RMweb Gold The Stationmaster Posted October 31, 2015 RMweb Gold Share Posted October 31, 2015 Lovely job Steve (the layout that is - best of luck with the 1:1 task). Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
br2975 Posted October 31, 2015 Share Posted October 31, 2015 Welcome back Pix - long time no see, hear or speak - but can see you've been busy. . Brian R Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Portchullin Tatty Posted October 31, 2015 Share Posted October 31, 2015 Bonkers - but in a nice way Steve.............. Something to dampen the movement of the rear door as the lorry moves? Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Gold The Fatadder Posted October 31, 2015 RMweb Gold Share Posted October 31, 2015 Lorry looks awesome, still can't believe this was done in 2mm As for the mk1 cav. My grandparents had one when I was little, I remember being driven around Salisbury sliding around the back seat (given no rear seat belts.) Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sam Kennion Posted October 1, 2016 Share Posted October 1, 2016 A parcel of shiny etches arrived on Friday from PPD – excellent service as ever (usual disclaimer applies), but my impatience to see if it all worked made the 10 day lead time feel like a lifetime. There is something very satisfying about unwrapping something you’ve spent months swearing at in AutoCAD. ............... I decided to tackle the Class 14 chassis. This was a complete step into the unknown – I’ve never built a chassis before, let alone a self designed one. I read a lot of the Association articles and booklets on the theory and closely looked at what other people did. It’s gone surprisingly well – the chassis went together squarely with the Association jigs and was quartering was made fairly simple with the other Association jig (I’m not sponsored by the 2mm Association Jig department, I hasten to add!). Much to my surprise, it runs really well and is getting smoother and quieter by the minute – I’m putting this solely down to beginners luck. The fairly long wheelbase seems to be fine on all of Parkend’s track work, although I did allow a little slop in the design for this. Special mention must go to Julia for her notes on using Metric Gears – they’re spot on, thanks Julia! ............... Last night I built the cranks and dropped them in, it’s quite therapeutic watching them slowly rotate. .... Hi Pix, Is the Class 14 chassis available please? And did you or someone do a detailing etch for the body, particularly the bufferbeams? Regards, Sam. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Gold Strathwood Posted October 2, 2016 RMweb Gold Share Posted October 2, 2016 Thanks Kevin. For the Westerns at the moment, not much - I've only prised the wheels out and send them away for turning down. I've drawn up an etched overlay for the wheels to hide the big holes Dapol put in them and also started on a jig to help drill out the holes for the handrails on the front. The cab windows could do with an etch perhaps, but that's really it. I must admit, with a little fettling and re-greasing, the mechanism in these is pretty good, even if it's a bit growly. I've also made a start on drawing up a 123 in 123D I mentioned a while back. A couple of kind souls very generously supplied measurements on the 126 at Bo'ness which has helped greatly, especially with the Swindon profile. The TS core is almost ready to test print and will be joined by an etched inlay for the windows. It's designed to fit onto a re-bogied Farish CEP chassis, with Farish Mk.1 roves. Also started drawing the cab in 2D before translating it into 3D. There's a few issues I know of at the moment, around the headcodes in particular, but it's a start. Pix Hello Pix, Any movement on the Class 123 project at all, as I have noticed that Electra Railway Graphics now do overlays to make the finishing easier, if you fancy moving along the driving cabs to the printing stage I would be in for a few of them too in order to make up an 8 or a 10 car rake as I recalled them on the Oxford runs. Kevin Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pixie Posted October 19, 2016 Author Share Posted October 19, 2016 A year. I'm a yearlate in replying. Apologies. I had an email from my boss the other day telling me, quite bluntly, I was dreadful at replying to emails. Initially I was taken aback but, upon reflection, I think he may have a point.... Fantastic stuff Pixie, the scenics are looking good as well. We'll soon have you out exhibiting with this. Thanks Jerry. Parkend's first outing will be the German Railway Society's (naturally) show in Didcot on May 10th next year. Come along, have a play. I'll make sure there's a stash of biscuits behind the layout. The Cav looks great Pix, cracking colour too. I'd enjoy reading about your progress on that somewhere - I've had a similar distraction over the summer after a spectacular MOT fail. It's funny though, how as winter draws in, the cosy workbench is way more appealing than lying on a concrete garage floor or damp tarmac getting showered in rust and underseal! Cheers Jamie - it was