Henley-on-Thames - GWR in the 1930's

[Denbridge]

22 minutes ago, Neal Ball said:

Thanks Mike that’s great thank you.

 

I suppose it would have been a couple of years before all trains would have white tail lamps…. Red it is then.

 

Thanks again, Neal.

longer in some instances. I've seen pictures in which red lamps can be seen dating to the end of the GWR, early BR.

[Neal Ball]

6 hours ago, Denbridge said:

longer in some instances. I've seen pictures in which red lamps can be seen dating to the end of the GWR, early BR.

 

Thanks.

[Neal Ball]

I don't want to get carried away with myself, but it's an exciting day at Henley on Thames.

 

My order for the new Heljan AEC railcar left Hattons using DHL last Thursday and with only 1 days delay at customs, was delivered to the post room today. (Sadly I couldn't get down there in time).

 

Then ..... my new 70ft GWR turntable has eventually been released from customs at Madrid and should be here within a couple of days. I wont go into the details just yet, suffice to say the ordering of this hasn't been straight-forward. 

 

My frustration hasn't been helped by the wrong address being quoted and then getting stuck at Madrid customs for 5 weeks.

 

 

I am looking forward to getting this set up into the layout. I went for the pre-built option, with a full indexing motor. Obviously it's going to be a little bit bigger than the Peco one it replaces, which will mean the track around it will need to be "fettled"

 

In more mundane news, before going out to lunch today, I re-livered my Bachmann Earl class 4-4-0.

 

Over the last few days, I have used a fibre glass pen to remove the GWR*; spray painted the tender and now applied the new GWR Shirtbutton logo. Hopefully I can spray it with matt varnish in a day or so and then photograph it. That's the latest loco to be backdated into the correct livery. (*I bought this before Bachmann announced the shirtbutton liveried version.)

 

I am still painting crew and adding coal to all the locos. Plus I have been tweaking the Regatta timetable (on paper) and sorting the carriages into sets, together with appropriate locos.

 

To be continued.

 

April 2022: Clearly there was nothing but frustration with the Greenwood turntable. It was well into 2022 before I finally got it working correctly. 

I definitely would NOT recommend.

 

Instead, I will leave you with a sunflower from our garden:

 

 

Edited April 1, 2022 by Neal Ball
Greenwood customer service is crap

[Tallpaul69]

Hi Neal,

Glad you are making some progress on a number of fronts!

I find modelling like that sometimes, you make little progress on something, you put it aside for inspiration, parts, right painting conditions etc.etc., pick up some thing else, go round the same loop again. Sometimes I do this on four or five projects, then suddenly everything comes together and the pace you move forward at, takes your breath away! 

 

Your turntable looks an marvellous bit of kit, be interested in a video of it working, although could never fit one into Bradenham.

Funny you mentioned your Earl. I got the one I bought a week or two back out today. Very pleased with it and nice that the sound file is a bit different from the run of the mill. Until I bought it and also a Dean goods, I had fitting crew as a nice to do- eventually! However, open cabs soon convince you otherwise.

These two are rule 1 purchases, although, as I have a number of locos with the early BR totem, I might run in 1950s mode as well as early 60s.

I will be posting more about these two locos on "Lower Thames Yard" soon.

 

Meanwhile, here in sunny(!) Bedfordshire, after two days of your Spanish weather, it is currently thunder and lightning!

Best regards

Paul

[Neal Ball]

17 minutes ago, Tallpaul69 said:

Hi Neal,

Glad you are making some progress on a number of fronts!

I find modelling like that sometimes, you make little progress on something, you put it aside for inspiration, parts, right painting conditions etc.etc., pick up some thing else, go round the same loop again. Sometimes I do this on four or five projects, then suddenly everything comes together and the pace you move forward at, takes your breath away! 

 

Your turntable looks an marvellous bit of kit, be interested in a video of it working, although could never fit one into Bradenham.

Funny you mentioned your Earl. I got the one I bought a week or two back out today. Very pleased with it and nice that the sound file is a bit different from the run of the mill. Until I bought it and also a Dean goods, I had fitting crew as a nice to do- eventually! However, open cabs soon convince you otherwise.

These two are rule 1 purchases, although, as I have a number of locos with the early BR totem, I might run in 1950s mode as well as early 60s.

I will be posting more about these two locos on "Lower Thames Yard" soon.

 

Meanwhile, here in sunny(!) Bedfordshire, after two days of your Spanish weather, it is currently thunder and lightning!

Best regards

Paul

 

Hi Paul, Thanks for the comments, I look forward to seeing your post about those locos soon then.

