Bulleidboy100

Just had an email from Hornby to say the coaches are in stock - R4886B, R4888D and R4888E.

I am sorely tempted, as I have the same Bachmann E4 (in fact two - one is BR - two sets of coaches required!!). I don't think the Swanage line has any ideally placed tunnels or bridges(?) (beginning or end of layout), but on "Wykeham" the fiddle yard exits straight into a tunnel (scenic break). I have placed a magnet behind the tunnel portal (dead centre - single track exit), and I have an old Bachmann Bulleid Brake into which I have fitted lights that are magnet operated. The coach exits the fiddle yard with the lights out, and exits the tunnel at the other end with the lights on, and the opposite on return. You can of course still wave a magnet over the carriage to turn them off/on should the need arise.

As this carriage has been produced with the cut-outs at interior roof level to enable lighting to be fitted, it's a pity that the power bogie that was on the R4607, R4609 and R4609A Mk1's with lights, does not appear to be available as a spare. Although there are a number of carriage lighting kits available, it would be so much easier to attach a power bogie and run a couple of wires up to a LED strip attached to the underside of the roof and take your lighting from the track. I assume(?) the lighting cut-outs are now on all of the new Mk1's?

If there is something I really want, I will always order direct from Hornby, despite the higher price I know I will receive it. Until, which will probably never happen, someone is able to give exact figures and numbers manufactured and how they are then allocated on arrival, it will always be guesswork as to whether a "retailer" has taken pre-orders that exceed their allocation. The new "Hornby Dublo" models are limited to 500 of each - that is not a lot when that allocation has to be split between Hornby and every outlet in the UK. Hattons and a few others do tell you what is in stock when your looking at the relevant sites. I have never had a pre-order cancelled - although MRD did ask me sometime ago whether I still wanted a couple of "elderly" pre-orders.

I have only just picked up this thread, but I think it depends on the era you are modelling as to the nameplate colour on Merchant Navy Class loco's. There are a number of pictures around that show a black painted plates as late as 1965. From reading, which I'm sure you have all done, Eastleigh either didn't get the message or had an abundance of black paint, so loco's were still coming from a "service" with black painted name plates, when they were, supposedly, supposed to be red.

Todays exciting news is that Mercedes had to sign LH because George Russell's feet were to big, and they had already started building the 2021 car - so George was never an option. This headline news comes from Robert Doornbos (who!) - the well known Dutch driver. Roll on March.

We will now have to go through numerous reports of what the contract "might" say - I assume Eddie Jordan has already seen/got a copy

The car was stolen from Basingstoke Station car park - on a Wednesday. The police told me they lost a Ford every Wenesday, and the car would be in Reading over the weekend! I got the call on Friday afternoon to say it was down a lane just south of Reading, but it had no wheels, and was sitting in one of those lay-byes the council use to dump road chippings. There had also been a fire inside the car. I managed to find a local recovery firm who had a spare set of Cortina wheels. So we managed to ge the car home. The fire was just the passenger seat -why? I managed to get a number of parts from a place called Cortinaland at Woolwich - and luckily the insurance company could see that the car was a "labour of love" and paid for all the spare parts - seat, wheels, dashboard and few other damaged parts. I used to keep all of the "service" paperwork in the car, and it was scattered around the site where the car was found - together with a disability pension book!!! I checked the address, which was in my town, and took it to the police - who just said "somebody has been careless" - I never heard any more about that. I eventually sold the car to a neighbour for his wife to drive (!) - but sadly she died a few months later, and it was sold. About a year later it was advertised in AutoTrader as a Ford Cortina Savage - which is was not (it was built by Superspeed in Ilford). I went to see it, they wanted £150 for it - unfortunately I took my wife with me who said "don't even think about it" - that was the last time I saw it - but did receive the said phone call from a guy in Blandford Forum who was restoring it. The car had the Ziebart (remember that?) rustproofing treatment, and I had it resprayed twice(!) It was originally fitted with Ford RallySport alloys, picked out in Arizona Gold and Black - it really was a tremendous car. I really should have bought it back for £150. I had a problem with the first picture of it - so I have repeated it below. IMG_0307 by Barry Clayton, on Flickr

After having the Escort Mexico for a couple of years - the family grew, and I needed more space - so puchased this 1975 Ford Cortina 2000E Estate - when this picture was taken, the car had been fitted with a 3-litre Essex engine and a five spped box, new diff, Bilstein shockers and uprated coil springs - it went like s*** off a shovel. I owned it for very many years. Last I heard - some years ago it was in Blandford Forum - whether it still exists I have no idea - NAA805P.

