brianthesnail96

I do like the very subtle tweaks you are making to these- things like reshaped cab windows and dome- very difficult to identify unless one is an expert on the locomotive in question, but enough for the casual observer like myself to look twice and go "hmm". Looking at the pictures of the partially stripped 2-8-0 I can't help wondering how it'd look with a shorter (superheaterless) smokebox as "Thame". I suspect it might look a bit peculiar with the fairly modern looking Fowler cab and large cylinders sadly- changing those too might be a little too drastic!

ARC has answered your questions r.e. drawings previously in this thread, i.e. he's used what's available, and where not has made reasonable assumptions based on known dimensions, and the inevitable compromises of making kits to suit RTR chassis. Fundamentally the models are representations, not accurate scale models. If that isn't acceptable to you then fine, by all means take your wallet elsewhere (but it'll need to be a lot fatter than the sub £30 these kits are selling for...), instead of indulging in a rather unnecessarily agressive line of questioning. It rather appears as if you have a bit of an agenda, because the models don't fit your demanding criteria (you wouldn't be the only one on this forum to have such an agenda, but most stick to flinging rotten fruit at the major RTR manufacturers and leave the "cottage industry" manufacturers to it). For the record- no connection to ARC whatsoever, I haven't even seen a kit "in the resin", but had these been available when I was a teenager dabbling in small space industrial 00 some 10 years ago, attempting to bash plasticard into something vaguely representative of a industrial saddletank, I'd have been a very happy space, money and skill impoverished modeller indeed.

Fantastic! Everyone loves a Mk1, They even almost pull off beige Brilliant looking car. And yes, it is another Marina lurking in the background- a Mk1 again, but an 1800 this time...

Indeed. If they are so utterly terrible... why are you Moggy boys so keen to whip half the mechanics out to modernise your jellymoulds? I've got three of the damn things Jeff. I'm entirely incapable of giving any form of rational explanation for this, even to myself...

Ahh- I might not be much use when it comes to dating photographs from class 50 liveries, but Morris Marinas I can do... That one is a later Mk1 1300SDL saloon, SDL ("Super Deluxe") being the higher of the two (!) trim levels available on the Mk1 1300, with such luxuries as carpets, top panels on the doorcards and the stainless arch trim over the basic DL (Deluxe) model. Purchasers of the 1800 could also go for the sporty TC (Twin Carb), which got even more stainless trim (bits to trap muck on the sills as well as the arches, etc etc) and- the height of decadence- a centre console! Sorry for the thread drift- another thread I've been thoroughly enjoying, but with very little to add myself, not being born until the late 80's...

The media, and thus that portion of society which reads the media, i.e. most of it, seems to want us to think that whenever anything goes wrong the British way is no longer to make do, muck in and get on with sorting it out, but instead to shout at the Government, various other agencies and management types, probably the banks as well for good measure. We blame them for not planning ahead, for not predicting the future well enough, for not investing enough money in the right places- oh, and we blame them for spending too much money, investing in the wrong things etc etc as well. As such, it's been incredibly refreshing to read through this thread and, amongst the drivel, find a few gems from the good Cap'n and a few of his associates "on the ground", showing that there is a plan, there are people quietly and without fuss getting on with it and sorting it out, both short term and with some options lined up and being considered for the future, despite the decidedly adverse conditions and safety implications, and no doubt a certain amount of interference from the know- better brigade. Fantastic stuff folks- I salute you, please keep up the good work! Oh, and it's nice that at least a few folks have remembered that a.) Plymouth exists and b.) it ain't in damn Cornwall! Three happy years as a student there, and with my young lady being a year behind me I'm very grateful to the GW mainline for bring her up to Gloucestershire to see me at regular intervals for the year I left her down there Train was invariably busy too!

I've never actually tried a Slaters kit, so really aren't qualified to comment! The actual written text of Parkside's instructions is fine, but the diagrams (which look to have been photocopied about half a million times) can require careful studying at times as it's all a bit blurred, or is on the couple I've built anyway. Not a complaint, by the way- all part of the fun for me

I have to say that those instructions look rather better than Parkside's, which are quite comical at times. Very grateful to Paul Bartlett for his excellent website to use as reference when it comes to working out odd details! I've retro fitted three links with a spilt pin spring retainer to a second hand wagon, which was a faff to say the least. Bill's method sounds like a good one to try! I'm surprised that the Slaters one doesn't have a washer to retain the spring. The Parkside hooks are much easier, as they become a split pin in themselves, but they don't look as good! Edit- that sounded a little condescending, sorry- it wasn't meant to, more of an "I feel your pain, but battle through 'cos it's all the more satisfying when you get it fettled"

That Scammell is ace Dave

Not completely on topic I know, but do you know if there will there be examples of the new wagons on display Brian? Much as I'd like a 60, a short rake of tankers is a rather more realistic aim!

