BMacdermott

Hello everyone Although I check the 'new content' list at least twice a day, this thread somehow evaded me until today! I have read and contributed to MREmag almost from its very start and hope that the planned changes will enable some form of continuation of what I - and many others - see as a valid, relevant, informative and highly enjoyable 'magazine'. It is 'dear to the heart' of many. Someone wrote to me yesterday and said: "I feel like I have just lost a very good friend." I'm sure the Board of MREmag would be interested to hear from Paftrain (#3) as to why he has 'switched off'. Personally, I feel that Phil has done a grand job without ever missing a single publication date (to the best of my knowledge). He has been a delight to work with since day one of his tenure. He is 'holding the fort' until the end of the year and my thanks go out to him for that. I fully understand his reasons for moving on (next year). If Paftrain doesn't want to speak publicly, then he can feel free to PM his comments to me and I will pass them forward. Indeed, I will offer to do the same for anyone else - as long as they are reasonably brief, polite and constructive; that includes anything you feel is 'wrong'. Some friends and I will be doing all we can to provide the Board with ideas for a secure future. All is not lost - the ride is just a bit turbulent and foggy at the moment! Brian

Hello Stationmaster (#30) According to what we say in The Guide to The Wishlist Poll, they lasted generally to the mid-50s. Poll Team member, John Lewis, photographed one in the mid-60s. It had not long been withdrawn from service. Brian Macdermott (on behalf of The Poll Team)

Hello GWRrob The Van received 134 votes in The Wishlist Poll 2015. That placed it in the upper echelons of the Middle Polling segment. It was about the same in 2014. By comparison (in 2015), Heljan's Tank Wagon had 138 votes; Oxford's LNER 6-plank had 126 votes; Hornby's Coke Hopper had 125; and Oxford's LNER Cattle Wagon had 124. Brian Macdermott (on behalf of The Poll Team)

Hello Iain Sorry......my plan seems to have loaded sideways! Brian

Hello Iain That looks really good! And thanks for the extra detail of your thoughts - I can now see why you want Camden side too be 'off the wall'. I have attached a (very!) rough sketch plan. It may look complex at first sight, but it's dead easy and only involves four points, which saves a heck of a lot of money. It has a 'Lower Reverse Loop' at 0". Trains emerge from one of two linear hidden roads into the 'Camden Scenic Area'. Just prior to emerging, the baseboards would be starting to angle upwards, as the trains need to climb 3" to clear the Lower Reverse Loop. It works out at about 1 in 120 between A and B. My own layout has no problem with 10-coach trains. The positives are: Only four points (less cost, less risk of derailment etc) Loads of storage space. The negatives are Harder to build. Needs DPDT polarity reversal switches. There is only little option for bringing trains out of the sidings. It might be harder for the workbench positioning. I'll PM some photos of my layout to you later. Brian

Hello Iain Could the layout go right up the wall occupied by the workbench, then put the workbench over the curved section so that you are always 'on the inside'? It would probably need to be 'lift off' or 'fold up' style. The 'shed side' could then butt directly up to the wall with the door opening. It would also result in slightly more track space and a wider central operating area (or same area but with a few more hidden siding tracks). Brian

Hello Phil (#6) The SR Cattle Wagon has been in the 'high pollers' of The Wishlist Poll since 2012. Brian

Hello Tony Great to see you and Mo enjoying yourselves at Peterborough this morning and many thanks for showing me the lovely models you had with you. One of the highlights of the show for me! Kind regards Brian

Hello Oz You are right about the SHT/P&M Peckett E Class 0-4-0ST (in GWR/BR livery) polling low....but in the Industrial category, the Industrial 0-4-0ST - Outside Cylinders came in with 291 votes, placing it in The Top 20. Brian (on behalf of The Poll Team)

Dear All Some extracts for you.... Railway Observer May 1960, page 162: The first of a new series of diesel multiple units from the B.R.C.& W. works passed through Birmingham (Snow Hill) on 26th March. Trains Illustrated May 1960, page 305: A photo with the caption: One of Pressed Steel's first three-car diesel multiple units for the Western Region, photographed at Southall. The cars are Nos.W51332/74 and W59484. (Photo L.Harper). The unit was unlined. Trains Illustrated May 1960, page 313: The Birmingham R.C. & W. Co. has completed its first three-car diesel multiple unit for the W.R., cars Nos.51302/17 and 59469, which left the Smethwick works on March 22. Trains Illustrated June 1960, page 378/9: The first Birmingham R.C. & W. three-car diesel multiple unit for the Western Region, Nos.51302*/17 and 59469, arrived at the Harwell Street diesel depot, Plymouth, early in April and was put on crew training between Plymouth and Truro. Page 379 showed a photo of the unit taken by RC Riley on 8 April 1960. It was lined. Notes: 1. * TI stated 59302. 2. There do not appear to be marker lights on either unit. Brian Brian

