Jol Wilkinson

9 hours ago, Northmoor said:

Thirty years ago, 500cc two-stroke GP motorbikes were putting out 180bhp.  The litre four-strokes now in MotoGP are around the 300bhp mark.  Even the manufacturers' road-legal versions are around 200bhp (utterly unusable on public roads).

The motor bike riders around here seem to be more interested in the decibels their machinery can produce, especially those who suffer from that seemingly involuntary regular twitching of their right wrist when stopped at a junction.

I recall reading a book on tuning engines in the early sixties which said the 50 bhp per litre was a good result for a " tuned" engine and 100 bhp for a racing engine.

8 hours ago, WFPettigrew said:

 

I think this will depend what is slung across the bolster.  20 tons of oak tree trunk or steel rails is not going to be going anywhere without significant provocation- which is why the idea of using a 3 link coupling or a screw link has some merit - if the track geometry does change the distance between the ends of the wagons, having a flexible linkage would allow the load to stay put on the bolsters without any force trying to slide it one way or the other. 

 

But if the load is relatively light - some deal planks well short of the maximum for the pair of wagons - then they are likely to be sliding around all over the place. 

 

I guess this is why bogie bolsters were invented...!

It appears that open wagons were often used for carrying flat length of timber, usually overhanging one end.  The LNWR also produced the D14 Deal wagon for carrying flat planks, basically a long wheelbase flat wagon with chains and hooks to restrain the load.

Bolster wagons seem to be aimed more at carrying large round section timers such as tree trunks, as they often had pivoting bolsters with stanchions. The LNWR D12 and D13 had stanchions which included a hole to which the chain was attached, so that the bolster was securely attached to the timber and would rotate wit it..

8 hours ago, Daddyman said:

Hmm. The Isinglass drawings are so ....sketchy, and the lines so thick, that they only really work as sources of dimensions, not as drawings that can be scaled off or used as templates, etc. In my early modelling days I tried to scale off them - photocopied them and used them as overlays when cutting parts out - with truly horrific results. Then somebody pointed out the real benefit of them: unlike most drawings, which excise them, the Isinglass include dimensions; as far as I'm concerned, the sketches just come along for the ride. But the dimensions come and go (as here on the Sentinel roof), and where there are no dimensions, I don't trust them. 

Surely the radii must be known? I think this is another thing that stopped me with my model. I had a desultory look on the OPC drawings catalogue at the NRM, and there were one or two things that might fit the bill. Has anyone investigated? 

 

 

 

If you have some confidence in a drawing it is worth working out the radius from that. Then you can probably define the actual radius by applying a bit of Victorian/Edwardian logic if the model is from those periods. Generally speaking, the designers worked in round feet, with six inch or even three inch variations. So roof radii of eight feet, eight feet six inches or nine feet were normal.

The same logic probably apply to the post group period, but I am sure someone will provide some "odd" examples.

The late 60s Holden Monaro looks very much like the Opel Rekord "C" Coupe of the same era. An example of GM worldwide engineering of the time?

1 minute ago, Hobby said:

Current reporting, elsewhere on the forum (Level Crossings thread I think!), is that it was a diesel hybrid, the talk is that diesel fuel would not have caused the conflagration that was seen. 

 

But until there's something official announced who knows...

Whatever type of vehicle it would probably need an electrical defect if it was "switched off".

Diesel sprayed (effectively vaporised) onto hot surfaces such as the exhaust manifold will combust spontaneously so the engine normally needs to be running for that to happen (and need a continued supply of fuel to keep burning). The online photos appear to show the vehicle burning at the front end, whereas fuel tanks tend to be centre mounted, towards the rear axle. 

Petrol fires need petrol vapour and a spark to get going. Those who maintained their own cars in the 50s. 60s and 70s will know that petrol fumes weren't uncommon under the bonnet but that didn't mean that they always caught fire. Modern petrol cars have  fuel injection systems so the HP and/or LP pump needs to be running to provide a continued supply of fuel.

Whatever type of car, once the fire gets going there is usually sufficient highly combustible material in the vehicle to cause a complete burn out.

16 minutes ago, Dunsignalling said:

And the steering wheel on the wrong side....🙂

Is it? The wipers are LHD mounted (opposite handed to UK spec). The car also has side marker lights and what look like the early 5mph "crash" bumpers, something not used on UK or European specification cars as far as I know.

1 hour ago, peanuts said:

This would get all the bra burners knickers in a twist today 

A US of A advert judging by the grille mounted lamps, etc. 

Clearly I am outnumbered by the researchers into pre-group railway history, preferring to spend my time nowadays modelling. 

As Denys points out, this was 100 years ago but I don't take the view that the wounds are still raw. Or at least amongst those I know who model the LNWR and/or are in the LNWR Society (of which I was a Committee member for some years).

3 hours ago, MR Chuffer said:

They did take over the LNWR at the end of the day, in the guise of the LMS, so no insecurity here. And then there is that other regional railway, the GWR, not without its fan bois on here...

As they had a younger management team at the time of the grouping they effectively "took over" management of the LMS, not for any other reason.

44 minutes ago, Compound2632 said:

 

As you well know no arguments in justification are necessary. The Midland was one of only two truly national railway companies in the pre-grouping period - international, one might say, as, along with the other truly national railway company, it owned lines wholly or jointly in all three kingdoms of the union. 

 

But think on this: going wagon-spotting in pre-Great War photos, one is more likely to see a Midland wagon in a photo of a North Western subject than one is to see a LNWR wagon in a photo of a Midland subject.

Stephen, if you look back through this thread, that there has been a great deal of effort to prove what a great railway the MR was. No fans/followers/groupies of other pre-group railways seem to feel the need to do the same.