 

Open cabs are just crying out for crew and now that I have found Modelu have suitable crew, I am hoping I can get an Inspector on board as well

 

Sadly the sound option wasn't available when I originally bought the Earl, so at the moment it's silent. But with so many other locos encompassing sound, I think its only a matter of time.... That will be another batch of Zimo/YouChoos sounds. 

 

I am currently trying to prioritise which loco will go down the sound route next, together with a decoder for the new railcar.

 

Clearly with the new turntable about to arrive, I am going to have a major project on my hands. I reckon the whole of the loco yard will need to be relayed.

 

This co-incides with a friend bringing out a load of paints (by freight boat) in the Railmatch range - it means I wont have to mix Light and Dark Stone. The upshot is that I can finish the platform canopy....This entails painting, fitting lights and then fixing into place...

 

So as you say, it's always the way that a group of projects come along at once. I think this next batch will keep me busy way into the Winter!

 

Weatherwise - we had lunch on the seafront about 10km North of here today and it was lovely. (@9pm this evening it was still 28 degrees on our front terrace.) 

 

Hopefully the Thunderstorms will clear the air for you - although it never works like that here!

 

More updates when the parcels arrive!

Edited July 20, 2021 by Neal Ball
edit: Typos

[ChrisN]

40 minutes ago, Neal Ball said:

 

Hi Paul, Thanks for the comments, I look forward to seeing your post about those locos soon then.

 

Open cabs are just crying out for crew and now that I have found Modelu have suitable crew, I am hoping I can get an Inspector on board as well

 

Sadly the sound option wasn't available when I originally bought the Earl, so at the moment it's silent. But with so many other locos encompassing sound, I think its only a matter of time.... That will be another batch of Zimo/YouChoos sounds. 

 

I am currently trying to prioritise which loco will go down the sound route next, together with a decoder for the new railcar.

 

Clearly with the new turntable about to arrive, I am going to have a major project on my hands. I reckon the whole of the loco yard will need to be relayed.

 

This co-incides with a friend bringing out a load of paints (by freight boat) in the Railmatch range - it means I wont have to mix Light and Dark Stone. The upshot is that I can finish the platform canopy....This entails painting, fitting lights and then fixing into place...

 

So as you say, it's always the way that a group of projects come along at once. I think this next batch will keep me busy way into the Winter!

 

Weatherwise - we had lunch on the seafront about 10km North of here today and it was lovely. (@9pm this evening it was still 28 degrees on our front terrace.) 

 

Hopefully the Thunderstorms will clear the air for you - although it never works like that here!

 

More updates when the parcels arrive!

 

Neal,

Things look encouraging.  Have you seen these figures from Andy Stadden?  The advantage is that you can glue them into poses to do more than just hold thr regulator or shvel coal.  They are called 50s enginemen but they could do from the late teens to the end of steam.  Usual disclaimer

[Neal Ball]

1 hour ago, ChrisN said:

 

Neal,

Things look encouraging.  Have you seen these figures from Andy Stadden?  The advantage is that you can glue them into poses to do more than just hold thr regulator or shvel coal.  They are called 50s enginemen but they could do from the late teens to the end of steam.  Usual disclaimer

Thanks @ChrisNthat looks interesting…. Have you used any? What’s the definition like?

[ChrisN]

7 minutes ago, Neal Ball said:

Thanks @ChrisNthat looks interesting…. Have you used any? What’s the definition like?

 

Neal,

Yes I have.  I model 1895 but did some for a friend.  Andy Stadden is a sculptor and he got into model railway figures in 4mm as he was asked to.  @Mikkel says they have greater definition than Modelu figures, mainly because these are sculpted and are therefore easier to paint.  Here are the ones I did, as ever not dusted before I did so,  this is the first group 

 

 

And the second,

 

 

There are a couple of firemen opening up the injectors and another turning a handbrake, and a crew just looking out of the cab.  You can fit them to whatever the controls are in your cab, well as long as there is enough room.

[The Stationmaster]

Coincidentally it was 28 degrees in ur front porch this afternoon (and no doubt even hotter on the patio at the back of the house and probably on the station platform as well as it is in full sun for much of the day).  Is this a first in accurate temperature modelling on a model railway?

[Neal Ball]

5 hours ago, The Stationmaster said:

Coincidentally it was 28 degrees in ur front porch this afternoon (and no doubt even hotter on the patio at the back of the house and probably on the station platform as well as it is in full sun for much of the day).  Is this a first in accurate temperature modelling on a model railway?

Unheard of temperatures for the UK; long nay it continue….. as long as you like the heat of course.

