tractionman

if I want to be sure of not being disturbed by the phone I put it on aircraft mode.

ah those were the days... would be nice if there was equivalent footage from New Street in c.1978 and I could see if I could spot myself! cheers, Keith

wouldn't you just love to go and live at Kirtley Bridge, popping over to the Golden Lion for a lunchtime pint and then sitting in the summer sunshine on the bench at the station watching the comings and goings... then hop on that bicycle and pedal off across the fields back home?

Rails have put up this https://railsofsheffield.com/blogs/news/bachmanns-winter-2022-announcements cheers, Keith

I found a ford today too, good to be out on the bike, been rubbish weather all week and this was a small gap in otherwise relentless wind and rain, plus the hour change meant I didn't have to get up so early, anyway, some pics and a map cheers, Keith

pics of the 'real' BR Blue version of the model looking good, https://www.hattons.co.uk/859206/dapol_4d_006_018_class_73_1_73120_in_br_blue/stockdetail https://www.kernowmodelrailcentre.com/p/75897/4D-006-018-Dapol-Class-73-JB-Electro-Diesel---73-120---BR-Blue cheers, Keith

just received from PI HQ :-) "All of the items from order #****** have now been shipped: 2x Kerr, Stuart 'Victory' 0-6-0T" fantastic--much excitement!

good to see the NLS georeferenced version of the 25" too, and the adjoining sheet to the west--https://maps.nls.uk/geo/explore/#zoom=18.0&lat=54.97153&lon=-1.59602&layers=168&b=1 I reckon adding in a 'Quayside Passenger Station' to the scene might also warrant getting one of these too... https://railsofsheffield.com/products/Heljan-rl3172-north-eastern-railway-electric-autocar-no3171-redcream-1904-30 cheers, Keith

that quayside picture with the rails in setts, and tramway type wiring, looks very 'modelable', especially with the high retaining wall (aka backscene)--I already have the lovely Bachmann NER J72 too... cheers, Keith

es-quisite

for those waiting and watching... https://railsofsheffield.com/blogs/news/new-product-announcement

good point--if we are talking steam, building on Rails' 'Precedent' success and on LMS lines I would love to see a Johnson 'Spinner'-- https://collection.sciencemuseumgroup.org.uk/objects/co205779/steam-locomotive-number-673-steam-locomotive

yep NER Class ES1? -- something NER (LNER) flavoured, considering Rails' previous form in this area (ie the NER petrol-electric railcar thing), and Heljan's previous form on electric bo-bo locos (eg the Met locos)? and of course something quirky in the NRM collection-- https://www.lner.info/locos/Electric/es1.php

gosh, more than two and a half years have passed since I last said something was about to happen on the new layout! what on earth have I been doing? well, for too long dithering about the track plan, and buying (too much) stuff--a decision though has now been made: to fix up the BR 1960s-80s side of the layout (ie transition-livery diesels and BR Blue eras) using the various kits I had built for the depot area, and a few ready to plonk items I have stock-piled... so this could be it, I have seen the future, here's a taster (in arty B&W): cheers, Keith

interview in the Observer https://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2022/oct/23/track-star-meet-tiktoks-trainspotter-sensation cheers, Keith

I had slime in my inner tubes for a while, I'll be interested to hear how you get on with it @big jim as in the end I chucked the tubes because the valves gummed up with the stuff and I could not get them to stop leaking air. I am sure too they added to the rolling resistance but that may have just been me! I had a puncture from a hawthorn a couple of weeks ago so swapped my tyres to ones with a chunkier tread, Schwalbe Land Cruisers, I'll see how I get on. Certainly they feel good on the rougher stuff. cheers, Keith

I subscribed to Traction for many years and also bought up back issues so I had a complete run--I stopped subscribing to the print edition last year for two main reasons-- 1. the print quality was to my mind getting poor, especially photo reproduction, as others (above) have also noted, and the overall production seemed 'thin'; 2. I started Gold Membership to get rid of the ads on RMWeb so had access to Traction digitally, so I dip into it now and then. I used to like buying the print edition from newsagents etc and switched to a print sub because it was getting difficult to source locally, and there was a good offer on the sub, at the time, but Traction has drifted from what it once was in terms of content, so now it is the occasional article or feature that grabs my interest and I download a PDF of it from the online sub. It's a pity really, there's no other rail mag I now get regularly apart from Railway Modeller, which I buy every month, some of the newer mags on the heritage and traction scene, such as 'Railways Illustrated' and 'Trackside', look good--quality print etc--but don't quite hit the right spot for me. I hope Traction continues, and if feedback was sought I would suggest more good old BR traction stuff and upping the print quality. cheers, Keith

now at £140 DCC ready! https://www.modelrailwaysdirect.co.uk/oo9/Bachmann-narrow-gauge-391-102-ffestiniog-railway-double-fairlie-earl-of-merioneth-fr-lined-green/ looking tempting...

some further pics on Rails -- https://railsofsheffield.com/blogs/news/further-hunslet-images cheers, Keith

another jaunt around Tollymore Forest Park yesterday, hazy sunshine and Autumn colours, and a new set of tyres (Schwalbe Land Cruisers!) to test out :-) I am using Harvey Maps more and more rather than OS for forays, I like the colours and the cartography, plus the sheets are easily carried and waterproof: cheers, Keith

I find Smith's on stations often have a good selection of railway mags especially the more popular platform-ender locations, I spotted Traction for sale at Smith's at York station this week for instance. I used to have a Traction sub for many years but now with rmweb gold I use the digital version, I must admit I was beginning to find the magazine print and paper quality not what it once was ☹️

I ordered a CCT from RMS, well packaged and a good price (well below RRP), my only criticism was the postage cost at £6.45 -- the item price itself was low enough for me to swallow paying out the high P&P rate, but only just--and despite being RM 48hr delivery it took 5 days to arrive (but probably more due to current RM issues)... cheers, Keith

looks pretty impressive, seriously tempted but I'm supposed to be reining it in 🙄 thanks for the pics though. cheers, Keith

spotted on Twitter--- https://images.app.goo.gl/FFqyMtyaXfnCESwP6

tempting https://www.hattons.co.uk/976838/hattons_originals_h4_6t_901a_6_wheel_3rd_generator_unit_de320104e_in_br_blue_grey_limited_edition_of_300/stockdetail