MOT time in March for the Cavalier; it felt like my first born going in for surgery! It passed with two advisories on the rear tyres getting a bit old; which I'll happily settle for. What's your project car? Have you been able to get it back in the road yet? I've written up my story for the Cavalier club's forum which I'll transfer across to here in due course. The main focus over the last year has been hoovering up as many spares as I can lay my hands on; there's no real trade support for the Cavalier so I'm taking every chance I get to build up a stock of bits. One thing I've learn to tearing an old at apart is immensely satisfying. Even ended up dragging a pair of fellow RMwebbers to see one in Nottingham the weekend if the 2mm do at Turbury. Sorry, gents. Is the partially blocked off reg plate 000.............? Most appropriate for 2mm ! Of course, I might have mis-read it - failing sight being a reason I decided to give up driving and modelling. It is indeed OOO; I'd not made the Lone Star connection! Bonkers - but in a nice way Steve.............. Something to dampen the movement of the rear door as the lorry moves? Cheers Mark. The flappy door was fixed by soldering in a weight on the inside of it and adding a little bar so it's sits just off vertical when the tipper is lowered. It's only by a few degrees, and looks a little odd in profile, but means it door doesn't wiggle about. Lorry looks awesome, still can't believe this was done in 2mm As for the mk1 cav. My grandparents had one when I was little, I remember being driven around Salisbury sliding around the back seat (given no rear seat belts.) I think everyone knew someone who has one at some point! Congratulations on the new arrival Mr P, sounds like you've got a very feminine home life in the future! Is the Class 14 chassis available please? And did you or someone do a detailing etch for the body, particularly the bufferbeams? Hi Sam - Yep, that'd be me. The detailing etch came first and the chassis came afterwards. I've never made them available openly - not through a lack of desire or willing; i'm just a bit crap at getting a sheet etched in order to supply them. Ironically, I'm a Supply Chain Manager by profession. After a bit of arm twisting at the AGM I've vowed that this winter will be the winter I pull my finger out and get them produced. Any movement on the Class 123 project at all, as I have noticed that Electra Railway Graphics now do overlays to make the finishing easier, if you fancy moving along the driving cabs to the printing stage I would be in for a few of them too in order to make up an 8 or a 10 car rake as I recalled them on the Oxford runs. Hello Kevin, how's things? Alan Whitehouse had a 123 at the AGM which looks very neat and, if I remember well, proved to be award winning too. My own 123 lingers on - I made a test print of the TS body in the Spring to make sure I was on the right track and it fitted the CEP chassis OK. It's stalled a little whilst I focus on things for Parkend, but I keep plugging away when I feel like it. I did make a start on the cabs but I struggled a bit in 123D; I may give Blender or Sketchup a go. One thing I was surprised out was how different the profile is in 2mm. When it's drawn up in CAD it's barely noticeable but it can certainly be seen in the flesh. To be honest, the bulk of the work is done; I just need to bring it all together. ----------------- As alluded to above, I've been plodding on with Parkend primarily over the last few months. The layout itself is now covered in green and the size of the detailing parts is getting progressively smaller. The biggest gaps now are really the buildings, the red-oxide place-keepers there at present are destined for the bin at somepoint. I'm tempted to etch the buildings I require, in the style of the Severn Models kits, but it becomes very expensive for a one-off. We'll see. I've been working hard on the ancillary bits to make the layout as easy as possible to pack-up and move to exhibitions. I really don't want exhibiting Parkend to be a chore - it's meant to be a hobby after all, so I've tried to apply a few Kaizen principles to it all. First thing was to get a little workspace in the fiddle yard for any in the road repairs, with a plug socket fitted. Then a tool box that contains everything that's not attached to the layout (tools, cassettes, layout assembly bolts, layout curtain, etc) with an inventory list to make sure I remember everything. I'd not heard of a bullet spirit level before, but this little gizmo is great for getting the boards levels. Stock box has come from KRS, they're great and should keep the sock safe. Usual disclaimer. Packing crates have been built and are ready to go. The arrows are little laser cut items from eBay. Also got some business cars to hand out if anyone asks about the layout for a show. I used to sprawl my details out on the back of whatever was to hand so hopefully these are a little neater. I've worked on a few more locos too. The core fleet of NBL type 2s now numbers six examples that are in the final phases of weathering and reassembly. All are Dapol based