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GRANBY JUNCTION - Shunting Siphons for the Up Parcels with a Manor!


john dew
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Fantastic card modelling John.  Thanks for sharing.

 

A new Grange will be available soon if your wallet can take it - Moguls and Prairies permitting.

 

And did I see somewhere spoken of a new Saint in a red box?/  (At last!!!!!)  My David and Andrew may soon be retired  as DC models if that's the case.

 

Regards,

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3 hours ago, M.I.B said:

Fantastic card modelling John.  Thanks for sharing.

 

A new Grange will be available soon if your wallet can take it - Moguls and Prairies permitting.

 

And did I see somewhere spoken of a new Saint in a red box?/  (At last!!!!!)  My David and Andrew may soon be retired  as DC models if that's the case.

 

Regards,

 

Re: Red box Saint - speculation on my part :-) It followed a 4-6-0 comment on my Henley thread from Chris Leigh.

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15 hours ago, Neal Ball said:

 

Re: Red box Saint - speculation on my part :-) It followed a 4-6-0 comment on my Henley thread from Chris Leigh.

Its long over due - some Red Box items have had a couple of re-tools since the early 80s era.

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2 hours ago, M.I.B said:

Its long over due - some Red Box items have had a couple of re-tools since the early 80s era.


Although personally I would prefer a new Pannier tank for the inter war period.

 

But of course, Hornby do like the big Tender engines and the Saint would make sense as they can do a version of Lady of Legend for the GWS.

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Your hotel is coming along fantastically John, looks a real treat.  Not sure if you’ve seen it, but I have recently been bitten by the GWR bug.  Fortunately it was only a passing affliction...

 

 

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On 28/11/2020 at 14:22, trw1089 said:

Your hotel is coming along fantastically John, looks a real treat.  Not sure if you’ve seen it, but I have recently been bitten by the GWR bug.  Fortunately it was only a passing affliction...

 

 


 

Hi Tony

 

Good to hear from you....I hope you and yours are well. Glad you like the hotel although I am afraid it doesnt approach the standard you have set with Wakefield.

 

You have to tell me more about a King on the wrong side of the Pennines.....was it a loaner or? I was very impressed with the video.....one of these days I guess I will have have to dip my toe in the water and try it with a Pannier ( of course) on Granby......its very tempting

 

Best wishes

 

 

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  • john dew changed the title to GRANBY JUNCTION: A Dukedog diversion
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I thought I was probably being a bit optimistic in hoping to show the Mogul this week

So instead here is another loco that was frequently used by the GWR in North and Mid-Wales. This is series of photos of  9022, an Earl Class 4-4-0 from Oswestry Shed with a train of empty cattle vans. Under H class lamps its on its way to Morpeth Docks Birkenhead to meet S.S. Leinster...the Dublin-Liverpool Ferry
 
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Hard to believe that, in 1947, this old fashioned loco was  "designed" and built only a decade earlier. Its a splendid example of the GWR's parsimony and waste not want not approach. After the grouping there was a shortage of suitable loco to services the winding mountainous lines of the Cambrian Railway. Charles Collett, the CME, solved the problem by using frames from the Bulldog Class (introduced 1895) with boilers from the Duke Class also from the Victorian era.
 
He attempted to solve another problem by calling the locos: the "Earl Class". He then named the locos after various peers of the realm, some of whom had previously lobbied Collett for just such an honour. I guess the Earl of Cawdor, and his noble colleages, had in mind something rather more distinguished than this mongrel......naturally the footplate men had promptly nicknamed the class........Dukedogs! The name plates were off within the year!

 

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After that diversion, back to the cattle train as 9022 coasts past Castlegate Bonded Warehouse.

This empties train to Birkenhead  has been part of the of the Down Goods circuit for some time but until today I had  not really done much research into the Birkenhead Cattle Trade

I knew Birkenhead was the principal port of entry for the cattle trade with Ireland. I hadnt realised that most of the cattle came off the ferry and straight into the lairage (abbattoirs) via a series of overhead passage ways.  Transport of livestock by rail was a less frequent occurrence. Fortunately there was some trade in stock cattle for fattening, with trains running as far afield as York.......so an occasional train to Shropshire is probably ok.

It does rather expose the absence on Granby of a train of Mica Insulated Meat Vans making their nightly journey direct to Smithfield.

