Chris M

I thought the show was good; they had some very good N gauge layouts and all with plenty of movement. If they catch those who did the break in their punishment should be two days in the stocks at next year's exhibition so we could all show them how we feel towards them.

I'm going to do some panic buying today - a couple of boxes of Interior filler for making scenery some plasticard sheets for making buildings a couple of paintbrushes - mine never seem to stay good for long some butane gas for my live steamer out in the garden some horticultural grit for my garden railway ballast That should keep me going for a few weeks.

Despite this photo evidence and even though I like to run rakes with mixed liveries I couldn't run a crimson & cream coach in one of my rakes when running as summer of 1963; just the thought of doing it makes me feel uncomfortable.

I think the 2-8-8-8-2 was given the classification of flippin disaster! Photo

Its the interaction between folk which is important at exhibitions. The way people react to my layout is the best part of going to a show. Having said that I plan to take my new layout to about half a dozen shows and no more when it is ready. I have really enjoyed exhibiting but I've spent more than enough weekends away without the other half. Even after 40 years of marriage I would rather be with her than away at an exhibition. Baz - that's an interesting point. Of course those of us in the garden railway fraternity have been having little get togethers for many years and most enjoyable they are too. Entrance fee is usually a pork pie or a doughnut.

Everyone is entitled t their view and its great that we are all different. For me you can't beat seeing a layout running to know what it is really about and how good it really is. You can build the most wonderful model railway but if it don't run well its a fail so far as I am concerned. All layouts will have their moments when things go a bit belly up but some just aren't good enough. Whilst I generally like to see layouts running correct stock in a sensible way I see nothing wrong with the tailchaser running impossible train formations. If the layout builder justs wants to run trains because thats what he likes doing and has no interest in the prototype then that's ok so long as that is the intended concept of the layout. Also I'm not too worried if there are a few layouts that are less than scenically wonderful at a show. Some visitors will think "I could do something as well as that" and get started on layout building. If they only saw brilliant layouts they might be put off having a go.

There seems to be plenty of sensible advice. We know that cold, flu and Corona virus survives for a period on surfaces . I think flu virus survives around 24 hours. The best way to pick up this virus is to touch and infected surface and then touch your eyes, nose or mouth . Advice is to keep 3ft away from other people and wash your hands properly with hot water and soap regularly. This sounds simple enough and it should help to reduce colds and flu so it is worth doing. It's worth bleeping an eye on advice from sensible sources but it's not worth worrying about one thing that might not happen. I kind of expect that a year or two from now Corona will be just another virus that you can catch and one you can get a jab for to stop catching it; it will be as newsworthy as flu.

It could be that all high level football matches get cancelled so there are no actual champions this season, it could be that all travel to or from various towns in the UK is banned, it could be that coronavirus is actually less of a problem than flu. At the moment nobody knows so there isn't much point in speculation. I'm off to Portugal for a holiday - it might go wrong but probably won't. I plan to go to York - this plan may be overtaken by events but probably wont. You can't put everything on hold because there is a possibility of a problem. I think Hills of the North and Wickwar between them will make it worth the journey.

Agreed but layouts running a "Sunday service" are far too common.

I think the main problem with layouts at exhibitions is operaters who have never run the layout prior to the exhibition. I think using inexperienced operators is very bad practice and should be avoided if at all possible. There are other factors. A layout has to be packed up, travel maybe hundreds of miles in the back of a car or van and then moved from vehicle to exhibition floor often on a trolley over rough ground. This can't be good for a layout. Next the layout will often suffer huge changes in temperature and humidity between set up on Friday night and Saturday afternoon. This does cause issues with running. The timber will move with these atmospheric changes and even minute movements can cause bad running. My N gauge layout has suffered from this but not to the extent that the viewing public would notice. I agree with previous posts about track cleaning. I always start an exhibition day with clean track but by 4:00 in the same afternoon I will often be seeing evidence of track needing another clean. Distance from a train you are operating and the high level of background noise at an exhibition also don't help smooth stopping and starting but experienced operators should be able to cope with this.

No, it is a unique size of tyre fitted only to some 3008s and some derivatives of Renault Kadjar. The size was not available in any brand. I suspect the size was chosen as a piece of French humour ; they are probably still laughing about making life difficult for British owners. The thing that really racked me off was zero help from Peugeot and their dealers with this problem on a car that was less than a year old at the time. Based on this one example of customer service I wouldn't touch a Peugeot with a barge poll.

