Stoke Courtenay

[checkrail]

1 hour ago, Stephen Freeman said:

You have to be careful with all the variants

Yes, it's certainly a minefield.  Thanks for book recommendation - appreciated.

[checkrail]

I decided to put my promised critical observations on the Dapol mogul on the 'Prairie & mogul' thread under 'Dapol' in the trade area of this forum.  Other mogul owners or prospective purchasers might find them of interest.  In the meantime here are a couple of overhead shots of 6305 and train passing through Stoke C.  It just looks so at home on a mixed goods like this, so all in all I'm very glad I got one.

 

 

John C.

[gwrrob]

Thanks for that information John as you might know mine is due to go in the works very soon.

[checkrail]

One of the things I was determined to do was to alter the spacing of the 'Great Western' lettering on the tender.  I have seen photographic evidence, including moguls, of the two words being closer together than normal, but it's all at oblique angles or under layers of filth so it's hard to say for sure.  But even if so it was much more the exception.*  I wanted the 'normal' GWR look in which the spacing of the words left a gap big enough to fit the coat of arms.  I found lots of pics to illustrate this, including an exceptionally good mid-1930s one of a Bulldog at Worcester Shrub Hill clearly showing how the letters were laid out to give even spacing while avoiding the vertical lines of rivets.  It's on p 5 of Philip Hopkins' 'Great Western pictorial'.  I copied this using HMRS Pressfix transfers, which I had to cut up into sections of 2 or 3 letters each.  Here is the result. (The slightly wonky final 'N' is not noticeable under the grime at NVD - honest!)

 

For the general appearance and weathering I followed a great photo of 6329 at Leamington around 1930 on p19 of the same excellent book.

 

John C.

 

*  If this was the case, perhaps sometime not long before 1934 someone decided, "Who are we kidding?  We're never going to be putting the heraldry back on goods and tank engines now.  Let's put the words closer together."

[checkrail]

Here are the final three pics in the new mogul sequence.  I thought I'd better show you the other side of the loco, so here she is on a stopping passenger train to Plymouth.  As I related over on the Dapol mogul thread, when I came to put the lamp on I found the smokebox top lamp bracket to be missing, so a little job still to do.

 

 

 

After all my minor troubles 6305 has been behaving very well today - hope it continues.  But apart from the aforesaid lamp bracket I'm going to try not to touch it again!

 

John C.

Edited December 7, 2020 by checkrail

[checkrail]

Work continues on the current toplight build - a pair of C28 thirds.  I've got to the stage where I've had the first go at painting the droplights (easy) and the bolections (fiendish), after which the whole shebang makes one think of badly smudged lipstick.  Now waiting for new supply of Railmatch coach cream to lick round them and neaten them up.  (I thinned my current jar down, so it's now fine for brush painting upper coach sides in thin coats but no good for covering dark red smudges.)  But at least I've finished detailing and painting the roofs (airbrushed Lifecolor roof dirt).

 

In the meantime here's another 'Granddad's trains' video, featuring the new mogul as well as 4908 'Broome Hall'  

 

John C.

 

 

 

[Neal Ball]

Those carriages look good John.

 

I guess you just strike lucky when you go into eBay and find them. Hopefully we will get some new kits from Slaters soon.

[Neal Ball]

Is someone really going to pay over £126 for a kit??

 

[Sandhole]

Just now, Neal Ball said:

Is someone really going to pay over £126 for a kit??

 

They'll pay what they want to.
Well done for the seller.
Is it daft?
OH MY YES.

[Neal Ball]

1 minute ago, Sandhole said:

They'll pay what they want to.
Well done for the seller.
Is it daft?
OH MY YES.

Madness 

[mattingleycustom]

On 07/12/2020 at 16:56, checkrail said:

One of the things I was determined to do was to alter the spacing of the 'Great Western' lettering on the tender.  I have seen photographic evidence, including moguls, of the two words being closer together than normal, but it's all at oblique angles or under layers of filth so it's hard to say for sure.  But even if so it was much more the exception.*  I wanted the 'normal' GWR look in which the spacing of the words left a gap big enough to fit the coat of arms.  I found lots of pics to illustrate this, including an exceptionally good mid-1930s one of a Bulldog at Worcester Shrub Hill clearly showing how the letters were laid out to give even spacing while avoiding the vertical lines of rivets.  It's on p 5 of Philip Hopkins' 'Great Western pictorial'.  I copied this using HMRS Pressfix transfers, which I had to cut up into sections of 2 or 3 letters each.  Here is the result. (The slightly wonky final 'N' is not noticeable under the grime at NVD - honest!)

 

For the general appearance and weathering I followed a great photo of 6329 at Leamington around 1930 on p19 of the same excellent book.

 

John C.

 

*  If this was the case, perhaps sometime not long before 1934 someone decided, "Who are we kidding?  We're never going to be putting the heraldry back on goods and tank engines now.  Let's put the words closer together."

What I notice from many old photographs of GWR locomotives is that the spacing between letters for 'Great' is slightly wider than that for 'Western', it doesn't make the two words equal in length but evens them up a bit.

 

Glenn

[Clearwater]

58 minutes ago, Neal Ball said:

Those carriages look good John.