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Its amazing how one takes a series of straightforward photos and finishes up with a list of more jobs to do.
 
Apart from the omission of a meat train I really need to correct the Cattle Van liveries. The older vans date back to  the earky 90s......some of the first models I ever built.....not knowing anything about liveries I chose the biggest Letter and used all the other transfers Mr Cooper supplied! At the very least I should paint out the numbers and livery on the ends.

The fireman appears to be clad in a mohair suit.........and thinking about the weather and terrain that the Dukedogs regularly encountered in Mid-Wales, its time I started making some weather sheet. Mr Bachmann has kindly fitted supports in the tender.

I hope you liked the photos and didnt mind this somewhat meandering monologue.

Hopefully more locos next week

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Lovely series of shots John

 

Always liked the quirkiness of the Dukedogs, and lovely shots of 9022 on Granby makes them even more special. 

 

I see Rapido are bringing out a 15xx Pannier.  Now there is one Pannier I think I could get to like, Walschaerts valve gear and outside cylinders, lovely.  I've driven a 5" gauge version, the design is known as Speedy by the famous lives steam designer and builder LBSC.  They are a nicely proportioned loco but I know they weren't great travellers over the GWR so not sure if they would even be appropriate for Granby.

 

Cheers

Tony

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Nice set of photos of the Dukedog John.

 

Hopefully your Mogul will arrive today or tomorrow and it runs ok straight from the box.

 

Maybe one day Bachmann will produce the Earl, with curved frames. Although a bit late for your time period, it would make a nice loco.

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2 hours ago, trw1089 said:

Lovely series of shots John

 

Always liked the quirkiness of the Dukedogs, and lovely shots of 9022 on Granby makes them even more special. 

 

I see Rapido are bringing out a 15xx Pannier.  Now there is one Pannier I think I could get to like, Walschaerts valve gear and outside cylinders, lovely.  I've driven a 5" gauge version, the design is known as Speedy by the famous lives steam designer and builder LBSC.  They are a nicely proportioned loco but I know they weren't great travellers over the GWR so not sure if they would even be appropriate for Granby.

 

Cheers

Tony


I have also driven a 5” 15xx many years ago and it’s a nice loco for Rapido first foray into the GWR. I couldn’t get away with it at Henley of course, it’s way too late for me!

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9 hours ago, trw1089 said:

Lovely series of shots John

 

Always liked the quirkiness of the Dukedogs, and lovely shots of 9022 on Granby makes them even more special. 

 

I see Rapido are bringing out a 15xx Pannier.  Now there is one Pannier I think I could get to like, Walschaerts valve gear and outside cylinders, lovely.  I've driven a 5" gauge version, the design is known as Speedy by the famous lives steam designer and builder LBSC.  They are a nicely proportioned loco but I know they weren't great travellers over the GWR so not sure if they would even be appropriate for Granby.

 

Cheers

Tony

 

Thanks Tony...glad you like the photos

 

I never tire of re telling the Dukedog story.....its so quintessentially GWR!

 

Like Neal, I am afraid the 15xx is too late for Granby.....by about 4 years. Mind you, with Prairies and Moguls and a Manor to come its been a bumper year for me.
 

 

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6 hours ago, Neal Ball said:

Nice set of photos of the Dukedog John.

 

Hopefully your Mogul will arrive today or tomorrow and it runs ok straight from the box.

 

Maybe one day Bachmann will produce the Earl, with curved frames. Although a bit late for your time period, it would make a nice loco.


Thanks Neal

 

The Mogul arrived last night......so far I am very impressed. It worked ok on my minimal DC test track ....nice slow starting without hesitation.........so this morning I will run it on the rolling road.....I do hope I have better luck than you. It must be incredibly frustrating for it to catch like that. Is there any indication of of what is causing it?

 

Hope you can source a replacement 

 

Best wishes

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5 hours ago, john dew said:


Thanks Neal

 

The Mogul arrived last night......so far I am very impressed. It worked ok on my minimal DC test track ....nice slow starting without hesitation.........so this morning I will run it on the rolling road.....I do hope I have better luck than you. It must be incredibly frustrating for it to catch like that. Is there any indication of of what is causing it?

