Wright writes.....

[Tony Wright]

11 hours ago, Bonafide said:

What has something hanging on a chain got to do with correct spelling?  Or, perhaps I am confusing it with pedant!

Whoops!

 

Age, I'm afraid! Not in the 'swing' of things.................

 

Regards,

 

Tony. 

[Tony Wright]

8 hours ago, Willie Whizz said:

One major advantage of an old-style “real” model shop was that you might go in there for one thing, and spot something else which you didn’t even know existed, from a different manufacturer, yet you now realised was something you wanted - nay, needed - badly!

 

The quality of small suppliers’ websites (where they exist at all) varies widely; some excellent, some adequate, some dire and/or untouched for aeons. But it seems to me unlikely you go on any specific site for something you don’t already know you want, need, and know (at least in theory) exists. 
 

That loss of ‘serendipity’ is a sad one. Personally I still feel the loss of Gee Dee in Nottingham, even though it was never quite the same after some years ago their bank manager allegedly pointed out how much cash was tied-up in slow-moving stock of just the kinds of things we’re speaking of now, and insisted they do something about it if the Bank’s support was to continue. 

Speaking of cash tied up in slow-moving stock, I have an amusing story............

 

Some years ago, I was asked to provide the photographs for books describing various aspects of the history of model railways. I was fortunate in being able to access collections of friends of mine in the West Midlands. However, there were still gaps to be filled, if possible. 

 

'Why don't you try Tennant's in Halesowen?', I was told. So I did. It was when the business was still in its original home and the 'old man' was still running it. Talk about help. I've never been so well-received. 'Just pop upstairs, there should be room for your portable studio, and photograph whatever you like' I was informed. So I did. Blowing off the dust of decades, I found brand new Tri-ang items from the '50s (at least 40 years old), plus Trix, Hornby-Dublo and Graham Farish (the original Graham Farish), Hornby post-War O Gauge (untouched), plus myriads of various kits, some of which I'd never heard of. And, boxes of bits, wheels, motors and anything one could think of! All new and all untouched for decades. I had a field day. 

 

Oddly (or perhaps not), once I told some other (collector) friends about this 'find', it shifted rather quickly. 

 

Those were the days.

 

Regards,

 

Tony. 

[Tony Teague]

11 hours ago, t-b-g said:

A bit more progress on and inside the signalbox. I hope I will be forgiven a little whimsy.

 

Beautiful signal box - but doesn't that cat need weathering?

Looks a bit over-glossy to me!

Tony

 

Edited October 26, 2020 by Tony Teague

[t-b-g]

8 hours ago, Woodcock29 said:

Hi Tony (G)

Please tell us more about the signal box. Maybe I've missed something above?

 

Currently I'm building a GN signal box based on the one at Authorpe on the East LIncolnshire line for my mate Gavin's Spirsby layout (Gavin was one of the operators of Buckingham Central during our brief visit back in 2017). Its probably about 2/3 finished and is my first scratch built building. Can't remember if I've posted any photos of the box before? Anyway, here it is temporarily located on the layout during our trial running back in September. All I've done since is replace the end timber gables with more appropriate width planked card and cut larger windows in the gables. The brickwork is actually Volmer N Gauge English Bond which scales at about the correct size for 4mm scale! The roof slates are just Peco roof sheets, hopefully they won't look so thick once they're painted and weathered.

 

 

Andrew

 

Very nice. The brickwork looks much better defined than many embossed versions. I have had a look around the web for Vollmer English Bond brick but not found any. Do you have a reference or product number to help?

 

Mine has Slater's brick, but when I put a photo on earlier, it was mentioned that the bricks are not quite as square as they should be.

 

Mine is an LD&ECR box, based on an amalgam of 3 along the line. As far as I can tell, much LD&ECR infrastructure was nicked or copied from other railways and the signalling and boxes were based very closely on GNR designs.

 

Apart from the embossed brick, Plastruct steps and Springside levers and block instruments, it is all from scratch. It still needs a nameboard, a signalman, who is on order from Modelu, a chimney above the roof and perhaps one or two other details but it is nearly there.

