josh_will

Thanks Ben for the suggestion. I think I might tackle it myself though as there won’t be many other buildings and I’ve got a scale drawing of it in one of my books. I have struggled however to find images of the station in my chosen era although I do have a track plan in the form of a old map (also in the aforementioned book). Regards, Josh

A new project is underway. It’s another micro layout (only 850mm x 670mm). After a recent trip to Scotland and a journey from Inverness to Kyle of Lochalsh and back, I’ve chosen to fulfil a long-term ambition of mine and model one of the line’s stations. I’ve gone for Plockton for a few reasons: -It has a nice curved platform and an interesting station building -It has a natural scenic break in the form of an road bridge at one end of the platform. This is also interesting as it was built to span two tracks (which never came to fruition) -It has (or had) a small goods yard which will generate some more varied operation than simply running passenger trains through the station I will mention at the outset that this will be in no means a realistic model. It will have tight curves and it can only handle three-coach trains (perhaps enough to represent typical traffic in quieter parts of the year). I am using a baseboard that was not intended for this project. The time period will be roughly 1955-1965, and I will be using a lot of older N gauge stock - nothing fancy to see here, and there are Peco Setrack first radius curves to negotiate. The photo shows the cork being fixed down. You can also see the extension that I’ve had to create at the back to fit the storage loops onto the baseboard.

There is a US-based seller called something like “Soo Much Stuff” who seems to have almost any kind of spare or part you could want, so if you placed a big order it might justify the shipping costs.

Ah yes Anoraks Anonymous, I think that’s where I first really thought about changing to US modelling. I was at TINGS a couple of years ago, and everybody was wrestling to get at AA’s British stuff, whilst all the American stuff was dismissed with utter contempt

I did email them a while ago about getting a price list from them but it never came. Maybe I should call sometime. Anyway I can tell you that this place is halfway up the Tawe valley and basically in the middle of nowhere. How strange….

Looks great, these are the only paint schemes I’ve been brave enough to try so far…..

What about Kittle Hobby? They are located quite close to me (Swansea) and they always have an eye-catching two-page ad in Continental Modeller but I’ve not been there and it seems to be some sort of almost secret location such as somebody’s house, not quite the grand Hatton’s-esque shop I always thought it would be.

I too am DC-only John although I’ve found some locos and stock on a well-known auction site. I got myself an Atlas/Roco S-4 and a couple of ancient Roundhouse boxcars and that’ll do for me for now. If a Roco loco can run as well as this despite being 30-odd years old then recent models must be absolutely superb.

Many thanks for the replies, they are all very helpful. I looked at Mech Models and I can see that I can get the industrial windows from there and I can get the Walthers brick sheets from Gaugemaster so that’s all great. I’m very happy about the Oxford HO cars. I haven’t seen these before - are they new? It’s also much cheaper than buying American-made vehicles. Regards, Josh

Hello all, I’d like to ask for some help on sourcing HO scale parts in the UK. The main kind of things I’m looking for would be American-type plastic brickwork sheets and window details, as I’m planning on doing a little scratch building of typical industrial buildings. I’d also look at kits if I think they could be used or adapted for use (I’m thinking Walthers, Pikestuff and the like). Could anybody point out some suppliers to me please? I would also like to ask for a little help on finding other smaller detail parts such as road vehicles (around 1950s - 60s era). I’m not averse to ordering directly from the US but of course if such things can be found in the UK then that would be quite handy. After having a go at American modelling for the first time in N I thought I’d give HO a go too but it does seem a little challenging to find some things. Cheers Josh

Thanks for the info Il Grifone. I’ve swapped around the pick-ups and it works fine now. I can see that the tender pick-ups work by lifting the locomotive body off the track and the wheels still turn. I did however have to spend a good 5 minutes filing down the rivet to get the chassis block to fit properly inside the frame. That seems a bit bizarre that Farish would design it this way.... The tender pick-up kit sold by BR Lines is much better as it has a little tab on the upper pick-up piece to allow you to drop the wire down through a hole in the tender frame and connect to this.

