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

[MAP66]

51 minutes ago, Mikkel said:

Nice to see the railmotor crew and passengers, Neal. I was thinking of ordering the OO ones on the assumption that Modelu have made sure that they fit. But maybe they haven't?

 

With the sheep and all, its going to be a full railmotor 😁

 

I can only vouch for the Airfix autocoach where HO 1/87 scale figures are more correct to scale for the coach interior for ModelU figures. I originally purchased 1/76 scale and they were noticeably overscale for the interior. Page 25 (fifth post down) of my Tyteford thread provides a bit more detail on this.

Just to reiterate, the ModelU figures are correct to scale, it's the coach interior which is underscale in terms of floor to ceiling height.

[Neal Ball]

16 minutes ago, MAP66 said:

I can only vouch for the Airfix autocoach where HO 1/87 scale figures are more correct to scale for the coach interior for ModelU figures. I originally purchased 1/76 scale and they were noticeably overscale for the interior. Page 25 (fifth post down) of my Tyteford thread provides a bit more detail on this.

Just to reiterate, the ModelU figures are correct to scale, it's the coach interior which is underscale in terms of floor to ceiling height.

 

Its always an issue getting the right size characters inside our carriages - mine light look under-nourished as they sit on their cushions 🤣

[Neal Ball]

10 hours ago, Mikkel said:

Nice to see the railmotor crew and passengers, Neal. I was thinking of ordering the OO ones on the assumption that Modelu have made sure that they fit. But maybe they haven't?

 

With the sheep and all, its going to be a full railmotor 😁

 

 

i should of course add.... I understand these folks for the SRM were scanned at Didcot.

 

As we all know, folks in the 1930's were shorter - thats my excuse of course 🤣🤣

 

Hopefully my SRM will be here in the next week or so and we can find out. 

Edited January 27 by Neal Ball
Just read the Kernow newsletter; it seems sound fitted SRM are only at November 2022….

[ChrisN]

51 minutes ago, Neal Ball said:

 

i should of course add.... I understand these folks for the SRM were scanned at Didcot.

 

As we all know, folks in the 1930's were shorter - thats my excuse of course 🤣🤣

 

Hopefully my SRM will be here in the next week or so and we can find out.

 

H0 figures inside things look fine.  I have used H0 figures in cabs when there was not much room, and I have some H0 figures waiting to go in my Refreshment Rooms, along with H0 tables and H0 sarnies and cooked breakfasts, ( 🙂 ), as the space is quite small.  Outside they do not look like short people, unless they are on their own at the back but nest to 4mm people they look like teenagers, which is helpful if you choose the right ones, that could look like teenagers.

[St Enodoc]

4 hours ago, Harlequin said:

Let’s go surfing now,

Everybody’s learning how,

(Even the sheep!)

 

😆

 

 

On the good ship Lollipop?

[Neal Ball]

I forgot to post this yesterday:

 

 

The wheel has only had one coat of black on the rim, the others will be next.

[sjrixon]

The railcar passengers look really nice! I looked at them when I was at Warley, but I've already got a backlog of people to paint, so spending a lot more on people felt silly..

 

Or maybe a railcar with no driver is more silly.. ;)

[Neal Ball]

1 hour ago, sjrixon said:

The railcar passengers look really nice! I looked at them when I was at Warley, but I've already got a backlog of people to paint, so spending a lot more on people felt silly..

 

Or maybe a railcar with no driver is more silly.. ;)

Don’t worry! I still have unpainted passengers in a draw on the workbench 😎

 

Of course they need painting ASAP as they need to go into all the carriages I am building.

[Neal Ball]

Over on Facebook and the GWR modellers group, its been GWR 4-4-0 loco week - perhaps I can add this 😎

 

 

I have done more work on the County loco 4-4-2T today and it seems as if it's finally coming together. More details and photos are on my blog page for the loco. 

 

Since the photo below was taken I have been out with the filler and am starting to get the loco ready to be sprayed. Hopefully one day next week will see this loco getting a coat of primer, together with the 3 half-built carriages. 

 

[lezz01]

I love the chassis it's very tidy.

Regards Lez.  

[Neal Ball]

1 hour ago, lezz01 said:

I love the chassis it's very tidy.

Regards Lez.  

 

Thanks Lez. It's been tricky to get the chassis fitted onto the donor body, or is it the other way round. I fancy doing the County 4-4-0 as well, but would put a Finecast body on top. Although I have a stash of carriages to do next 😎

[Neal Ball]

Yesterday also saw a couple of Pannier tank locos running at Henley-on-Thames. I was looking at the carriages that need spraying, including the Clerestory C23 all third.

 

64xx this is the only one of my five 0-6-0PT that still has a top feed!