[t-b-g]

2 minutes ago, Tony Teague said:

 

Beautiful signal box - but doesn't that cat need weathering?

Looks a bit over-glossy to me!

 

There is a joke in this situation about an animal having matted fur but I struggle to bring it to the fore.

 

He/she didn't exist 5 minutes earlier, having been carved from plastic and painted a few moments earlier. The paint wasn't fully dry when the photo was taken and bringing the light near to take a photo caught that.

 

It is hardly a "cat"astrophe and it has dried matt now.

 

 

[Woodcock29]

1 hour ago, t-b-g said:

 

Very nice. The brickwork looks much better defined than many embossed versions. I have had a look around the web for Vollmer English Bond brick but not found any. Do you have a reference or product number to help?

Tony (G) its Vollmer N 7361.

I wouldn't say the card is perfect but it looks good from a short distance away.

Andrew

 

 

[Steven B]

My first few etched kits (SR Queen Mary brake van, class 58 & 59) were built using standard 60/40 electrical solder. I later started using Carrs yellow flux and 145 degree solder (all with 18W Antex iron) which I now prefer.

 

If you're having trouble with getting 145 degree solder to flow then either the metal's not clean enough, you've not put down enough flux or your iron can't get the metal hot enough.

 

Steven B.

[t-b-g]

14 minutes ago, Steven B said:

My first few etched kits (SR Queen Mary brake van, class 58 & 59) were built using standard 60/40 electrical solder. I later started using Carrs yellow flux and 145 degree solder (all with 18W Antex iron) which I now prefer.

 

If you're having trouble with getting 145 degree solder to flow then either the metal's not clean enough, you've not put down enough flux or your iron can't get the metal hot enough.

 

Steven B.

 

Pretty much the golden rules of all soldering. Clean, flux, heat plus solder.

 

You would think that there ought to be one "right way" of doing it but as has been amply demonstrated, plenty of people get good results using different fluxes, solders and irons.

 

I have found a combination of tools, solders and fluxes that allows my to do soldering like the horsebox I illustrated. If others want to know what I used or how I did it, I am happy to pass that on. If people are happy doing things another way, that is not a problem to me at all. 

 

 

[2750Papyrus]

3 hours ago, t-b-g said:

 

There is a joke in this situation about an animal having matted fur but I struggle to bring it to the fore.

 

He/she didn't exist 5 minutes earlier, having been carved from plastic and painted a few moments earlier. The paint wasn't fully dry when the photo was taken and bringing the light near to take a photo caught that.

 

It is hardly a "cat"astrophe and it has dried matt now.

 

 

The matt sat on the cat?

[Steven B]

I believe that railway modelling (in all its forms) is as much an art as a science - best learnt from doing than reading about it in a book. Try a few ideas out and use what works for you.

 

One of my favourites has always been thinning paint to the conistancy of milk before air-brushing. Would that be skimmed or gold top?

 

Steven B.

[Barry Ten]

7 hours ago, MarkC said:

I agree with others regarding City Models in Liverpool. The owner was indeed Dutch - Jerry van der Hoek, I think? Anyway,  his emporium near Central Station was great; the shop sort of lost its way on moving to Stanley Street though.

 

As for Newcastle - The Model Shop was another serious trap for one's cash! We also had Northumbria Models in the city centre - it was first near Westgate Road, iirc, then moved to just under the arches of the eastern approach to Central Station.

 

Mark

 

My time in Newcastle coincided with a complete lack of interest in railway modelling, alas, so I don't ever remember going looking for any shops.

[t-b-g]

9 minutes ago, Steven B said:

I believe that railway modelling (in all its forms) is as much an art as a science - best learnt from doing than reading about it in a book. Try a few ideas out and use what works for you.

 

One of my favourites has always been thinning paint to the conistancy of milk before air-brushing. Would that be skimmed or gold top?

 

Steven B.

 

Absolutely and even with 40 years experience, I still learn about new methods, products, tools etc. all the time.

