Joseph_Pestell

I think that many here on RMWeb would seriously advise to use a more recent version of Gresley stock. Those 70s/80s era models have many faults.

I don't understand the paint technology involved, but teak coaches seemed to weather more than any other, whether varnished or painted. I recall travelling in a Gresley coach on a Liverpool St - Harwich PQ train as a child (1964?). It was so filthy on the outside that one would struggle to know what the colour was below. I'm not sure that a trip through the carriage washer would have improved things. My father (who was a champion worrier) would have preferred to travel in a steel-bodied vehicle as more crashworthu.

EM Gauge Society, if you can find a member to help you.

Featuring on BBC Breakfast this morning.

in the middle of a move, this week. But I will find time to get across to Wakefield for this.

Just checked for train times and fares and Northern website suggests changing at Stockport and Sheffield (starting from Lostock Gralam). That seems like a strange routing to me.

6 hours ago, Oldddudders said:

ISTR the Hidden Enquiry after Clapham - already 33 years ago - was hot on extra hours worked and rest periods, determining that overwork and associated pressures might have led to the fatal errors committed by an S&T New Works installer. I assume those principles are still to be adhered to in the privatised railway. 

Not long after Clapham, a relative of mine was working on the railway with contractors. There were many abuses going on at that time. Not sure about hours but there many working without the requisite qualifications/paperwork.

3 hours ago, whart57 said:

People may choose to make the sign of the cross or chew on a clove of garlic now as we descend into the area of witchcraft and devil's work ......

 

 

 

 

 

 

Where is this leading? Well an imaginary loco. What about the British doing similar experiments with wheel arrangements and our imaginary loco having an EM2 body but a 1-Do-1 (2-8-2) wheel arrangement?

I have considered this for a simple layout project (no station just running lines) in N. There is a Shapeways producer doing EM1 and EM2 bodies which could be modified and put onto Tomix/Kato running gear to produce various forms of locomotive.

16 minutes ago, Steamport Southport said:

 

Worst offender is the girl currently doing all the sports coverage on the BBC, Alex Scott. She's now doing a lot of other programmes like The One Show. Can't understand a word half the time and I lived in London for a while!

 

Alright doing "street talk" or having a strong regional accent on a light hearted music programme, but not great when you are trying to describe something that people genuine want to know what is happening.

 

I'm not expecting the presenters all to have RP, but they should be understandable to the listeners.

 

Scottish presenters have been used for decades, but you wouldn't get Rab C Nesbitt to read the news! 

 

 

 

Alex Scott does seem to be on the TV rather a lot. Like you, the constant lack of the letter g irritates me.

But worst offender? I don't think so. The Home Secretary wins that accolade.

2 hours ago, whart57 said:

 

 

 

It is a problem of vast scale, but it is also feasible. More feasible than retro-fitting heat pumps in houses built in the 19th and 20th centuries.

I think that should be clarified.

There is no difficulty about attaching an air-source heatpump to an old building. The issue is that ashp puts out the hot water at a lower temperature than a gas/oil/electric boiler. So you need much bigger radiator capacity or dig up all the floors to put in underfloor heating.

10 hours ago, Northmoor said:

China has bought up much of Africa and will need to squeeze their debtors for the rest of the century, because unfortunately, China's population is ageing exceptionally quickly and they soon won't have people of working age to support all those over working age.  Their improved health care means the growing middle classes are living considerably longer while thanks to the one child policy*, they have nowhere near enough young people (and for generations, girls were often unwanted so the gender mix is nowhere near 50:50.  The demographic timebomb that is starting to hit Europe is a mere grenade compared to the 1000lb bunker buster that is hitting China.

 

But never mind China; this century belongs to India and to some extent the rest of the sub-continent, so including Pakistan, Bangladesh and Sri Lanka.  Collectively their populations outnumber China, they have a much younger and well educated population; India alone produces more STEM graduates per annum than we produce graduates in total and their second language is almost invariably English. This means they can communicate and do business with approaching half the people on Earth.

 

*This was abolished about 25 years too late, but in their political system, reversing a policy meant admitting it was even remotely possible that those in power could make a mistake.

The only one child policy was so obviously wrong that one really does wonder how the politicos thought it a good idea.

