RMweb Premium Neal Ball Posted March 10, 2021 Author RMweb Premium Share Posted March 10, 2021 5 hours ago, gwrrob said: There seems to have been a large increase in price of those in the NO.17-20 range Neal. Isn’t that the case with everything at the moment Robin? @gwrrobAlthough the non NEM ones seem to be about half the price. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Premium Neal Ball Posted March 13, 2021 Author RMweb Premium Share Posted March 13, 2021 On 10/03/2021 at 15:48, gwrrob said: There seems to have been a large increase in price of those in the NO.17-20 range Neal. It seems that Hattons are charging £7.50 for a pair of the NEM couplings - the #19 is still conspicuous by its absence though. A much larger range is stocked by Gaugemaster and they are charging £8 a pair for the NEM range. Direct from Kadee, the NEM versions are $7.49 https://www.kadee.com/ho-scale-couplers-c-274_276_284/20-ho-scale-nem-362-europeanstyle-couplers-extra-long-1168mm-460-inch-2964-p-255.htm At todays rate, that works out at £5.38 a pair of NEM couplings. (1 USD = 0.72 GBP) I have a large order coming direct from the States, which on the face of it seemed really good value, even with the delivery cost. That was until I received their shipping invoice and I was surprised to see that their rate of VAT is 0% (Its called sales tax in the States). Each state sets their own rate and Jackson County, Oregon, have decided on a 0% sales tax. Sadly it means I will have to pay duty @21% plus a handling fee of @€15 when it gets delivered. In future I might need to wait until Gaugemaster has everything in stock, as there doesn't seem to be a duty paid option when ordering direct from Kadee. There are other suppliers here on the continent and I will obviously look there again. So far I have had supplies from model shops in Barcelona and also Germany. But neither sell the full range. There is a model shop in Madrid, but they didn't answer my enquiry :-( To be continued.... 1 1 7 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Premium Neal Ball Posted March 13, 2021 Author RMweb Premium Share Posted March 13, 2021 (edited) Headboards: On a more positive aspect, I have had a pack arrive today from Sankey Scenics and I must say I am very impressed with the service given by Allan. My query was about Henley specific carriage boards and loco headboards and the image below shows a selection of carriage boards and headboards used for not only special trains, but also some service trains. Radley college had a special train one year to the Regatta. I am sure other colleges did as well, but thats the only one I have found so far. I included with the order some GWR signs and adverts for the period. These will soon be seen on the railway.... (April 2022 and they still are not at the railway!) Edited April 1, 2022 by Neal Ball photo changed 15 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Gold Adrian Stevenson Posted March 14, 2021 RMweb Gold Share Posted March 14, 2021 Hi Neal, I have just fitted some of these enamel signs to my layout. Very pleased with them. Cheers, Ade. 2 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Premium Neal Ball Posted March 15, 2021 Author RMweb Premium Share Posted March 15, 2021 8 hours ago, Adrian Stevenson said: Hi Neal, I have just fitted some of these enamel signs to my layout. Very pleased with them. Cheers, Ade. In the packet they look great. So are going to be a great addition to the railway. 4 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Gold Enterprisingwestern Posted March 15, 2021 RMweb Gold Share Posted March 15, 2021 On 13/03/2021 at 17:24, Neal Ball said: There is a model shop in Madrid, but they didn't answer my enquiry :-( Probably for the best, god knows what a package could come infected with! Mike. 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Premium Neal Ball Posted March 15, 2021 Author RMweb Premium Share Posted March 15, 2021 7 minutes ago, Enterprisingwestern said: Probably for the best, god knows what a package could come infected with! Mike. During the first lockdown we received new ink cartridges from Amazon.es and they came from Madrid..... once opened it was hand sanitiser all round... thankfully the quality of the printing wasn’t “infected” lol 1 2 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Premium Neal Ball Posted March 15, 2021 Author RMweb Premium Share Posted March 15, 2021 A year ago today :-( 15th March 2020 was a Sunday and as is the way in this bit of Spain