[MJI]

The etched sides I will be using have slots for hinges, what is best to use in this situation?

 

It is for a BR built GWR non corridor vehicle so 60 hinges per carriage.

 

Other parts will be MJT and Comet plus home made ends.

 

What is interesting was that I was told they were not used in Cornwall, but I have multiple photos in multiple books. Could not be anything else.

[PMP]

1 hour ago, Steven B said:

 

One of my favourites has always been thinning paint to the conistancy of milk before air-brushing. Would that be skimmed or gold top?

 

Steven B.

Semi Skimmed in fact. That description does in fact give the novice a consistency to aim for with full colours.

Running like water, too thin and not enough coverage, cream or similar, and the paint will be too thick to spray. It doesn’t address though which paint/thinners work together to give the best results. I get my best solder results with Eames 40 flux. Not much left now....

[jwealleans]

44 minutes ago, MJI said:

The etched sides I will be using have slots for hinges, what is best to use in this situation?

Two choices - something like the Comet detailing etch gives you small pieces of brass which fold through 90 degrees at a half etch and can be soldered in from the rear.

 

Just as effective is to use a suitable length of scrap etch, solder at the rear so it's secure and then cut off the visible part at the right length.  Tidy up with a file.

 

Whichever way you do it, it's 60 bits of soldering most of the time.

[MJI]

28 minutes ago, jwealleans said:

Two choices - something like the Comet detailing etch gives you small pieces of brass which fold through 90 degrees at a half etch and can be soldered in from the rear.

 

Just as effective is to use a suitable length of scrap etch, solder at the rear so it's secure and then cut off the visible part at the right length.  Tidy up with a file.

 

Whichever way you do it, it's 60 bits of soldering most of the time.

 

 

If I have the right width scrap etch seems best.

[ROY@34F]

6 hours ago, t-b-g said:

 

Very nice. The brickwork looks much better defined than many embossed versions. I have had a look around the web for Vollmer English Bond brick but not found any. Do you have a reference or product number to help?

 

Mine has Slater's brick, but when I put a photo on earlier, it was mentioned that the bricks are not quite as square as they should be.

 

Mine is an LD&ECR box, based on an amalgam of 3 along the line. As far as I can tell, much LD&ECR infrastructure was nicked or copied from other railways and the signalling and boxes were based very closely on GNR designs.

 

Apart from the embossed brick, Plastruct steps and Springside levers and block instruments, it is all from scratch. It still needs a nameboard, a signal man, who is on order from Modelu, a chimney above the roof and perhaps one or two other details but it is nearly there.

 How have you done the windows on your box Tony ? Are they etched brass or perhaps lined  with a bow pen . They really look the part for GN style to me .

 

Regards , Roy .

 

 

[Jeff]

Hi Tony,

 

My goodness but this thread moves along at a fair old clip! As one of doubtless many elder persons pretty much confined to the house by the virus just now I have enjoyed catching up all the way to the end, which of course it won't be for long unless I type quickly.

 

In the spring of last year Alan and I were reminiscing and decided that it would be lovely to make one last visit to Retford and to Little Bytham whilst we "still could", only then to catch up with the sad news about Roy Jackson, and also Dave Cleal, just a few short years on from the loss of Geoff Brewin. From memory Geoff was with us when we did visit you, and also on the second of our two visits to Retford. Great to see that it has been saved. Also nice to see that the products we generated are still being received and used with approbation. Frank at Romford Models still putting in a shift at 88 eh? Remarkable. I was glad to step off the treadmill at 65, and so pleased with the progress of my loft layout over the past decade which was, of course the mainspring for the Comet range, together with Alan's layout.

 

Not sure what the protocol is in these bloggy places for contacting other members privately, but it would be good, if we are spared, and if visiting other people in far away postcodes ever becomes the norm again, to be able to book a place in your oversubscribed visitors book.

