RMweb Premium Siberian Snooper Posted May 11, 2020 RMweb Premium Share Posted May 11, 2020 Gordon, Having just watched the lunchtime news, I suppose your activities for the next couple of days will be to wash your balls and polish your bats ready for a stroll on Wednesday. See you when the weather becomes inclement. 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Premium great northern Posted May 11, 2020 RMweb Premium Share Posted May 11, 2020 2 minutes ago, Siberian Snooper said: Gordon, Having just watched the lunchtime news, I suppose your activities for the next couple of days will be to wash your balls and polish your bats ready for a stroll on Wednesday. See you when the weather becomes inclement. Yes, but like me he will have to play with himself. 1 1 5 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Premium Siberian Snooper Posted May 11, 2020 RMweb Premium Share Posted May 11, 2020 Just now, great northern said: Yes, but like me he will have to play with himself. Your allowed a partner, but you must stay 2 metres apart and you can't play with the flag or rake your bunkers. 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Premium great northern Posted May 11, 2020 RMweb Premium Share Posted May 11, 2020 23 minutes ago, Siberian Snooper said: Your allowed a partner, but you must stay 2 metres apart and you can't play with the flag or rake your bunkers. The latest, as I understand it from government pronouncements today, is that members of the same household can play together, but anyone else must play alone. Still better than nothing though. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Gold BoD Posted May 11, 2020 RMweb Gold Share Posted May 11, 2020 Kicking your opponent's balls is still allowed though. 1 8 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Premium Siberian Snooper Posted May 11, 2020 RMweb Premium Share Posted May 11, 2020 14 minutes ago, great northern said: The latest, as I understand it from government pronouncements today, is that members of the same household can play together, but anyone else must play alone. Still better than nothing though. The partner and 2 metre rule is what was mentioned on the BBC news. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
aardvark Posted May 12, 2020 Share Posted May 12, 2020 Golf must be the only pastime where you can say to your wife "I'm off out for the day to play a round" and not be divorced by tea. 2 1 4 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Gold Enterprisingwestern Posted May 12, 2020 RMweb Gold Share Posted May 12, 2020 18 hours ago, great northern said: Still better than nothing though. Really?? Some would challenge that!! 36 minutes ago, aardvark said: Golf must be the only pastime where you can say to your wife "I'm off out for the day to play a round" and not be divorced by tea. Doesn't the divorce come when she finds out how much the bats and sticks cost?!! Mike. 1 4 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
hayfield Posted May 12, 2020 Share Posted May 12, 2020 On 08/05/2020 at 10:37, gordon s said: Morning all. Another week gone. Hope one and all are well. Sadly we lost one of our senior's during the week. I had enjoyed a round with him many times over the years and he was only in his mid 60's. I haven't heard whether it was Covid 19 or not, but every day we count our blessings and really hope we can get this under control soon. Managed to get eight locos up on eBay and they finish on Monday. Bids on two items already, but of course with eBay all the action is usually in the last few minutes. They are all new loco's that I thought would be needed. Yeah right.... Western Class 22's out of KX?...That was a cock up. Should have been 21's. Well they look similar... A pair of new chassis V2's, that will be replaced by the new V2's in a year or so. Ashamed to say a Baby Deltic is on the list as well. No idea why I bought one as they were my least favourite of all the diesel loco's. They never looked right to me... I see you had a good night on eBay !! enjoy the packing up and if it gets tedious just think of the new shiny locos which will be on their way and the massive saving in fees, who said selling on eBay was expensive !! . I also made room for a couple of locos as well 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
