Annie's Virtual Pre-Grouping, Grouping and BR Layouts & Workbench

[Edwardian]

Very impressed with the new GC stuff, Annie.

 

The Broad gauge stock is stunning, as is the layout.

 

Only a couple of notes jarred on that magnificent layout. I might suggest that the steam vessel in the harbour, which looks too modern in any case, is replaced with a sailing vessel.

 

Oh, and GW distant signal arms did not start to be yellow until 1927.

 

As for notes, I seem to recall seeing Herbie Flowers playing Tuba Smarties at a Sky concert ... once upon a time.

Edited May 10, 2018 by Edwardian

[Annie]

Having decided that Valleyfields will be the GCR Class 1B tank engines' playground I spent my pocket money on a NER Tennant 2-4-0 Class '1463. for my largely NER based HUGE UK layout.  I've ordered in it NER green and since this is one of Paulz Trainz latest models it should be reasonably good.  Quite a lot of Paul's older models are a bit like the curate's egg, - good in parts, - which I don't mind so much provided the faults are fixable.

 

 

It might seem to be a bit odd for me to be running three different pre-group layouts, - though the HUGE UK layout is actually set in the grouping transition period, - but with each of them being quite different in character and prototype I find I can pretty much have a trainset to suit my mood and desire for any particular kind of train service that I fancy.  The Tennant 2-4-0 will be just the job for running along the GNJt.R's Seaside Branch and would be a likely allocation for an elderly tender locomotive in this time period.

[Annie]

Very impressed with the new GC stuff, Annie.

 

The Broad gauge stock is stunning, as is the layout.

 

Only a couple of notes jarred on that magnificent layout. I might suggest that the steam vessel in the harbour, which looks too modern in any case, is replaced with a sailing vessel.

 

Oh, and GW distant signal arms did not start to be yellow until 1927.

 

 

Thanks James  

 

Proper pre-1927 distant signals can be arranged with a little quick texture editing.  Thank you very much for pointing that out.  

 

And as to the ship in the harbour I hadn't really had a proper look over there yet, but I do have sailing vessels and even a steam assisted sailing vessel of the period which would be quite suitable.  And please do continue to point out anything that doesn't look right as while I'm not an ultra fanatic rivet counter by any means I do like my layouts to look as they should.  That's what I love about the pre-group forum, everyone is friendly and helpful and I've learned so much here.

 

And now from the 'She's moaning on about wagons again department' - we have..........    

An LDEC 5 plank wagon that it's maker claimed to be especially 'detailed'.

 

​My repaired and amended version.  I won't show you what it was like before as there might be small children viewing the forum and they'd be scarred for life.

 

Moan the 1st:  Taking a model that is wrong and has errors and making its textures especially large and high resolution does not remove those errors.

 

Moan the 2nd:  Claiming that your end door LDEC wagon is especially detailed and then leaving off all the ironwork on the end door does not fit with the concept of being 'detailed'.

 

Moan the 3rd:  Claiming that your end door LDEC wagon is detailed and fitting the wagon body to a BR steel underframe does not fit with the concept of the model being especially 'detailed'.

 

And it took me about 20 minutes to fix the wagon and make it acceptable and that was only because I was uncertain about the scripting for the replacement wooden underframe and made a couple of mistakes.

 

Moan over (sirens sounding the all clear can be heard in the background).

 

The solitary Robinson Class 1B tank engine on Valleyfields now has a playmate.  This is No.337 which will join No.339 on colliery duties.  

 

 

The two Robinson ROD 2-8-0s have now been sent back through the time portal to the LNER with thank you notes tied to their regulator handles.  I decided not to buy an original condition Robinson 8K from Darlington Works as to my mind the 1B tank engines are more suitable for the short distance colliery trip working on Valleyfields; - and besides there isn't a turntable long enough on the layout for a Class 8K.

 

And as final piece of news I finally finished all the detailing work on the GCR luggage van I made using parts of Linny's coach artwork as a basis and here it is posing for its official photo.  It doesn't have buffers or couplings in the picture as they get fitted to it by the game engine when it's loaded into the simulator.  I have no idea why that should be so as it's the only item of rolling stock I've got that's like that.

 

Edited May 10, 2018 by Annie

[sem34090]

Thanks to the ceaseless efforts of Mr Geoff Potter, on the UKTS Forum, I will soon have a range of LBSCR running-in boards for use on all of the LBSCR routes I am planning for the future!