 

Best regards,

 

Jeff

Edited October 27, 2020 by Jeff
duplicated word

[James Fitzjames]

21 hours ago, polybear said:

 

There's a problem (one of many!) with the internet in that far more people are likely to complain about apparent poor service than they are to praise good service.  So it's all too easy to create an apparently poor reputation for a trader unfairly; there is no doubt that some do deserve it, yet there are many who offer a perfectly good service with the odd "blip" here and there.  Sadly it's all too easy to ruin company reputations unfairly, or for a proprietor to think " why the hell do I bother?" and throw in the towel. 

Indeed, and there is also vendetta-based feedback, which is seriously underhand. As an example, a retailer of my acquaintance (no names, no pack drill) received a scathing review of their service from, what turned out to be, their landlord masquerading as a customer because they'd had the temerity to complain about the state of the carpets in their rented flat! 

Edited October 26, 2020 by James Fitzjames
Clarity

[t-b-g]

1 hour ago, ROY@34F said:

 How have you done the windows on your box Tony ? Are they etched brass or perhaps lined  with a bow pen . They really look the part for GN style to me .

 

Regards , Roy .

 

 

 

Hello Roy and thanks for the kind comment.

 

I use an OLFA cutter to make grooves in clear plastic for the smaller bars, paint with white acrylic and then rub the excess off when it has dried with a thumb or fingernail, so the plastic doesn't get scratched. I cut a long strip of material the right height and do the horizontal line or lines, depending on the style of window along the full length, so they will all line up on the finished model then measure off for the verticals. The window is then cut to size and the outer frame is then added in thin plastic strip, which allows the solvent to be applied to the outside edge.

 

I find most etched or laser cut windows are too heavy in the glazing bars for this type of window and this method gives me a consistent and thin line.

 

Once you have done one or two, it is surprisingly easy and quick to make windows this way.

 

 

Edited to add a photo. The glazing looks clouded but that is down to the photo/lighting or something else. In real life you can see through them just fine.

Edited October 26, 2020 by t-b-g
To add photo

[Tony Wright]

36 minutes ago, Jeff said:

Hi Tony,

 

My goodness but this thread moves along at a fair old clip! As one of doubtless many elder persons pretty much confined to the house by the virus just now I have enjoyed catching up all the way to the end, which of course it won't be for long unless I type quickly.

 

In the spring of last year Alan and I were reminiscing and decided that it would be lovely to make one last visit to Retford and to Little Bytham whilst we "still could", only then to catch up with the sad news about Roy Jackson, and also Dave Cleal, just a few short years on from the loss of Geoff Brewin. From memory Geoff was with us when we did visit you, and also on the second of our two visits to Retford. Great to see that it has has been saved. Also nice to see that the products we generated are still being received and used with approbation. Frank at Romford Models still putting in a shift at 88 eh? Remarkable. I was glad to step off the treadmill at 65, and so pleased with the progress of my loft layout over the past decade which was, of course the mainspring for the Comet range, together with Alan's layout.

 

Not sure what the protocol is in these bloggy places for contacting other members privately, but it would be good, if we are spared, and if visiting other people in far away postcodes ever becomes the norm again, to be able to book a place in your oversubscribed visitors book.

 

Best regards,

 

Jeff

Good to hear from you Jeff,

 

I'll have to look back through my visitors' book to see when you visited LB, though it's got to be over ten years ago. It should be easy to find, since the book only started in 2009.

 

There's a curious parallel in it now. By that, I mean it's been devoid of entries since early March (apart from a couple of passers-by). In exactly the same blank manner as in mid-2011 till 2013, which coincided with my most recent visit from 'the black dog'. 

 

Speaking of Alan (and Comet), I bought a couple of carriages built by him, made from Comet kits, from Geoff's estate. 

 

 

A rather nice Thompson BCK. Now available, of course, from Bachmann (though not, as yet, in maroon). That said, I think all-metal carriages still have the edge (if made/painted as well as this).

 

 

And a Thompson RF, now seeing service in 'The Talisman'.

 

As you know, I normally build my own carriages, but these are treasured possessions now, especially in memory of a friend. If I count up the number of Comet carriages on LB, it would be in scores!