[Neal Ball]

6 hours ago, ChrisN said:

 

Neal,

Yes I have.  I model 1895 but did some for a friend.  Andy Stadden is a sculptor and he got into model railway figures in 4mm as he was asked to.  @Mikkel says they have greater definition than Modelu figures, mainly because these are sculpted and are therefore easier to paint.  Here are the ones I did, as ever not dusted before I did so,  this is the first group 

 

 

And the second,

 

 

There are a couple of firemen opening up the injectors and another turning a handbrake, and a crew just looking out of the cab.  You can fit them to whatever the controls are in your cab, well as long as there is enough room.

They look good Chris.

With the current batch of crew, I gave another still to paint up and I reckon I’m fully crewed!

 

I’ve recently become aware of another fairly recent addition to the market, made by Andy of Rapido Trains https://hardyshobbies.co.uk which work out cheaper than Modelu. 

[Neal Ball]

As if on cue, all this talk of hot weather is reflected in the GWS at Didcot sharing their Tuesday Treasure on Facebook; it’s all about holidays in Cornwall this week: https://didcotrailwaycentre.org.uk/product.php/77/tuesday-treasures?fbclid=IwAR1RgfdUTd35eKfGN6Zp8QeSDnI4eR7hfSFNKVT8yAdkX2lSGGTSkLhUmyY

 

 

This of course is one of two pictures of the Royal Albert Bridge at Saltash, painted by Terence Cuneo….. I remember years ago at the BTC museum at Clapham being told to look out for the mouse.

 

I have a print of the other image of the bridge, where the mouse is a photographer, complete with tripod! In this painting he is running away from the engine.

 

 

Edited April 1, 2022 by Neal Ball
photo removed

[The Stationmaster]

5 hours ago, Neal Ball said:

Unheard of temperatures for the UK; long nay it continue….. as long as you like the heat of course.

Far from nice heat alas.  I didn't mind being outdoors when it was around 40-42 degrees when I was working in Sydney 16 years ago because the breeze off the sea made a huge difference.  But being well inland here is a very different, and downright uncomfortable, matter although we have ceiling fans in the bedrooms.

 

Speaking to folk at KMRC yesterday (got the railmotor order in at last!) i they said it was much cooler down there.

[Neal Ball]

We’ve currently got 42 in the sun, 30 in the shade and very high humidity.

[Neal Ball]

In other news; the Heljan railcar has arrived and I have spent 1/2 hour running it in. It certainly is very well captured.

 

More details tomorrow, when I need to borrow a 21 pin decoder. With so much electrics in the luggage compartment, I can’t see where a decent size speaker will fit.

 

The instructions state it needs an ESU decoder, otherwise some lighting functions won’t work - that’s a bit naughty of Heljan. I therefore need to re-wire it as well…….

 

Re: Turntable.

This parcel is now officially lost…. Hopefully it will turn up today or tomorrow and was just delivered to the wrong postroom….

 

To be continued….

Edited July 21, 2021 by Neal Ball

[MrWolf]

I feel your pain with that one, just before lockdown in March 2020, I bought a gearbox for a vintage motorcycle that had been rebuilt and sat on a shelf for decades.

 

Hermes lost it and ducked paying out.

 

It has taken me until now to find another one (that will need a full rebuild!) Parcel Force is on the job this time, even so, I will be sort of itchy until it is on the bench here at Firkham Hall....

[Neal Ball]

Heljan GWR / AEC railcar.

 

My railcar arrived during the week from Hatton’s and shipped over here by DHL. It left Liverpool Thursday afternoon, was delayed for a day at customs, so arrived here last Tuesday.

 

After a while of running in on DC, with all lights blazing, I “borrowed” a 21 pin decoder from another loco and set it onto the tracks.

 

I am aware that Heljan are specifying an ESU decoder, which the test one wasn’t. I intend to use a Zimo decoder with YouChoos sounds….

 

As other people have already said, it’s very slow and smooth running, the looks are great and it’s got a nice heavy feel to it. The interior needs painting as it’s all green at the moment and then obviously passengers and crew need to be fitted.

 

However, the only light I could get working was the forward direction lights - nothing else….. The inability to get the lights on, reflects poorly on an otherwise excellent model. Having paid £160 plus delivery costs, I expect better than this. I will be raising this with Ben Jones at Heljan. 

 

edit: Mon 26/7/21 the decoder is a basic Bachmann one (soundTraxx MC1) 36-557

 

Obviously once I get my Zimo decoder fitted, together with the changed PCB from YouChoos, I will also have working lights…. 
 

In the meantime, here is a dark no22. (In reality this railcar entered service in 1940, but I have always had a soft spot for no 22.)

