Wright writes.....

[Bucoops]

23 minutes ago, Tony Wright said:

There are limits, John,

 

I only use this computer for emails and RMweb. All my documents and photographs are on a separate computer (which is not linked to the internet), with plenty of back-up hard drives. 

 

Speaking of hard-drives, the computer bloke tells me that they're no longer 'mechanical' (the replacement one he's installed in this computer isn't), and will, as a consequence, last much longer. 

 

I'm extremely reluctant to even speak about computers (being so ignorant of them), but I get by with the little knowledge I have of them.

 

Regards,

 

Tony. 

 

 

Absolutely correct - the drives with huge amount of storage are still mechanical - spinning disks with read heads, but even they will be replaced in the not so distant future with "solid state". Three main advantages - they are extremely fast to read and write, they are more reliable and they use less power. 

 

Going back to mobile phones, I was given my first one by my brother for my 21st birthday. It was big and heavy, and used AA batteries. It took me a while to get used to the idea, but I've had quite a few since. My current one has two SIM cards in it (else I'd have to have two phones, one for work and one personal) - we don't have a landline any more. The huge downside of course is my work phone is always with me and you never know when I am going to get a call. But that's what the silent setting is for  I am very pleased to say it's not an apple phone. I have never liked their stuff.

 

For using forums, browsing the internet and so on I still much prefer a PC. A phone has its uses but it doesn't have a decent size screen, nor a keyboard that anyone with normal size fingers can use without looking like you are typing after a few too many shandies.

 

[landscapes]

11 hours ago, Tony Wright said:

Good evening David,

 

They still have merit. May we see them, please? 

 

Regards,

 

Tony. 

Hi Tony

 

Thank you for letting me put photos of my A3's on your thread.

 

As I said they are all Hornby RTR A3's, I have renumbered and renamed all of them to become Haymarket Pacific's with the exception of 60043 Brown Jack and 60093 Coronach.

 

But these two like the rest has been slightly weathered and fitted with real coal, a crew, lamps and firing irons.

 

Some photos have been taken on a photo plank as I detailed them after we started the Haymarket layout wiring.

 

I do hope I haven't put to many on your thread.

 

Regards

 

David

 

 

 

 

[Bucoops]

Incidentally, this is my new toy at work:

 

 

15.3TB (1TB = 1024GB) of solid state storage. 5 years ago when we had one server that did everything, it would take over 15 minutes to reboot. The server that takes the longest now takes 20 seconds. I'm just glad it wasn't me paying for it - so far this year I've spent enough company money to buy about 245 Hornby A2/3's  It did all come as a pile of parts though, so I did have to build it and it has taken far too much of my time up. Although no soldering iron was used or required! Anyway, as you were, back to more important mechanical things that DO need a soldering iron.

[Paul Cram]

The problem with solid state drives is that they have a limited number of read/writes before they degrade which is why it is recommended that they are not used for virtual memory.

[gwr517]

19 hours ago, Iain.d said:

I’ve recently been able to get on with this Roxey Mouldings GWR A2/3 Clifton Down Driver Trailer, to the point that is now ready for a final wash and paint. It’s a bit grubby in these images; normally I test fit/check everything I can, then wash it, put it back together and then photograph it. But this one is quite fiddley and fragile and has to go together in a sequence,  I couldn’t be bothered with the faff! Sorry…

 

 

Its very much as it came out of the box. I have only added the steps under the guard’s doors and substituted the provided etched brass lamp irons for reshaped staples. There are no ‘T’ handles in the kit, they got left off the etch at the drawing stage! I’ll use Comet ones and the GWR commode handles in the kit are so fine they’re beyond my skill level to fit so I’ll use some leftovers from another Roxey GWR handrail fret.

 

 

Its all soldered other than the very fragile castings on the bogies which are glued with epoxy. The roof is removeable which is needed as the design of the kit precludes constructing the interior and fitting it in the final stages (as I would normally do). I have made the interior seats, partitions, driver’s cab and regulator detail and will build this in after painting. I have made up the vacuum cylinder operating gear and this, along with the gas tanks, will be glued to the floor of the vehicle.

 

I’m happy how it has all gone together, especially the driver end.  I think I had a good soldering day – amazing what posting photos on this thread does for trying that bit harder! I had considered adding more detail, as per the prototype. I made up some bits and pieces (additional handrails, destination board brackets and some sort of electrical connector box) but I couldn’t make them fine enough to not make it look overly cluttered, so I’ll probably leave all that off. I need to drill a hole for the windscreen wiper.  The bell and brake pipes will be fixed after painting. The front three windows have a horizontal white line on them, about a third of the way down the glass, I’ve read this was to warn/catch the attention of the loco fireman when he was moving coal forward in the loco’s bunker.

