The Great Bear

Good to see both versions. Still trying to work out what easiest way of getting a Star suitable for 1947 is. Erring back to my original idea of getting Knight of Grand Cross and changing tender (have a spare Collet one I think acquired a while back) rather than messing around with a BR Glastobury Abbey and risk messing up removing the smokebox number or additional lining on the loco.

Good. No need to potentially damage my ROD then. Not that the logo would be visible under the grime anyway.

If I recall GWR Journal article correctly, when locos were repainted in wartime (as covered above), Castles and Kings received unlined green with G Crest W on tender, everything else was painted unline black (presumably with GWR letters only). Lined green (with G Crest W) came back in late 1945 with the introduction of the Hawksworth Counties - first had full pre-war lining, everything after a simplified scheme. As for how many locos were repainted by nationalisation, wore wartime livery or still pre-war livery I'd like to know as my layout to be set post-war. Hope this helps a bit Jon

Rather than the goods shed, I've built the road bridge by the station In the prototype at Kidlington the original bridge had three spans, the side spans being brick, the centre being an iron girder. The bridge is at around a 45 degree skew. The bridge was rebuilt in the 1930s when the road was widened and realigned and replaced with a single span concrete structure. I've gone with the original design as to me was more interesting (the branch line sneaking through the side span) and also allows me to run an earlier time frame should I wish. The bridge from old photos looks similar to the one by Hatton station, this design being fairly common on the the Oxford-Birmingham line though some have had centre spans replaced I think. The centre iron girder span, I have assumed to be like the bridge over the canal at Heyford So here's the model: The side brick arches, showing the skewed arch The deck being built, showing the beams and the jack arches Finished (apart from the road over it) bridge The dark stone colour for the girders hopefully is right, that's how I read the notes in Great Western Way and the B&W photo I have of bridge shows relatively dark shade. Now onto the earthworks... All the best Jon

Well that's almost true! In the post consultation design there were no bridges for public rights of way or farm accesses, that has come in the last 18 months. But they are pretty cheap, only a few £m each. As you say it's the major structures tunnels, viaducts and retaining walls that comprise most of the cost. Open sections of line and earthworks are cheap (relatively!).

Funnily enough the last upgrade to the M1 you mention was my last major detailed road design. My project manager worked on it being widened to 3 lanes in the early 80s. I was told when they were planning the SW portion of the M25 they were going to include an offside hardshoulder, which would have made making it 4 lanes a doddle. Indeed between Jnc 11&12 it was built with this but then it was covered over hence when the motorway between 10&12 was widened in early 90s this bit required little work. And don't get me started on the Ilminster bypass... The shortsightedness is generally, though not exclusively, those in DfT or politicians. I disagree about protests, Swampy and his mates have caused plenty of havoc. Of course there now targeting a cheap and reliable source of enenergy for protests instead. Sod it, let's make hs2 four tracks up to the Leeds spur...

Appreciate this in jest and I'll declare that I have a vested interest (at the moment at least) but to put things in perspective, consultants fees are in the order for magnitude of 10s of £m for each section of the phase 1 to date. You couldn't build much for that money... Agree with penultimate paragraph. Can think of whole lot of false economies with road construction too...maybe not the thing to say in this parish mind you!

For the shirtbuttoned one, that's the first time I have noticed lining around the boiler right next to the cab (guess I just haven't been paying attention either to models or the prototype). As it's on the face of the cab (at least as done here), that would make my plan of turning Glastobury Abbey into a post-war GWR one a bit harder. (Or was this element of the lining omitted in the post-war scheme, in same way as lining below footplate level on cab, tender etc) (Thought this was easier than getting the shirtbutton one and ditching the tender.)

Hattons advised today Glastonbury Abbey in BR Green due 4th November 2013. I know I should be careful what I wish for, but a week later would suit the credit card better.

I do like in particular the last, B&W, one

So here's the main parts: Having posted I'll probably find something missing. Hopefully it will fit together reasonably smoothly with few last minute alterations! Thanks for the interest shown Jon

Well the goods shed construction still hasn't started. It's taken a lot longer to get from the pretty picture to some fabrication drawings with all the bits to be be overlaid on card, printed and so on. As an engineer, I should have realised this wouldn't be a 5 minute job. Duh. Meanwhile a piece of headscratching has been the brickwork for the skew arches for the road bridge. Not an immediately obvious shape, well to me, anyway. I'd like to say I've used some fancy mathematical method to work this out like the Victorian engineers did like those described here but I'll fess up that the above resulted from trial and a lot of error and will still need a bit of fettling in-situ. Thanks for the interest Jon

Brilliant photos, Jules. (By a small margin, third from last is my favourite.)

