Jub45565

I look forward to seeing this develop! It is on my list of potentially modifiable places. It's worth checking out Dave Hawkins 'Great Bardfield' which is a similar layout & concept - albeit with the platform the goods yard side of the line - but shows what can be fitted in a realistic space.

That sounds brilliant - I don't suppose you took any photos. I get the concept, but implementation would be good. It also sounds useful for working on wiring, with a ready made more at 90 degrees. One tangent to the question which I don't think I've seen yet, is whether you can cope with a puncture once the car/van is loaded, and whether the assemblies can readily be moved out of the vehicle to release the spare (if the vehicle is supplied with one) and can be kept free from rain...

One of the interesting parts about exhibiting is seeing how different people go about their setups, and how long different methods take to set up/break down. There is a trend, which I like, for the 'railway in a landscape' type layouts (which naturally need more room, so have all the landscape around the railway...) to have the railway itself on a solid spine, with the scenic sections in front and/or behind on separate drop in sections. This breaks up the board joint from being straight across the layout, but also makes things more manageable. As has been said above, I agree that in the main a 2 foot wide board is about the limit to easy manouvering.

Rumney models do ladders and walkways for various earlier tankers. Something there may be suitable? Also, see Dave Frank's Wharfeside thread, as that includes how he is doing the earlier ammonia tanks using plastruct tubes and domed ends which are designed to suit. HTH,

Shame that the new ones (presuming that they're the same spec as those GWR have bought) are worse than the 40+ year old HSTs they are replacing, in terms of passenger comfort and convenience which are those being discussed here.

The L&B was quite different to most other NG lines (and most SG lines at the time too) in having fully fitted stock (ie vacuum brakes throughout) and therefore they didnt need a specific brakevan (or more correctly, braked last vehicle with brakesman in it...). A last vehicle needs a means of identification when passing signal boxes, so the signalman knows the complete train has left a section. The brakesman is there in case of runaways. If a vacuum hose becomes detached both parts of the train will stop.

I'd certainly choose an etched kit over a fully cast body - though would be a bit daunted if the boiler needed fabricating. That said I'd give it a go...

How early in time do these go? Does it cover much of the initial allocations in the late 50s/early 60s? My path rarely covers Smith's but I may have to find one...

It wasn't the job of BR to pay, and apparently Liverpool council were ready to do so... The line was just about profitable from freight still, but with that decreasing it gave a good excuse to get rid.

I presume Charlie was asking about congestion charges in relation to the shuttle bus? But may be wrong...

Simon, I think you're comment on couplings in the Cameo topic sums up modelling compromises though? There is no perfect solution to meet all the requirements of a standalone model looking like the real thing, it being able to operate on a layout like the real thing without spoiling any illusions. I agree in other areas though, finding a common standard to work to so it all works together and comes together in a timescale to suit the builder(s) doesnt necessarily need to have 'compromised' any objectives.

Cracking photo from 1895 here. It doesn't show any extra details I don't already have, though it does still have the doors in place! Plus a lovely MR 170 class 2-4-0. https://railphotoprints.uk/p590546434/hb6b06e24#hb6b06e24

A replacement chassis for the Fowler and Stanier 2-6-2s has been drawn and the moulds are being sorted, but I believe the Fowler variant will see the light of day first. From the last conversation I had with Dave Ellis (of SEF, the other half of the Nucast partners alongside Brian of Branchlines) I think the plan was that they would see the light of day in 2019 - but this probably depended on the state of the moulds. There are mutterings of a Stanier 2-6-2 from Judith Edge too, but no firm timescales and I expect this would not include castings etc but that last bit is purely my deduction based on how Mike has done the Fowler variant.

Well, I may be in the 0.1% but please keep us updated with your progress on finding and rectifying them!

I'd be interested in seeing a Masokits etch, but not sure it will add much if not modelling 4 & 6 insulator brackets, & not needing foot step brackets. My current plan is to plagarise from here: http://www.rmweb.co.uk/community/index.php?/topic/129453-kinlochmore-%E2%80%93-west-highland-4mm-p4/page-2 But as I say I haven't seen the masokits offering, and there may be useful bits on it I've not accounted for (stay tensioners?).

Yes, I checked it out in the LMS signalling book & found it to be 9", & the signal - signal spacing is also drawn. So I just need to work out the telegraph pole difference from that.

I quite agree, & it wasn't a grumble - just pointing out that Ivan's joke wasn't actually true! I don't care about the timescale either. I have far more than 9 months gestation period for projects, so a bit of forward planning (& of course forward budgeting built in) is fine. They are my wheels of choice.

Erm, the prices have risen slightly...