As you were talking "minis" - I did post this sometime ago - but this is my Mini Clubman Estate leaving home (1st September 2018) after twenty nine years sitting in my garage - I bought a new Ford Escort Mexico in 1973 - it cost me £1171 - those were the days. IMG_0245 (1) by Barry Clayton, on Flickr The same car on the front of November 2019 Mini Magazine - no longer owned by me. IMG_0861 by Barry Clayton, on Flickr

I see this report in the Daily Express this morning - just in a few lines we have "claimed", "alleged", "may", "proposed" - I won't believe anything until Toto says the deal is done - there is so much rubbish out there. I know George Russell is very good, but I would like to see him coping for a dozen laps with Max right up his rear end. "Lewis Hamilton may block George Russell's proposed move to Mercedes, it has been claimed. It has been alleged that the Brit has verbally agreed a new two-year contract with the team to continue his Formula One career until 2022. AutosportWeb say that the 36-year-old has agreed terms and that an announcement is imminent, meaning Hamilton will continue into his 15th and 16th seasons in F1."

I've just looked at Locomotives in detail - Merchant Navy Class by R.J.Harvey - it says that 35011 had cab modifications 29/9/50.

Irwell says 35011 had safety valve modifications between 5/1/54 and 23/1/54. No mention of cab modifications.

For those who might be interested there is a Space X launch today. The launch window is twenty two minutes commencing at 3pm GMT. Payload = 143 satellites.

Very heavy snow in Basingstoke from about 7.15am - very frosty before that. Now just gentle flakes coming down - it has almost stopped.

Not fully up and running yet, but certainly a lot quicker to navigate the shop.

I recall the Surtees F5000 car being sponsored by Durex - what that had to do with motor racing - answers on a postcard I believe it was the first race televised, where the leading car - which led from start to finish, was never shown on TV - how the BBC has changed!!!!!

I replaced the TTS speaker with a Zimo LS40x20x09 Optimised 3D (1watt/8 Ohm) speaker - sounds very good - and loud! I live a couple of hundred yards from a junction where 66's sit several times a day on their way to Southampton Docks - the TTS sound is pretty realistic.

An interesting thread - I gave up on my R3333 Adams Radial. If the pony truck is incorrectly seated, with a very gentle push the loco will go about six feet down the track - with drivers obviously locked. I have yet to find a decoder which fits well, even a TCS DP2X-UK hit the bottom of the coal bunker, and the loco will not run with the body on - runs superbly with it off. I have already rewired the decoder socket - incorrectly wired during manufacture. It is now at the back of the stock cupboard and will probably not see the light of day again.

I just watched twenty seven people get off the hovercraft at Ryde, Isle of Wight. Having come from Portsmouth - Tier 4 - arriving in Ryde IoW - Tier 1 - how does this work?

For those who have not yet reached the back page of the January edition of Hornby Magazine (further information on page 9), there is a note that states the February edition of the magazine will be available from January 7th 2021 together with a copy of the new Hornby Catalogue bought together for £10.98 a saving of £4.00. This will be available from participating Tesco stores and online from Key Publishing. This offer will be available for a limited time between January 6th - 19th 2021. If you subscribe to Hornby Magazine the new Hornby catalogue can be ordered at a discounted price through shop.keypublishing.com The magazine will not be available until the 7th January as it contains information about the new 2021 releases, which will be made available by Hornby at 10am on the 5th January 2021. Before anyone asks - it does not say whether the magazine and catalogue will be in the same bag - it just says if they are bought together the combined price will be £10.98. At this moment in time, I cannot find any mention of the 2021 Hornby Catalogue on Key Publishings site. I assume it will appear at some stage?

Mercedes team boss Toto Wolff said the idea of bringing Russell into the team for next season was not “a realistic situation”, but hinted he could partner Hamilton for the following year. “He’s a Williams driver, and is signed up to Williams, and our driver line-up is Valtteri [Bottas] and Lewis,” said Wolff. “So, I don’t see this as a realistic situation at that moment of time [for 2021]. “But I can understand that it would be an interesting situation, both in the team and maybe a bit of a wild ride for all of us. Maybe we’ll have that in the future.

Thank you.

I turned off the TV as soon as the trophies had been presented. Did they not say the first lap incident would be considered after the race - what was the outcome?

I was a collector, but managed to build a layout a few years ago ("Wykeham - Somewhere in the South" on the Model Railway Forum). I am a great fan of Bulleid Pacifics, hence my "handle". I currently have twenty seven Hornby Rebuilt Merchant Navy Class locomotives - I am aware that it is not possible to get perfect rename/numbering done with the variation in tenders, but that does not concern me to much. My collection is based on loco's as they were in 1961, so try to buy loco's with the correct Shed Code before renaming. Hornby have never produced a rebuilt loco that was shedded in Salisbury in 1961 - Cunard White Star, Peninsular & Oriental and Aberdeen Commonwealth. A few more eBay purchases for the full set