but have been repainted and the chassis rebuilt/remotored. I'm pleased with D6326 and D6331 particularly. I've also done a 24/1 and 25/0 conversion from the Etched Pixels kit for the Farish 24/0. The odd 25/0 made it to Gloucester in my time frame so it's bit completely impossible one made it to Parkend, albeit unlikely. I did them as I think they look cool; they're a good space filled until we get a decent 25/3 too. And finally, thanks to my terrible attention span, I've also been working on a model of the Prototype HST. This definitely never made it to Parkend, but some kind soul put some very nice bodyshells onto Shapeways a whole back that were too good to pass up. I'm working on a master for the Prototype Mk3s, the below are stand-ins for the moment. At the other end of the size spectrum, I've also been working on a model of Reading Signal Works humble 88DS, number 20. It's mainly a Judith Edge kit with a cobbled together chassis, giving a 100:1 reduction. It's going OK so far, but needs a bit more loving to get it running sweetly. Right, bed time. I'll try to be a bit quicker in my replies this time round! Cheers, Pix 17 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Gold The Fatadder Posted October 19, 2016 RMweb Gold Share Posted October 19, 2016 Pixie, you are officially as bad at updating threads as Bryn. Must be the 2mm scale affect! While the house is definitely very feminine now after the latest arrival, at least I have a garage full of South Brent to escape to! Parkend looks amazing, have you got many more shows lined up? I definitely need to make an effort to get to see it, it's been far too long! I remember those days exhibiting Waltham and Roath trying to shunt insults using the scrabble letters on the back of wagons... (I hope they will make a reappearance) Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Premium nick_bastable Posted October 19, 2016 RMweb Premium Share Posted October 19, 2016 the 88 looked good on Pete's mock up at the AGM all in all very nice work Nick Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bryn Posted October 20, 2016 Share Posted October 20, 2016 (edited) Pixie, you are officially as bad at updating threads as Bryn. Must be the 2mm scale affect! I'll have you know I'm VERY efficient at updating my blog... I'm just very inefficient at producing models to blog about. Edited October 20, 2016 by Bryn Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
modfather Posted October 20, 2016 Share Posted October 20, 2016 Bryn even entered the agm competition... Albeit six years after the stock was finished! 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
iak Posted October 20, 2016 Share Posted October 20, 2016 Very impressive stuff sir. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
D869 Posted October 20, 2016 Share Posted October 20, 2016 Mr Pixie, with these thread postings and Magazine articles you are spoiling us. Lovely work. It was good to catch up with you and Bryn at the AGM. Any plans for a few wild boar rooting around on somebody's lawn? Regards, Andy Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chris Higgs Posted October 20, 2016 Share Posted October 20, 2016 I see those vandals down the Forest have been busy again smashing the windows out of your locos :-) No need to take them any further, just put them on a siding and you have the Swindon scrap line as I remember it as a teenager. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
jonas Posted October 20, 2016 Share Posted October 20, 2016 Looking very Foresty indeed - great work on the layout. Hugely impressive! I hope that 22 you had off me is in there somewhere! Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Premium Ian Smeeton Posted October 20, 2016 RMweb Premium Share Posted October 20, 2016 Sadly the 'phone number was unreadable on your excellent-looking business card. Can I book you for a Bar Mitzvah next year, please. Regards Reuben Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Southernboy Posted October 20, 2016 Share Posted October 20, 2016 (edited) "A year." At last Frankland doesn't feel alone in the league of tardy updates Thank you! Great to see an update and progress. Some amazing modelling here. And I like the bullet spirit level (why did no one think of that before!) and the stock boxes look quite neat. In particular I'm interested to see whether you decide on bespoke etched-kits for your buildlings. I'm intrigued why you are thinking of this route rather than the usual Plasticard / Slaters / sheets /etc ? / What you see to be advantages / disadvantages / cost equation ... I'll look forward to a response around sometime this time next year Edited October 20, 2016 by Southernboy Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
richbrummitt Posted October 21, 2016 Share Posted October 21, 2016 I was reading this wondering how many bar mitzvahs you expect to do and then find that you have one as your second booking. Nice! The APT trumped the business card for funny though Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