gordon s Posted May 12, 2020 Author Share Posted May 12, 2020 (edited) Thanks John. Yes, they all sold. I suspect the higher starting price meant bidders held back to the last minute to avoid getting into a bidding war, but they all went for my minimum sell price or more. Most popular item was the Baby Deltic. Just goes to show I know nuffin'...... What have I learned from this experience? First lesson is do not advertise eight loco's in one go.... Just spent the whole morning testing, checking and packing all eight. Of course once packed, you have to make sure which loco is in which box and then double check the address to make sure the right loco goes to the right person. Once they are packed, you have no idea what is inside as they all appear the same size. Write the loco name on the outside and cover with the address label. I thought it would be dead easy using Royal Mail Special Delivery as they provide full traceability and full insurance cover. Until now I've been very happy with their service. Having copied, cut and pasted all the correct addresses (and corrected those with lower case letters where capitals should be...), I was in good shape. Decided it would save time to pre pay the postage, so went onto the RM site and copied the address info, weighed the parcels etc and eventually went to print the labels. After 10 minutes of looking everywhere for the labels, I found they email them and they are those funny box scans, so had to take all the address labels off again and tape the scan labels on. Pre paid £72 of postage and off my wife went to our local sub post office (I'm grounded) where I usually send stuff from. Sharp intake of breathe from the counter as 'click and collect' pre payment has to go to the main office. She then has to go into town to find that 'click and collect' is only open from 7am to 9am and they are closed on Wednesdays so nothing could go until Thursday and I've promised they will go today. She returns home fully laden again and now I have to reprint all the original labels, take off the pre paid ones and claim a refund on the £72.... New labels attached and she's back to the sub post office again, where she will probably have to pay a higher price for the same service.... 'Scuse me while I scream... Thankfully I don't use eBay that often and Corona is hopefully a one off... If anyone is on here that has bought from me, my wife has now returned and they have gone..... With any luck they will all be delivered tomorrow... Edited May 12, 2020 by gordon s 1 16 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
hayfield Posted May 12, 2020 Share Posted May 12, 2020 I had a similar issue with a Royal Mail prepaid click & collect, Post office would not take it, Royal Mail customer service closed. 10 mile round trip. took the old label off. took it to the Post Office and had to reclaim the postage from Royal Mail. Note to self, sell less in one go, prepare the packing in advance. Like the idea about sending the wife out Still you saved quite a lot on selling fees and think of the shiny new locos 1 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
bigwordsmith Posted May 12, 2020 Share Posted May 12, 2020 I used to use Hermes as they collected from my front door - sadly they don't nw so I have to drive five miles t their nearest shop and go through a similar palaver ref labels. I believe DPD now does a one collection service (https://www.dpdlocal-online.co.uk/?gclid=EAIaIQobChMIusrlm8Gu6QIVy7HtCh3wGQ9BEAAYASAAEgK4CvD_BwE) not sure how it compares price wise, but I do know DPD has the highest reputation among the courier companies. 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
gordon s Posted May 12, 2020 Author Share Posted May 12, 2020 DPD are really good as they give you a one hour time slot. The thing I've found before is that a lot of carriers only cover you for £20 or so insurance. Once you try and up the level of insurance the price goes up quite a lot. RM Special Delivery covers up to £500 at the lowest level and generally they always deliver before 1pm the next day. With Corona virus, they are now saying the next day, not necessarily before 1pm, but still pretty dependable. Thankfully I don't sell that much on eBay, usually an item or two. It just happened that I had another stock reduction programme and they only happen every three years or so. I'm not buying anywhere near as much now, so hopefully there won't be many more eBay sales..... 5 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
cb900f Posted May 12, 2020 Share Posted May 12, 2020 I know how you feel Gordon. Yesterday my wife and I spent at least 6-7 hrs yesterday packing ,printing and labelling 30 packages , all bar 2 were "oo" models. Also have the added complication that 1 loco a K's Kirtley 0-6-0 has to be posted to Italy. Apparently the Italian state railway ran them into the 1920s. E bay during the month of May have a special deal with Hermes. All I had to do was pack, weigh it, enter the details and print the label ,sellotape to the parcel and wait for Hermes to collect from home this morning. Delivered within 2-3 days. The highest postage was just under £10 for an item priced at £100 insured and to be signed for. I have come to the same conclusion as yourself, too many to shift in one go and only the 3rd occasion I have sold on e bay 2 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