 

I guess you just strike lucky when you go into eBay and find them. Hopefully we will get some new kits from Slaters soon.

Indeed.  Be interesting to see what they retail at.  £125 for a kit off ebay is too steep for me.  I did see there’s a load of kit built GWR coaches on there at present.  Let’s not kid outselves - we’re all following them!

[gwrrob]

1 hour ago, Clearwater said:

  Let’s not kid outselves - we’re all following them!

 

Even the same seller's separate listings for the Slater's roof is going for stupid money.

[Coach bogie]

£125 seams a lot but a Geen toplight kit was in £90 + several years ago. CPL want £38.50 just for the sides for a toplight. it is around £50 for body/roof etches at Worsley works. and all need extras to complete. Add the rarity value for the Slaters kits the higher prices are not a surprise.

 

Unfortunately, the £100+ coach kit is now a reality.

 

Mike Wiltshire

[checkrail]

36 minutes ago, Coach bogie said:

Unfortunately, the £100+ coach kit is now a reality.

I think Mike's right.  If the "taken back in house" Slater's kits ever do emerge I doubt they'll retail for much under £75, maybe more. 

 

But if the right coach is as important to you as the right loco .....

[GWR8700]

Those slaters kits can't be reintroduced soon enough!

Great modelling as always

[checkrail]

Very pleased to say I've had no more trouble from the new Dapol  mogul.  It's been performing faultlessly and very surefootedly over the last three days, with no seizures or decoupling of loco and tender.  My confidence in it is restored and I've rather fallen in love with it.  It's great just watching it glide round smoothly, silently and effortlessly on a freight train , on speed step 12 (of 128).  Sorry, but this means you're going to see it again in one or two photos!

 

Here it is about to pass the westbound Broome Hall on the way through the station.

(Must renew this fencing one day.  Over the past five years or so it's suffered from hands, sleeves, tools, track cleaners, cameras, and everything else that's been reached over the goods yard corner of the layout.)

And here you can see the edge of the world again.

John C.

[St Enodoc]

6 hours ago, Neal Ball said:

Is someone really going to pay over £126 for a kit??

 

Obviously yes. That's the one I commented on a day or so ago in my thread, when bidding had reach GBP 75.

[St Enodoc]

2 hours ago, Coach bogie said:

£125 seams a lot but a Geen toplight kit was in £90 + several years ago. CPL want £38.50 just for the sides for a toplight. it is around £50 for body/roof etches at Worsley works. and all need extras to complete. Add the rarity value for the Slaters kits the higher prices are not a surprise.

 

Unfortunately, the £100+ coach kit is now a reality.

 

Mike Wiltshire

A year or so back some went for around GBP 300 each. This could go the same way.

[snailpace]

Buyers are just going for the Nectar points?

[richbrummitt]

1 hour ago, checkrail said:

(Must renew this fencing one day.  Over the past five years or so it's suffered from hands, sleeves, tools, track cleaners, cameras, and everything else that's been reached over the goods yard corner of the layout.)

 

It has a real world feel to it as if things like movement of earth or scale appropriate hands of children and big children with their notebooks or cameras have had an effect. 
 

1 hour ago, checkrail said:

 

And here you can see the edge of the world again.

I can but it is not what I am looking at. 

[Sandhole]

2 hours ago, Coach bogie said:

£125 seams a lot but a Geen toplight kit was in £90 + several years ago. CPL want £38.50 just for the sides for a toplight. it is around £50 for body/roof etches at Worsley works. and all need extras to complete. Add the rarity value for the Slaters kits the higher prices are not a surprise.

 

Unfortunately, the £100+ coach kit is now a reality.

 

Mike Wiltshire

Mike, I'll pay that for a Dave Geen kit.
It's brass, it will last a long time. I know the Slaters kits are rare and plastic. This will be a more tempting medium for some people.
My worry, is haw the plastic will weather over time.

[St Enodoc]

42 minutes ago, Sandhole said:

Mike, I'll pay that for a Dave Geen kit.
It's brass, it will last a long time. I know the Slaters kits are rare and plastic. This will be a more tempting medium for some people.
My worry, is haw the plastic will weather over time.

Given that an RTR coach is now around the GBP 40 mark or more , twice that for a new Slaters kit wouldn't be too bad. I'm blowed if I'm going to pay that for a second-hand one, sight unseen, though.

[checkrail]

11 hours ago, Sandhole said:

My worry, is haw the plastic will weather over time.

They'll see me out I think!

[Coach bogie]

12 hours ago, Sandhole said:

Mike, I'll pay that for a Dave Geen kit.
It's brass, it will last a long time. I know the Slaters kits are rare and plastic. This will be a more tempting medium for some people.
My worry, is haw the plastic will weather over time.

This is why i am not a fan of the Slaters kits.

 

Here are a couple I have been asked to 'rescue', for a friend. Large sum paid for a pro paint job and the sides are all bowed, internals will not allow roof to fir properly, AHH!  Bogies are in the reycling bin being replaced with cast ones. Expensive exercise for a plastic kit.

 

Personally I will stick with brass where a solid box can be soldered up.

 

Mike Wiltshire