trefin Posted March 2, 2015 Share Posted March 2, 2015 So how many of you out there have one of these useful models running on your train set? Gamages.1.A.jpg A 2-4-0 A4 or a 2-4-0 Brittania - which do you prefer? As a tinplate fan it has got to be the A4 for me. It is always useful to have a battery or clockwork loco on hand at live steam exhibitions to cover breaks in steaming, and a regular exhibitor has a Triang Big Big loco for such purpose. Trevor. 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Il Grifone Posted March 2, 2015 Share Posted March 2, 2015 (edited) I can remember playing with the Britannia in my youth. Clockwork would have been better, as the U2* batteries lasted a very short time (11d each IIRC). We would warm them up to get a few more laps out of them. The advert states 1/1d which is even worse and I'm fairly sure was the price for one. (I'll ignore the pedantic point that an individual cell is not a battery which by definition is two or more cells.) *Now we have adopted the American D rather than U2 for these. 1651 Edited March 2, 2015 by Il Grifone 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
5050 Posted March 3, 2015 Share Posted March 3, 2015 (edited) Yes, when I was a lad I remember being told to stick my bike lamp batteries in the oven to keep them going longer. How does this work?! Edited March 3, 2015 by 5050 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
sagaguy Posted March 3, 2015 Share Posted March 3, 2015 I believe it speeded up the chemical reaction to give a little longer fife but it wasn`t much longer,these were the old Carbon Zinc dry batteies,U2 size & the flat ones. These were the most common. https://www.google.co.uk/search?biw=1400&bih=701&tbm=isch&source=univ&sa=X&ei=89b1VLvfK4PX7Qaz_IDgDw&ved=0CCAQsAQ&q=old+battery+images#tbm=isch&q=old++cycle+lamp+battery++images&imgdii=_&imgrc=MMaAOjo9XGvXqM%253A%3BlI6rNWkHNnxhwM%3Bhttp%253A%252F%252Fwww.radiomuseum.org%252Fimages%252Fradio%252Fever_ready_co_ltd%252Flamp_battery_800_1357295.jpg%3Bhttp%253A%252F%252Fbritishexpats.com%252Fforum%252Ftrailer-park-96%252Fold-batteries-electrical-matters-840090%252Fpage4%252F%3B150%3B375 Ray. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Il Grifone Posted March 3, 2015 Share Posted March 3, 2015 1102 Heating batteries is not recommended, because of the risk of explosion (messy at best!......). The effect is the same is the same (in reverse) as trying to start the car on a cold morning with a dodgy battery. Waiting an hour or two for it to warm up will often do the trick. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
5050 Posted March 3, 2015 Share Posted March 3, 2015 I believe it speeded up the chemical reaction to give a little longer fife but it wasn`t much longer,these were the old Carbon Zinc dry batteies,U2 size & the flat ones. These were the most common. https://www.google.co.uk/search?biw=1400&bih=701&tbm=isch&source=univ&sa=X&ei=89b1VLvfK4PX7Qaz_IDgDw&ved=0CCAQsAQ&q=old+battery+images#tbm=isch&q=old++cycle+lamp+battery++images&imgdii=_&imgrc=MMaAOjo9XGvXqM%253A%3BlI6rNWkHNnxhwM%3Bhttp%253A%252F%252Fwww.radiomuseum.org%252Fimages%252Fradio%252Fever_ready_co_ltd%252Flamp_battery_800_1357295.jpg%3Bhttp%253A%252F%252Fbritishexpats.com%252Fforum%252Ftrailer-park-96%252Fold-batteries-electrical-matters-840090%252Fpage4%252F%3B150%3B375 Ray. Eeee, some of them photos bring back memories - and not all of them happy ones! Lost count of the number of times the front light flew off the bracket on bumps, the batteries that corroded inside the lamp, the rear lights that wouldn't work with bad contacts, the twin-cell batteries that hardly lasted a couple of hours etc. etc. etc. Good old days? Ever ready? Not a chance! 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Il Grifone Posted March 3, 2015 Share Posted March 3, 2015 856 Maybe it was prejudice, but I preferred Exide. (Perhaps it was the nice green colour!). 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
brianusa Posted March 7, 2015 Share Posted March 7, 2015 Hornby Junction, where both main lines converge. Bit quiet today, but it looks like a train will be coming shortly Brian 6 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
brianusa Posted March 17, 2015 Share Posted March 17, 2015 Another take on coarse scale. Meccano, how coarse can you get! But it goes well with the parent companies trains. Hopefully its recognisable as one of Brunel's famous early viaducts in Cornwall with appropriate Hornby train. Brian. 5 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
sagaguy Posted March 17, 2015 Share Posted March 17, 2015 Aha,so you collect & build in Meccano do you,join the club. After all,it`s part of the Hornby Empire.In the meantime going off thread for a moment--- Ray. 5 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
brianusa Posted March 17, 2015 Share Posted March 17, 2015 Hi Ray, I have some of each of the most popular Meccano products. O Trains and Meccano mostly though. Brian. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
sagaguy Posted March 18, 2015 Share Posted March 18, 2015 This was the model that superseded the giant Block setting crane on the covers of the later manuals.It really worked but was about as portable as a double wardrobe.It took about 3 months to build. Ray. 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