I also asked him to do an SECR one... hence 'Norford East'. This is on the double-track Mainline that crosses the end of the LBSCR branch on a viaduct, with its own station. In the preserved route, this was modelled as a bypass, so I decided that the bypass had been built on the trackbed of the SECR line.

[DRPReskins]

a small video from my TS Route which is called the Dexby Railway the main fleet is actually made up of alot of pregrouping engines from E8's to R1's

[sem34090]

I know that you have only a select group of testers, Ben, but what I would give to get my hands on that E8 and R1... and any other pre-grouping goodies! I have all of your fantastic reskins (well... apart from the ones that I can't use because I don't own the base loco!) and must say that your work is sublime. I had been looking for ages for G Class reskins, then found yours. I would never have thought that BR Black would suit a single so well...

 

Beautiful! I simply cannot wait until they are released, should you decide to release them.

 

What else have you got stashed away?!

[DRPReskins]

Trust me there is alot stashed away in the Dev folder of mine mainly MSTS conversions like the R1

[sem34090]

Exactly how does one convert from MSTS to TS?

 

A mystery that has fascinated me for some time...

[sem34090]

Now with revised font... the names give a couple of clues as to my possible future routes!

[Annie]

A pre 1927 red distant signal.  Thank you very much James.  I've still got some others to convert over such as gantry signals and combined signals with more than one signal arm on the same post.

I'm getting used to them now and find it's not so difficult to pick them out from home signals.  It was just a question of retraining my little clockwork brain into not expecting to see yellow on the signal arm.

 

 

Edit:  And yes,  Sleepy Girl has made a mistake and the chevron should be white.  This will be amended once I wake up properly.

 

http://www.railsigns.uk/sect2page4/sect2page4.html

Edited May 11, 2018 by Annie

[Annie]

I took some snaps of some of the Broad Gauge locomotives I been gathering up over the past few months.

 

Minehead engine shed is acting as a locomotive parking space at the moment while I'm sorting things out.

 

Front siding right to left; - 'Red Star', 'Corsair', 'Brigand' and 'Prometheus'.  Rear siding right to left; - 'Hercules', B&E No.44 and B&E No.41.  'Iron Duke' you've already seen.

 

'Sagittarius' about to head off with a passenger train.  I have snaps of most of this passenger turn which I'll post later when I'm feeling a bit more clear headed.

 

And from the very experiment and strange days of the early Broad Gauge we have 'Hurricane' to the left and 'Thunderer' to the right.  I very much plan on giving both of these a try to see what they run like.

[Annie]

One of the problems I have is that I have a great many locomotives that were withdrawn circa the mid 1870's, - though 'Corsair' and 'Brigand' lasted until 1880, - and only one that would have been in service in the final days of the Broad Gauge, - 'Prometheus'.  Well I do have 'Iron Duke' as well. but in a slightly earlier form with a spectacle plate and no cab.  I did have 'Bulkeley' with a cab from Paulz Trainz which was a very early model of his, but it looked like it was badly made from ill fitting pieces of cardboard so I've deleted it.  All three of these locomotives are from the 'Alma' class built in 1870.  Sooooooo it looks like while I have a layout dated for 1892 I'm going to have to run 1870-1874 period trains on it.  After 1874 a good many of my locomotives were withdrawn so I don't have a lot of choice really.

 

I intend to increase the numbers of one or three the of locomotive classes I've got by making new nameplates since the names of all the Broad Gauge locomotives of all types are readily available (Thanks Wikipedia).  So that will be another 'Fury' class 0-6-0 tender loco like 'Hercules', another 'Leo' class 2-4-0 saddle tank rebuild like 'Sagittarius' and another 'Wolf' class 4-2-2 single driver saddle tank like 'Red Star' ('Red Star' certainly knows how to wolf down coal so the class name suits).

'The posh 'Alma' class locomotives will stay out on the mainline section around Taunton.

 

The B&E engines are a special case and were never withdrawn and were taken up into heaven by angels after 1892 and the despoiling of the Broad Gauge. 

 

Sounds like a plan.  

Edited May 11, 2018 by Annie

[Annie]

Free stuff alert!

 

Sign up for the Auran/N3 Games newsletter and get a free copy of the TS2009 railway simulator.