 

Hope you can source a replacement 

 

Best wishes

 

Thanks John, Ive no idea what is wrong. When it seized last, I tried putting a knife blade between the motion and the bracket and felt no resistance.

 

The annoying thing is that it will take a week plus to get it back to the UK and then a week plus to get a new one over here. I've just been looking at the cost of DHL.... @€62 - weight dependent.

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  • john dew changed the title to GRANBY JUNCTION: Mogul magic.
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Great Service from Hattons.......it took just over three weeks for my new Mogul from Dapol to arrive. Pre-Covid that would have been pretty exceptional.

Casual viewers may have sensed a certain excitement regardimain this release. Most people tend to associate the GWR  with the ubiquitous Pannier at one end of the spectrum and elegant and powerful Kings and Castles at the other. Why all the fuss about a 2-6-0 workhorse?

Over 320 locos were built between 1911 and 1932 and they could be seen all over the network right through to the early sixties. The ideal mixed traffic loco, they were equally at home with freight, main line expresses or a local passenger service. In Sept 1947 there were 48 locos in Chester Shed, of which 9 were Panniers and 10 were Moguls. A few miles away at Croes Newyd there were 40 locos of which 10 were Moguls.

Sadly this was not reflected in the RTR model scene. My Bachmann split chassis Mogul was purchased in the early nineties....never a particularly good runner it finally expired in 2010.

It was generally expected that Bachmann would eventually release an updated model.......but we waited and waited.......and eventually Dapol stepped into the vacuum:

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Its a very impressive, highly detailed model with a number of interesting innovations.

Here are some of the features that caught my eye:

 

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Exquisite back head detailing
 

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The smoke box door is removable and provided the easiest hassle free decoder installation ever:

 

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The door is a push fit and prised off with the supplied tool (made of soft plastic to prevent scratching). The tool is then reversed and used to hook and withdraw the PCB from its runners in the smoke box.

 

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Off with the blanking plate and press fit the Next 18 decoder (Zimo M618). Slide the PCB back into the smokebox.......very easy, no fiddling........it really was as easy as that.......no screws or wires....no struggling to get the body back on

The pickups on loco and tender were properly adjusted and the wheels were clean.....which must be a first for a new loco for me!  Ran perfectly, without hesitation straight out of the box. In the comprehensive Owners Handbook they say there is no need for running in but I ran mine for 30 minutes each way on the rolling road.

On the layout, with DCC, she proved very sure footed and coping easily with some of my less than stellar track.........which is more than could be said for Hornby's Prairie. Also, unlike the Prairie she never stalled.

She is ,however, very highly geared. The default top speed must be astronomic. I set the Cv 5, max speed voltage, at 90 which gives a scale 28mph with a Pannier and the top speed was 42mph.

After some adjustments the crawling speed is spectacular very slow!

 


It takes over 30 minutes to cover 6' at Step 1.....talk about watching paint dry.

Its still not as smooth as I would like.....its quite jerky from 2 to 3 and 4 to 5. I suspect there is one of the more subtle Zimo Cv settings

Some users have not been as fortunate as I and have reported consistent stalling/catching. The problem seems to arise from the Motion bracket:
 

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Its secured to the underside of the footplate by a narrow, small relatively shallow pin. If this gets dislodged the bracket gets mis-aligned and the loco jams. I discovered this the hard way by inadvertently coupling the Mogul to a rake of coaches that were already firmly moored to a Castle.....and then being impatient and applying too much wellie.....and the bracket popped. Fortunately I was able to press it back into position and all is well again......but its registered as a possible issue for the future 

The tender coupling is different:

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No hooks or trailing wires. Contact is by way of a piece of PCB that slides and clicks into place in a recess under the loco's fall plate

 

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The PCB contains 2 circuits  ....Tender pick ups to the decoder and wires from the decoder to hook up an optional larger speakers in the tender.

The coupling system works exactly as described.....very crisp and straightforward. The contrast with handling this loco+tender compared with a Bachmann Collett is marked. Slight note of caution.....one does wonder whether, over time, the PCB might become worn? I dont think I will be separating the pair too often.

Lot of nice detail on the tender. Dont believe I have seen a retaining board modelled before.