sagaguy Posted March 18, 2015 Share Posted March 18, 2015 Just one more for those who are interested,the set 10 loading shovel with label produced in Photoshop.If any one wants a copy of the Meccano sign,i can probably upload it hhere. Ray. 3 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Robin Brasher Posted March 20, 2015 Author Share Posted March 20, 2015 If I bought a train set with a picture of the Flying Scotsman on the lid and opened it to find am LMS 0-4-0 with some goods wagons inside I would have been a bit disappointed. The set probably dates from 1948 to 1949 and the clockwork mechanism was of a higher quality than that of the last clockwork engines that Hornby made. 2 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
brianusa Posted March 20, 2015 Share Posted March 20, 2015 Hi Robin. I bought a similar set over here on US E Bay for about $50 although the No.1 Wagon had the large LMS with stamped chassis, probably an early import. As you mention, a good runner. Brian. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
brianusa Posted March 26, 2015 Share Posted March 26, 2015 'Downtown' with Dinkies. Brian. 8 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
5050 Posted March 27, 2015 Share Posted March 27, 2015 Seeing your layout photo Brian, with its apparent mix of US and UK models, reminds me that a lad in school in the late 50's had an American book on 'Hi-Rail' modelling. This appeared to be the use of tinplate track but with added scenery, vehicles, buildings etc. from dime stores and the like. Is this term still used? At the time it had an influence on me - even if it was only the realisation that Americans, at times, use the English language in a different way to us! Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Spitfire2865 Posted March 27, 2015 Share Posted March 27, 2015 Seeing your layout photo Brian, with its apparent mix of US and UK models, reminds me that a lad in school in the late 50's had an American book on 'Hi-Rail' modelling. This appeared to be the use of tinplate track but with added scenery, vehicles, buildings etc. from dime stores and the like. Is this term still used? At the time it had an influence on me - even if it was only the realisation that Americans, at times, use the English language in a different way to us!Ive never heard of it as Hirail modeling but yes, tinplate track with scenery. My grandfather loved doing that. And Brian, I see your shameless inclusion of that police box. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
brianusa Posted March 27, 2015 Share Posted March 27, 2015 I was a train spotter (pre Anorak!) back home and have always been interested in trains and models. When I arrived in the US, it continued with a more American theme settling on Lionel which was alive and well in O gauge hi rail! But it wasn't Hornby so there had to be compromise in which US and UK trains now exist side by side This is probably anathema to any purist but after all, these are toy trains. Brian. 3 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
trefin Posted March 29, 2015 Share Posted March 29, 2015 Hi. We have just returned from a visit to Australia. While there I spotted a couple of Australian-made O gauge trains from the 1950s, namely a "Maurlyn" loco, tender & carriages and a "Ferris" set modelled on a suburban electric train. After WW2 there was a severe shortage of European model railway items coming into Australia so several local firms stepped in to supply the demand. There is an interesting book called "Spring, Spark & Steam" which details this period, the makers, and their products. To this day there is more than one gauge in operation on the full sized railways, but that is another story! Cheers, Trevor. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
trefin Posted March 31, 2015 Share Posted March 31, 2015 A quick note to say that I will be exhibiting my O gauge live steam layout on Easter Sat 4th April at the Toy Steam Rally, Tilford Rural Life Museum, near Farnham, Surrey GU10 2DL. Trevor. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RateTheFreight Posted March 31, 2015 Share Posted March 31, 2015 Hi all, Glad to see the topics still going. I filmed the below short over the weekend when I had the layout down. It was a fast and loose attempt to model a farmers train with sausage wagons, a tractor (on original Hornby flat) and a fuel tanker. I've got a LSWR 6 wheel milk wagon albeit it doesn't like tight curves. https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=ypv0kEKuFfE I'm currently debating which loco to add to the fleet (so much choice!) Greg 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
brianusa Posted March 31, 2015 Share Posted March 31, 2015 Trains on the floor - how it all started! Brian. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RateTheFreight Posted March 31, 2015 Share Posted March 31, 2015 Hi Brian, Indeed! It was one of the things that helped me switch from OO to O in that I could set up a larger non-permanent layout whilst space was tight and the 'other half' didn't mind too. Once I've got enough track it will also mean i can change the layout too. That being said, I'll look to build a small permanent layout too once I've got space. By the way, I've really enjoyed seeing the pics of your layout, please keep posting! Greg Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
brianusa Posted April 16, 2015 Share Posted April 16, 2015 One of the joys of tinplate is the ability to add Meccano models to the layout and a reminder of Meccano Magazine pictures of years ago. They may not be the right size but they look the part. The windmill works thanks to an AC motor from an old sign which turns at a realistic speed and the original was featured in a No.3 manual. Brian. 7 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
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