gordon s Posted May 12, 2020 Author Share Posted May 12, 2020 I've had some dreadful experiences of both Hermes and Yodel, so will only use RMSD, DPD or UPS. I'm sure both Hermes and Yodel have improved, but I'm no longer prepared to risk disappointment for my customers. RMSD was £8.80 and I subsidise it by only charging my buyers £7.50. That may sound bonkers, but I want buyers to have a good experience and generally I sell at a higher price than some of the tat you see on eBay. There was a similar loco to one of mine up for sale at £60 whereas mine was £100. My view is that if you pay a higher price, then you really should get value for that premium. I always try to go that extra mile as that's what I would expect. Nothing wrong with bargain basement pricing, but don't expect a premium service. I would have failed if I hadn't got my locos out today and whilst it was somewhat fraught, they went out as promised. Either way, I'm glad it doesn't happen too often..... 2 7 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Premium polybear Posted May 12, 2020 RMweb Premium Share Posted May 12, 2020 2 hours ago, gordon s said: If anyone is on here that has bought from me, my wife has now returned and they have gone..... After all that bvggering around, I'm amazed that the locos weren't returned and your wife has gone.... As regards choice of couriers, it pays to look at the insurance fine print carefully as some have exclusions which would mean damage to many model railway items wouldn't be covered - they would only pay out for total loss. 3 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
hayfield Posted May 12, 2020 Share Posted May 12, 2020 37 minutes ago, polybear said: After all that bvggering around, I'm amazed that the locos weren't returned and your wife has gone.... As regards choice of couriers, it pays to look at the insurance fine print carefully as some have exclusions which would mean damage to many model railway items wouldn't be covered - they would only pay out for total loss. In the past I have found providing the item was well packed Royal Mail pay out. The biggest issue in making a claim is shoddy packing, not RM's fault 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
gordon s Posted May 13, 2020 Author Share Posted May 13, 2020 15 hours ago, bigwordsmith said: I used to use Hermes as they collected from my front door - sadly they don't nw so I have to drive five miles t their nearest shop and go through a similar palaver ref labels. I believe DPD now does a one collection service (https://www.dpdlocal-online.co.uk/?gclid=EAIaIQobChMIusrlm8Gu6QIVy7HtCh3wGQ9BEAAYASAAEgK4CvD_BwE) not sure how it compares price wise, but I do know DPD has the highest reputation among the courier companies. Just out of interest, I checked the cost of a 1kg parcel next day service and it was comparable to RMSD (£8.99 v £8.80}, but it is collected. The only difference I could see was their insurance value was only £50 v the £500 or RMSD. Of course that could be academic, depending on what you are sending. I do like DPD and they are reliable, so worth bearing in mind. Thanks for flagging it up. The parts for my new mimic panel turned up yesterday, so I’ll make a start on that shortly. More to follow.... 3 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
gordon s Posted May 21, 2020 Author Share Posted May 21, 2020 (edited) It had to go.... Sadly ET wasn't really cutting it for me, so after weeks of thinking and planning, I've decided to build a garden railway instead. Decided to go for a larger gauge and at least have made a start. It's going to be finescale with a gauge of 650mm. I'm quite happy with the gauge, sleeper spacing and ballasting, so have written to both Hornby and Bachmann to ask if they would produce an A4 in 650mm gauge for around a £100. I'm sure the demand will be there and fortune favours the brave..... Give it a few minutes and someone will post saying the rail height/sleeper spacing or ballast size is wrong...... Truth is that this end of our pond was a pumped stream. The last few days have been spent moving over two tons of rocks and a similar amount of soil to create a flat area where my wife wants a wild life pond and bog garden. If the truth were known, we are both too old to be clambering over rocks to weed the area, so it had to go. We've run out of Cotswold stone, which will eventually fill the path section. Rest easy, ET is still upstairs and I'm working on a mimic panel, although work has slowed whilst my very last digging detail is completed. It certainly gets harder as the years progress.... Koi have been going crazy over the last few days and most of the pond sides are covered in fish eggs. They've wrecked all the weed that was planted and rooted in baskets, but it should recover even if it is floating free. We've pulled out some egg covered weed, so hopefully some of it may be fertilised and we may yet get some babies. The chances of anything serving in the pond are slim as the big b*ggers eat everything including their children. Hopefully things are going to slowly improve. I had to go out this morning and was heading towards Maidenhead on the M4 when I was shocked to see a three or four mile queue on the westbound side. Three lanes down into one and it was just like the old days.... There are times when lockdown seems really attractive compared to normal.... Edited May 21, 2020 by gordon s 9 6 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Gold BoD Posted May 21, 2020 RMweb Gold Share Posted May 21, 2020 Do you still have trouble with herons? Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
