railtec-models

Based on the helpful info I've tweaked the new pack so that it contains predominantly 2'6" arrows with a handful of 1'6" to fit a shunter's tool box. Unless I've missed something I'm seeing less of a reason to include any 3' arrows which were originally thought to suit the 37 but thanks to Phil these seem to have also carried the 2'6". Pack is now available: 4mm-1270: Pre-TOPS / early BR loco arrows (until approx 1977) http://www.railtec-models.com/showitem.php?id=3266

Thanks Phil that's really useful input, and much appreciated. I think Bachmann are usually very good with the measurements, though I'm slightly hesitant to take their 11mm arrows on D836 as gospel. Always open to learn more if anyone knows if what would be 33" arrows (i.e. 11mm wide at 4mm scale) were in fact the real thing. As far as I can gather then, it looks like the 37s and 47s appeared to be 10mm (i.e. 30"), which leads me to wonder if there's any point in having 12mm (i.e. 36") on the sheet at all?

Straight-forward numbersets of customer's choice are usually turned around in 24hrs these days. I haven't put that pre-TOPS arrows pack live just quite yet, pending any input from others.

Ok so I have the attached mock-up that could be ready to print in the next 24hrs: It contains (to 4mm scale) 8 arrows at 36" and 28 arrows at 30", which should hopefully cover both bases for pre-TOPS / early TOPS. Would this suffice?

Thanks Phil; so this would suggest 25", 30" and 36" based on measuring models...? 50A55B suggests 30" originally and then standardising on 24". I think it makes sense to keep the sheet of "standard" 24" TOPS arrows as is, and introduce a new sheet for pre-TOPS containing predominantly 30" and perhaps a handful of 36" (if any?)

If someone could confirm what is the exact difference in size between the pre-TOPS and TOPS double arrows then I'll get the pack made.

Hi Russ, I could do very easily. This may open a can of worms but exactly what was the difference in size between that and standard BR arrow? Obviously I already have the artwork so enlarging or shrinking is a 10 second job (once I know what it needs to be). What I'd likely do is simply offer the larger pre-TOPS arrows as a stock item, meaning that you could just: - Buy a sheet of those (they'd probably be £3.50 for a sheet meaning you'd have plenty to do other locos) - Buy as many as you need of Railtec's custom loco "packs", which isn't really a pack but simply an offering on the web site which allows you to get exactly what you need: 4mm-9990: Renumber 1 x pre-TOPS loco with your choice of number: http://www.railtec-models.com/showitem.php?id=3186 As Phil kindly points out, the benefit here is that you are spared the laborious method of having to cut out and line up individual numbers, and the end result often looks significantly better.

Pack 4mm-1200 are your standard BR arrows: http://www.railtec-models.com/showitem.php?id=145 If something different is needed then feel free to upload a pic and we can take a look.

I've had a few requests for these and had hoped to have got to it by now, but it's getting there. There will likely be a "pack" (if you can call it that) which will offer destinations of your choice, much in the same way that I have "destination blinds of your choice" or "complete loco pack with your choice of number". 4mm and 7mm will be first out of the blocks. Naturally the names could be anything that people desire, as I know that fictitious locations are equally as popular.

Otherwise known as "includes a spare of everything".

Whoever commissions one of these, getting the transfers won't be a problem. Now the cat is out of the bag, options with and without 3d printed nameplates: http://www.railtec-transfers.com/catalog.php?search_str=66789 Yes, other scales will follow.

They've just gone back in stock and automated emails will be finding their way through the ether as I type. Link here if it helps others: http://www.railtec-models.com/showitem.php?id=2672 Thanks, Steve

They'll be back imminently. Just click on the "Notify me" link, pop in your email address and you get an email the second they're back in stock with a link to the page. Simples! Works out at £2.90 for a loco (incl 2 spares too), with std 1st class P&P being £1.19.

Here you go from Railtec. As you would expect, the "insides" of the discs are hollow meaning that you just place the transfer in situ and remove the backing paper. A bit like the table cloth routine but without Debbie McGee. Results in the second photo. http://www.railtec-models.com/showitem.php?id=2672

Hi Anglian, any vector format should be fine. We live and breathe Illustrator and the Adobe suite 7 days a week, so an EPS is absolutely perfect. We try to be pretty flexible and offer folks the opportunity to send through artwork in whatever (albeit preferably CMYK vector) format they have without being too precious about what overprint settings it may have. Experienced graphic artists tend to send through artwork that's more or less ready to print, even though we might still make the odd tweak to best suit the calibration of the printer. In an ideal world everything would knock out, but if we receive artwork that doesn't then it's not really too much of a hassle for us to tweak it. If something rolls off the printer that doesn't reflect what's in the artwork, then that doesn't incur any additional cost - we just chalk it down to experience and figure out a way round it, but we're pretty well bedded in with the state-of-the-art tech now that we've got a good handle on it. Given your graphics experience it sounds like you may be familiar with there sometimes being a disconnect between what comes off the print bed and what's in the artwork! Keeps us on our toes. Re the cost of an A5 sheet of black and white, it's difficult to commit to a cost without seeing what's involved. I'm frequently told at Warley and other shows that the costs are extremely reasonable ("surely it's more than that?" was the latest comment a couple of days ago), so I wouldn't anticipate it being anything close to a show-stopper. All artwork received is also held confidentially on file for future possible iterations at reduced cost. Every year we help Bachmann Europe with their catalog which often involves them sending us a lot of artwork so that prototype models of yet-to-be-announced releases can be created, so discretion and confidentiality is as important to us as quality of the product, just in case that was ever a concern. Hope this helps, Steve