Not only do they have an imminent problem of not enough workers to support the elderly population, but many of these children have been spoiled by newly-wealthy parents. I doubt if they will have the same acumen and work ethic as previous generations.

3 hours ago, iL Dottore said:

I once took a Mercedes Benz taxi from Tel Aviv airport to Jerusalem. I remarked to the driver that is was a fine, classic MB and he proudly informed that he’d had it since new and had put 750000 km on the clock.

I wonder if the 2021 MBs will rack up such mileage/last as long as that one?

 

Taxi drivers often rack up this sort of mileage and more. I wonder what the mileage is on all those old Peugeots that one sees in Africa.

4 hours ago, Michael Hodgson said:

A wrong side failure on that could be pretty disastrous for a train on the lower level.

I can't help think a conventional crossing on the level would have been cheaper and easier.

Yes, it would.

But not easy to mix gauges at pointwork. Above all, I think that those tiny wheels would derail on a conventional crossing.

11 hours ago, Happy Hippo said:

It's not an uncommon  pastime for various local action groups to suggest that lines are reopened.

 

In many cases the old track beds have already been built over or converted into roads which really puts the brakes on such a scheme.

Last Friday evening, I was on the road (dual carriageway) between High Wycombe and Maidenhead. When you see the amount of traffic it seems impossible that there was ever a case for closing north from Bourne End.

Reopening there has been suggested but the line was built over long ago.

2 hours ago, jamie92208 said:

That was quite common in the 70's with several estates.  We werecalso told that Ford onlybused 5 different locks and any Ford key would open a Vauxhall Viva.  Don't ask me how I know.  In the early days of UPVC windows a whole estate in Knottingley had them fitted inside out. Burglars only had to pull out the sealant strip then lift the window out.  

 

As to the photo is it somewhere  near Lake Louise.

 

Jamie

I once lost an ignition key from a Ford Granada. Embarrassing as I had borrowed the car from a friend.

As I was trying to break in using a coathanger, the police arrived and, taking my word about the reasons for my actions, proceeded to explain to me how to get in and where to find the reference number for the key (glove compartment lock). Within an hour, I had visited a local hardware store and got a replacement key. As is often the way, we then found the original key. It was under the fridge where one of the cats had pushed it.

Some years later, a friend lost the key to her Fiesta. I found the reference number in the same way and went to the local Ford dealership who refused to believe that it was right. Once again, local lock shop came to the rescue.

29 minutes ago, Hobby said:

 

Derby? My daughters other half supports them and has been expecting it all season, I suspect like most of their fans. Regroup, get a new owner, and come back strong! What do you recon to Rooney?

Not easy to find the right sort of owner when you are down in the third tier.

Much more mobility between the different tiers these days though so still cause for hope. One wonders how the financial management of these clubs can be so inept. 

Rooney has always had a good football brain. Probably more apt to be a coach than a manager though. Derby need someone more experienced right now.

2 hours ago, whart57 said:

The kits were shown to members at West Byfleet yesterday (November 13) and the response was very good. As a result we are now moving to the ordering stage. 3mm Society members can, if they haven't already done so, place a pre-order with Track Sales. We do have to curb our enthusiasm a bit because Wayne's set up is not geared to bulk orders but hopefully these will start getting plonked on layouts in the new year.

Thanks for the info. I will definitely order a few for a small project.

1 hour ago, tetsudofan said:

 

Couple of years ago I made a similar suggestion at my local mrc exhibition and was told that they had thought about it but decided it was a no go as such tickets would be passed to somebody else to avoid them paying for a fully priced ticket.

 

Keith

Easily sorted by the purchaser's name being written on the ticket.

10 minutes ago, tigerburnie said:

A question arises though, why? I cannot think of anything I would want to plug in whilst in the bathroom.

A former girlfriend had a washing machine in her bathroom: quite common in France.

I wanted to wire it with a fixed fused output but I was advised that the electrical regs insist on a socket.

10 minutes ago, 4630 said:

 

 

Similar to my experience from last week when I booked my booster jab, @beast66606

...text message prompt from the NHS, which was timed for the 6 month anniversary of the date of my second jab

...visit NHS website

...login

...choice of venue (at least half a dozen within a short walk, car or bus journey from my location in Huddersfield.  Many more also listed in other local towns in West Yorkshire)

...plenty of dates and times available

...booking made

 

My impression is of a well thought through, efficient and effective programme.

