mullie

You do seem to have taken a lot of photos during snowy weather, the photos of Great Eastern and LTSR electrics during the 70s and 80s bring back a lot of memories and for some reason it is the snowy ones that are the most evocative. I would still have been at school, I suspect a lot of my travelling was to get supplies for my music lessons, something I needed to go to Romford, Chelmsford or Southend for from Brentwood, it gave an excuse to travel by train and my parents were happy to let me regardless of the weather. Great photos as always, thanks for posting.

I do like the old Airfix kits. I've built four mineral wagons to EM gauge on Masokits W irons. Here they are at Upbech St Mary running in its 1960s post steam era. The layout can also be run in late 40s early 50s guise. I pick them up cheap on Ebay and have another one to do, this time I have Bill Bedford W irons, not used those before. Will watch with interest as a lowmac is very tempting. I would describe my modelling as rather sketchbook, I do admire your level of detail.

Day off on Friday, we had worked extra hours to earn it through the term. With SWMBO at work the dining room table was taken over for painting. This is a scene during the white heat of painting. Tear off pallet in the middle with various artists colours; black, white, grey, brown to form a base coat Grey was the predominant colour by the way. The take away tub has ground chalks in it that will add colour and texture to the roof. These are the roofs after painting. The bodies are given a base coat of Tamiya red brown that provides a good base for weathering, I have used this colour for years and is also base colour for track work. Some roof colour has got on the sides, I see this as an opportunity! The chassis have also been painted and given a basic highlighting with watered down inks. At the moment everything is still component parts, there are units for each of the wheel sets one of which will be allowed to float. The middle axle is a simple assembly. I hope to assemble the chassis next week. Here are the coaches in bits. Numbering is now in progress.

No not on the ECML but very nice and London trains do pass through it. Yes I know that is a very tenuous link. Our daughter lived in Harrogate for two years, we love the area and had some good times there though a drive of around 8 hours to get there could be difficult, we sometimes left around 4 in the morning. South London doesn't have the same appeal but is my old University stamping ground and only around 3 hours drive. Martyn

Another small contribution, we stayed in Harrogate this year, possibly for the last time and as we were close to the station went for a day out in York and to Knaresborough on the train. There seems to be quite a lot of original station infrastructure including semaphore signalling on the line through Harrogate to York. Martyn

I can't contribute much with regard to the ECML, surely some photos of York are always worthy of discussion. I took these this summer whilst we were visiting daughter number 2 who was in the process of moving from Harrogate to London having lived up north for two years. For someone who has seen this station only once, around 46 years ago it is seriously impressive. When I was thirteen I had a day out with Dad to the Railway museum travelling up from Brentwood, Essex for the day. We were deltic hauled up the ECML and HST on the way back. It was a great day. I have some photos of Knareborough too, suppose that doesn't count! Martyn

The six wheelers have reached the primer stage after just over three months effort. Here are the bodies, hope to start the top coat next week. A job that can be done indoors.

I'm the product of right handed parents and have both left and right handed siblings. My wife is right handed, we have left and right handed daughters. No one has come up with a convincing explanation of how it happens and many have tried. My experience and watching our daughter grow up it just seems to happen.

I'd never thought about this before. I tend to put fiddly yards on the right, though left handed (obviously work of the devil) , perhaps it is the use of cassettes and S&W couplings that makes this easy? I think playing musical instruments helps as you become quite ambidextrous because hands have to work independently.

Looks great!

The wagon is great I'm sure more like this could be justified in your time period? Martyn

Well, look what turned up at Upbech Drove today! This DMU originally ran on my West London Rickett Street layout, the thread of which has now been removed as all the photos had disappeared and I can't find the originals. I found it in a box last weekend, it was an early EM conversion, the wheels were simply pulled out on their axles and new pick ups made, it has a real growl so generates its own sound. It is the Hornby version and I had owned it for a few years at this point. Around 2018 when I first decided to try EM the plan was to use Rickett Street as a test bed, set in the mid to late 60s post steam with Kadee couplings. However, when I realised Bullant bogie wheels could also be pulled out on their axles, two J70s appeared and the rest is history. The weathering when I took it out of the box was too heavy handed for my current thinking so this photo shows it after most of it had been removed. It wasn't particularly overdone, just not how I would do things now. I don't really know what to do with it as I don't currently have plans for another urban layout. I also found a Bachmann Thompson full brake in BR blue, is this even a decent model?

I saw Burnham Thorpe a couple of times, must have been in Essex somewhere, inspirational for a young skint modeller trying to start out in East Anglian modelling. I still have the Model Railway Constructor with the article in it. The first model railway magazine I ever bought back in October 1977 I still look at my very early magazines from time to time, they can still provide inspiration. I assume this is the same layout?

Really sorry to hear you have lost the MOJO, perhaps it has been filed away in a box somewhere marked 8ba nuts and bolts! I do hope it comes back, I do think you have to follow your instincts, if it feels wrong, it often is wrong so get rid of it and see how it looks. Hope you feel better soon, I would like to see the layout in the flesh in the not too distant future. Best wishes Martyn

Local farmer has come to Upbech Quay for a pint, the car works fine so why buy a new one!

A pause while parts are being ordered to finish the six wheelers. Modelling has largely moved inside for the winter and this is the first project. Under the grime the car still has a glossy finish, coated with Klear. The Fenland roads were poor and even now subject to subsidence so it is no coincidence the car has picked up some autumn mud. It belongs to a local farmer who is in the pub and doesn't feel he needs a newer car.

They felt they needed more practice so similarly spoilt the looks of some E4 2-4-0s and exiled them to the Pennines. Great modelling.

Will he need to drive to Barnard Castle first?

Dave I've been meaning to ask for a while, were some of your Brentwood bank photos taken from the Seven Arches bridge? You might know the road as it had a pub of the same name in it, came off Shenfield common if I remember rightly and there was an entrance to Hartswood park in it? The position looks familiar to me as I always stopped for a look over the bridge when I used to go to my early evening piano lesson in a house just over the bridge. It was only a mile from school to the lesson but a four mile cycle ride home in all weathers. Blue and grey Great Eastern photos are a real blast from the past, really enjoy all your photos. Martyn

Do you have enough weathering powders to complete the job?

Nothing worth photographing yet but a landmark nevertheless. Having finished the bodies of the six wheelers a few weeks ago the two chassis were finished this afternoon after many hours work. Next job is to sort out fitting body to chassis, give it all a good scrub, order buffers from Alan Gibson and prime. A Eureka moment was ordering a GE Journal back number that had a good side view of the middle axle box arrangement, I don't keep all mine due to space. The Society Emporium is excellently run, I emailed a query about type 5 carriages and was told exactly what journal number I needed to order and it arrived via download very quickly once paid for. It has been a challenging build, probably the most challenging thing I've done. Recently I have been putting in some extra hours as I I wanted to get it the build completed before the garage gets too cold. The joys of no longer being a full time member of staff in a school is that I have my evenings free and the current songwriting and recording project I'm working on has hit a lull.

Still inclement weather here too. Turns out we were separated from England for most of Thursday morning, normal service has since been resumed. Intention today is to heat the garage through the use of a Soldering iron.

Working from home has its benefits, during my lunch break, got some more work done on the etched six wheel carriages I am building whilst the garage is still warm enough.

I'll bring one in EM that should b&gger things up, I'm sure someone could bring one in P4!

As you know my layout is three boards that spend most of their life connected together or can be operated independently and attend exhibitions. As you say small projects that can be achieved are a good idea, helps the motivation. Shall follow with interest. Currently working from home as our only connection with the UK is closed!