I've now started on the scenery for the layout. Work in progress are the bridges then I'm going to move on to the earthworks and the buildings. The station buildings I'm going to do last as they're the most complex, so I'm going to start on the goods shed and then the signal box. Here's the CAD drawing for the goods shed which I hope to start making this weekend. In the absence of a drawing for the protype the dimensions have been scaled from photos. I'm not sure about how the platform was arranged inside it, but what I've done makes sense to me, allows for a cart to be backed in and gives a storage area in the corner? I think it's going to be a bit smaller than I first thought when mocking things up, which would be a good thing.

Thanks, Mikkel (and Robin), I need to bookmark this. I've steered clear of buying tank wagons for fear of a historical faux-pas - that will change.

Does the suffix G, H signify any difference in the use of Siphons? It's not just version development is it, because some with same letter (G?) come in inside and outside framed flavours do they not? Again question focuses on understanding difference between the various RTR models, of which I have (all?) three flavours. Does same apply to Fruit x too? More than happy to be directed to a link explaining this! Thanks Jon

Couldn't resist the Hornby one a while back, Mike, so black it will be, renumbered to 1086, Leicester GC methinks (think turn might have been Sheffield loco that did the run to Swindon, but having a black painted one limits the choice) But yes, am hoping Bachmann do the GNR Atlantic too to do the working in the opposite direction. Also motive power for some of the cross-country workings might be where pinch of salt comes in, as couldn't resist a B17 - though need to change the tender. One of the books I have has a photo of Helmingham Hall heading a train of LNER stock north out of Oxford post war, at odds with other info saying locos changed at Banbury. So I'll go with the photo...

Mike, that would be very much appreciated and interesting to see how things changed post war. I've read that workings of locos at least got simpler. As I've said there's going to be limited artistic license in any timetable, though I want to keep things plausible. I am, no doubt, going to have to greatly rationalise things to get something achievable - a constraint as it stands being using RTR stock plus the odd ebay purchase like some PC models toplights plus to acquire a full day's worth of locos would be too ambitious. In due course I do want to have a go at building my own stock but am not hopeful of the outcome. In any case, had better crack on with the layout, timetable can be a nice armchair modelling job for mid winter.

Interesting: one of my "random" e-bay purchases was a K15. Did think I'd wasted my money that it was too old to be used as a brake so good news there The GWRJ articles I was referring to in my OP were, I think, 1937/8. (FWIW the intention is my layout is set post war GW. So, I am taking the ingredients of a 1947 passenger timetable, 1948 BR working timetable, the train formations from thirties, both the GWRJ article and also the info in the Xpress book "Train Formations and Carriage Workings of the Great Western Railway", then will add a pinch of salt, stir well, then reduce...)

Thanks for the detailed reply, Chris. That the "van" could be almost anything is in practise for me is actually a very useful response... What a "news van" was was going to be my next question, but you've answered that too

Ok, so what kind of vehicles might they be if not called up as brake vans or siphons? Are they these just not called up as such?

I have a (silly, quite possibly) question regarding GWR train formations and nomenclature. What is a "Van"? I think I know "Van Third" is what anyone else would call a brake third etc. But what about a plan "Van"? What's prompted this is list of train formations in GWRJ 85 pg 270-273. Sometimes this refers to "Bk Van" so I guess that's a full brake, but some entries are just "Van". It lists out Siphons separately so what are these "Vans"? Some are listed as non corridor hence I am guessing these would be four wheeled, passenger rated vans? Some "Vans" aren't listed as being non-corridor so what might they be? For some trains this could also be the odd item of LMS or LNE stock in addition to or alternating with GW stuff. Sorry, the question isn't very well worded, but hopefully you can make sense of it and give me some help in decyphering this info! (Which is very useful in the context of my layout ) Thanks Jon

Could you sneak in a Dukedog? Depending on when you're modelling some were shedded at Didcot at least until nationalisation.

I think it would be interesting. I am a fan of Iain's writing, especially Mainlines in Modest Places. The Shaftsbury case study is my favourite bit of the Haynes book; pity the layout wasn't built.

Thanks - was going to ask same question. I was going to say a couple of results on ColourRail show 3500g tender post war - but I then realised these are of Lode Star in storage for preservation so don't suppose that counts. For my layout the couple of Oxford Stars post war GW wouldn't be amiss - Morning Star and The British Monarch. Former had elbow pipes fitted in '46 so my plan is to relivery the BR one as you suggest. (Easier for the Stars as no cabside windows to have to add lining around!) For The British Monach, I have a "Star" bought off Ebay someone converted from an old Hornby Castle, not prefect but passable to me in context of my layout - if I keep it moving, no time to rivet count - and as decoder in the loco, swapping tender is easy. I have toyed with getting Lode Star but notwithstanding the warm feeling in helping STEAM through its purchase, buying something "special" to renumber/name feels a bit like sacrilege(!!!) so am resisting.