 

http://ts2009.trainzportal.com/free/?utm_source=Newsletter+Subscription&utm_campaign=2a981c6c08-EMAIL_CAMPAIGN_2018_05_11&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_463d5db52a-2a981c6c08-93215965&mc_cid=2a981c6c08&mc_eid=2ba90d73ff

[Annie]

I did a passenger run with 'Sagittarius' from Minehead to Taunton so here's the snaps I took in sequence.  Coverage of the route is a bit patchy as I messed up taking some of the snaps.  No commentary as I'm really struggling with typing words at the moment as I'm very sleepy.  B*gger doctors and their, 'latest and greatest best thing' medications.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[Annie]

I've been working on tidying up an old GNR 3rd class coach that was made back in TS2004 days.  The original was fairly basic so I thought I'd see what I could do with it.

 

A close up of the new coach side textures.

 

 

Lettering and numbering still to do.

 

 

A couple of the members over on the Auran forums are helping me with converting my GCR coaches over to TS2012 so they can be uploaded to the Download Station.  I have not a clue as to how that needs to be done, - especially with my silly sleepy clockwork brain being extra sleepy at the moment, - so it's very nice and encouraging to be offered some help to sort it all out.

[Annie]

Original GNR coach version alongside my re-skinned version.

 

 

And my new NER Tennant Class '1463' class locomotive has much surprised the station staff at Debton Station (GWR).  It possibly also surprised them as it had just brought in a train from Porterton (NER) which is the largest station on my HUGE UK layout and which needed a lot of work to make it usefully operational.  For a long time Porterton has been a no-go area with all its problems, but I finally finished the last of the necessary repairs a couple of day ago.

I'll post some Porterton screenshots and more of the new class '1463' in action later on as I'm terribly sleepy at the moment.  The Sleep Clinic doctors changed my meds and I now feel worse than I did before and just want to sleep all the time.

 

[Annie]

So Porterton (NER) and the new Tennant Class '1463'.  The original layout I downloaded from the DLS (A moment in time) and have been transforming into the HUGE UK layout was set in the 1960's steam era and as time has gone on I've been winding back the clock until it's now set more or less in the grouping transition era.  Going further back than that would greatly increase my workload with rebuilding the layout and I'd start to get into some real difficulties with parts of it.  This way at least everything I'm running on the rails is of pre-group origin and those locomotives that didn't last very long in the Big 4 era can still be in service.

 

So Porterton.  For a start it had a lot of 1960's buildings including towerblocks so it was with great delight that I demolished them all and replaced everything with far more appropriate buildings.  Some older not very well detailed models from early Trainz versions were replaced with much better models and finally I reached a point where the town looked far more period correct and I could stand the sight of it.

 

But the big problem with Porterton was that it's a terminal station on a triangular junction with a double track mainline forming yet another junction to bypass the station and all the trackwork is a bit on the complex side.  The other problem with it was once I'd arrived with a train, decoupled the engine and then went looking to get to the MPD for a spot of engine refreshing and a spin on the turntable it was an unbelieveable maze to get there.

 

One final thing I didn't like was the placement of a strange modern looking industrial interactive coal industry module basically right in front of the terminal station.  I've deleted these in other places on the layout and have only kept them at factory sites where I can hide all the nasty modern bits with other buildings.  The thing works fine, - it just looks awful outside of anything that's not a trans-Atlantic dismal layout which are awful anyway so it's a match made in heaven. 

 

So it was deleted with extreme prejudice and there's now a goods yard and goods shed on the site which Porterton was seriously lacking.  Access to the main MPD area was improved with some trackwork alterations and a smaller engine shed and servicing area attached to the carriage sidings was also given a tidy up.  Engine refreshment now happens via the appropriate placed magic tracks I've installed in these area since nearly every engine I've got has some kind of interactive coaling and watering script ranging from tank filler lids opening and coal level rising all the way through to the refills being simply acknowledged in their small engine details window (control button and right mouse click to see it).  And the refilling takes time and the engine can't be moved until it's done and I really like that.

 

But I digress.  I've been asleep for something like 14 hours today so I'm now reasonably clear headed which means I can type things properly and quickly without making mistakes so I'm doing just that (possibly to excess) while it lasts. (Usually about an hour)  So Porterton is now a useful and workable station which means that all the train services I run now actually have a proper and logical destination and the quarter of the HUGE UK layout I mostly run trains on has now risen to be being a third of the whole layout area.  Some places in the other two thirds are still in the 'here be dragons' category with trackwork faults and infestations of 1960's buildings and infrastructure.  While it's possible to run trains there care is needed and definitely no express train speeds.