Another thing I meant to mention earlier is that one thing the green Bairstow book shows clearly (p64 upper) is the difference in height between the sets of signals. The one for leaving shed is substantially shorter, which isn't too surprising given the range & speed of the locos needing to see it. Also, I presume I can deduce the height of the twin arm one from the above photos, as the ladder will have had a standard rung spacing (& angle)? Whether I can then work out, or get a decent approximation of the telegraph pole height, is another matter.

December is filling up so I don't think I can make it - but being a relative southerner, living in the actual south, it would make it more tempting. Tick both off in the weekend, stay somewhere in the middle over night. I am also a +1 for the skillsday concept though.

Sounds interesting Tony, please keep us posted with how you get on. I use cork, but am always a bit dubious how much difference any of the options make once ballast is down. Back on a Midland specific question, I know the plan for the society is to digitise as much as practical, and there are batch summaries posted in the members area of the website. Are these digital archives browseable and viewable (such as the common crossing diagram you posted here, and there are many other track and PW related diagrams in the batch summaries, but searching for the item number contained in the batch summary doesnt find anything. Cheers,

Thanks Tom,yes you could be right. I'll have a scout when I'm next at my parents (could be soon, as we've recently lost of close family friend & I hope to make it) but generally seem to meet up with them elsewhere at the moment! I had a bit of a trawl through last night, and came across 2. It appears in the background of the water tower photo, and also in a picture in the green Wharfedale and Airdale Bairstow book. In neither is it close up though and my untrained eye cant tell whether (or when) it was upgraded from lower to upper quadrant. The Embsay ones were done keeping the original posts, while the one at the other end of Ilkley shed got a new post as seen in progress in 1948 here: and in 1956 after completion: Both of these phtoos are onthe invaluable Embsay & Bolton Abbey railway archive section. Of course the photo it should be in is the one of the Caledonian tank leaving shed, but it will be slap bang behind the loco...

Thanks Ron! Good to know its progressing in the right direction. I do have plans for a fair bit along the backscene (telegraph poles, signal pulley posts, signals (1 twin arm on the mainline departure, and 1 to leave the shed - though I havent got a photo of the latter to confirm its type), fogmans hut) - but it would definitely add something to have a represention of the mainline, carriage siding and houses beyond on the backscene. I think this is a bit beyond my skillset though so will be staying blue!! I might revisit once everything else is done, but I can't see it happening. If only a representative scene was available for a photo backscene (which may be possible for Embsay) - but with an electrified mainline and tesco on the other side it doesnt quite set the scene...

Yes, thanks Mike. I plan on taking the flanges off, but leaving the cone alone, and see how they do. They shouldnt have a cone either, but it shouldnt stop them working - and it is good to hear that yours works with flanges too!

Hi All, As promised, a bit of a post Scaleforum forum update. Firstly thanks to those who came and looked, asked and chatted. I wasn't quite sure what sort of reception to expect - there are many people who vocally deride both loco shed layouts and part built layouts, so maybe two wrongs make a right! For my part, as shed layouts go, I think it is operationally interesting as it isnt exactly well laid out for efficient operation! Thanks also to Mark Tatlow for allowing me a bit of time to look around on both days. So the current state of play: The turntable has rails, 1 handrail, but is neither motorised nor wired up pick up wise. The problem is getting it to rotate smoothly. The central bearing is fine, but the wheels are 4 laminated etches which then need cleaning etc and are causing me the issues. I bought some lowmac wheels at the weekend which will be my next test. The stepper motor drive (Arduino based) is ready to go once I have it rotating freely. I will then turn my attention to a locking bar mechanism. The CAD for the shed stonework is nearing completion, with a couple more tests to do with interlocking pieces and doing course lines around the edge of the buttresses, but printouts of the current state were used for the exhibition. The window etches were built and in place. Also to be seen are some cheap Chinese lamps. These were about £2 for 20, and are very much a placeholder but do help to set the scene for the time being These last two are a test of LED lighting. Firstly is with the LED strips as I have them, which are 3 strips all of warm white. The blue backscene is quite washed out with this: and with Richard's (a fellow Bristol Area Group demoer, who was demostrating different lighting options) LED strip of 2 warm and 2 brilliant white (so overall 5 warm to 2 brilliant as both of our strips were on). This helps lift the blue and green, and the unpainted teddy bear fur is more of a straw colour under them too. Having seen this result I am planning to add 1 strip of brilliant white, possibly with a dimming option, bearing in mind that this was in a sportshall with a very warm white colour overall so a variable would allow me to adjust it on site. I am also planning on moving the lighting strip outboard by a few more inches to stop the front/coaling road from being in shadow. To answer another question from over the weekend, the teddybear fur is 'faux fur fabric material: wolf' from ebay.