gordon s Posted May 21, 2020 Author Share Posted May 21, 2020 Just a bit....The first one arrives at 5.00am, so my body clock wakes me up at that time. They land on the neighbours roof (just one bird, but not always the same one) and wait for 10 minutes or so, before they finally drop down into the garden and then it's a tippy toe walk to the pond. Another five minutes and they are then within striking distance. They will limbo under most things to get into the water and then it's a waiting game. Our pond is criss crossed with 60lb fishing line and the other morning I got up to find one in the pond. Opening the window scared the hell out of it and it tried to take off under the fishing wire. They probably have a 4' wingspan and a for 10 seconds or so, there was total chaos as I had visions of having to get into the pond to free this heron who had got completely tangled up in all the wires. Thankfully for both of us, he managed to free himself. I hoped it would have scared the hell out of him, but somehow they still return, It's a love/hate relationship as they really are beautiful birds, but are a nightmare for pond owners. We've had optical triggered water jets and no end of scary products to keep them out, but still come back to fishing wire. A complete net would block out the view of the fish completely, so a non starter. I'll just have to keep getting up early..... 2 5 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
bigwordsmith Posted May 21, 2020 Share Posted May 21, 2020 1 hour ago, gordon s said: It had to go.... Sadly ET wasn't really cutting it for me, so after weeks of thinking and planning, I've decided to build a garden railway instead. Decided to go for a larger gauge and at least have made a start. It's going to be finescale with a gauge of 650mm. I'm quite happy with the gauge, sleeper spacing and ballasting, so have written to both Hornby and Bachmann to ask if they would produce an A4 in 650mm gauge for around a £100. I'm sure the demand will be there and fortune favours the brave..... Give it a few minutes and someone will post saying the rail height/sleeper spacing or ballast size is wrong...... Truth is that this end of our pond was a pumped stream. The last few days have been spent moving over two tons of rocks and a similar amount of soil to create a flat area where my wife wants a wild life pond and bog garden. If the truth were known, we are both too old to be clambering over rocks to weed the area, so it had to go. We've run out of Cotswold stone, which will eventually fill the path section. Rest easy, ET is still upstairs and I'm working on a mimic panel, although work has slowed whilst my very last digging detail is completed. It certainly gets harder as the years progress.... Koi have been going crazy over the last few days and most of the pond sides are covered in fish eggs. They've wrecked all the weed that was planted and rooted in baskets, but it should recover even if it is floating free. We've pulled out some egg covered weed, so hopefully some of it may be fertilised and we may yet get some babies. The chances of anything serving in the pond are slim as the big b*ggers eat everything including their children. Hopefully things are going to slowly improve. I had to go out this morning and was heading towards Maidenhead on the M4 when I was shocked to see a three or four mile queue on the westbound side. Three lanes down into one and it was just like the old days.... There are times when lockdown seems really attractive compared to normal.... Until you added more detail I was good to comment how the sleepers seem to not be at 90degrees to the rails - but then who would nitpick on RM Web? 1 5 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Premium Chimer Posted May 21, 2020 RMweb Premium Share Posted May 21, 2020 1 hour ago, gordon s said: It had to go.... Sadly ET wasn't really cutting it for me, so after weeks of thinking and planning, I've decided to build a garden railway instead. You're only entitled to jokes like that on 1st April, you know …… and now that the tips are open, it could have been true 1 1 4 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
gordon s Posted May 21, 2020 Author Share Posted May 21, 2020 Tips are open? Our isn't...... At least it wasn't last time I checked. Well, well, turns out it is open, but by appointment only. I'll keep that one quiet..... 1 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Premium Siberian Snooper Posted May 21, 2020 RMweb Premium Share Posted May 21, 2020 Gordon, would some small bells attached to the fishing line possibly scare them off when they brush against the line. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
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