John lewsey Posted October 22, 2016 Share Posted October 22, 2016 Hi Pix I'd be interested to know how you weathered your wagons Regards John Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pixie Posted October 22, 2016 Author Share Posted October 22, 2016 Thanks all for your comments. Pixie, you are officially as bad at updating threads as Bryn. Must be the 2mm scale affect! Unofficially, I'm twice as bad has him. While the house is definitely very feminine now after the latest arrival, at least I have a garage full of South Brent to escape to! It's certainly coming on nicely sir; although I'm a little worried about the overwhelming presence of copper-clad steam. What's happened to all the FGW livery P4 HSTs?! In all seriousness, it must be nice to have a place to let trains run around in a loop. I enjoy operating Parkend, but it would be nice to be able to leave them running for a while to really bed in. Parkend looks amazing, have you got many more shows lined up? I definitely need to make an effort to get to see it, it's been far too long! I remember those days exhibiting Waltham and Roath trying to shunt insults using the scrabble letters on the back of wagons... (I hope they will make a reappearance) It occurred to me recently that the Waltham shows were a decade ago now; time truly does fly. Flies almost as well as my D6300 at the Maidenhead show... Aside from GlobalRail in Didcot, I've got a booking for Aldershot in 2018 and I've got a PM from Jerry about taking it to Warminster too which sounds like good fun. I'm very open to invites now that the layout is starting to get there – I'll probably try and do around two a year (ideally, one Autumn-ish and one Spring-ish) to space them out. the 88 looked good on Pete's mock up at the AGM all in all very nice work Thanks Nick! It's a shame we didn't get a chance to say hello in person a the AGM. I'll have you know I'm VERY efficient at updating my blog... I'm just very inefficient at producing models to blog about. Colwyn for 2020? G'worn. Mr Pixie, with these thread postings and Magazine articles you are spoiling us. Lovely work. It was good to catch up with you and Bryn at the AGM. Any plans for a few wild boar rooting around on somebody's lawn? Thanks Andy – indeed, it was excellent to see you again. Would I be right in thinking that D831 in the competition was your handy work? It certainly looked the part; there's something very attractive about BSYP livery. What's the betting, if I modelled a wild boar, someone would pull me up as they were only reintroduced in the 1990s? The one creature I would like to model is a greyhound – we had them in the family for years and I've never found a decent model of one. I might have to have a chat with Alan Butler at ModelU; although convincing one of them to stand still for long enough might be a challenge. I hope that 22 you had off me is in there somewhere! Cheers Steve – your old NBL is in the same pile awaiting the final weathering and reassembly. I went for 6326 in the end; a strictly West Country machine but I fancied one with double arrows and TOPS style numbers. Sadly the 'phone number was unreadable on your excellent-looking business card. Can I book you for a Bar Mitzvah next year, please. Regards Reuben Reuben, sure. I've got Michael Eavis currently in touch about a Pyramid Stage headline slot and the Beckham's are considering renewing their vows for next year but we should be able to sort something out between the two. Mazel tov, in advance, for the big day. "A year." At last Frankland doesn't feel alone in the league of tardy updates Thank you! In particular I'm interested to see whether you decide on bespoke etched-kits for your buildlings. I'm intrigued why you are thinking of this route rather than the usual Plasticard / Slaters / sheets /etc ? / What you see to be advantages / disadvantages / cost equation ... The presentation of your Frankland blogs more than make up for any waiting time Mark – they're superb! The main reason for considering etching the buildings is I'm pants at hand fabrication. If I draw something up in CAD I can add little alignment holes and jigs to make sure everything fits together squarely and neatly, then leave it to the nice etchers to do all the cutting out for me. That said, going the full etched route for several one-off buildings is a vastly over-engineered and paying for the photo-tool makes it an expensive option. If I was doing rows and rows of terraced houses, it would probably work out to be relatively cost effective but for a couple of cottages it's not viable really. The route I'll most likely take is to invest in one of those Silhouette cutters and assemble the shells of the building from plasticard. I'll etch the windows and doors, and probably get the roof slates from York Model Making. That's the best combination of me being able to avoid my cack-handedness and having the finesse of etched details, without having to sell the family silver. Also means I'll end up with a Silhouette cutter at the end of it, which looks like a useful too. Hi Pix I'd be interested to know how you weathered your wagons Regards John No problems John – Putting aside rusty wagons for the