between January and Easter all the shops were shut. The previous Friday at 12 midnight all the bars were forced to close and our lockdown started across the whole of Spain. All shops etc. were closed from the Monday. That started our first lockdown which lasted for about 12 weeks. In that time, we were not allowed outside the house, unless going to the supermarket or pharmacy. Even then, only 1 person was allowed out. Robbie my partner was stopped at gun point twice and made to show the supermarket receipts. More recently we have had town lockdowns, where we can not travel into the next town from Friday to Monday. I got stopped, asked for proof of where I lived and was allowed to carry on. The person in front who was from the neighbouring town, was turned round and given a fine for the privilege! All very different to the UK.... but a year further on and we are getting out the other side. Today we are off to the health centre to register for our vaccine! Which hopefully we will get in April or May. We need to register as we have private health care and that’s the only way the younger! Ex-pat community can do it. 1 12 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Premium Neal Ball Posted March 15, 2021 Author RMweb Premium Share Posted March 15, 2021 Congratulations RMWeb. 16 years ago today RMWeb started and what a journey that has been. I joined probably 6 months or a year later with my first garden shed layout “Wharncliffe Junction” all very different to “Henley on Thames” and our life in Spain. Thanks go to @AY ModWho has tirelessly run the show for us over those years. Also thanks to Andy, @Phil Parker and @Howard Smithfor the World of Railways show over the weekend. Did anyone get all 10 answers to the st. Ives spot the difference? It took me a couple of hours... numbers 9 and 10 took ages! I hope moving forward that virtual shows can continue in one form or another. It’s an easy way for the overseas modellers to keep in touch with the UK scene. During lockdown I joined the friends of Pendon and tuned in for a virtual talk there as well. It’s great to be involved at this distance. Thanks for everything over the 16 years Andy and team. RMWeb is truly inspirational. 11 2 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Gold Enterprisingwestern Posted March 15, 2021 RMweb Gold Share Posted March 15, 2021 14 minutes ago, Neal Ball said: A year ago today :-( 15th March 2020 was a Sunday and as is the way in this bit of Spain between January and Easter all the shops were shut. The previous Friday at 12 midnight all the bars were forced to close and our lockdown started across the whole of Spain. All shops etc. were closed from the Monday. That started our first lockdown which lasted for about 12 weeks. In that time, we were not allowed outside the house, unless going to the supermarket or pharmacy. Even then, only 1 person was allowed out. Robbie my partner was stopped at gun point twice and made to show the supermarket receipts. More recently we have had town lockdowns, where we can not travel into the next town from Friday to Monday. I got stopped, asked for proof of where I lived and was allowed to carry on. The person in front who was from the neighbouring town, was turned round and given a fine for the privilege! All very different to the UK.... but a year further on and we are getting out the other side. Today we are off to the health centre to register for our vaccine! Which hopefully we will get in April or May. We need to register as we have private health care and that’s the only way the younger! Ex-pat community can do it. Guess who flew to the UK on the 12th March when everything was "normal" for a fortnights family/exhibition visit, finally returning on the 17th July when a slight form of normality returned. Glad we missed all the gun point craziness, although the UK wasn't a barrel of laughs early on! Mike 6 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