 

I don't think Frank at Romford is doing much now; age and infirmity taking their toll, I'm afraid, but what a debt of gratitude the hobby owes to him. Almost all of my locos ride on products he made.

 

You and Alan are most welcome to visit again, covid restrictions allowing (is Birmingham in tier 3? We're still in medium risk here. I have had a couple of local mates visit in the last month or so, but we're still being sensible - and safe (or, at least I hope so).

 

Regards,

 

Tony. 

 

 

[Jeff]

We are in tier 2 just now, but don't ask me to define what that means. I know it means our kids can't visit, and I have a choice of only 3 days per week when the library is open.

 

Nice to see some of Geoff's stock has found a good home.

 

Our previous visit could have been before the visitors book then as I don't remember signing in. I do remember a nice lunch in the pub, a stroll from there to your front door, an absorbing afternoon of playing trains and sitting with a cup of tea and biscuits in your lovely garden.

 

I was interested in the discussion of gearboxes earlier in the thread. Over the last 18 months I've been building quite a number of High Level gearboxes to replace noisy Portescaps in my loco fleet and also in Alan's. They do go together beautifully, and the Road Runner plus in particular is very adaptable for use in a wide variety of loco outlines, as well as having a grub screw fixing final drive and an easy fit between OO frames, even with sprung hornblocks in there. The coreless motors which Chris has sourced give a good account of themselves lifting heavy trains up my gradients.

 

Jeff

[Tony Wright]

1 hour ago, Jeff said:

We are in tier 2 just now, but don't ask me to define what that means. I know it means our kids can't visit, and I have a choice of only 3 days per week when the library is open.

 

Nice to see some of Geoff's stock has found a good home.

 

Our previous visit could have been before the visitors book then as I don't remember signing in. I do remember a nice lunch in the pub, a stroll from there to your front door, an absorbing afternoon of playing trains and sitting with a cup of tea and biscuits in your lovely garden.

 

I was interested in the discussion of gearboxes earlier in the thread. Over the last 18 months I've been building quite a number of High Level gearboxes to replace noisy Portescaps in my loco fleet and also in Alan's. They do go together beautifully, and the Road Runner plus in particular is very adaptable for use in a wide variety of loco outlines, as well as having a grub screw fixing final drive and an easy fit between OO frames, even with sprung hornblocks in there. The coreless motors which Chris has sourced give a good account of themselves lifting heavy trains up my gradients.

 

Jeff

You're right, Jeff,

 

Neither of you is in the visitors' book (which begins on the 30th of August, 2009). You must have been one of our first guests, since the layout was only really up and running by the end of 2008 (though nowhere near complete, of course - which it is now). I'll have to put you in retrospectively............... Or, you can do it yourselves on your next visit. 

 

Regards,

 

Tony. 

[St Enodoc]

10 hours ago, Steven B said:

I believe that railway modelling (in all its forms) is as much an art as a science - best learnt from doing than reading about it in a book. Try a few ideas out and use what works for you.

 

One of my favourites has always been thinning paint to the conistancy of milk before air-brushing. Would that be skimmed or gold top?

 

Steven B.

They'll never forget Ernie...

[Jeff]

14 hours ago, Tony Wright said:

You're right, Jeff,

 

Neither of you is in the visitors' book (which begins on the 30th of August, 2009). You must have been one of our first guests, since the layout was only really up and running by the end of 2008 (though nowhere near complete, of course - which it is now). I'll have to put you in retrospectively............... Or, you can do it yourselves on your next visit. 

 

Regards,

 

Tony. 

 

I look forward to that Tony. Though realistically this will now have to wait until 'afterwards'. That mythic time when everything is back to 'normal'.

 

Alan is 82 now, though like me still modelling actively. Here in tier 2  we are not allowed in each other's house, let alone sharing a car together all the way to Lincolnshire. We meet for a quick chat on our drives occasionally to exchange goodies for our respective railways, taking turns to put our vehicles to brief use. The likelihood that we will both be early recipients of a vaccine might hasten the process perhaps. Next spring or summer, hopefully.

 

Regards,

 

Jeff