moment, the below is more or less how I weather stock. Apologies it's locos rather than wagons, they're the photographs I have to hand. However, the process is the same essentially. I should say at this point, I'm by no means an expert - I do things in the opposite order to how a lot of books say to how to do it and use products in ways that they're not meant to be. But, it works for me. I should also point out the models swap around a bit as I was working on various models at the same time. First up, I always start with a base coat of Halford's aerosol primer. Usually grey, occasionally red oxide for bauxite wagons or maroon Warships. Next up, I paint the basic colours but none of the details. I'm a devout enamels man, usually Pheonix Precision. I'll paint everything, so black underframe moulding will get a coat of matt black - it gives the weathering something to hold onto and remove any chance of plasticy bits showing through. Then I mix up a slurry of Revell matt black enamel and MIG Russian Earth powders. With the enamel, do not shake it and fish out some of the sludge from the bottom to make your mixture; this should assure a matt finish. Thin with white spirit to around the consistency of milk. With a large brush, liberally apply to your carefully painted model. Make sure it goes into all nooks and crannies. Let it dry it 30 minutes or so. Then, using a old t-shirt that's been moistened with white spirit and working in a downward motion, wipe it all off again. Once you've removed the bulk, start to use some cotton buds dipped in white spirit for the finer areas, again working downwards. It's at this stage I apply the fine painted details and transfers. My preference for the latter are Replica's rub-down sheets for numbers and arrows. If I have to use waterslide, I'll apply them to a wet bed of Klear floor polish and roll a cotton bud over the, that should remove all silvering. I now give the body a blast of Testor's Dullcote to tie it altogether and seal the transfers in. Accept no substitute, anyone who says there is a better matt varnish is lying. It's evil stuff though, so wear a mask. The chassis gets another coat of slurry, this time an unthinned mixture of matt black, a drop of Humbrol 29 and more MIG Russian Earth. Give the underframe a good coat and leave to dry. I don't varnish the chassis, it looses some of the depth of colour if you do so. If it's a wagon, with the chassis attached, I'll give the underframe a coat of slurry after the coat of Testors. To round up, I'll use an airbrush just to do a few small details, like exhaust ports. I don't varnish over these as it flattens off the texture; I've had no issues with wear or anything. That's how I weather locos and wagons like those below, or vans, tanks, etc. For rusty minerals, I'll prime and paint the wagons and leave to dry for around a week. I'll then mix up a slurry of Humbrol 29 and a couple of MIG powders and stipple it onto the model with a small, stiff brush. I'll leave it to dry for a couple of hours, then with a white-spirit dipped cotton bud stipple over the same areas. This softens the rusting patterns and blends them into the main body colour. Once happy with it, I'll give the chassis a coat of the same slurry used in locos and give the interiors a coat of rusty colour slurry. Transfers and white stripes go in towards the end. For a worn stripe, I mask the line and stipple on the white. Hope this helps - it's certainly not a science. At least with minerals, if you really screw it up, you can do some path repairs! Cheers, Pix Below is the start of my Cavalier story that I originally put elsewhere. If people enjoy it, I'll post the rest. I do try my utmost not to be a car bore in it, I promise. ------------------------- I recently did something I always talked about, but thought I'd always find a reason not to. Here's the story, I hope you enjoy reading it as much as I enjoyed writing it. Cavalier Chronicles – Part 1 – Genesis As modellers and cranks we're inherently nostalgic folk. We always talk about how great things were, rather than how good they're going to be. Similarly, we rarely model what we think the future will look like. Personally, I love a good nostalgia fix. I think the way a sight, a smell or a piece of music can take you straight back to a time and place is amazing. One of the biggest icons of my childhood were the cars that my Dad drove. Here he is below on the far left, during work experience at Warfield Garage in his teens. Vauxhalls have long been part of the Nicholls family. It all began with my Dad's blue Viva HB - whilst not his first car, it was certainly the first he took any pride in. For its inaugural run, he took it to The Leathern Bottle for a swift half. Evidently plans changed, and many pints of Directors later, he found himself staggering home in the early hours, forgetting his steed. He awoke next morning to apoplectic Dad and a barrage of questions, mostly, "Where's your 'kin car?!" The Viva was instrumental in Dad's brief fling into pirate radio. Dad and best friend Paul (or Steve Eagle and Zhar Nicholas to use their respective handles) would