 

So here's the new Tennant Class '1463' at Porterton station about to take the very first passenger train through to Debton (GWR).  This locomotive will be a Porterton engine which was one of the main reasons for buying it.

 

I love this trainshed model.  Fenton (NER) also has one, but Porterton's trainshed is much larger.  Magic interactive passenger wotsits have been installed and yes I know the platform distance is a bit far from the coach steps, but adjusting very long platforms in a large station is not for the faint-hearted  as usually it means that everything ends up having to be adjusted.  

 

Outside views.  I will be doing some more detailing around the town and station, but that will keep for another modelling session on the layout.

 

 

 

Guard gives the , 'Right away' and we're off.  Some proper lattice post NER signals have just become available and I'm hoping the range of what's available will be increased.  Otherwise I'll have to use split post McKenzie and Holland signals until that happens.  Some signalling around Porterton is still WIP, but it is all operational.

 

 

Trackwork fun at Porterton.

 

 

Passing the new goods shed.  The citizens of Porterton can't get to it at the moment as I need to put in a level crossing.

 

 

Heading for the junction.  The distant line of telephone poles shows where the double track main line from Fenton (NER) is.

 

 

Passing the LSWR-LBSC Joint station at Sudbury.  After I'd named the town and station someone told me that there really is a town called 'Sudbury', - so those of you who who possess arcane knowledge of the names of all the towns in the southern half of England please don't be confused.  The trains is on GWR metals now and around 500 yards behind it is the incredibly long tunnel leading back to NER territory.  I'm not sure what it is about this tunnel, but it's straight and if you look through it it doesn't seem all that long, but driving a train through it at a scale 40 mph can take all of two minutes and sometimes a lot longer.  I don't know if it's some odd script effect, but at times the train will seem to be running backwards even though the engine is in forward gear and the tunnel mouth doesn't seem to be getting any closer.  Increasing speed has absolutely no effect at all and the only thing to do is wait until whatever odd unknown script has run its course and it then becomes possible to make progress and leave the tunnel.

Sooooooo if anybody wants to know how a NER train from the East Coast of England can make a connection to a GWR secondary mainline over on the West Coast on a normal sort of passenger run that's how.  Heading north from Debton there's another one of these tunnels that ultimately takes you to Fenton (NER), but it doesn't seem to want to hang on to trains for quite so long.  Fun with Trains eh  

 

Station stop at Hunters Lodge (GWR) on the way to Debton.  This is a pleasant little town that I've done some detailing work on and I'd like to get back to.  The station building while nice enough screams 'SOUTHERN RAILWAY and constituent companies' and it's slated for replacement.  Don't worry I'll find a nice home for it over on the LSWR-LBSC Joint line.

 

 

Cab view.  Paul from Paulz Trainz has developed a four position cab view for his locomotives and from all of the viewing positions you can clearly see the line ahead..  I grumble sometimes about the variable quality of some of Paul's digital models, but his cab view system is absolutely golden.

 

 

And arrival at Debton (GWR).  There's been some words of complaint from the Stationmaster at Debton about all these funny looking light green engines cluttering up his station, but with further work taking place in other parts of the layout now it won't be long before the GWR section can run trains along the whole length of their own section and join in the fun.  At least now they can run their own trains through to Porterton which they couldn't do before.

 

So there you go.  A whole lot of rambling on comprehensive report on the latest goings on with my trainset.  

 

                                                                          

[Edwardian]

So Porterton (NER) and the new Tennant Class '1463'.  The original layout I downloaded from the DLS (A moment in time) and have been transforming into the HUGE UK layout was set in the 1960's steam era and as time has gone on I've been winding back the clock until it's now set more or less in the grouping transition era.  Going further back than that would greatly increase my workload with rebuilding the layout and I'd start to get into some real difficulties with parts of it.  This way at least everything I'm running on the rails is of pre-group origin and those locomotives that didn't last very long in the Big 4 era can still be in service.

 

So Porterton.  For a start it had a lot of 1960's buildings including towerblocks so it was with great delight that I demolished them all and replaced everything with far more appropriate buildings.  Some older not very well detailed models from early Trainz versions were replaced with much better models and finally I reached a point where the town looked far more period correct and I could stand the sight of it.