 

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The coal load, which is unusually realistic is easily removeable:
 

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I guess this is the last time you will see the loco looking like this:

 

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There was a reason they were known as Mucky Moguls.......so a Shirt Button livery in 1948 will require a fair amount of weathering plus Crew, Fire Irons, Lamps and Coal.......and I must remember to change the buffer beam numbers!

I worry a little about the motion bracket and the longevity of the tender coupling other than that I am more than content. Bodes well for the Manor and I do hope Dapol will be encouraged to persevere with their Prairie.

Best wishes from Vancouver.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Edited by john dew
20/8/22 Photos
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Glad you like it John. I was in two minds on how much weathering these engines had and came to the conclusion that anything goes with these. I agree with you on the tender connection and I'll leave mine well alone.

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2 hours ago, Mikkel said:

I enjoyed the video John, very relaxing. Up-tempo version of La vie en rose, I think?


Thanks Mikkel.......French Cafe Jazz in the background....I had forgotten it was on:unsure:

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5 hours ago, St Enodoc said:

We have a boxed set of 3CDs called "Cafe de Paris - Essential French Cafe Music". It's very pleasant. Try unionsquaremusic.co.uk.


Youtube are a bit funny about having identifiable music in the background though..... Or at least they were when I posted a video recently and I had the radio on in the background.

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On 12/12/2020 at 19:30, Mikkel said:

Could be, I have no idea. Listening again it's some kind of medley, I think.

Got my spelling wrong, its Django Reinhardt and the violinist is probably Stephane Grappelli.  Brings back some memories of my youth.  Now I must dig out my old LP's.

 

Mike

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14 hours ago, tarifa said:

Got my spelling wrong, its Django Reinhardt and the violinist is probably Stephane Grappelli.  Brings back some memories of my youth.  Now I must dig out my old LP's.

 

Mike


It’s called “Beyond the sea” by Gypsy Caravan - although I can’t find out who that group is. Siri found it on Gypsy Jazz Caravan 3.

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  • john dew changed the title to GRANBY JUNCTION: Sunrise in the Cascades
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Something different to start.........in every sense.......I first posted this in its entirety the Mogul thread to the confusion of all

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We live on the edge of the North Shore Mountains overlooking the Port of Vancouver and Burrard Inlet. Facing South East, if you are up early enough, you can capture the sun rise. You have to be quick......this was gone in seconds.

600' below us the inlet and most of the Port are shrouded in mist. The mountain at the back is Mount Rainier, 200 miles away in Washington State

Back at Granby the hotel is progressing as I create the foundation structure for both the rear and the roof. Cutting and glueing 2mm grey board isnt very exciting although shortly I should be able to post some photos that show what I have been up to.

As I have said before I have developed the bad habit of focussing on the project of the moment to the detriment of all manner of other repairs and improvements.

You may remember the Metcalfe Warehouse that screens the entrance to the Storage Yards?

 

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I tried to make the scene a bit more interesting by adding some figures unloading a crate from a lorry
.
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Its all a bit superficial.....the chains round the crate wouldnt lift much .....they were just odds and ends left over from the Tank/Warwell exercise.

Doug (Chubber), a long time and extremely helpful follower of this thread, pointed out that the unrelieved pressure of the chains would shatter the crate!

He spared my blushes by sending me a PM and followed it up with some detailed instructions of the proper way to do this job

 

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I am ashamed to admit that this conversation took place in April! How time flies when you are building Hotels. The warehouse is just behind the Computor Monitor.......I see the scene every time I go to the railway room.....it was a constant reminder of my bad habits.

I finally "got round tuit" last month:

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Its not the neatest model and I never did qualify for the Scouts knots badge  but I hope that it is now technically correct

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Spreader from scrap 2" x  4" relieve the pressure on two bridles

The bridles have eyes (rings) at both ends. The rings are suspended from the bar of a shackle. The shackle is suspended from the hook of the hoist

A light line is attached to the crate to prevent it from spinning

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Everything is a bit overscale. I found it impossible to thread and secure the "rope" to scale eyes. The eyes I eventually used were too big for the coupling shackle I intended to use. I had to scratch build a larger shackle from brass strip. Achieving and maintaining equal tension on the bridles was character building.

So there we have it from my normal viewing position........another job ticked off the list

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Whats this.........a bus on a bridge???


Special dispensation .......its in the family:

 

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Keep Safe

 

 

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