Zero Gravitas

Well, it's scheduled publication day, so I've started this thread for those who like this sort of thing. Those of us who don't like this sort of thing can either choose to ignore; or can contribute to tell us why they don't like this sort of thing, and why we shouldn't like this sort of thing either... Interestingly, for MRJ 253, the not-very-serious thread had 222 replies and 5617 views, whilst the serious thread had 31 replies and 2604 views. I would therefore suggest that the not-very-serious thread is providing a valuable service for those who don't like this sort of thing. Let the entertainment commence!

Tediously, one of the statistics I monitor is the difference between the fuel computer figures and the real figures on a tank-by-tank basis. The worst was the Volvo V70, which was, on average 5.1 mpg too optimistic (i.e. it was recording a figure 5.1 mpg better than actual) and the best was actually a Ford Fiesta, which was -0.5 mpg too optimistic (i.e. It was recording a figure 0.5 mpg worse than actual). Generally, the trip computer is between 2 and 3 mpg too optimistic. Yours sadly, Z.G.

I'm sad enough to have records of every tank of fuel for every car I have had since March 2000... from this I can tell you the best range I had was 885.4 miles (at a calculated 59.2 mpg) in a 2010 Volvo V70 in June 2012. The best tank mileage I have had is from my current 2016 Skoda Octavia Estate at a calculated 62.5 mpg over 396.6 miles.

Oh Captain, if Engine Wood were hypothetically to become available, then I for one would be very interested...

I remember similar comments being made about the reprinted "Great Western Wagons" by Atkins, Beard and Tourett, which retailed at £55. I posted then (although I can't find it now) is that I always think of the cost of a book is related to the length of time for which it is going to be useful. An example of my own experience is my copy of Jim Russel's "Great Western Wagons Appendix" purchased in 1977 at the (then) significant cost of £3.70. I looked something up in it last weekend - 40 years later. To me that's 9.25 pence per year for a really useful resource. I still look at the original Iain Rice layout design books, more than 20 years after they were first published, and I think it's likely that I will be looking at Cameo layouts 20 years hence (assuming I'm still here). It's also worth making the point that quality short-run printing in the UK is not a cheap business, and I very much doubt that Mr. Castens is getting very rich on the back of this... (of course if he turns up to Railex in a new Aston Martin I may have to revise that opinion). I suppose I just saying that value is in the eye of the beholder, and for me £24.95 for something that is going to last 20 years seems like pretty good value.

The name of a GSV (General Systems Vehicle) in the "Culture" novels by The late and much lamented Iain M Banks. And because I am personally significantly lacking in gravitas.

My copy arrived today, beautifully wrapped in a Titfield Thunderbolt carrier bag, and with a Wild Swan Catalogue and a postcard of HSTs in their absolute best livery at Paddington in 1981, before being securely packed for postage. Thank you indeed, Mr. Castens. This is exactly how good customer service should be!

Not strictly GWML, but I see posts are starting to go up at Appleford, on the Didcot-Oxford line.

Were CooperCraft at Scaleforum 2016, or is my aging brain and fading memory conflating Scaleforum and Railex?

Good news! Hattons found the elusive Peckett and it's on its way. A veritable roller coaster of a purchase :-)

**Sigh** Too good to be true. When Hattons came to pick it, it wasn't there. Quite disappointed.

A single MSC example in stock at Hattons this afternoon. I bought it. It would have been rude not to.

I'm reasonable sure that's the old Southwark factory, which was never rail served and where I worked for the summer of 1983 whilst I was a Metal Box student trainee. The entrance was on Great Guildford street, which is to the right as you are looking at the factory across the railway lines. Certainly when I was there it was a security printing factory - printing cheques, paying-in slips, etc. No metal-bashing at all.

Indeed - saw it running into Didcot at about 15:30. I had just come out of Sainsbury's with shopping, so didn't get a picture, unfortunately. Definitely had the rear pantograph up, but wasn't close enough to hear anything.

Sometimes I hate myself for being so interested in this sort of stuff, but according the Greatest Book Ever Written (GWR Goods Wagons by Atkins, Beard and Tourret), on page 482, plate 653, later lots of AA15 had the strip-type footboard hangers, but they don't say at which lot number the change was made. 68690 definitely had strip and not rod.

Half right. The upper step boards are the right way up, but the horizontal part of the "L" bracket securing the steps to the sole bar should be underneath the step itself. It won't be the end of the world to correct if it ends up being delivered like that, but given the excellence of the rest of the model (got a couple of Ratio kits that may never get built now), it would be good if it could be corrected before final tooling.

Add to that list the Mark 1 Mercedes A Class (the one that failed the "elk test"). My wife had one, and it was by a considerable distance the least reliable and most expensive car we have ever owned.

Yes... but by the logic you are using there, that would make a "Big Boy" a 4-16-4...

Adam - thanks very much for the demonstration! Just off to the shed...

Excellent as usual Adam - thank you for sharing. Any chance of a demo of how you'd get your rust effects on the bodies (and you 16 ton minerals)? - it's the most convincing I think I've seen. Thanks very much in advance... Z.G.

I see from the Hornby announcement that they are making quite a big deal that the cattle wagon and the coke hopper will have split-spoke wheels. I've had a quick trawl through my books and I can't find any examples with split spoke wheels - and I would not really expect new-build prototypes of this vintage to have any type of spoked wheel. Or am i looking in the wrong places? Edit - except of course by looking through books, I'd ignored the actual examples on the Hornby announcement... Honestly, you can't get the staff, can you? Please feel free to ignore this nonsense now...

Point of deeply pedantic order to avoid any potential confusion - the shows are at the Didcot Civic Centre; a venue I have coincidentally visited twice in the past week - last Saturday to attend the (really rather good) Didcot Beer Festival, and then again on Monday to give blood, which has a pleasing symmetry about it in terms of liquids in and out...

And when you had a Marina 1.3 coupe in harvest gold, that is something to which you truly aspired :-) The handling, however, couple be made considerably more predictable by putting a couple of paving slabs in the boot, a ruse adopted by both me and my Dad, who had a 1.8 (but not TC) estate in, you've guessed it, harvest gold. Edited to correct unpredictable predictive text - again (must proof read better)

A whole 10p! As speculation, it might be the only way to get different running numbers - transfers would probably be more than 10p for two wagons :-)

The configuration brake gear looks OK to me in the photos on the Oxford website... But to my eye at least it looks to be more 9ft wheelbase than 10ft... According to Tatlow (LNER wagons, 1977, pages 122-123), these wagons were 21ft over headstocks, and the door was 5ft wide, so it would be possible to have a guess based on that. He goes on the say "plate 265 shows one of the rare examples with a 10ft wheelbase. About a dozen were converted to the increased dimension and seven built new was such; but by 1937 when this photograph was taken cattle traffic had dropped so dramatically that no more cattle trucks were built by the LNER and surplus fitted vehicles were converted to 'Conflat Vs' " Numbers 150878, 150927 and 150969 were definitely 9ft. Z.G. P.S. Edited to point out that Dunsignalling has already given this info and added more on page 2 of the thread. Please go and have a look at that - apologies for double posting. P.P.S. Edited again... Tatlow's LNER Wagons volume 4b 2015 on page 295 states "in 1937 the move was made to a 10ft wheelbase.... ..... With the construction of 700 vacuum braked cattle wagons to diagram 122". These were numbers 195967-196666, confirming Dunsignalling's information.