KingEdwardII Posted March 15, 2021 Share Posted March 15, 2021 On 13/03/2021 at 16:24, Neal Ball said: Hattons are charging £7.50 for a pair of the NEM couplings I got a set of #20s from TMC for £4.68 a pair a couple of weeks ago. Yours, Mike. 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Premium Neal Ball Posted March 15, 2021 Author RMweb Premium Share Posted March 15, 2021 1 hour ago, Enterprisingwestern said: Guess who flew to the UK on the 12th March when everything was "normal" for a fortnights family/exhibition visit, finally returning on the 17th July when a slight form of normality returned. Glad we missed all the gun point craziness, although the UK wasn't a barrel of laughs early on! Mike We last flew into the UK for the Brighton 1/2 marathon at the end of february and were aware of an "issue" in China... As we got back to Gatwick, a couple were walking around the airport with masks on. Little did we know that weeks later we would all be wearing masks and its now just part of our daily routine. Well it is in Spain at least! 1 hour ago, KingEdwardII said: I got a set of #20s from TMC for £4.68 a pair a couple of weeks ago. Yours, Mike. Thanks for that Mike. I shall be scouring everywhere once the next batch has been fitted! 1 2 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Premium Neal Ball Posted March 20, 2021 Author RMweb Premium Share Posted March 20, 2021 (edited) Kadee project continued: This week my order arrived from the States, which took exactly a week, which I reckon is pretty good going. Even better as there was no Duty to pay. I've therefore spent a couple of hours today changing the couplings over. The heights are being checked and fettling etc. being done as needed to get everything the same height. Some locos are simply having a replacement NEM coupling added, others need to Kadeee "gear box" and different couplers, depending on the height etc. Several locos have been running round with the converted carriages which has been good to "play trains" in between adding more couplings. This is Castle class 4-6-0 no 4082 Windsor Castle, bringing its train into Henley on Thames. Edited April 1, 2022 by Neal Ball photo changed 11 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Premium Neal Ball Posted April 15, 2021 Author RMweb Premium Share Posted April 15, 2021 (edited) It’s a wet day in Spain! Theres nothing for it, but to play trains.... A busy morning at Henley on Thames as a local service arrives at the inner home before arriving at Platform 3. Edited April 1, 2022 by Neal Ball photos changed 15 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Premium Neal Ball Posted April 15, 2021 Author RMweb Premium Share Posted April 15, 2021 (edited) Over the last few weeks, I have converted 26 locos to Kadee couplings, together with 4 rakes of carriages. At this stage I am only putting Kadees on the outer ends of the rakes, but using a close coupling in between carriages. The Bachmann sunshine carriages will need Kadees on all the carriages in order to get rid of the large tension lock (non NEM) they are fitted with. I have also done Kadees on some wagons, although I need to identify sets of wagons with Kadee on the outer ends only. To be continued... Edited April 1, 2022 by Neal Ball typo 8 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Gold Enterprisingwestern Posted April 15, 2021 RMweb Gold Share Posted April 15, 2021 2 hours ago, Neal Ball said: It’s a wet day in Spain! You too? My daughter has sent me pictures her and the kids having a picnic under blue skies in the UK, so unfair! Mike. 3 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Gold john dew Posted April 15, 2021 RMweb Gold Share Posted April 15, 2021 5 hours ago, Neal Ball said: It’s a wet day in Spain! Theres nothing for it, but to play trains.... Conversely its warm and sunny in British Columbia........and 4 cubic yards of top soil has just been delivered......no trains for me this week! As always super photos Neal Best wishes 1 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Premium Neal Ball Posted April 15, 2021 Author RMweb Premium Share Posted April 15, 2021 3 hours ago, Enterprisingwestern said: You too? My daughter has sent me pictures her and the kids having a picnic under blue skies in the UK, so unfair! Mike. Yes; awful day down here. Due to be sunny tomorrow though... in the meantime, we've lit the fire again. First time in a couple of weeks. 25 minutes ago, john dew said: Conversely its warm and sunny in British Columbia........and 4 cubic yards of top soil has just been delivered......no trains for me this week! As always super photos Neal Best wishes That top soil will keep you busy John. Thanks for the comment about the 'photos... I've got some more to come! 1 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