It seems to be working well for most. But still IT glitches causing some people to be misdirected to centres that they can not get to. My cousin lives in Dover and was being directed to vac centres in Essex. Her sister got an appointment where she lives in Deal (only five miles from Dover).

2 minutes ago, hayfield said:

I see this morning in the BBC's news website that the take up of the top up jabs are not as high as expected The Times front Page (reporting an interview on the BBC)

 

Older double jabbed people are dying because they have not taken up the  booster jab, quoting. Dr Susan Hopkins CMA of the Health Security Agency. Reporting that 8.4 million of the 14.6 million who qualify have had the booster.  If everywhere is the same as our own area, many may be like we were waiting for their local health centres to contact them. Given that we would have been part of the  6.2 million unvaccinated had we not been advised to book ourselves in, I guess many who have not got the booster yet may be in the same boat, though if a recent post that the wait between booking and vaccination is growing perhaps the message is hitting home

 

Though the statement that many who have have been double jabbed but not had a booster are dying, is different from previous claims that its the unvaccinated who are suffering the most

Very variable service is certainly impacting on take-up. My cousin is having great difficulty getting through to the booking services and has been offered boosters at locations at least 60 miles away that she can't get to as she does not drive.

Yet her sister had no difficulty getting an appointment.

With that many dolls to accommodate, I think that 1 & 2 would be combined on a gantry spanning the tracks. NER seemed to like gantries.

I visited the show at Gaydon yesterday.

Plenty of visitors and the traders seemed busy.

It's a "difficult" venue with lots of small rooms but I think the Exhibition Manager could have managed to be more Covid aware with larger aisles and a one-way system. Space to stand and watch the excellent Ellesmere layout was lacking.

No lift between the two floors of the exhibition and, apparently, no stairs, although there must be. Difficult for someone like me who can not do down escalators at present.

Very few mask wearers, as indeed at my hotel in Coventry.

2 hours ago, scottystitch said:

The room doesn't exist at present, but it is projected to be a 8m by 4m outbuilding, purpose built for the railway.

 

On your prompting, I looked closer at Clive's thread and see page 19 has the concept  for his layout.  I hadn't considered a terminus through the centre for a number of reasons, but perhaps it deserves closer scrutiny.

 

Supposing we go down that route, how would you propose we tackle the inclusion of Euston/London and through freight traffic into the layout, without the two requirements being effectively isolated layouts?

 

I am against continuous run in the sense of roundy-roundy, preferring storage yard to storage yard, albeit with return loops in them where appropriate.

 

Best

 

Scott.

With that space to play with, all options are possible. And plenty of space for storage yards.

I would stick with the broad outline of Clive's layout (storage yard to storage yard) but have a four-track section on the "roundy-roundy". 

An alternative to the peninsular terminus is two termini back-to-back - simplifies the electrickery. 

1 hour ago, SM42 said:

 

The 17" neck seems to be the cut off point where manufacturers of shirts decide that you must also be no more than 5' 6" tall. 

Hence any taller person will be unable to find a shirt that has any chance of staying tucked in if they insist on moving about. 

 

You will also be able to hide a small child within any shirt over 17" collar.

 

Big collar = short and very fat as far as the textile industry is concerned

 

Andy

Boris Johnson has a large neck.

50 minutes ago, bbishop said:

 

 

I've just completed a medical form.  Question: "is you neck size over 17 inches?"  Answer: "Yes, ex front row forward."

 

 

I am just going through the process of registering with a new GP. Lots of forms, hours on the phone, etc. Politicians tell us that Covid restrictions were to stop the NHS being overwhelmed. Well, sorry guys, you are too late. It is already completely broken.

Lots of daft questions in these forms. What exactly is the relevance of a 17" neck?

1 hour ago, bbishop said:

Whilst the present Rugby Union laws have turned the Hooker into a third Prop.  I'm sure HH will back me up on this.  Bill

I don't think that it is the Laws that have caused this but a failure by referees to apply the Laws. I think that I only saw one straight feed into a scrum last season. As a former 2, it is a cause of great annoyance.