Michael Edge

You've done a good job with the window beading - this is how we always did it before the days of etching and I think it often looks better.

I've built three of these so far (another three on order at present), first one was 46205 Princess Victoria which is not often modelled. First photo shows the RH side before painting, Romford driving wheels on this one (nobody produces a Princess wheel), Comet bogie and tender. The same loco after painting and weathering by Graham Varley. footplate and cab assembly The next two were 46200 and 46201, I haven't actually built one of the production series yet. ready for painting, Gibson N15 wheels this time - all these models are EM gauge and again painted by Mr. Varley If there is sufficient demand we will put this etch into production but I do need to do some more modifications to it - I did one lot after building these three but Tim has already come up with some more. I must emphasize that these are not intended as kits but as an aid to scratchbuilding. This is now my normal method of working - all the parts which will benefit from etching, either for detail or for accurate fitting are etched, other simple parts are not. This saves space on the etch, which means that each sheet has parts for several locos but this makes production runs much more difficult. I now have a fairly large number of these etches in 3mm, 4mm and 7mm scales but I won't publish a list just yet. Michael Edge Judith Edge kits

J63 should be out this Autumn, no price as yet but probably about the same as the Kitson. I've still got to do the production etch for it - depends how many I can get on the sheet.

The kit instructions suggest Mashima 10x24 and Branchlines 51:1 gearbox, fitted vertically driving the trailing axle, Tank and boiler are enpty but best filled with lead, I have used Digitrax DZ125 in the slightly smaller 15", fitted between the frames. !6" wheels are 3'9", usually 12 spoke, nearest are Gibson 4844P Michael Edge Judith Edge kits

The kit is normally sold with a High Level drive unit and wheels - although we will supply the kit without, The motor is a Mashima 10x24 and drives all the wheels, these are Gibson 9mm disc which are slightly too small. The Lowmac wheels are slightly too big and I usually prefer smaller. Michael Edge

The Kitson 0F 0-4-0ST kit is now on sale at £60 + £3 p&p. This covers 47000-4, another kit will be produced for the later Horwich built locos, probably later this year. Due to rapidly rising metal costs we have had to increase prices on most kits, postage is now £3 for all kits (actually a reduction for 7mm!). We hope to have the LSW Bo-Bo electric DS74 for Wigan, this will be a complete kit with a High Level drive unit.

We can supply a 1:87 kit for the CP Sentinel 0-6-0DH. Michael Edge Judith Edge kits

That slipping bears out my observations from trainspotting days. Notice it passed at least two incoming trains, one held at a signal. I don't think I have ever travelled into Lime Street without stopping at a signal somewhere in the cuttings. Michael Edge

Photos of the Hunslet 0-6-0DM in S scale attached. This one is built to 16.5mm gauge (more or less metre gauge) as supplied to East African Railways. The etch is buildable as standard gauge as well, in this case the axleboxes would be outside the frames. We will not be doing our usual demonstration at York this year, we will be otherwise occupied with Herculaneum Dock (top floor, stand 101) but we will be happy to answer any queries there and bring any pre-ordered kits. Judith and Michael Edge

Yes, I've got that one but not the other end of this set. Although these four sets were nominally the same there are lots of minor detail differences. 46 here has not had it's duckets replaced with straight ones - but it's undated, although the absence of "No" suggests it is post war at least. Mike

you could be in this shot... I certainly could be, that's where we usually congregated and the exhaust from the Scot looks pretty impressive!

Might Lime Street have been a special example, the pilot being used to bank the train as it started, to help it get up the grade to Edge Hill? The same might have been of benefit leaving Euston. (Definitely not at Hull Paragon, of course,where the land is as flat as a pancake!) Start out of Lime Street wasn't easy with a heavy train, I remember seeing a lot of volcanic slipping (most common with Royal Scot locos) so a bit of banking would have been most welcome. It was certsinly normal practice there. You don't need DCC to do this, if you did you would need another driver as well, all you need to do is switch the platform end section back on as the train departs, then switch off the section as the light engine reaches the signal. If anybody remebers our old club layout "Leeds Victoria" we did this routinely on that. Michael Edge

Tender kits used to have moulded plastic brake gear - 4M105 - but it wasn't very easy to fit and tended to be fragile. Mike

The ones in my photos are Gibson 4844P, a bit small for 3'10" but they look about right and have the correct 12 spokes. Nearest Markits are LNER 3'9" (BRe 6832xi) but these are a bit heavy in the rim and have 10 spokes.