Hi all, I have a couple of questions regarding my latest acquisition, a (1980s?) Farish (still marked “Grafar”) Black 5. I have stripped it down, cleaned and reassembled and it works fine, but I’m not sure about part of the valve gear. The stationary rod that runs between the cylinder and the bracket hanging down from the running plate (please excuse my lack of knowledge on Walschaerts valve gear) does not run parallel to the running plate but instead slopes downwards. Should this all be tucked behind the bracket? I have googled some images, and it looks like the updated Bachmann-era versions (c. 2001-2012ish) of the Black 5 have a parallel rather than sloping rod. The cylinders are also angled outwards when looking at it from the front, almost like a GWR locomotive - I presume this was a design compromise to allow enough clearance for the valve gear? I’m also not sure about the tender. I have fitted tender pick-ups before, but this is the first Farish engine I’ve had where the tender had pick-ups factory fitted. There is a slightly strange eyelet-type fitting that is connected to the wire. On the underside, there is a rivet-type contact area, but it seems to push the central chassis block downwards and out of position when it’s assembled. Also, I think the pick-ups have been installed the wrong way around, as the loco won’t move when the tender is wired up and placed on the track. Can anybody more knowledgable please help? Regards, Josh Williams

The black paint is proving to be quite stubborn when trying to remove it. Is this normal for older Hornby models?

Very interesting Ruffnut! Out of interest, what does everybody think was the better configuration for larger Hornby steam locos? Use an X.03/X.04 in the body, or use the (largely disliked?) ringfield motor in the tender with the enormous moulded “coal” load - but with the benefit of collecting current from both loco and tender?

I’ve stripped the paint from the driving wheels. These will then by painted black. I’ve chosen to use some replacement centre driving wheels to ensure that the coupling rods remain nice and tight when screwed in place. I’ve also fashioned some replacement lower step portions as the originals had been broken.

Alastair, Of course you can join in on this thread. I’m sure it’ll help me too. However I won’t be uprating this model - simply getting it back to its former glory. Thanks for the info on the smoke unit - I’m not going to look at retrofitting one, I just thought that this loco would have had one (not knowing they no longer had them after ‘74). Regards, Josh

Many thanks for the replies. I’m also slightly baffled by the absence of the exhaust unit on this loco - I can only guess that the previous owner took it out. I know very little about the origins of this model. It came unboxed and it was given to me as a present when I was a young child in the late ‘90s. It came from an old antiques store. It hasn’t really been run properly in about 20 years either. I may have attempted to oil it (with WD40?!) when I was a child - can’t quite remember - which possibly caused the degradation of the original bushes. I’ll definitely try the S.8397 bushes. Regards, Josh

Hi all, I’m working on this Hornby B12 (possibly B12/3?) which needs a bit of TLC. I have decided to repaint it as there are some blemishes to the paintwork. To keep things simple I have opted to paint it in LNER Wartime Black, which is something perhaps a little different to the norm as well. I have bought a few components to get it back to good running order. However I’ve hit a problem: the wheel bushes I ordered are too large in diameter for the axles. I’m unsure which ones are the correct ones.

Thanks Ray - I’ll certainly take your advice on board. Regards, Josh

Thanks Tony. I may also start a quick topic on this Hornby B12, as I’m going to repaint it. Regards, Josh

Sorry to resurrect an old thread, but I’ve just bought an L1 (for £40), which is on its way to me, and after some googling for more info on the model I came across this. I’m not planning on carrying out a similar detailing and repainting job as Prometheus, I just like to get some old classics serviced and running nicely again. According to the eBay description the steps are broken, so a bit of styrene and micro strip should sort that. Prometheus - I thought I’d post this reply as I used to be a member of SRMG myself - although it wasn’t for long and it was a few years ago now. I hope the club gets back up and running soon. Regards, Josh

Hi all, I’m trying to reassemble an old Hornby B12 (R. 150). I’ve had to replace the old wires with something of a similar size. However I really don’t like the arrangement where one of the wires has to pass from the pick-up through the hole in the chassis otherwise occupied by the plastic drive gear, and then get pressed up rather close to the spinning armature once the body is in place. I’ve tried to power up the chassis unit and the gear gets jammed because of this wire. Has anyone found an alternative way to link the pick-up to the motor brush? I don’t really have any way of drilling through the metal chassis block, however. Regards

First go at repainting and adding decals.

This is my new micro N scale project. New features for this project that I haven’t included before are storage sidings at the rear and a dropped section for a river feature. I can’t say if this baseboard design will prove to be successful yet but it’s alright so far. As I’m not sure about the suitability of 9” radius Peco Setrack points with US stock, I’ve decided to have a go with the curved turnouts to create a storage loop behind the scenes.

Thanks everybody. The editor of CM has confirmed that it will be published, possibly in February’s issue.