 

 

 

 

 

 

Edited April 1, 2022 by Neal Ball
photo changed

[Neal Ball]

I’ve had a busy Saturday… now we are off out for dinner! It’s all go this life in the sun.

 

The new Turntable:

 

There is a bit of a saga to the new turntable, which I am still talking to Mike at Greenwood about. 
 

Last Monday it seemed that the parcel had gone missing - obviously it hadn’t as it was delivered last Tuesday.

 

Its still sitting in the  box and I had locos testing it out! Firstly a King, then a Castle and finally a 9F, all to test the length of the table and get a feel for it all.

 

edit April 2022:

Following the server issues at RMWeb, I am today uploading all the photos again.

The turntable turned into a complete saga with Greenwood basically being incompetent - It took into 2022 before the unit was working correctly.

 

I WOULD NOT RECOMMEND THIS PRODUCT.

 

Instead, I show you a sunflower from the garden last summer.

 

 

The issues were:

Broken plug; faulty lead; faulty control panel (twice); ignoring phone calls and emails; not to mention even getting my address wrong. Added to which I ordered a 70ft, yet he sent a 65ft. Plus delays at customs (every time something got sent over)

Edited April 1, 2022 by Neal Ball
Greenwood customer service is crap

[Neal Ball]

The Turntable installation:

 

Out with the old…. Anyone want a Peco turntable?

 

In changing the turntable I wanted to adjust the entry track; it’s one of those things that has been wrong for a while. The curve leading to the table has caused some locos an issue.

 

It’s now fixed! We then had a power cut, as I started to fit the new table!

 

There is a lot more to do to it yet, plus I need to fit a reverse loop module and install isolated tracks…. Plus of course all the exit roads need to be re-aligned….. I will look to see if I can get another line in as well.

 

It also needs painting!

 

edit April 2022: 

Broken plug - this is how it was supplied.

 

 

 

Edited April 1, 2022 by Neal Ball
Greenwood products are awful

[MrWolf]

That railcar looks great, hopefully you will sort out the lights once you get busy with details and decoder.

Good news on the turntable, I have avoided them for years, the last one I had was a mixture of scratch built, Airfix and some roller microswitches that I liberated from work.

 

My gearbox arrived as promised on Thursday afternoon and is already reduced to component form. Now I am waiting for some new bronze layshaft bushes, but at least they will fit through our letterbox!

[Neal Ball]

27 minutes ago, MrWolf said:

…..

 

My gearbox arrived as promised on Thursday afternoon and is already reduced to component form. Now I am waiting for some new bronze layshaft bushes, but at least they will fit through our letterbox!

Good luck with that then

[Neal Ball]

28 minutes ago, MrWolf said:

That railcar looks great, hopefully you will sort out the lights once you get busy with details and decoder.

Good news on the turntable, I have avoided them for years, the last one I had was a mixture of scratch built, Airfix and some roller microswitches that I liberated from work.…..

This is my third attempt at getting a turntable to work….

 

Using the Peco turntable, I tried the MERG electronics and them the Peco motor. Neither worked.

 

Hopefully by going for the “Dogs B******s” version, it will now do what it’s got to do… turn the locos at the end of the line!

 

In reality Henley only had a 55ft table, which from about the 1920’s/30’s apparently had a broken back - it would turn a loco, but not without a huge amount of effort on the crews behalf.

 

By having a larger turntable, I will be able to turn all my locos.

[MrWolf]

If you're going to have one, have a big one, 

Of course, that can get one into trouble in certain circumstances...

[Neal Ball]

3 hours ago, MrWolf said:

If you're going to have one, have a big one, 

Of course, that can get one into trouble in certain circumstances...

Or rather…. One that works!

[Neal Ball]

Good evening all:

 

Turntable update: Its now powered; as in DCC power and for the moment the table is plugged into the bus*. 

 

*I am about to order a Gauagemster reverse loop module to deal with the change in polarities.

 

The entry track has also been laid (twice).... having cut it all to size, I didn't like it, so it was thrown away.

 

This is the WSR turntable at Minehead which is what I hope to achieve - or at least as close as possible!

 

This was taken during our visit in 2008.

 

I am probably going to compromise by having ballast in the pit, rather than gravel. the engineers blue bricks, will probably have to be painted onto the surround, together with the foot grips.

 

This afternoon, Rood Ashton Hall was the second loco onto the table (Previously 61xx 2-6-2T no 6109 had been there; but I didn't photograph it.

 

 

 

 

The table is now in its final position.

 

I am missing the cable that will power the table from the main PCB, so it will be a few days before I can start to turn the table...

 

I would not recommend this product.

 

 

Edited April 1, 2022 by Neal Ball
Greenwood crap