Robert Shrives

Bernard, festive greetings !! I am glad you went the extra 26 miles ... 15 wagons is very impressive and satisfyingly noisy over rail joints as it rolls around the layout. Plenty to keep me going with a load of 10 autoballaster kits to finish off and currently putting in the ratchet tensioner holes and side framing on a 3 Tench wagons also of society parentage. I need to cut a zillion strips for concrete sleepers a use some finescale track and sleepers on top row.. one wagon will be stanchions for code 40 rail but need to sort out some sort of strapping to hold down load, needs to be 0.4mm wide. Hopefully not into the SABLE situation - "stock acquired beyond life expectancy ..."

Couple more pics, 15th not shown now has dummy tail lamp, 6 hooks and one ferry lashing eye refitted. So for a first in a long time a completed project.

Hi Festive greetings ! This has taken a long time to complete but I now have got 15 KSA cubes running. N gauge soc kit introduced a "few years back" and having been a Saltley seagull then really a required train. Obvs 47145 to haul it along with another.. but these are packed away so a green 31- old chassis and it romps with 15 on! A couple of pics, if I knew how then moving pictures would be better. The side on shot shows the myriad of transfers 12 or so per side so 24 per wagon X15 = madness , but now it is done. Bogies are the society /atm ones but fitted with Dapol fixed knuckle couplers 1 short and one med makes for a good gap - train has to run over a bit of 12" rad curve. Paint is just Halfords red primer and a ford polar grey for chassis - the panel lines on Bernard Taylor`s excellent mastered resin body is a posca grey paint pen which matches the polar grey by chance... a bit "more than lucky" bogies are held on by self tapping screws from Spalding fastenings . I have to refit one brake wheel and a couple of ferry hooks I have lost- where do they go ! Luckily Ben Ando on the etch works knew of my hamfistedness and has got spares ... It has helped my day off work go by with the last fixing of body shells to chassis and a chance to clear dust sheets of Templedean and give a spin, Dapol HST testing inner circle.

Does look to be good one , with social distancing and bubbles in use its very modern image. DCC sound might be a problem but I am sure an expert can sort. I look forward to the scenic developments. Perhaps your wife is more into railways than you thought ... Have a good one if you survive! Robert

Always enjoyed the thread and insights - it is a well modelled scene and I too hope storage has not been too harsh, Hopefully a reasonably good festive period and getting back to the layout will refire the mojo! Take care and festive greetings. Robert

One correction the can I used was Ford Ivory , the polar grey is good for a BR grey coach colour. Really like the model that "Ben Alder" has shown. Robert

N gauge HSFV model newly finished. Rail blue and yellow ends - blue give a light dusting of a grey when wet to fade back a little. I have used Farish loco buffers over the 3 D printed ones . While it has rapdio couplers that might change when in a train- bar coupling or magnetics as no shunting will be required. Just need to find suitable train formation ... any ideas welcome. I hope to fit a few decals and brakepipes as it looks a bit naked and of course a bit of rail grime will garnish. Thanks to Paul for supplying the oomph! to create and supply the kit. cheers Robert

Hi Light cream is where I would go, white too stark and even a lightest grey /off white for window frames for me. Possibly Halfords offer rattle can as spray will give a better coat than brushing - just stray lightly in both directions . On an N gauge model I used a Ford Polar grey IIRC which is a light grey heading towards a cream shade as an Intercity buff / grey and I think this is very good. albeit my N gauge Dornoch is in Rail grey, as is the footbridge. Robert

Just ordered some 1mm scorched and 2mm patchy, I have some others as well so hopefully will be able to experiment on Christmas day after putting sprouts on at 06.00 .. Robert

The scorched grass looks very good and I will have to search it out for my N gauge project, great phots of a lovely layout - here is to warmer days. Robert

Hopefully a Hunslet 101- 3 will be on the cards ... for the NIR versions. Robert

Hi the Ian Allen combined volumes of the era had livery codes for stock. Often these can be picked up cheaply from preserved railways or ebay as a source. IIRC all got swallow livery my memory ( oft wrong) is trying to tell me one PC missed out on Exec livery and went Blue grey to Swallow on the Western region but I cannot recall the number - a 1 in 198 chance of being right!! Robert

Just read the article and a good read and it looks really good. When the time comes I could give it a good retirement home with several other layouts I have conserved over the years. It was good of you to mention TINGS. While staffing the show I did suggest to quite a few vistors go and find the layout as I thought it showcased all that is good in N gauge. As Rambling Rich says it could be 4mm or even 7 mm it is so good a creation. To me a measure of the success is the lack of scale give away. Robert

A house move will see closure notices posted, but perhaps a new development in the future. looking over your shoulder with the build and operating has been very enjoyable, instructive and great fun! If you do get to move hopefully as much space can be devoted to the SW line. Thanks for showing.