 

 

Its going to be completed in BR Crimson and numbered W3338, probably the last survivor in South Wales, circa 1953. There are threads on RMWeb detailing this carriage’s last few years.

 

Kind regards,

 

Iain

Hello I think you have done a 1st class job. It leaves my cut up Triang version far behind. In my ignorance I didn't know Roxey did a kit. Thank you for showing us. Doug.

[Bucoops]

10 minutes ago, Paul Cram said:

The problem with solid state drives is that they have a limited number of read/writes before they degrade which is why it is recommended that they are not used for virtual memory.

 

Agreed, although their resilience come a long way in the last few years. Virtual Memory should really be dead by now, RAM is so cheap now it's not really needed.

[Dragonboy]

I have to say the only thing I miss about not working is no longer having youngsters on tap who could help the oldie with computer issues.

 

I understood save but really struggled with find. Rams to me were always male sheep and I always suspected gigabytes were something to do with overload pop concerts.

 

As for terabyte wasn’t that a creature out of Jurassic Park?

[Michael Edge]

14 hours ago, Tony Wright said:

Very nice Mike,

 

However, whoever painted it didn't realise that the A3s only carried their worksplates on the cabsides after being fitted with German blinkers (those which were, and not every one). Previously, they'd only ever been on the smokebox and/or the centre splashers. 60035 never had blinkers, so never carried the worksplates in this position. 

 

I await the evidence to prove me wrong....................

I knew you would find something wrong on it! At least it wasn't my fault though.

[Chamby]

I spent much of my working life immersed in spreadsheets and documents and have to say that those skills continue to serve me well in retirement and my hobby.  I am currently working up a timetable and movements schedule for my layout based on this:

 

 

Transferring the information within onto a spreadsheet allows me to continuously build up all sorts of additional details such as stock formations and the locomotives used, from reference books and photographs as I read through them.  I can also consolidate the information that is directly relevant to the specific location being modelled, making it much more user-friendly without having to cannibalise the source document.  I would struggle to organise this kind of information without IT.

 

That said, hardware is another thing altogether!  About three years ago, when my computer died,  I switched from a Windows OS to Mac, because I was fed up of the constant updates, the slow start-up times and how many of my peripherals like the printer and scanner stopped working because the latest windows update wasn’t supported by their drivers.  Since moving to Mac, all my peripherals now work again ( even the very old ones), waiting for things to boot up is a thing of the past, and my phone, tablet and computer all seem to swop stuff automatically without me having to do anything!  That’s particularly useful re: stuff like accessing photo’s I’ve taken on my phone, directly from my computer.  I’m not wanting to start an apple versus Microsoft debate here, that’s for other places, I’m just saying how I find things useable in the context of my hobby.

 

That said, I still have to use an old windows laptop for stuff like programming DCC chips and track-plan software, that are not Mac compatible.  And as for 3D printing and laser cutting... they are impossible without all the associated IT.  The modern hobby and IT are becoming inseparable!

[Dragonboy]

That’s really given me food for thought Phil as since I upgraded to Windows 10 I have struggled greatly with more or less everything on my computer despite having an expert try and fix things by doing what an expert does. 
 

Maybe changing to Apple would be a better option

[Lemmy282]

48 minutes ago, Chamby said:

The modern hobby and IT are becoming inseparable!

Which is really weird. Back in the 70's I started building small computers as a hobby. When I say "small" they were physically large, but with very limited memory and capability. By the 80's I was writing software for the up and coming PC, but still as a hobby. Should have stuck with it, probably be a millionaire by now, but still saw computers as a novelty and hobby.

Now of course IT is everywhere, so my 70's hobby has now disappeared, overtaken by the march of technology. I wonder what other hobbies have disappeared over time, by becoming "the norm".

 

Nigel L

[Ian Rathbone]

Sorry, I lied in my last post. I’ve just found a photo of another 4mm A3 - on my own website. This one was built by Mike Edge, who’s built so many engines for me in the past. I don’t know why it hasn’t got a works plate, possibly because cutting out a King’s Cross pair was too much of a hassle. The other obvious error, for those of you who have being paying attention, is that the splasher tops should be blue. It was along time ago when I painted it.

 

 

It would look so much better with a bit of weathering.

 

Ian R

[Lemmy282]

The thing with PC's has always been they were, until recently, "backward compatible", so within reason older stuff kept working. The down side being that there were loads of different manufacturers building the hardware, so sometimes things were not quite so "compatible".

Apple on the other hand kept things "in house" as it were, so compatibility issues were not so much of a problem. The downside of this was when they released a new operating system, most of the software needed upgrading, usually with an additional cost.

Remember the VHS/Betamax saga? Betamax was far superior quality but VHS won because Sony kept Betamax to themselves, while there were many CHA manufacturers.