richard.h Posted April 15, 2021 Share Posted April 15, 2021 7 hours ago, Neal Ball said: Over the last few weeks, I gave converted 26 locos to Kadee couplings, together with 4 rakes of carriages. At this stage I am only putting Kadees on the outer ends of the rakes, but using a close coupling in between carriages. The Bachmann sunshine carriages will need Kadees on all the carriages in order to get rid of the large tension lock (non NEM) they are fitted with. I have also done Kadees on some wagons, although I need to identify sets of wagons with Kadee on the outer ends only. To be continued... Kadees are working out expensive the moment. Have you looked at Hunts magnetic couplings? I have been fitting them to my coaching stock and find that with the different sizes available I can get the close coupling I prefer plus the ability to easily split rakes of coaches and re-assemble as required. 1 1 2 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Premium Neal Ball Posted April 15, 2021 Author RMweb Premium Share Posted April 15, 2021 (edited) When do you have enough locos? Possibly I have too many 4-6-0 for such a line in the 1930's.... clearly there are 2 x 61xx to add to the smaller loco mix; plus 1 extra 57xx. You certainly wouldn't see all those big tender locos during the average day at Henley on Thames: A different view of the loco shed, looking across to Platform 1: The Panniers arriving at Henley on Thames: Platform 2 arrivals as a Prairie tank is in Platform 3: Both locos need lamps which are on order with Modelu. Edited April 1, 2022 by Neal Ball photos changed 12 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Premium Neal Ball Posted April 15, 2021 Author RMweb Premium Share Posted April 15, 2021 6 minutes ago, richard.h said: Kadees are working out expensive the moment. Have you looked at Hunts magnetic couplings? I have been fitting them to my coaching stock and find that with the different sizes available I can get the close coupling I prefer plus the ability to easily split rakes of coaches and re-assemble as required. Thanks @richard.h, I've started to use el Taller del Modelista towards Santander, they deliver pretty quickly as well. https://www.eltallerdelmodelista.com/en/nem362-medium-couplers-x4-kadee-18-p-9172.html €7.40 for a pack of 4 Buying direct from Kadee works out slightly better, but with no sales tax, you might get clobbered when they arrive in Spain: https://www.kadee.com/ho-scale-couplers-c-274_276_284/18-ho-scale-nem-362-europeanstyle-couplers-medium-863mm-340-inch-1132-p-253.htm $7.49 per pack, which today works out at €6.25 I've not tried Hunt couplings, thanks for the suggestion. 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dr Gerbil-Fritters Posted April 16, 2021 Share Posted April 16, 2021 Neal, I hope you'll have time to watch the SVR webcams this weekend.... several GWR engines and some great GWR stock in use. The new build Saint is in use. Right funny looking thing 'tis. 5 1 2 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dr Gerbil-Fritters Posted April 16, 2021 Share Posted April 16, 2021 21 hours ago, Enterprisingwestern said: You too? My daughter has sent me pictures her and the kids having a picnic under blue skies in the UK, so unfair! Mike. Are they mad? It's flippin' freezing here! It was -2c when i got up at 6.30 this morning, and it's only 7C now... 3 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dr Gerbil-Fritters Posted April 16, 2021 Share Posted April 16, 2021 16 hours ago, Neal Ball said: When do you have enough locos? Possibly I have too many 4-6-0 for such a line in the 1930's.... clearly there are 2 x 61xx to add to the smaller loco mix; plus 1 extra 57xx. You certainly wouldn't see all those big tender locos during the average day at Henley on Thames: I believe it must be Regatta Day every day in your world, Neal! You can have as many 4-6-0s as you want then. 3 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Gold ChrisN Posted April 16, 2021 RMweb Gold Share Posted April 16, 2021 2 minutes ago, Dr Gerbil-Fritters said: Are they mad? It's flippin' freezing here! It was -2c when i got up at 6.30 this morning, and it's only 7C now... If it is like where I am, in the sun it is warm, but when the sun goes in it gets very cold. We went to Henley the other day and I was telling my grandchildren where the station used to reach, where the turntables used to be. At least there is still a line and they have not ripped it up. 2 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Create an account or sign in to comment
You need to be a member in order to leave a comment
Create an account
Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!
Register a new accountSign in
Already have an account? Sign in here.
Sign In Now