 

But the big problem with Porterton was that it's a terminal station on a triangular junction with a double track mainline forming yet another junction to bypass the station and all the trackwork is a bit on the complex side.  The other problem with it was once I'd arrived with a train, decoupled the engine and then went looking to get to the MPD for a spot of engine refreshing and a spin on the turntable it was an unbelieveable maze to get there.

 

One final thing I didn't like was the placement of a strange modern looking industrial interactive coal industry module basically right in front of the terminal station.  I've deleted these in other places on the layout and have only kept them at factory sites where I can hide all the nasty modern bits with other buildings.  The thing works fine, - it just looks awful outside of anything that's not a trans-Atlantic dismal layout which are awful anyway so it's a match made in heaven. 

 

So it was deleted with extreme prejudice and there's now a goods yard and goods shed on the site which Porterton was seriously lacking.  Access to the main MPD area was improved with some trackwork alterations and a smaller engine shed and servicing area attached to the carriage sidings was also given a tidy up.  Engine refreshment now happens via the appropriate placed magic tracks I've installed in these area since nearly every engine I've got has some kind of interactive coaling and watering script ranging from tank filler lids opening and coal level rising all the way through to the refills being simply acknowledged in their small engine details window (control button and right mouse click to see it).  And the refilling takes time and the engine can't be moved until it's done and I really like that.

 

But I digress.  I've been asleep for something like 14 hours today so I'm now reasonably clear headed which means I can type things properly and quickly without making mistakes so I'm doing just that (possibly to excess) while it lasts. (Usually about an hour)  So Porterton is now a useful and workable station which means that all the train services I run now actually have a proper and logical destination and the quarter of the HUGE UK layout I mostly run trains on has now risen to be being a third of the whole layout area.  Some places in the other two thirds are still in the 'here be dragons' category with trackwork faults and infestations of 1960's buildings and infrastructure.  While it's possible to run trains there care is needed and definitely no express train speeds.

 

So here's the new Tennant Class '1463' at Porterton station about to take the very first passenger train through to Debton (GWR).  This locomotive will be a Porterton engine which was one of the main reasons for buying it.

 

I love this trainshed model.  Fenton (NER) also has one, but Porterton's trainshed is much larger.  Magic interactive passenger wotsits have been installed and yes I know the platform distance is a bit far from the coach steps, but adjusting very long platforms in a large station is not for the faint-hearted  as usually it means that everything ends up having to be adjusted.  

 

Outside views.  I will be doing some more detailing around the town and station, but that will keep for another modelling session on the layout.

 

 

 

Guard gives the , 'Right away' and we're off.  Some proper lattice post NER signals have just become available and I'm hoping the range of what's available will be increased.  Otherwise I'll have to use split post McKenzie and Holland signals until that happens.  Some signalling around Porterton is still WIP, but it is all operational.

 

 

Trackwork fun at Porterton.

 

 

Passing the new goods shed.  The citizens of Porterton can't get to it at the moment as I need to put in a level crossing.

 

 

Heading for the junction.  The distant line of telephone poles shows where the double track main line from Fenton (NER) is.

 

 

Passing the LSWR-LBSC Joint station at Sudbury.  After I'd named the town and station someone told me that there really is a town called 'Sudbury', - so those of you who who possess arcane knowledge of the names of all the towns in the southern half of England please don't be confused.  The trains is on GWR metals now and around 500 yards behind it is the incredibly long tunnel leading back to NER territory.  I'm not sure what it is about this tunnel, but it's straight and if you look through it it doesn't seem all that long, but driving a train through it at a scale 40 mph can take all of two minutes and sometimes a lot longer.  I don't know if it's some odd script effect, but at times the train will seem to be running backwards even though the engine is in forward gear and the tunnel mouth doesn't seem to be getting any closer.  Increasing speed has absolutely no effect at all and the only thing to do is wait until whatever odd unknown script has run its course and it then becomes possible to make progress and leave the tunnel.

Sooooooo if anybody wants to know how a NER train from the East Coast of England can make a connection to a GWR secondary mainline over on the West Coast on a normal sort of passenger run that's how.  Heading north from Debton there's another one of these tunnels that ultimately takes you to Fenton (NER), but it doesn't seem to want to hang on to trains for quite so long.  Fun with Trains eh  

 

Station stop at Hunters Lodge (GWR) on the way to Debton.  This is a pleasant little town that I've done some detailing work on and I'd like to get back to.  The station building while nice enough screams 'SOUTHERN RAILWAY and constituent companies' and it's slated for replacement.  Don't worry I'll find a nice home for it over on the LSWR-LBSC Joint line.