Popped in to Antics on the way home to put one on order for my Dad, to find that they'd arrived (in the warehouse anyway). No photos 'cos I'm not picking it up until Friday- they are offering the GWR one without chip for a little less, if you ask them nicely

For my wallet;s sake, could someone find something negative to say about these wee beasties please...? Must admit I've never really been one for sound, particularly in the smaller scales. But the Pauls have managed to convince me otherwise with this, it's brilliant. I've a bit of a thing for older "small" diesel engines anyway, but it really does sound the part. I'd be forever shutting it off though, just to hear the fantastic shut down & start up sequences- very familiar (along with the rather long winded gear shifts!) from the "other" hobby of classic commercials, although we don't have the luxury of a donkey engine there- a pair of freshly charged batteries & hope for the best Will EDM have a demonstrator at the Brizzle 0 gauge show?

It's not particularly! I've not put a thread up on here as a.) I didn't build it (unashamed cheque book modeller me, in 4mm/ft anyway- I save that for 16mm/ft, where mistakes are a lot more obvious but no-one counts rivets!) but bought it complete from a chap rather more talented than myself on the "New Railway Modellers" forum and b.) I just tend to "play trains" with it instead of anything too serious. There are some modifications I'd like to make though, so perhaps I will post a thread up in the relevant section as it might give me an incentive to get on with it! I'll stick a link here when I do.

Didn't know that- cheers. I knew they were fairly small but not perhaps as small as they are- I suspect this may be something to do with the fact that most previous attempts at RTR "industrial" diesels in 00 have been rather on the overscale side, and so to see one that's realistically small is a bit of a surprise. I took a couple of quick snaps against a Bachmann ex SR van anyway, for a better size comparison. In the bird's eye view they are both "on the stops", the flash was on for that one which gives a better colour representation & you can see how fine the sidesheets are. I look forward to seeing some of the micro layouts that will hopefully appear as a result of this loco coming out. Will attempt to chip it tomorrow or Wednesday & will report back.

I rather like the Ribble ones- two of the three based there have been there "from new" and are still doing more or less the job they were bought for. Would be interesting to see the Hornby one modified to represent one of the trio in it's current state. Anyway, I gave into temptation today and popped into Antics' warehouse shop and came away with a Cattedown one. Must admit I'm quite impressed with it- although it does look a little plastic in certain (bright!) lights, which the blue livery (being a "heavier" colour) doesn't seem to suffer from. I think I might disassemble it at some point and paint the insides of the body, & possibly the inside of the side plates to try and stop the shine through effect. It does highlight just how thin & how detailed the side plates are though! Mine aren't perfectly lined up with the cabsides (I'm wondering if they could actually be attached to & removed with the cab instead of to the footplate?) but it doesn't detract too much. I bought a Lenz silver mini with it, which will obviously have to be hard wired- but I've been really impressed with the slow speed performance of the Lenz chips in my Bachmann steam locos so I'm hoping it'll do the trick with this too. I took a couple of snaps on "Cranogwen", my WR BLT (which is doesn't fit in with in the slightest of course), not the best but everyone likes pictures! & for a size comparison with the common or garden 16 tonner; I hadn't registered quite how small it was: Don't pay too much attention to the colours- again, my 'phone camera makes a complete hash of the red, it's a lot better with the naked eye. Not helped that the lighting in the railway room is terrible. Suppose I need some 70's era tank wagons now- and a blue diesel to work in with them...

I don't believe it carried the name in it's working days, although I could be wrong- so it probably is technically "as preserved". The thread on here discussing the Cattewater branch & bitumen terminal can be found here. As for the windows, they aren't exactly great & hopefully someone will come up with a better alternative but on a loco selling around the £50 mark I can live with that. Just because something is small, it doesn't make it cheaper to make, and at today's prices this is well into "budget" territory.

The Cattewater one looks quite realistically pink in some of those stills! I have to say it looks rather better than I anticipated from the earlier pre- production photos. Will have to have a look at them, although they don't fit in at all with my layout I'd rather like one a.) to support the fact that someone has actually bought out a reasonable attempt at a true industrial loco in RTR 00, and b.) I spent a happy three years in Plymouth a couple of years back, including exploring a little bit of the remains of the Cattewater branch.

Father Christmas was good enough to put a copy under the tree, on RMWeb's reccomendation. I'm very glad he did, I've had a thumb through this morning & it's excellent.

I see what you mean about him being lucky to hit the wall- if he'd got a bit further round the corner he'd have gone a lot further down the hill! Hope it's not too much of a battle with the insurers. This year's Christmas card run completed without incident (and in my own car!) which was a relief. For the record, no alcohol involvement last year, I'm teetotal- just over exuberance, a very wet road, mismatched tyres and an unfamiliar car. A Mazda MX5 responds a lot faster to throttle inputs than a knackered Morris Marina... Other than that, I think you lot have successfully put me off kids for life! And working in IT, if Beast's account is anything to go by...