Putting this in model railway terms, the NMRA and others set up the specs. for DCC, and many manufacturers work with this, so it is widely used. Hornby and Airfix tried their own systems, which were not compatible and soon disappeared.

 

Nigel L

[Lemmy282]

Sorry that should read

 "Remember the VHS/Betamax saga? Betamax was far superior quality but VHS won because Sony kept Betamax to themselves, while there were many VHS manufacturers"

Nigel L

[MJI]

Actually Sony vetted or charged licencing fees not sure which.

 

But got 2 Sony and 1 Sanyo here

[Bernard Lamb]

2 hours ago, Lemmy282 said:

Which is really weird. Back in the 70's I started building small computers as a hobby. When I say "small" they were physically large, but with very limited memory and capability. By the 80's I was writing software for the up and coming PC, but still as a hobby. Should have stuck with it, probably be a millionaire by now, but still saw computers as a novelty and hobby.

Now of course IT is everywhere, so my 70's hobby has now disappeared, overtaken by the march of technology. I wonder what other hobbies have disappeared over time, by becoming "the norm".

 

Nigel L

As did Churchill when he ordered the destruction of the computer at Bletchley Park saying that there was no future for such things.

Bernard

[Northmoor]

7 minutes ago, Bernard Lamb said:

As did Churchill when he ordered the destruction of the computer at Bletchley Park saying that there was no future for such things.

Bernard

I think the Head of IBM in the late 1970s actually stated that he saw there being no more than perhaps a few dozen computers in the World.

[Chamby]

3 hours ago, Ian Rathbone said:

Sorry, I lied in my last post. I’ve just found a photo of another 4mm A3 - on my own website. This one was built by Mike Edge, who’s built so many engines for me in the past. I don’t know why it hasn’t got a works plate, possibly because cutting out a King’s Cross pair was too much of a hassle. The other obvious error, for those of you who have being paying attention, is that the splasher tops should be blue. It was along time ago when I painted it.

 

 

It would look so much better with a bit of weathering.

 

Ian R

 

It looks like there is a moulded oval on the side of the smoke box where the works plate would be.  Perhaps a touch of brass paint might pick it out?

 

Phil

[Tony Wright]

7 hours ago, landscapes said:

Hi Tony

 

Thank you for letting me put photos of my A3's on your thread.

 

As I said they are all Hornby RTR A3's, I have renumbered and renamed all of them to become Haymarket Pacific's with the exception of 60043 Brown Jack and 60093 Coronach.

 

But these two like the rest has been slightly weathered and fitted with real coal, a crew, lamps and firing irons.

 

Some photos have been taken on a photo plank as I detailed them after we started the Haymarket layout wiring.

 

I do hope I haven't put to many on your thread.

 

Regards

 

David

 

 

 

 

You don't need to thank me, David,

 

'We' need to thank you. For posting such lovely images of beautifully-natural locomotives. 

 

Regards,

 

Tony. 

[Tony Wright]

16 hours ago, Ian Rathbone said:

I’ve been looking through my photos and find that, apart from Tony, no one has ever asked me to paint a BR green A3. Apart from my own Papyrus I’ve never painted any other 4mm A3, strange that. Of the 7mm scale A3s the BR period ones have all been Sancheng RTR, a grand total of three.

 
Anyway here’s a LNER one beautifully built by Graham Varley.

 

 

 

Ian  R

Thanks Ian,

 

A very-beautiful A3 you've shown us. My compliments to you and Graham (who still builds to a very high standard, despite now having only one eye!). 

 

Yes, it's just one A3 you painted for 'me' in BR green (though you've painted more for customers I've built them for). 

 

Here it is...............

 

 

I built it from a South Eastern Finecast kit, and, apart from your splendid painting and its motion, it's probably inferior to the detailed/modified/weathered Hornby A3s just seen. In its defence, of course, it will pull a whole lot more than the RTR ones.

 

 

As illustrated here. Though the first five cars are modified Bachmann Mk.1s, the remaining nine in this rake are all all-metal kit-built cars. No Hornby A3 will look at this load. 

 

I actually built ISINGLASS for Charwelton...........

 

 

And, for the time WMRC took the layout to shows, she was a regular performer. 

 

Her home is now Little Bytham, where she's representative of the condition she was in on leaving the GC; and returning to the GN. 

 

Regards,

 

Tony. 

 

 

Edited August 8, 2021 by Tony Wright
typo error

[Tony Wright]

5 hours ago, Michael Edge said:

I knew you would find something wrong on it! At least it wasn't my fault though.

Imagine if I hadn't noted that, Mike.

 

'Wrighty doesn't know where the A3s' worksplates were during their lives! So much for his knowledge....................

