tractionman

Thanks @Mark Forrest I do like the look of the Vitus and we have a Chain Reaction store nearby I can visit and inspect, as you say the company's situation sounds a bit grim (I follow on Singletrack forum) alas--I have spent the past year dithering on (a) what MTB to get and (b) do I really need an MTB (hence the Mongoose purchase off Gumtree for £65 but now seemingly permanently 'borrowed' by my son...!). The Mongoose puts a smile on my face riding it off-road so (b) is answered affirmative, not so clear cut with (a) at the mo! cheers, Keith

This was a short potter around my local patch on the Mongoose on Sunday in the rain and autumn leaf fall. It's a rare use of the Mongoose as my son keeps running off with it! So I am weighing up doing a Cycle2Work scheme for getting myself a new MTB, but cannot decide whether to get a Trek Marlin (5?) or a Vitus 29er... any thoughts?! Both are around the £500 mark,

looks great, glides along very elegantly :-)

absolutely agree, James May and Pete Waterman made a great double act, really complementary, wouldn't they make a brilliant pairing for their own series?

big reduction at TMC on 35-200 Bachmann OO Gauge LNER V2 4791 LNER Lined Green (Original) now £137.98 https://www.themodelcentre.com/35-200

really stunning, thanks for the pics, what a superb thing of beauty, love it :-)

looks superb, sadly a while back I had to cancel my preorder of D6704 :-( but I take pleasure in seeing everyone else's :-)

I hope this delay might be a sign that Hatton's are increasing their factory orders of these! Especially the Midland Railway ones, as they're all sold out on pre-order... clearly there is high demand.

York Tap is a fave spot for me, sitting outside in the fenced off area with views of the running lines, brilliant. Bree Louise in London -- RIP -- was my fave close to Euston. For Dublin Connolly, the Brew Dock has some good beer -- https://maps.app.goo.gl/4w1W1mvfabXVt1Kr9

painted bodyshells https://www.hattons.co.uk/directory/versiondetails/article?id=1139 I do like the look of these locos, early LMS for me :-)

Rails have shaved a few quid off: https://railsofsheffield.com/products/Heljan-1080-north-british-prototype-10800-br-early-emblem-black-silver-sr-lmr-condition now £199.95...

I have been looking for something like this for a while on Gumtree, and though it might be a tad on the small size for me, with the saddle up it'll be fine, especially for getting out into the forest parks here over winter. The bike is in very good order, was bought in Oz apparently and then brought back with a house move to the UK, they're not that common here, Mongoose MTBs? It's a 3x chain ring so looking a little out-dated these days with everyone's 1x bikes, but for the cost of one Heljan Car Transporter I'm not complaining!

just got this off Gumtree for 65 notes, it'll be something to take off-road during the winter months:

I might be missing something here, the blurb says "Save up to 50% off a variety of pre-owned items." but checking out the items in the sale, the 'reduction' in price of the second hand stuff seems to be in relation to the original new price for the item, and not a reduction of the second hand price? 😕 https://www.hattons.co.uk/newsdetail?id=1333

the way the ground falls away in the foreground with the viaduct in the background looks fantastic, great modelling and realism.

Well done @big jim I fully sympathesise with the uphill struggle to get moving again after a period off the bike... I injured my leg on a ride out a good few weeks ago and it's still not right, but I took the single speed out for a pootle around my old stomping grounds this morning around Monks Kirby in Warwickshire in the gorgeous sunshine. What a tonic being on the bike is, drifting along the lanes, sun on the fields, autumnal colours, fantastic, and a coffee and scone en route. 20 miles in all, hoping now I don't 'pay for it' tomorrow... Pausing in Monk's Kirby, I did my undergrad dissertation on this area many moons ago! Malt Kiln farmshop and cafe at Stretton under Fosse, definitely recommended :-) Great to see everyone's bikes and trips out. cheers, Keith

Kernow have these in stock at a reduced price: https://www.kernowmodelrailcentre.com/p/72396/38-552B-Bachmann-MR-20T-Brake-Van-with-Duckets-LMS-Grey

whether or not the money ever really materialises, it's like saying ok I'm going to not build the extension on the house--having laid the foundations--but spend the same cash on some new carpets, some interior decor, and perhaps a new bathroom--it's so shortsighted...

From BBC "Mr Sunak said the government "will reinvest every single penny" saved from cancelling the remainder of HS2, which he said totals £36bn." So instead of investing in core national rail infrastructure, for the same amount--ie no saving £££s--we're getting a bitty piecemeal programme of road and rail projects? For the same amount as HS2? I find this bizarre, I thought if HS2 was being pulled, it was to save money? But it's just to divert the spend elsewhere... and much of it in areas in the North with devolved administrations?

just got a notification from Hattons, now due January 2024.

Weekend visit to the Midlands and an opportunity to take the single speed out for a short spin around some Warwickshire lanes while visiting my dad in hospital in Coventry, I bought this bike off a chap via Gumtree as a cheap runabout to use when I am over visiting dad, it's really nimble and I like riding it:

I like the way you've used the Scenecraft buildings to make up the station, looks really effective 👍 Hope all goes well with the rest of the layout build. cheers, Keith

Interesting, thanks, yes I see more buildings have also appeared on Davenport Lane by 1936, associated with the works, and offering more scope for hiding the edge of a layout on the western side.

IRR 254 (Sept 2023) has a picture of Bagnall 12" 0-4-0 ST No. 2612 of 1939, bought by George Richards & Co for its Atlantic Works at Broadheath (p.214), it's this picture (taken by Alex Appleton in 1947) that so caught my eye when I was leafing through the issue. IRS membership definitely worth the money! George Richards & Co., Ltd. Manchester; Broadheath, England, U.K. Manufacturer Class: Wood Working Machinery & Metal Working Machinery Inf on the company and works at http://vintagemachinery.org/mfgindex/detail.aspx?id=2985#:~:text=Founded as a private company,Tilghmans Patent Sand Blast Co. some more inf on the works with pictures here https://www.gracesguide.co.uk/George_Richards_and_Co

SB stands for Signal Box but I don't think the letters relate to the building they're written over as it's an odd size and shape for a signal box and there's a siding running into it, so my guess is the building is a shed of some kind, in the goods yard, and the abbreviation for the signal box refers to the building closer to the running lines to the right? Edit--on second thought, I'm thinking not a building such as a shed as it's not hatched so perhaps a platform in the yard?