And your second paragraph proves what?

3 hours ago, MR Chuffer said:

"The author seems biased towards the Midland – aren’t we all in this thread" –

No, I follow it to see what the MR enthusiasts put forward to justify there beliefs that it was such a great railway.

5 minutes ago, Captain Kernow said:

Yes, thanks,  Jol, but the 'stopping down' with the aid of such sleeves could introduce some imprecise with regard to the ability of the resulting wheelstes to rotate exactly concentrically, so I would prefer to undertake such an operation with the aid of a lathe.

 

In an earlier post you sad "Without the use of a lathe, I'm cautious about converting anything with 2mm axles to P4", which I read as meaning you don't have access to one. No doubt bushing the wheel centre and boring down to a smaller size is best done in a lathe but the AGW bushes are one solution if you don't one.

All my locos are fitted with AGW, Sharman or. in one case, Bill Bedford printed 3D centre wheels. Some aren't perfectly concentric but springing/compensation tends to mask any excessive wobble.

32 minutes ago, Captain Kernow said:

Thanks Paul. I can see myself buying two of these, one for OO (where it has to run over OO-SF pointwork, hence the flange profile question) and also to convert to P4, hence the question about the axles.

 

Without the use of a lathe, I'm cautious about converting anything with 2mm axles to P4, because the substitute wheels will come with either 1/8" or 3mm axles, so this begs another question, please - will your 2mm axles be carried in some kind of separate brass or bronze bearing, that fits into appropriately sized slots in the chassis block or will the chassis block itself form it's own bearings?

AGW do 1/8" to 2.0mm reducing sleeves - 4M68.

Available direct or from Wizard

3 hours ago, Daddyman said:

Also, get yourself some centre drills. You'll find that normal drills will waggle about in the chuck too much to give you a good round hole. Try, for example, Drill Service. I have "CD-0.5X3.15R 0.5x3.15 HSS Centre Drill Radius Type SE" and recently bought a 0.4mm centre drill - perfect for doing buffer beam bolt holes on the coordinate table.

 

Note that engineers will call centre drills something else (can't remember the term, sorry), but "centre drill" seems to get you what you need with retailers - well, certainly with Drill Service. 

A great tip. Here is another source of small centre drills.

https://www.rdgtools.co.uk/acatalog/Centre-Drills-Metric-Sizes.html

I have found that good quality "large shank" drills also work well. I use Busch, available from Cooksongold 

www.cooksongold.com

LNWR 0-4-0T 4ft  Shunter, introduced in 1865. Possibly doesn't comply as it was in Kynoch Ltd/ICI ownership from 1919 to 1954 when it was presented to the British Transport Commission for preservation and is now in the hands of the NRM.

London Road Models do a 4mm kit. 

Symington Port? A long established port producer.

36 minutes ago, St. Simon said:

 

Hi,

 

Not the first time I have heard that sort of quote about Squires, I think the same thing happened at the Fareham Show last year!

 

Simon

They are not the only trader that has "quit" a show for some reason. Fortunately it is very rare, although I know of a few traders who, having a poor weekend, feel that there is little point in staying but do so to retain a good relationship with the show organisers.

If EV drivers are concerned about ecological issues, then surely a McDonalds wouldn't be there preferred place to eat while charging their car.

37 minutes ago, 30801 said:

 

I hired one the other week.

It's a 208. The heater controls are annoyingly on a touchscreen except for the 'max demist' button which is one of the piano keys below the screen.

The thing that really annoyed me, and is the thing that would stop me buying one is the weird steering wheel arrangement.

It's tiny and you're supposed to look above it at the speedo. I struggled to find a position where I could see over the top and also have enough leg room to work the pedals and still be able to steer. Ultimately I had to have it pulled right towards me and steer with T-Rex arms. 

 

My previous 3008 and current 2008 have that and have found it very good. I am six foot tall and have the seat about two/three clicks from the furthest back position, with the wheel pulled right out and up.  

12 hours ago, 30801 said:

 

I'll take the dog over the lane-keep assist in most cars.

You can turn the "lane assist" function off. Increasingly it seems most owners can't control their dogs.

On 20/09/2023 at 09:01, Barclay said:

Well I never buy R-T-R so don't experience this at all with respect to current releases, lovely as they mostly look.

 

However I do feel this way about kits and bits, which is why I'm always buying old stuff off eBay, "I might never see one again, etc. etc.", and indeed from manufacturers "How long will Judith Edge have that Liskeard & Caradon saddle tank in their range? Better get one now, just in case!" Hence I have a large 'Cupboard of Shame' under my workbench that is growing more quickly than I can build them!

I don't think you should think of it as a "cupboard of shame" but a "cupboard of hope". Hope that you will get the opportunity to build them before it's too late and the advancing years overtake you.

That's where I am now, so buying new kits tends to be restricted to simple items like wagons. There remain a number of enticing etched loco and carriage kits on the optimistic shelves of hope.

Alan Gibson do a set of sprung coach buffers that may suit. These also have turned brass bodies and steel heads.

4970 4 x 16” coach buffers, early long type

The PC carriage wheels were very nice. The current best are, in my view, the Exactoscale ones available through the S4 Society stores.

As ever, an excellent show for the "fine-scale" modeller. Superb layouts, knowledgeable demonstrators and specialist traders. I met lots of good friends and acquaintances and had a thoroughly enjoyable day. The catering was great too.,  

3 hours ago, Mike_Walker said:

Do you accept cards for admission or is it cash only?

Mike,

I am sure that the S4Society can take cards for admission, although I can't find a reference in the guide. It does state that card payments are available on the Bring and Buy stand, so they do have the capability.

Jol