Tony Teague

Well I was unable to ignore Chris' advice @chris45lsw, so I fished around in the bin and found the alternate white spot transfers supplied with the GWR banan van kits; a dab of micro-sol, a sharp blade, and job done: I have to say that the transfers supplied with these kits (Peco-Parkside version) were not that great; they took a long time in water to freely come away from their backing, and then once they did, the decal itself was ready to disintegrate - thus the problem with the left hand van above, as well as with some other markings on these wagons. At least they now, sort of match the Accurascale one, although that is really in a black livery, whereas the instructions for these kits clearly called for GWR freight grey - as shown. I have also just completed two LMS ex-L&Y d.1 one-plank low goods wagons from a kit by Three Peaks Models; they are 3-D printed and I had seen them mentioned in @jwealleans excellent West End Workbench thread. As Jonathan had observed, these barely qualify as kits as they only have two parts but I like variety in wagons and so they appealed to me: I had imagined in my head that they might each carry a container but I hadn't bothered to measure up, so when it came to plonking one of those that I had in stock onto the wagon, realisation dawned: "My" containers were not only too long but also too wide: I shall have to think again as they certainly need a load, as well as some weight! Finally, and given that I have some ballast to paint / weather, both in the Stowe Magna siding patch, as well as through Churminster cutting, I decided that I might as well get the narrow gauge line from Churminster quarry ballasted so that I can deal with all three in one hit. I had thought about doing this with ash ballast but given that it is in a quarry, I felt that stone would be acceptable. Once it has all dried out the three areas will all be weathered and the rail sides painted. Tony

Very similar to most humans then..........

Thanks Chris I followed the instructions with the kit in decorating it - which are quite specific about the yellow spot; I did wonder because the recently issued Rapido van (of which I have one, illustrated on the page before this, has a white disc - so I felt that one of us would be wrong! Glad you like the coach series; there are a small number left to post when I get around to finding and photographing them. Tony

Indeed it could - especially as the nearby Stowe Magna locoshed had also suffered bomb damage as reported back in about 2018, when it's entire west wall was demolished: Locally, however, this is referred to as 'bum damage' as it was the result of an impact with a large ar$e - subsequently perspex screens were installed along this strtch to protect the layout and its buildings from such incursions! Tony

Whilst Steve has been grassing away to his heart's content, there has also been progress elsewhere. Sinkholes seem to be a current fad and as my layout is supposed to mimic reality, it came as no surprise that one had appeared under Stow Magna goods yard - well it could just be subsidence; you can see the result here: It is actually the result of a baseboard construction fault, in that the left hand board has a leg under it, whilst the right hand one was simply screwed to the left one and whatever was used has slipped over the 15+ years since they were made (not by me I hasten to add!). With Giles' help we put in an extra support, and with the careful use of an Irish screwdriver (hammer) we persuaded the right hand board upwards: Sadly, the cork underlay, ballast and the track itself did not appreciate this degree of adjustment and so I have since had to take more radical action, this time involving the use of a Dremel & cutting disc: On a brighter note, it appeared that only the front reception siding was seriously affected & requiring replacement: (Now looks bowed upwards but it isn't); fishplates soldered in place & electrical continuity tested Ballasted, only some serious weathering now needed before traffic can resume! Meanwhile, on the recent arrival of the excellent Accurascle banana vans I may have mentioned that in my drawer-full of unmade kits there were two Parkside GWR banans vans & so I prioritsed their building so as to give the train a bit more length: They will get some weathering with the rest of the train, which now at 16 vans has reached a reasonably acceptable length; I'll post another pic when these are back in the consist. Tony

Yes, in this case it crosses over two narrow gauge and the twin standard gauge tracks and would have been easier to construct as a fixed installation, however, the decider was that there is wiring underneath it that just might need to be accessed - so that determined that it must be removable.

A short update today to cover further scenic progress on the Churminster cutting. When last shown in early March it was simply looking a dirty brown colour, but since then it has had a couple of visits from my friend Steve Povey, the 'grassmeister'; after several layers involving many different lengths & shades of grass, this is where it has got to - looking south: At the far end / bottom of the incline, I am now committed to a re-build of the 'chalk' cutting face which I think will improve things and so this area has not been touched. There are some bigger, shrubby things still to be added but there is already a massive improvement; looking north: The bridge at the top of the incline did cause a couple of problems - in that, although it is removable, Steve managed to glue it in place................. After much cursing I managed to extract it unscathed 🤬 Meanwhile there has also been more progress on the semaphore signals..................... Tony

i suppose. I'm just not a fan of anything GWR!

If that is right it would be very odd, with Sir Archie out, the Atlantic expected and the Q on fast overhaul. I hope you are wrong! Tony

After a short pause, let's get another coaching stock set out of the way; this is anotherof the slightly longer sets, No.329, a Maunsell / SR High window set which is all Hornby RTR: (apologies for the blurred rear-end!). In it's basic form this is a 6 coach set but it runs with the addition of a Restaurant Car, whilst a Van C is attached to the rear The set is hauled here by Hornby Arthur No.736 'Excalibur', and led by brake 3rd no.3793: Corridor 3rd no.1227 follows: and then the additional Kitchen / Dining 1st - Restaurant Car, no.7869, serving full English breakfasts! Corridor 1st No.7230: Then two further corridor 3rds, Nos. 1225 and 1226: Before brake 3rd No.3792 brings up the rear: Finally, Van C No.721 tails along for the ride: Yes, they are all RTR but this set has to be an illustration of just how good this can now look! - depite the lack of weathering.......... Tony

Those trains look like they bought them from NSE ! I hope they have retention toilets..................😝 Tony

Having visited the layout in the past, I have to say that this is absoultely the best way to see it - without crowds and with the opportunity to talk with the modellers and operators. Whilst it moves most of the cost of a visit to the visitor, John and his team still have to put themselves out to host each visit and deal withour inane questions - for which we must all be hugely grateful. I for one will want to make a re-visit just as soon as the gates re-open! Tony

A former boss of mine, who had a sense of humour, had a timer that resembled a small model of a friesian cow; he would set it at say, 10 minutes, at which point it would "moo" so loudly that everyone forgot what they were saying or thinking, and meetings ended or were moved on as he determinded. Thoroughly recommended! Tony

Superb work Iain!

Dave I am of course delighted that construction of the C3 is underway - and I'd be equally happy if my thread were 'cluttered' with the sort of discussion you have requested; I'm unfortunately not able to answer your questions myself and so I am hopeful that others more knowledgaeble than I will have something to say! Thanks for what you are undertaking. Tony