There are lots of very good small suppliers. If there was such a category I would nominate N brass loco for consistently good service. Earlier this week I ordered an item but was informed it was out of stock and it might take a week or so to get another run done. Today I've just been told the item has arrived and will be posted to me today. So prompt service and good communication. There are others who are just as good.

Why on earth are there so many tyre sizes? I'm sure there is no need and it causes unnecessary problems. For instance my daughter had a puncture on her new style Peugeot 3008. The tyre was a right off but I couldn't get the size from any tyre fitters. I phoned Peugeot who just said tough, we don't have any that size either. In the end my local independent tyre depot managed to get one sent over from Belgium. At the time this tyre size had not been made available in the UK even though it was being fitted to cars sold here . Why on earth couldn't Peugeot fit a more standard size tyre? Other derivatives of the same car have different sizes.

Reasons for not having an SUV 1. I like a low, sleek machine. 2. I like cars that go round bends without leaning. My friends who drive SUVs go pale and hold tight to the seat if I corner with even moderate enthusiasm. 3. I like cars that can change lane quickly and safely on a motorway without wobbling. 4. I get better fuel economy and performance from a lighter vehicle with less wind drag. 5.My last car did 90,000 miles and the only spare I needed was a light bulb so whats all this about spare parts? Too early to say with my current one as it has only done circa 20k. 6. I have never felt the urge to take my car down a BOAT or RUPP - I use my ebike for such routes and hope I don't find any SUVs spoiling my ride. 7. It hardly ever snows in England and if it does you get stuck in a queue with loads of other cars regardless of what you are driving. I have heard that SUVs aren't great at stopping in snow because of their weight. 8. I'm not a great follower of fashion! But its a free world and each to their own

Thanks. It does look like a bad mixing of eras though.

Haven't got a photo but I always think it is surreal that the latest class 800s with all their technology will still run along track controlled by good old manually controlled semaphore signals complete with bell code communication etc. I'm sure this happens at some point between Worcester and Hereford. Are there any semaphores left in Cornwall or anywhere else on the network where these run?

I'm sure there are plenty of other railways who would happily look after 53808. If I was the S&DT I would move it elsewhere asap as there is clearly bad blood between the two organisations. The big problem for the WSR is that there are plenty more "fish in the sea". Somewhat oddly the shorter railways of the south west such as the Bodmin & Wenford, The South Devon Railway and Paignton & Dartmouth Steam Railway appeal more to me than the longer run on the WSR. I can't put my finger on it but the WSR doesn't have the charm of the others. The others have all got there own special character that works for me but the WSR doesn't quite do it. This may not be logical but its just how I feel. The events of the last 12 months have done nothing to improve this feeling.

Is using this chap to help with planning a crime?

Adrian , you do a great job. Not only do you provide excellent information for our hobby but you also go the extra mile to ensure the information you present is as accurate as possible. I say that as someone who has benefitted from you site and your careful checking of information.

It is well deserved.

Yes a small fleet of classes 42 or 43 would be great. I love seeing Greyhound on the SVR but a pair running together on the mainline would be awesome. I'm sure I read somewhere that there wasn't enough space to add air braking which would have been a problem. I look upon the double heading of premiere services on the Western Region as a step along the way to the HSTs. They certainly showed what great acceleration and hill climbing you can get with 4,400 horses!

I feel we are "comrades in arms" as I'm having a go at Dawlish Warren in N. Building a model of an actual place is a wonderfully interesting challenge and I'm following your progress with great interest. I'm posting progress on the N gauge forum https://www.ngaugeforum.co.uk/SMFN/index.php?topic=47727.0

Good to see the project is progressing. Sometimes progress is slow then it all starts to come together. I also print out the Anyrail plan full size and use it to check the layout will look right and then as a template for cutting the boards. Have you given thought to the railway surroundings? What will be just backscene and what will be modelled? I found that I spent a lot of time getting the railway side of things just right but didn't spend enough time planning for the non railway scenics. Even in N gauge its surprising how much space non railway stuff takes up. Keep up the good work!

Just found John's article but an hour too late! It is indeed May 1971.

Warley club's N gauge Hawes Junction with scale length platforms but shortened sidings. Apologies for the inappropriate train.