Hi Hope all well I have sent you a brief PM - I can rehome and hopefully gift onwards. I model in N if it helps... regards Robert

A fine bit of etch work there Mol! would be uncharitable to suggest the missing boxes part of the dockers levy? Robert

Humbrol 174 signal red would be a good place to start but road grime would tone it down quickly Robert

Neat masking job on the ribs on the container and on the wagonside. A good bit of history sadly lost to the white van man industry. Robert

Hi West Highland lines - loads limited by gradients so 6 - 8 the max single loco platforms much the same but the like of Shandon 4 only - Having a train hang over the platform makes the train look longer as a subterfuge if space a problem. DMUs - summer only on Oban excursions - class 120 or 101 at a guess. As line was a rural idyll MK1s were indeed the stock of the day in the 1970s. Even home to some of the last Maroon stock. Check out Strathwood titles for suitable volumes. I just dug out "BR Diesel Traction in Scotland" - nigh on 700 pics but of course the WHR has at best 25, a grand book and good for near lineside details. It is by George C O`Hara and even at £25 worth it as a good base resource. It however shows the problem that many books are Scotland wide and WHR only gets a bit of a look in. Flikr offers an online goldmine/ rabbit hole full of images. https://www.flickr.com/photos/152343870@N07/albums/72157668096752049 worth a look. hope that helps a bit Robert

Lovely work and great to see the beet shunting ! Brave adding "finished" ... Thanks for showing and I have followed the thread on IRM forum enjoying every word and inspired by it all. Robert

Well it seems serious enough as the mayor is banging his tin drum "demanding answers." Quotes of heads will roll do nothing for a serious information release as nodoubt lawyers are rubbing hands with glee - well half of them anyway. Hanging batteries on the original fleet was seen as a problem in June, but reports are cracks effecting the newer supplied complete with bunny cells. ( Duracells!) However the little fact that the in town section from Upper Bull st via Short sighted junction to the curve before "Grand Central where? Oh you mean New St station" tram stop has been relaid with Kato style unitrack after the original hand lay (Pcb?) was found to be defective/ poor build with rails made of cheesy strings then CAF will have some play of damage to the trams from track faults not just the limited design scope of the scrap they have glued together - cereal packet quality kits of old spring to mind. I can see electric string will be erected on the previous battery only sections and the batteries on evilbay to fund the party for when the Mayor swings from a nearby traction pole... However the good news is that at least the crews will not suffer the vomit, pXXs and abuse from "German/European/ Christmas/ Winterval "p**s lager and cheap Chinese tat market goers/ louts. Sadly the drivers of the Green bus replacement effort and trains with ticket acceptance on the BHM - WVH corridor will just get it instead... On Sunday the multiple piles of vomit by the tram stops near Victoria square tell the truth, a colleague almost had a paddle on the way to work, vocally unimpressed when in the office!

A great gent and will be missed, I enjoyed all my purchases and indeed the Saturn Chassis was a brilliant evolution. I recall at a TINGS show he rocked up in a gold finish motor CJM1 !! As said always willing to offer advice and supply parts with a smile. Ben has said it all- thanks. Robert

Thanks Steve, I could not find them doing a quick overview of the website ! Robert

Railtec also do an orange stripe suitable Tank wagons: pressurised LPG gas orange stripes (120mm) Product code: 4mm-6705 £4.50 a pack Which might help. Robert

There is a 3D print signalbox in the Etsy range via the pop up family, but cannot find the link. the two pictures show the raw print, the roof is an insertable part for ease of painting, the raw shows the filiament fluff in the windows but easily cleaned up with a sharp blade. Bottom shows as painted - bauxite primer on tiles, spray white primer and Posca pens for a brick base and corner woodwork. Robert