The J63 has been in development since last year, photo below. Just waiting for smokebox door and firebox backhead mouldings. We haven't decided yet whether to put this out as etch only, like the N5, or as a complete kit. As can be seen I can do the chimney and dome but the safety valves are a bit more difficult. First version of the Kitson 0F is now complete, test etch photo below. We have decided to do this as two separate kits now so the BR Horwich version will appear later. There just weren't enough common parts to make it viable as one kit..

Just to let everyone know we will be at Nottingham as usual this weekend. latest new kit with us will be the Hunslet 16" 0-6-0ST. Also samples of the J63 0-6-0T (nearly ready) and a new venture in S scale - Hunslet 204hp 0-6-0DM (industrial type, standard, metre or 3'6" gauge).

Yes, that's the Kitson we are doing first. Your Overhead train is one of the original 45ft stock - the other end of this one is the preserved No3.

I wondered when you were going to notice this Mike - I was about to send you a pm. The production etch will still include the full roof, I'll supply a moulded dome end as an alternative - I don't want to use fully moulded roofs again, they are too expensive, and I don't like mixing moulded parts with etched ones. After correcting the etch it won't fit on one sheet now so I am thinking of splitting out the underframe components, some of which will be useful with the rebuilt train. 39-3-40 has gone to Dave for painting now, he's promised to get it back to me in time for York. I would like to have a widened set on the layout but I'll have to do some clearance trials first. News on the Kitson; I've done the production etch now, just afew moulds to make. We are going to release these as two separate kits, LMS version now and the BR/Horwich one later. Michael Edge

I have just finished building the test etch for another Liverpool Overhead Railway train. This covers four sets built in 1895 which had slightly shorter (40ft) motor coaches and remained more or less unaltered throughout the railway's existence. Numbers were 39-3-40, 41-2-42, 43-6-44 and 45-8-46, although I have not found many photos of the last of these. These are all etched in .015" brass, with more underframe detail this time. Production version may have moulded roof ends as these are a little difficult to form. One Black Beetle at the inner end of one of the motor coaches is sufficieent to power the set. All ready to send to Dave Studley, I hope he can get it painted in time for York. More news on the LMS Kitson saddle tank - we've got the moulded steam manifolds now so production should go ahead in a month or so. Michael Edge

You can fasten the final drive gear on the axle at this stage, remove the motor to test the running by hand. This is quite easy with these gearboxes but normally i much prefer a grubscrew on the final gear. Mike

I used to use pcb drawbars but they had a tendency to break - especially when picked up by somewhat clumsy people.

If you do that it's best to insulate the inner tender frames from the rest of it, then you don't need to insulate the drawbar and fallplate. I use this method normally with 7mm tender locos, the fixing nuts on the top of the tender floor are soldered on to pcb, holes opened out a bit so that the screws don't touch the floor. Final insulation is with tape, press stud for electrical connection. Michael Edge

It's not always easy to detect whether locos had bulkhead or coal door tenders, tenders were usually repaired on a separate line and attached to the next suitable loco which emerged from the works. Another variation is the position of the vents, originally in the coal space, later moved behind the rear bulkhead, this is easier to spot. Michael Edge

Find a drawing first, I think these had Walschaerts gear, not the usual Stephenson.

Boiler bands are from .002" copper, strips cut with a scalpel on a cutting mat. Solder underneath, pull round the boiler, spot of solder at the top, pull round again and solder with an overlap at the bottom. Firebox sides a bit more difficult but the solder at the top is important - as I found out once when some locos returned from the painter with badly skewed cladding bands. They had moved when he scrubbed the loco body and then he lined them anyway! I won't say who it was though... Michael Edge