 

 

27xx still not numbered or livery applied:

 

 

[Neal Ball]

I have just uploaded a short video to Youtube, shewing the testing phases of the loco build: 

 

Testing process for the loco:

• Running the chassis up and down on track set to a slight incline.
• Checking weight distribution - in this case, it was obvious that the motor was lifting the rear drivers. Only slightly, but enough to be an issue.
• The combined chassis and loco body are still very light (@150 grams) so will need a lot of extra weight packing inside.
  • I will try to cram as much weight into the void within the chassis around the area of the drivers. I am hoping to get it up to 200grams or so.
• Run for a while on the rolling road, testing the slower speed steps.
• The complete loco was then tested on the layout using a 9v battery. At this stage it is not wired up for DCC.
  • The completed loco will have a Zimo decoder and 10,000 uf Stay-alive.

 

The McKinley video is here: 

 

Edited January 28 by Neal Ball
Testing process details added

[MAP66]

Nice to see the raised plank in action Neal and the County passing the test. You've done a splendid job there and can't wait to see it all primed up.

[Neal Ball]

19 minutes ago, MAP66 said:

Nice to see the raised plank in action Neal and the County passing the test. You've done a splendid job there and can't wait to see it all primed up.

 

Thanks for this. I too cant wait to get it sprayed - the weather is due to be warm this week, so I am hoping it can be done and then obviously finished off. 

[Neal Ball]

So long and thanks for the models 😎     (To miss-quote Douglas Adams!)

 

 

It's certainly the end of an era:

 

I don't think Henley-on-Thames would be the same without Hattons - particularly the trunk service when we moved over here. Then there was the PX service - as early as my conversion to DCC I was using this service and then again when we were here.

 

Before moving here, the other store of note was obviously Gaugemaster as the shop was just down the road, but even so, sometimes Hattons was more convenient.

 

Without being too maudlin, it's just a change..... However of course, thank you to all the staff and good luck for the future.

 

[John Besley]

On 27/01/2024 at 08:57, Neal Ball said:

I forgot to post this yesterday:

 

 

The wheel has only had one coat of black on the rim, the others will be next.

 

Looking good Neal, sorry to pick holes but the horizontal line above the fire hole doors is a flat representation of the tray that sits above the firehole doors for oil feeders and the all essential Billy can, the handles on the ejector and blower valve would be wooden not brass on a GWR engine

 

[Neal Ball]

10 minutes ago, John Besley said:

 

Looking good Neal, sorry to pick holes but the horizontal line above the fire hole doors is a flat representation of the tray that sits above the firehole doors for oil feeders and the all essential Billy can, the handles on the ejector and blower valve would be wooden not brass on a GWR engine

 

Thanks I should have found one of my cab photos from Swindon. The regulator wouldn’t be red either!

 

Thanks again.

[John Besley]

And in the top left hand corner by the water level gauge glass is the simulation of the steam heating pressure gauge which should have a white face ...

[Miss Prism]

2 hours ago, John Besley said:

And in the top left hand corner by the water level gauge glass is the simulation of the steam heating pressure gauge which should have a white face ...

 

Looks white to me, or am I getting confused?  (More than possible!)

 

[Miss Prism]

Preservationists seem fond of red reverser handles and regulators. Is that wrong? Or was there a change from unpainted to red at some stage?

 

[MrWolf]

20 minutes ago, Miss Prism said:

Preservationists seem fond of red reverser handles and regulators. Is that wrong? Or was there a change from unpainted to red at some stage?

 

 

Rustproofing practicality or traction engine bling?

[Neal Ball]

Thanks for all the comments about the backhead, all are easy to fix.

 

Sadly none of it will be seen as the cab is quite enclosed, but at least we will know it’s there.

 

Yesterday the loco and recent kit carriages had a first spray of primer.

[John Besley]

7 hours ago, Miss Prism said:

Preservationists seem fond of red reverser handles and regulators. Is that wrong? Or was there a change from unpainted to red at some stage?

 

 

That is an interesting question,  I've tried to hunt up photos from the 1950 / 60's to see and it's difficult to work out, certainly from what I remember from the late 60's (I was born in 1959) is a red regulator and reverser I would have seen the footplate of SR engines many times with my Father at Exeter and Waterloo as a small boy but don't remember those details. 

 

Be interested to see photos if anyone has any of this period

[Neal Ball]

Re: Steam loco cabs and pipework etc.

 

9 hours ago, Miss Prism said:

Preservationists seem fond of red reverser handles and regulators. Is that wrong? Or was there a change from unpainted to red at some stage?

 

 

When in use, would the red paint have stayed on for long? assuming they left Swindon painted.....

 

1 hour ago, John Besley said:

 

That is an interesting question,  I've tried to hunt up photos from the 1950 / 60's to see and it's difficult to work out, certainly from what I remember from the late 60's (I was born in 1959) is a red regulator and reverser I would have seen the footplate of SR engines many times with my Father at Exeter and Waterloo as a small boy but don't remember those details. 

 

Be interested to see photos if anyone has any of this period

 

The issue is to get a colour photo from that period of a footplate.

 

Dean Goods 0-6-0 at Steam museum at Swindon in 2018.

 

 

This photo of no 6000 KGV was taken on the same trip:

 

 

Compare those to the photo I took when i was on the footplate of GWS Saint 4-6-0 Lady of Legend in 2022, where there is no red paint at all!