 

 

Cab view.  Paul from Paulz Trainz has developed a four position cab view for his locomotives and from all of the viewing positions you can clearly see the line ahead..  I grumble sometimes about the variable quality of some of Paul's digital models, but his cab view system is absolutely golden.

 

 

And arrival at Debton (GWR).  There's been some words of complaint from the Stationmaster at Debton about all these funny looking light green engines cluttering up his station, but with further work taking place in other parts of the layout now it won't be long before the GWR section can run trains along the whole length of their own section and join in the fun.  At least now they can run their own trains through to Porterton which they couldn't do before.

 

So there you go.  A whole lot of rambling on comprehensive report on the latest goings on with my trainset.  

 

                                                                          

 

Thank you for the tour.

 

To think of how much you can achieve with this medium and how long it would take to make a model encompassing this!  Then, of course, you have these expansive vistas that we simply cannot model in 3D.

 

By contrast, the last picture must be a C J Freezer layout plan!

[sem34090]

Thank you for the tour.

 

To think of how much you can achieve with this medium and how long it would take to make a model encompassing this!  Then, of course, you have these expansive vistas that we simply cannot model in 3D.

 

By contrast, the last picture must be a C J Freezer layout plan!

Hence why I do both!

[Edwardian]

Hence why I do both!

 

I don't have time for one, so dare not contemplate t'other.

 

I have just thought "now the shed loop is down, surely I'm close to being operational".  The I reflected that I need to wire switches to the points, lay the rest of the mainline and construct a working turntable, and finish wiring.  That's another month at the very least even at my best speed!

[Annie]

Thank you for the tour.

 

To think of how much you can achieve with this medium and how long it would take to make a model encompassing this!  Then, of course, you have these expansive vistas that we simply cannot model in 3D.

 

By contrast, the last picture must be a C J Freezer layout plan!

Being able to build a railway in a very large landscape is something I do really like about digital trainsets.  If my fairy Godmother turned up and waved her wand and I didn't have narcolepsy anymore I certainly wouldn't abandon my digital trainset.  Five minutes trying to fit a layout into the confines of a room or find space to store it would have me back with my digital trainset really quickly.  I forget how many miles long by how many miles wide it is, but the HUGE UK layout has 100 route miles of trackwork more or less and it takes 2 real world hours to drive a train completely around it and since I don't own an aircraft hangar to put a scale model in I'll stay with digital modelling.  I've only done the 2hr complete circuit once and that was when I first got the base layout.  As most of my interest is in local railways that serve the communities in a particular area and not especially in whizzing about playing top link driver or doing long haul goods traffic I don't see myself repeating the exercise again any time soon..

 

Building a slap the track down, throw a few buildings around digital model railway takes no time at all, - but I find it works out at about 70% the same in time needed to build a properly detailed and scenic digital layout as it does a real world one.  The big advantage is no messy glue and drippy sloppy plaster and no paint to spill.  No sharp tools (which is 100% off limits for me) and no having to traipse off to the ironmongers in the pouring rain for a shilling's worth of near invisible screws because the carpet monster ate the last one.

As you know I do texture modding and I reskin both railway models and buildings to either change or enhance their appearance.  Doing texture work to the best of my ability I look on as being equivalent to scratchbuilding which is why I like digital railway modelling so much.  I find that I can still use all my artistic abilities and urge to create which I find to be very satisfying.

 

I love seeing the real world modelling being done here on the pre-group forum and I love seeing a model taking shape from basic parts and materials.  It's just that I can't do it myself anymore and I've learned to accept that.

[sem34090]

I will still try and sort out a G6 for you though!

[Annie]

A G6 will be nice to build up as a model for display or even for occasional running on a few bits of track on the floor.  I did have some ideas around using a Triang chassis with extended axles and Hornby 'O' gauge M1 driving wheels to make it functional though.  Certainly something to think about and using a 3D printed bodyshell would allow me to create a model locomotive without having to use any tools with sharp bits attached.

[sem34090]

I may even be able to do a static O gauge chassis to include with it.

[Annie]

That would be nice Sem.  Any 'O' gauge model I do put together now would spend 99% of it's time on display anyway.