 

I actually wasn't totally right in my observation about the 'plates only being fitted to the cabsides of (some) A3s after they received German blinkers (not all). I'd forgotten about HUMORIST, which had them on her cabsides after receipt of her A1-style deflectors. 

 

Your A3 is still a lovely model, though.

 

Regards,

 

Tony. 

[Tony Wright]

4 hours ago, Ian Rathbone said:

Sorry, I lied in my last post. I’ve just found a photo of another 4mm A3 - on my own website. This one was built by Mike Edge, who’s built so many engines for me in the past. I don’t know why it hasn’t got a works plate, possibly because cutting out a King’s Cross pair was too much of a hassle. The other obvious error, for those of you who have being paying attention, is that the splasher tops should be blue. It was along time ago when I painted it.

 

 

It would look so much better with a bit of weathering.

 

Ian R

An almost quite-outstanding model on both counts.

 

All it needs are those wonderfully-wiggly pipes on the smokebox (where there is a blank worksplate). 

 

And, in true Wrighty-style, no A3 ever had a banjo dome post-War. In fact, the last ones probably disappeared before the War, when the final batch of A3s (2500-8) had their first boiler change.

 

I have never seen this recorded (except in books I've written/contributed to), but that final batch of A3s were fitted with a Dia. 94A boiler (both the RCTS and Coster get hopelessly muddled up with this), which was fitted with a perforated steam collector. The original covering for this was a true 'banjo' shape, with complex reverse curves in plan view. Somebody in the 'metal-bashing' shop at Doncaster or Darlington must have come to the conclusion that making such a complex dome cover took too long, so what emerged was the 'streamlined' dome, which had a uniform, straight taper in plan view. This dome cover was fitted to all the V2s and the later Thompson and Peppercorn Pacifics (at one time or another with regard to the 4-6-2s). All the A3s eventually got the streamlined dome, though Thompson had some more round-dome Dia. 94HP boilers built for the A3s during the War (not 94A as claimed by the RCTS), because he thought the perforated steam collectors 'served no purpose'. All it meant was that such boilers (because of the dome's more-forward position) tended to lead to priming under braking. He obviously didn't mind that, because round-dome boilers were fitted to his new A2/3s. Peppercorn saw the error in this and reverted to the perforated steam collector boilers in his new A1s and A2s. 

 

In conclusion, Mo tells me my head's so full of this sort of rot, that I don't have the brain-space to think of more important things! 

 

Regards,

 

Tony. 

[Headstock]

1 hour ago, Tony Wright said:

I built it from a South Eastern Finecast kit, and, apart from your splendid painting and its motion, it's probably inferior to the detailed/modified/weathered Hornby A3s just seen. In its defence, of course, it will pull a whole lot more than the RTR ones

 

Good evening Tony,

 

I don't think that it is inferior to the Hornby A3, just a different set of compromises. It has features that are not as good as the Hornby model and other features that are better. The smoke box door is poor, looking more like an LMS Princess. The ride height of the SEF tender is far superior. The Hornby effort reminds me of one of those fat bum, ballet Hippos, from ''Fantasia'', standing on point. The boiler is fantastic on the SEF model, the Hornby version, rather disappointingly, has daylight showing were it shouldn't, great holes that would let all the steam out on the real thing. Conversely, it has no daylight showing in exactly the position were it should! A retrograde feature not found in the preceding Hornby A3 model. The valve gear, you have mentioned, a creation of Salvador Dali? 

 

The Hornby A2/3, despite its colour deficiencies, is a much more advanced model than the old A3. It is probably the least compromised, mass produced, plastic scale model of an (admittedly, narrow gauge) LNER Pacific. The tender ride height has been corrected, possibly for the first time on a Hornby LNER Pacific*, even the bogie and the wheels are pretty good!

 

I think you should get your pliers out for 60081.

 

*The railroad A1 may have the corrected tender ride height, I don't know for sure.

 

Edited August 8, 2021 by Headstock
add request

[PMP]

A Comet A44 autotrailer underway, first coach I’ve built in 25+ years…

 

Earlier in the thread Tony mentioned that I’m trying a couple of the estate sales for him on eBay. If anyone is interested they’re here

Q6

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/144138270628?hash=item218f4f77a4:g:W2wAAOSwLaRhCZ81

4MT

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/144138294299?hash=item218f4fd41b:g:wLUAAOSwg4JhCagi

 

Theres a couple of days left on them to run.

 

 

[richard i]

The boys’ modeling Tony.

several happy days building them, though their mother did comment on the smell of glue in the living room.

painting next. I may encourage them to do that in the shed. Open a window and the smell leaves the room. Spilt paint is a whole different kettle of fish.

many thanks 

richard