Thanks Chris L, Chris F, Mike etc for some interesting comments and photos. If you have a look at Class 118 at www.railcar.co.uk you will see a 118 without marker lights. Railway research.....never easy, is it! Brian

Good to see these - and in the 'new style packing'. I was at the NRM (York) a few days ago and thought then that the model display cabinet could do with some 'corporate identity'. I wish Brian and Simon all the best in this worthwhile venture - with more to come. Brian

Hello Julian I'm afraid I can't help with specific formations, but - as I worked within sight of the line just outside Waterloo in 1984/5 - I do have a log of what locos worked the trains. If you're interested, send me a PM and will scan the logs to you. Brian

Hello Andy An amazing achievement! Congratulations on reaching this important milestone. Many thanks for all your hard work (and to those 'behind the scenes'). Long may it continue. Brian

Hello Arthur The survey covered all types of kits - locos, rolling stock, card kits etc. Brian

Hello everyone On the subject of kits, I recently ran a very informal survey on MREmag. I didn't specify what type of kits - just kits in general. There were 104 respondents. The results were: 9% Probably won't make any. 48% Probably will make some. 43% Probably will make all. 40 Respondents had between 1 and 9 kits. 64 Respondents had 10+ kits. Numerous respondents were unable to say how many kits they actually had as they were 'stored away'. Those who were able to reply are as below: 12 Respondents - Between 10 and 49 kits 8 Respondents - Between 50 and 99 kits 7 Respondents - 100+ kits Let me reiterate that this was an informal survey of just MREmag readers and should not be taken as necessarily being representative of all kit buyers. Brian

Hello Tony Firstly, all the very best for 2015 to you and everyone else who contributes to this highly entertaining and informative thread! I am an ex-Quality Manager and firmly believe that the Heljan approach to getting it right - including via you and others here - is entirely the correct way to proceed. The sum of the total will always exceed the sum of the individual parts! I am out of my depth in the technicalities, but I hope the following will help. Over on MREmag, we have had some discussion of late concerning: return cranks; quartering; and leads. I gather from others with 'loco backgrounds' that these areas could benefit from greater fidelity to the prototype in many cases. Please don't ask me, as I don't know; I simply offer the subjects in case they get overlooked. Regards and thanks to you all. Brian

Hello Stationmaster (et al) The following is not 'definitive evidence' and is not intended to detract from anything said earlier (particularly about the name being used locally at Oxford). I was a trainspotter around London in the late 50s/early 60s, and an enthusiast since, but had never heard the term 'Night Owl' until last year. My good friend (and fellow member of the Steam Railway Research Society) penned an article about the class which appeared in Steam Days (May and July 2013) as alluded to in posting #59. 'Night Owl' appears in the sub-title and in the caption to the first photo - but, if I recall correctly, Richard didn't write those elements of the text. I have emailed him about this, but he is often away from his computer. In the book Four Thousand Miles on The Footplate (1952), OS Nock wrote an article about a 47xx working. He refers to them simply as '47s'. I will be ordering Heljan's model asap! Brian

Hello Mike and Tony It seems that there are drawings etc in Bob Essery's 'The M&GN Jt Railway and its Locomotives'. Brian

Hello Tony and Mike I may be wrong but I have a feeling that the M&GN apparatus was slightly different to that of the S&D. Mike Arlett is trying to find out for me, so I'll write back soon. In 4mm, any differences might be too small to worry about, but it's worth me checking - even for my own education. Regards Brian

Hello Tony (et al) I wonder if anyone can help with a long-standing query with King's Cross in BR steam days? Most speed limits are in round figures...10mph, 20mph etc, but those at King's Cross station throat were 8mph. A photo on page 45 of P.N. Townend's book, Top Shed, shows the same speed limit applying to road traffic into the depot. Is there a story behind that figure? Brian Macdermott