Thanks Bob; glad to hear you've been happy with what you've received. In answer to your question: the shop never closes. Without an ounce of exaggeration a typical working week is around 80-90hrs long and has been for literally years. It's certainly not an 8-6 job; it's a lifestyle and one that has evolved out of pure lifelong passion for railways. By far the biggest challenge is a lack of hours in each week to get to everything we'd like.

It's a topic that crops up with some regularity, so hopefully this may offer some guidance: - Some people are happy to design their own artwork, buy blank decal paper and print onto it. This might not be for everybody but for those who are used to it, the results can be satisfactory. As Ian indicates however, this method does have its limitations, in that it only works optimally for certain types of designs, and it also requires you to be comfortable using a graphics package (or even just Word) and be prepared to spend time going through some likely trial and error to get the results you need. Home printers don't print white, so if you need white text or any bright colour to remain true once placed onto a (particularly dark) surface, then you'll need to get creative by trying to match the colour of the background in what you design. Even then the results can be variable as even trying to match a black colour is more tricky than you might think, and if you've printed on white paper to achieve a white or light colour, chances are it may have a relatively thick lip. But it's all in the eye of the beholder, ultimately. - There are some companies who will take on custom requests, but the cost and "how long" is a piece of string. It will depend on the complexity of what is required, whether the artwork (note "artwork" as opposed to a jpg photo) needs to be recreated by hand, as well as required testing. Simple lettering and numbering for example would be very straight-forward. At the other end of the scale, asking for crests to be made when all we have is a grainy 3/4 angle small image from the 50s can be an absolute nightmare, bordering on unfeasible. Some people simply prefer the convenience, and often high end quality, of having a decal manufacturer do it for them - and it certainly doesn't have to be expensive (straight-forward custom renumbering at Railtec starts at £1.30, just to give an idea). Depending on the quality of your printer at home, the difference in print quality may also be considerably noticeable to that produced by a professional machine which costs in the region of a small house. At the end of the day it's all about what results you're striving to achieve. Some things to consider: Spot printed vs full carrier film - Some companies (Railtec and Fox being two of them) offer spot printed product. This means that you don't have to cut extremely close to the print in order to minimise the carrier film: you simply cut loosely around, place in water, and the transfer will only have the carrier film where it needs to be. Many believe it gives a better end result and it saves a lot of time-consuming preparation to minimise all the film of product that isn't spot printed. I've attached an image which helps illustrate this, and incidentally this is the exact transformation that Railtec went through approx 18 months ago when upgrading from a mix of old technologies which included Alps (also referred to as OKI, Kodak or Citizen Printiva) which had full carrier film, to the newer tech which doesn't: In the spirit of fairness with my Railtec hat on I can say that I know there are many folks who have been very happy with Fox product also. Handling & durability - How the product is made will determine if it is able to withstand enamels, wayward fingernails and how kindly it will react to being soaked in solution and manoeuvred once roughly in place on the model. In the past when we had used Alps, some modellers found the print to be brittle, easily damaged and even disintegrate in some cases unless particular care was taken and there was some prior experience of using the product. Print quality & print registration - Home printers will generally give the poorest print quality with digital high-end beasts generally giving the best. When we had used Alps (somewhere more towards the home printer end of the market) it could hold its own with certain types of output, but the tech was limited to optimally printing specific colours, and if a different colour was required then combinations of different colour wax cartridges would be necessary. Each wax cartridge would have just a slightly different print registration to the previous cartridge, and/or "chip" where one colour was printed over another. The very slight difference in print registration between each colour pass would be more noticeable particularly in smaller scales. Standard laser home printers wouldn't have this issue although the quality of print risks being quite grainy in comparison to digital high-end. Additionally, with the Alps method the wax cartridge would start at one of the sheet, print the first section, then have to return to the beginning of the carriage (like a typewriter) to continue printing what would often be the same physical transfer. Consequently it resulted in feint join lines being present, usually the case for transfers that were greater than (from memory) approx 20mm in height. For simple white or CMYKRGB transfers less than 20mm tall it was generally ok, though there was still always the bug-bear of too much extra carrier for our (and many customers') liking. All in, there were just too many reasons to move technology and it generally seems to have been a universally welcomed decision to move away from the old and now unsupported home printers such as Alps and primarily towards a spot printed solution, not least by the likes of Pete Waterman, Bachmann, Peco and more. But again - it really all comes down to personal preference, the results you're looking for, how much you're prepared to spend and to some extent, feasibility of what you need. There are quite a few examples around RMWeb as well as on social media.