drive deep into Swinley Forest and hook up the car's battery to their home-made transmitter, broadcasting the best of 60's psychedelia across Berkshire as Radio Andromeda. Well, across Bracknell at least. It was later found that Andromeda only had a range of a mile or so. The blue Viva always was a bit iffy and eventually the head gasket gave way. Like all good siblings, Dad sold it to his brother Pete in 'as-new' condition. Its replacement was another HB Viva. Dad took Mum out on their first date in this car and later they used it to move out of their respective parents and into their flat in Birch Hill. They even used it to run off to Brighton and get married too, just taking one witness each. Their next car was another Viva - this time a red Viva HC. Sadly, I've not been able to find any photos of this one so far. Enter DJB 181V. A 1980 Cavalier 1600L, in vibrant 'Orange Tan' with a beige plaid interior. The very best in 1970s styling and colour sense. Bought nearly-new with known serious engine issues, my Dad took a gamble that he could make it right. It burnt as much oil as it did petrol, requiring a full rebore and rebuild to put right. I think in hindsight he'd have done better to pay slightly more for a good'un. The Cavalier became a reliable runaround - it took Dad to Sperry's every day for work, shopping trips to MFI for the latest in black ash furniture and, one afternoon in October '88, a very weary trip back from Heatherwood Hospital with a new addition. I adored that car. Whilst rarely the focal point, the Cav was always there in the background. It was the choice mode of transport for every school run, summer holiday and, most importantly, summer evenings out watching the trains go by at 'The Bridge'. For unfortunate and self-explanatory reasons, this site is now know as 'Dogger's Bridge' but back then it was simply 'The Bridge'. Such activities had been invented in 1992. Besides, even if it had, my innocent mind wouldn't have understood it - I was too busy pretending to take photographs. The Cav represents growing up to me: Big Break, Blind Date and The Generation Game were staple Saturday night telly. Every evening was sunny, John Kettley promised so. Creme Eggs were seasonal. Soul Limbo was the sound of BBC cricket. Happiness was a choc-ice in a blue and white paper wrapper. An Intercity 125 could go 125mph, so obviously Intercity 225 could go 225mph. Doom was the pinnacle of PC gaming. An evening out would involve chicken nuggets, 'red' flavour juice drinks and rub-on Charlie Chalk tattoos. An evening in would involve Monopoly and Dad passing me cash under the table in order to win. If they were feeling extravagant, a bottle of Hock or Blue Nun would appear. The Toys'R'Us advert was a sure sign Christmas was coming. Pogs. The concept of stress hadn’t even registered - no KPIs, no deadlines, no desktop politics, no moron trying to tell you what to do in order to give themselves an ego-massage. The only real concern was where the next Secret bar was coming from. In reality, this was a tough time for Mum and Dad. Sperry's left Bracknell in 1989, leaving Dad jobless in the middle of a recession. Mum had left work to raise me, but had to try and find something to bring the pennies in. Ultimately they were both out of work for almost 4 years. This was probably why DJB 181V lasted so long - patching the old girl up so she could scrape through another MOT was cheaper than finding something else. The fact I hold these days in such high regard, despite the situation, is testament to a job well done. Pete on the other hand was doing well in life - perhaps it was karma for that hooky Viva Dad sold him? He'd landed a job that included a company car. Being a family of habit, he chose a Mk.3 Cavalier. Next to a Mk.1 it seemed absolutely space age - electric windows, power steering, FM radio and, heaven forbid, even a fifth gear. ete's Mk.3 soon took over the top-link workings to the West Country for summer holidays. I'm not sure where the below was taken, but you have to applaud my dad's choice of double denim. It was the 90s - this was socially acceptable! Meanwhile I'm sat lamenting the loss of Secret chocolate bars, following their recent discontinuation. DJB 181V soldiered on with the more mundane tasks of daily life. But after 18 years of solid service, the inevitable death knell finally sounded. She'd never been garaged and it showed - the underside was like a patchwork quilt, there were various spots of patch painting and the interior was cracked and torn. DJB 181V was weighed in on the 1st May 1997 - the day of the General Election. It had the dubious honour of the first car my Dad owned to the end of its life. After carefully prising off the front crest, Dad and I took one last ride to the Wokingham scrapyard it'd die in. Several weeks later, my uncle Mark reported it was still there, sandwiched between a Maestro and a Sierra. Her replacement was another Cavalier. A lack-lustre Mk.2 hatchback, bought from a family in Slough for £600. Mum hated this car as it took every opportunity to flood itself. I remember helping her unbolt the air filter