As noted a few days ago, I have been liaising with some coaching stock friends with regard to what Thompson vehicle Tony might propose to Bachmann. Here’s what we think. We have written it in this format in the hope that it ‘rounds out’ all the very interesting discussion. Buffet Lounge Car (Diag.352) Built with fairing over solebars and used in the Flying Scotsman. Teak, then Red & Cream livery. Taken off Scotsman 1953 and moved to The Elizabethan until 1957 (still in Red & Cream or already Maroon?). Rebuilt 1958/9, maroon livery. The corridor side remained unaltered apart from the solebar fairing being removed. The pantry side was altered considerably and the original 8-seat lounge area was subsumed into a 24-seat saloon. Used in general ECML service; the Cambridge Buffet Express trains; Manchester-Harwich Boat Train (according to one author and one eye witness of our acquaintance, but we have no photographic evidence); and finally in Scotland. Re-painted in Blue/Grey livery (date?). E1705E renumbered as Sc1705E between 1.1.76 and 31.12.77. Withdrawn in 1979. Became a Departmental vehicle and appeared in Olive Green livery. E1706E had a similar history to E1705E, being withdrawn in c.1978 as Sc1706E. It has been preserved at Llangollen; they have restored it to original condition, reinstating the solebar fairing and painting it Red & Cream. The interior has been returned to the original including the 8-seat lounge. The difficulties with this one are: Most modellers don’t have room for a prototypical Flying Scotsman or Elizabethan. Many of the other required vehicles are not available RTR (and may well never be). The rebuild might add too much expense to any maker’s costs – given that ‘catering’ won’t sell as many as ‘ordinary’ stock. The benefits are: Gives a Blue/Grey vehicle and Departmental possibility (although we aren’t sure if it was physically altered in the latter service). 1705/6 have ‘celebrity status’ – they were the last pre-Nationalisation passenger-carrying vehicles in (public) service. Restaurant First (Diag.354) (later downgraded to RU) Built 1948/9 Simulated Teak, Red & Cream and Maroon liveries. Withdrawn mid-1960s. The difficulties are: The simulated Teak might be difficult due to the ‘grain’ running in different directions on the upper and lower panels. Restricted geographical use (but, surely, much more route mileage than Bachmann Birdcage stock?). Hasn’t had much support in the annual Wishlist Poll (but maybe modellers don’t know what they’re missing!? Perhaps Tony might write an article?). The benefits are: From the modeller’s perspective, could be used in the 9-coach Fair Maid with Bachmann Mk1 stock: BSK + SK + SK + SK + RU + RFO + CK + FK + BSK. This could be compressed to: BSK + SK + RU + CK and/or FK + BSK (i.e. five or six coaches). As noted by Coachman, the vehicle was a ‘good seller’ in times gone by. The Thompson style and the white windows ‘stand out’ nicely in an otherwise Mk1 train. Lighting would enhance the effect. Enables the modeller to run ‘an important train’. Would provide a good balance against Hornby’s Gresley Buffet Car. Another shortish train is the Norseman (see below). Notes to above: Link to Norseman: https://flic.kr/p/9tNATs Link to Talisman: https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/u/32711444/Articles/Talisman_Notes_17-7-13.pdf Brian (with thanks to Chris Knowles-Thomas, Robert Carroll and Ian Taylor)

Hello Dave Can't keep up with all your announcements today!! Very well done again. As you know, I am a member of The Wishlist Poll Team. In the 2013 results, the Class 59 was the top-voted diesel loco (just missing being in The Overall Top 50 by four votes) The Class 71 was the top-voted electric loco placing it in overall ninth position! The Class 74 was the second most popular electric, placing it way up in the Top 50. I will certainly look into pacing an order for the 71 once you have the details sorted. All the very best! Brian

Hello Tony I'm not sure how to get the link to work here on RMweb, but if readers go to Flickr and (in the search bar) enter E1706E, they will find some more photos of the vehicle on the Llangollen Railway and some showing it in Blue/Grey. I am given to understand that one of the pair (1705?) eventually became a departmental coach at York (1985) and was painted Olive Green. It looks to me that the rebuilding work would effectively make it 'two projects' from a maker's perspective. A friend (a non Webber) has just returned from holiday and is looking up some rebuild data for me over the next few days. I think Coachman has a good point (#1832) that people go for 'looks' rather than absolute practicality. Not many have space to model prototypical Flying Scotsman sets etc, but many run compressed expresses. The best we can hope for in RTR is a reasonable range of coaching stock, and the Thompson RF (later RU) would fill a needy gap. I'll get back with more on this debate in a day or two. Brian

Hello 31A I'd love one of these. But weren't they rebuilt in 1959? Did that alter their appearance? If so, that might be a dampener as far as Bachmann is concerned as they'd need pre-1959 and post-1959 tools made. If the 'rebuild' was mainly internal, then maybe any small external differences could be accommodated with what I believe are called 'slip moulds'. Brian