wore a wide kidney belt to keep his innards in the right place! Three members of the motorcycle team, Ian Dabney, Martin Gegg and Gareth Pemberton got the bike running again after many years of inactivity. The work was a conservation project to retain and preserve the original bike, while ensuring it could still be ridden safely. The frame was out of alignment, having subsequently been used with a sidecar. Gareth machined up some eccentric frame bushes which allowed the alignment to be corrected. It was thought better to do this rather than try to realign the frame tubes. As it's now over 100 years old, the plan is to use the bike gently and respectfully for demo runs, although it is still pretty powerful for a vintage bike. Also present was Nigel Limb, holder of the UK motorcycle speed record for a partially sighted person @Blindblokeracing and John Nelson from BBC's The Speedshop @johnnelsoneng Ian on the left, Gareth in the middle & Martin on the right. They are on the original Railway Straight, adjacent to Mercedes Benz World.

I was a regular attender of the Lee Brilleaux memorials held every year at the Oysterfleet Hotel on Canvey Island. It was great when Wilko, Sparko & Big Figure played together again, usually with an A-list guest vocalist. He'll be much missed but he did gain an extra few years when he survived pancreatic cancer. Two great films featuring him and the other Feelgoods are "Oil City Confidential" and "The Ecstacy of Wilko Johnson".

According to the advert, yes they have been upgraded. Rusting can be cured. The crumpling not so easy and with the extra kinetic energy of the batteries...! Road safety would be much improved if the inhabitants of cars could be made to feel much more vulnerable, particularly those in SUVs.

54" long, 15" wide according the RM article. That little bit of extra width adds a lot to the scene. The article describes the signals being operated by wire-in-tube so I'd guess the turnouts likewise. Mark

Featured in Railway Modeller for August 1980 as a double page spread across the centre pages where it was described as being built ten years ago (1970) and recently refurbished. The article looks like the work of Roy Link, it's certainly his style of design and photography. Never one to mince his words, Stewart Hine described Ashmelton as a scenic gem wasted on N gauge. Perhaps the only slight criticism is that it's a bit "typical branchline terminus" in concept, with a tunnel as the scenic break. Very common at the time of building but the execution of it was superb, a definite cut above contemporaries. I recall avidly reading the article at the time and thinking that this was something to which I might aspire but my membership of the Association was still a couple of years in the future. In the same issue was Ian Futers "Lochside" layout which also set me and a few others thinking about possible layouts. Three years later, I was building my own equivalent of Lochside rather than Ashmelton, due to the availability of tolerably performing Farish diesels which could easily be finescaled. There are details and scenes on subsequent layouts which are a straight pinch from Ashmelton. I think a like-for-like replacement for the track ought to work out OK. Norman Solomon knows a thing or two about trackwork and has used a mix of Peco large radius and Y turnouts. Nothing excessively tight for 2mm finescale. Mark