petrox

Re. latest poll - 7 (Staff & Tool vans) & 10 (DD4 Cordon Wagon). Thanks. Pete

Early period 5 (1957).

My votes are for 1, 8, 9, &10. Not sure if this has been mentioned before, but a Cordon (9 tanks) wagon would get my vote. Cheers & thanks. Pete

My votes are for 3 (Fruit C) and 9 (Milk tank wagon). Pete

PBV - 2, 3 , 4 , 5, 6, 7 Siphon G - 12 Monster - 10 Focused PBV - 3,4,7 Focused Monster - 10 Thanks for the poll. Pete

I seem to recall visiting a hostelry somewhere in Bournemouth called "The Goat & Tricycle" - or maybe that was the effect of too many pints of Guinness. Pete

Have just got around to checking my Bachmann pannier for the above problem - found a build up of 'orrible brown grease around the lower part of the gear train - removed same and "cold"running now much improved - will keep checking this and other locos if they show signs. Thanks to all for the advice. Pete

Thanks for the advice - I shall endeavour to poke around with a cocktail stick. Maybe I need to find a supply of Welsh steam coal instead of nutty slack, and get up earlier! P.

One of my Bachmann panniers (32-211) initially does not run smoothly from a "cold start" - the loco will creep forward erratically for a minute or so before then running smoothly while "warm" - once "cold" the problem returns. Turning the power up to a high level will reduce the initial period of "stickiness" to some extent. Controller is a Gaugemaster W, locos are DC only. None of my other locos (including three more Bachmann panniers) suffer from the problem, and up until recently the loco in question was OK. As this loco is used mainly on shunting duties, low speed control is highly desirable. The problem is somewhat similar to starting my classic car from cold! Any advice or ideas to cure the problem gratefully received. Thanks. Pete

Thanks for the info - time for the black paint. Pete

A slight digression from the original topic, but would SR Van C ends be body colour or black in mid-1950's? Thanks, Pete

"Railways in and around Newton Abbott & Torquay" by C.R. Potts - page 62, 14xx & autocoach leaving Churston bunker first. I guess it is possible that it was not being worked in auto mode? Pete

My model initially had a similar problem (forwards & backwards) - I found that near side motion bracket was not quite located properly, and some gentle pressure cured the problem - clearances are quit tight anyway. Hope this helps. Pete

Received my BR black version today (very quick service from Hattons). Straight out of the box, very quiet and smooth runner, no hesitation over any points (Peco code 100 large radius electrofrog) , which I have to say the Hornby 61xx had all sorts of problems with initially (much tinkering has got it to an acceptable level but still not as good as the Dapol Mogul). Will do some more running of the Mogul with a load later (it only needs to cope with 5 coaches on my layout). Initial impressions of the model very good. Petrox

That is what I have done - driver only at the moment - I may assume the fireman is head down somewhere looking for fire irons! Petrox

I think you might have been lucky with your particular model - tried the same approach on mine, roof did not budge and a small crack appeared at the edge, so I will desist at this point. Pity as it seemed a good way to get a crew on board - may resort now to (carefully) cutting the floor or the cab doors. Petrox

Thanks for the tip - I'll give it a try. Pete

For your info., just had another coupling rod screw start to unscrew - rear driving axle as before but fireman's side this time - hopefully only specific to my model and not a general problem - will keep checking regularly though.

"The Great Western in South Devon" by Keith Beck & John Copsey (Wild Swan Publications) has a section about the Teign Valley line, including photos of various stations on the line and locos/stock in use.

I had a couple of relatively minor issues with my BR black version - a small accessory part was loose in the box when unpacked (easily refitted) - but potentially more of a problem, one of the screws retaining the driver's side coupling road unscrewed it self after about 40 minutes running - luckily I managed to find it trackside and refit it - I will be checking the coupling rods regularly from now on. Petrox

Has anyone managed to fit a crew to this model? - I'm usually a bit wary of dismantling brand new models - not sure if the cab roof will detach or whether taking the body off helps - advice appreciated. Thanks.

Just received my loco from Hattons today - so far about 20 minutes running-in light engine - very quiet, a little stiff to start with, but improved after a couple of laps - more running with a load later. One sandbox detached when i opened the box but will re-attach it along with drain pipes / brake gear / crew / lamps etc when running in complete.

Another book which might be useful is South West Railwayman by Donald King (published by Allen & Unwin) - King was a class 4 signalman at Lyme from 1957. The book contains photos of Radial tanks, Ivatt 2MT tanks, 14xx on trial, and class 122 single railcar. Also shown from early 1900's are Terrier and O2 tanks.

An interesting thread this. I stick (mainly) to locos and stock that could be seen in South Devon in the mid-1950's, as my layout is inspired by (but not based closely upon) Kingswear. This gives me the opportunity to run a good selection of ex-GW locos, ranging from Castle down to panniers and 14xx classes. However I have utilised rule 1 to allow a few Southern locos and stock to appear, which I gather rarely if ever got to Kingswear in real life. Rule 1 also created a mythical branch to Plymouth Friary, so the Kernow gate stock and O2 or M7 can appear. The advantage to me of this approach is that I don't get tempted by out-of-area locos and stock - well, not often!

My older Hornby / Dapol 14xx runs quite happily with 2 autocoaches without traction tyres and still retaining the grooved driving wheels - it does tend to bounce a bit when pushing though. Anyway I won't be rushing to replace it with either the latest Hornby or DJM versions.