housing in Princess Square car park to make the fuel to evaporate quicker. It'd evidently had a fairly big prang at the front too. C281 NCF only lasted 18 months until rust claimed another victim. It too was weighed in at the same Wokingham scrapyard as DJB 181V. I didn't bother going with Dad this time, I was too miffed that the front badge was moulded on and I couldn't keep it. Another Mk2 hatchback followed - it came from my friend Tommy's mum, so I naturally claimed to have brokered the deal and asked for a finder’s fee. It was fine. Not great, just fine. At least it didn't drown itself in petrol, which my mum no doubt appreciated. Personally, I appreciated its enormous bonnet for sketching out track plans. It was around this time that Pete changed jobs and his Mk.3 spaceship had to be returned. Following my parents’ lead, he went for Champagne Mk2 hatchback that was a previously a decorator's runaround. The interior smelt of jam doughnuts, but picking off flecks of paint kept me entertains on longer journeys. Both of the above suffered inglorious ends - Dad drove his into a Rover on icy morning and within days, a botched theft attempt also wrote off Pete's Cavalier. Both parties abandoned Vauxhalls - Dad went for a Fiat Tipo, allured by the promise of galvanised bodywork and a million miles to the gallon. Pete went for a Mazda 323F because a friend, who just happened to be selling one, drunkenly convinced him it'd be a good idea. After four decades of brand loyalty, the Nicholls clan was Vauxhall-less.For me the subsequent years were a standard, adolescent-fuelled mixture of spots and crap haircuts. Going to 'Big School' lead to GCSEs, A-levels, University and the wonderful world of work. There was number firsts - first parties, first girlfriends, first break-ups, first time living away from home, first holidays, first gigs, first cigarettes, first jobs, and so on. All the time I hung onto the badge from DJB 181V, a memento of more innocent age. I joked with Dad that it'd form the basis of a new-build project, even giving it a new coat of paint and a good polish. He evidently thought it was a pipe dream, but was seemingly touched by the sentiment. It wasn't a completely empty threat - I had the occasional trawl through eBay and would bore anyone near by about my grand plan. But it was always something for the future. Something to think about in an idle moment. To be continued... 17 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Premium Alex Duckworth Posted October 22, 2016 RMweb Premium Share Posted October 22, 2016 Hello Steve, nice to meet you at the AGM. I can also lay claim to being a past Cavalier (blue) owner. Great models, nice weathering, looking forward to seeing Parkend. Alex. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Andy Y Posted October 22, 2016 Share Posted October 22, 2016 Nice tales Steve; only marred by the sight of Pixie in a onesie. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Gold queensquare Posted October 22, 2016 RMweb Gold Share Posted October 22, 2016 What a great post Pix. Bit scary you were born in 1988, that makes you a year younger than my eldest son! Can I put you down for our Warminster show next June then - details to appear in Exhibitions soon! Jerry 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
D869 Posted October 22, 2016 Share Posted October 22, 2016 Thanks Andy – indeed, it was excellent to see you again. Would I be right in thinking that D831 in the competition was your handy work? It certainly looked the part; there's something very attractive about BSYP livery. Yes it was indeed one of mine. Thanks. Started as a maroon Druid that I picked up for a reasonable sum. Looks like I need to attend to that errant handrail that has pinged up on top of the nose though. That Albion Alloys N/S rod is very stiff stuff. Loved the Cavalier stuff. I've always been a Vauxhall man and had a gold Mk2 Cav hatch for a long time. It also consumed a certain amount of oil but it kept on going. Your photos reminded me of the time when I used the car's front spoiler as a snowplough during a particlarly heavy fall of snow while I had it. The snow was on a Saturday so nobody else gave a monkeys about getting out of our road but Mrs D869 was due on shift at the hospital. It really did have a little old lady as a previous owner because I bought it from her. She had a little old lady style dog though - the car smelled of dog for some time after I bought it. Unfortunately my Vauxhall days seem to be numbered since the main dealer moved to the wrong side of town, became totally cr*p (probably due to the debt on their shiny new premises) and also bought out and closed down the town's independent Vx dealer. Regards, Andy Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
D869 Posted October 22, 2016 Share Posted October 22, 2016 Nice tales Steve; only marred by the sight of Pixie in a onesie. Ah, Mr York... Maybe checking out whether someone is mounting a denial of service attack with unfeasibly large posts? Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
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