Hi Castle, the roof boards weren't part of the transfer sheet though if one person or more were to let me know: - Some common roof boards - What is the overall critical width in which they should fit ...then it may be something relatively easy to pull together. I seem to recall in the Great Western Way book that there were reported variations of colour, so this could be a can of worms?!

Hi Martyn (& possibly others), just a quick note to say that the complete loco pack for the BR shunter is now also available in BR green with number (and depot, if applicable) of your choice: Pack 7mm-C0802: http://www.railtec-models.com/showitem.php?id=3194 It's entirely likely that I'll make a parallel pack for the early crest once I find that 8th day of the week, though at present there doesn't seem to be much demand for that. As with all the other series of "complete loco pack with your choice of number" packs, I send an email after purchase to confirm which number etc is required. Hope this helps, Steve

Hi Dave, it would seem a reply I sent earlier in the year didn't reach you. I will re-send it in the next few minutes so if you don't receive it, please can you PM me? (Let me know if your email address has changed). As with everything we make now, these are spot printed so have no superfluous unsightly carrier film to worry about, withstand regular handling, contain true vibrant full colours and are compatible with enamels as well as acrylics - things which are always worth checking when shopping around.

Hi Argos, the last pack got purchased the other night which provides a timely juncture for me to enhance the pack based on suggestions. I've already added more 8/10 tons (along with 6 and 12 tons). I'd also like to add LOCO COAL ONLY based on Jim's suggestion but without knowing what size it needs to be, it'd be too much of a gamble. The LOCO / 16 TON / COKE and IRON ORE which are already on the sheet work out at 5.5" lettering - which is not something I would have come up with myself when designing the sheet but must have been on the advice of a customer, so if those are not correct then it's an open invite for people to speak up. I'm also tempted to add WAGON to that list which opens up the possibility of COKE WAGON, though that would then require LOAD 40 TONS, open up the can of worms of how many would be required and should the larger vehicles even have their own sheet (I try to keep sheets small, specific and relevant so that folks aren't forced down the route of having to purchase huge sheets when they might only use 25% of it). As is so often the case when desigining decal sheets, it's an impossible task to please everybody all the time, so your suggestions with what would be useful as well as info on specific sizes would be to everyone's benefit.

It's useful info Jim. Now I know that I can evolve the sheet on its next print run to have wider appeal - or at least if I could get an understanding of what those markings looked like and their sizes. It just helps expedite that process if folk can drop me a line directly to let me know, otherwise the chances of me seeing it on a forum thread are actually pretty slim and I'll never be any the wiser. I've got a pretty solid knowledge of railway insignia from early 80s onwards, and prior to that I have to be guided by what I read, see, learn from others and what modellers indicate would be useful on a sheet. I've learned a lot in the past 10 years but I don't think it will ever be possible for one person to have the depth and breadth of knowledge of even most main topics. It's entirely possible that the sheet in its current form was evolved with the help of someone who may have had a bunch of wagons which had most of the markings you mention already present and simply needed new numbers and brandings. I'm here to develop products that help as many people as possible, and certainly in some of the lesser modelled areas (CR being one) I need guidance in doing that because I just don't have the specialist knowledge that subject matter experts already have. Best I can do is put something out there, and if it can evolve in a constructive way then I'm all ears.

Now there's a comment I don't see very often! The availability of a specialist artisan product for an even more obscure subject matter for somewhat less than a fiver was a pretty good deal I thought, but then this is a hobby of widely varying opinions and scopes of informed reference afterall. There's a "question or comment?" link on every product page where folks could get in touch and recommend suggestions/amendments so that products can evolve for everyone's benefit. But sometimes it's more fun to sit down with a cup of tea and trawl the forums in an insatiable quest for one person to develop both depth as well as breadth of knowledge of the vast universe of railway insignia from 1890 through to the present day

There are several options for BR blue stock: Simple renumbering (incl regional prefixes) http://www.railtec-models.com/catalog.php?search_str=br+blue%20mk&gauge=4mm White lining http://www.railtec-models.com/showitem.php?id=1395 Data panels / C1 markings / solebar detail and more http://www.railtec-models.com/showitem.php?id=486 These are all waterslide so you get wiggle room in terms of being able to position before fixing into place, spot printed (so no superfluous carrier film to worry about), and even filmless in the case of the lining, for example. Best of luck with the spraying!

They can indeed Andy. They're just generic "loco number of your choice" packs (if you can call them that). Folks just pop as many into the basket as they need, and once check-out is complete I send an email asking which loco number(s) people would like. It's just an easy and versatile way of getting complete loco numbers made to suit which can be applied in one easy hit, removing the need to cut out and line up individual numbers which I know many of us find a hassle!