Robin Brasher

Sorry. I thought I was on 2014 Hornby New Announcements.

Lovely model and interesting pictures. I used to live in Orpington and my parents took me for a ride on the train but I was too young to remember anything about it. I think there was an attempt to restore it. I can remember seeing a picture of school children clearing the weeds in the Orpington and Kentish Times around 1960. I used to cycle there down Westerham Hill and I think the station buildings at Brasted at least remained until the 1970s. I remember the Green Line buses as well.

Cosmetically restored pull-push coaches at Corfe Viaduct on 22 October 1993. This was on a photographic charter train hauled by 30053 renumbered as 30108 on 22 October 1993 before the Swanage Railway was allowed to carry passengers between Harmans Cross and Norden. I look forward to being able to recreate this scene in 00 gauge when the Hornby R4534B BR Pull-Pull comes out hopefully on Monday 24 February 2014. It looks like this may come out before R4534A which is due out February to March 2014.

The goods sidings and the signal box have gone and you will only see the vehicles at classic car shows and bus rallies. It looks like the picture was taken from Court Road near Northbrook Road Bridge.

Thank you. I have just added the location.

George Moon's picture of 30695 on a hot August Saturday at Swanage in 1959. When Hornby produces its 700 with a late BR crest it will be possible to recreate this scene with ready to run products. Wrenn produced Dorchester, Bachmann produce Bulleid coaches and Hornby produce Maunsell coaches.

30690 has been spotted on the Swanage Railway. No further details but I presume that it was substituted for 30695 when 30695 was out of service.

There is a picture of 316 at Feltham in LSWR livery in 1924 on page 108 of A Pictorial Record of Southern Locomotives by J.H. Russell. This is after Urie superheated in 1920 but before Maunsell modernised it in 1931. Apart from the chimney it looks the same as the Hornby model.

David Hepburne-Scot's picture of 30695 reappears on page 5 of the supplement to the February Hornby Magazine. Here the 700s are listed as R3238 325 in Southern black R3240 30694 in BR black, early crests R3239 30345 in BR black, late crests. There is a history of the prototype on page 6. The Hornby model will have a die-cast boiler so it will be interesting to compare the performance with a Bec 700 and an 00 Works 700. To run realistic trains it should be able to haul at least 12 goods wagons.

I have used Hattons since I bought some Hornby-Dublo Pullmans from them in 1966.

Thank you. I have edited that post as well. After reading the Swanage Railway website it looks like the Railway intends to operate the driving trailer and another open 2nd as a Pull Push set. Restoration can only take place after funding of £250,000 becomes available. The Hornby Pull Push seems cheap in comparison but the problem here is not the funding but the availability of the sets.

I have looked at the Swanage Railway website and a detailed submission was made to the Council of Management to restore driving trailer coach 6699 and open third 1323 to form Pull Push set 619 at a cost of £250,000 including the fitting of control gear. It looks as if the intention is to restore it so it can be driven from the driving trailer. The preserved GWR auto coaches would provide a precedent. The driving trailer coach and an open third were cosmetically restored for a photographic charter on the Swanage Railway in 1992.

Thank you, sorry for the error. I have edited my post. I would have expected that the demand for the fifth Maunsell Pull Push sets would have been lower than the others so the price would be lower. Volunteers on the Swanage Railway called them Maunsell Push Pulls before Hornby called them Pull Push sets. We repainted the sides of SR Maunsell third class open coach no 1381 and the Swanage Railway is hoping to restore that and driving brake composite coach 6699 as a Pull Push.

According to Hattons R4534B, the fourth Maunsell Pull-Push, if you include the train pack, is due on or after Monday 24 February 2014. No sign of R4534A the third one. I have pre-ordered both but the delivery date has been put back so many times I am wondering if they will ever arrive. I am annoyed with myself because I was attending an exhibition at Shoreham in July 2012 Morris of Lancing had one at their shop when the first one, R4534, came out. I could have bought it then. I was planning to buy it when I returned to my home at Swanage but Hattons had sold out and the Swanage Railway Shop did not have a delivery. Then Hornby said they would release R4534A in Autumn 2012 so I pre-ordered one from Rails. When it did not appear the Swanage Station shop still had the train pack. I went down to buy one but someone beat me to it. Then Hornby delivered some of R4534 to Platform Models, a local shop, but I did not find out until they had sold out. Since then no end of delivery dates have appeared and gone. I am glad I built a BSL Maunsell Pull-Push and some kind people have run their Maunsell Pull Push sets on my Swanage Railway layout.

I cannot access the information. I think I am supposed to get to the Lidl web site, then choose a store and then select Great Gift Ideas. Unfortunately there is no Great Gift Ideas to click on to at my local store in Poole.

00 Works 700 with the cycling lion crest pulling a clay train over Corfe Viaduct. The engine was supplied without a number so I could apply the number I wanted.

There is more information about 700s on the Swanage Railway on page 229 of Swanage 125 Years of Railways by B.L. Jackson. He said that Bournemouth always had an allocation of the 700 class reaching three in 1949. Summer Saturdays would always see them working the Swanage Branch. I presume he means taking passenger trains from Wareham to Swanage because at that time I don't think Bulleid Pacifics and 2-6-0s were used there. He goes on to say that they were also used on goods traffic after the Hamworthy sub shed closed.

According to page 39 of Locomotives Illustrated no 64 30693 was allocated to Guildford in May 1961 and 30315 was allocated to Salisbury in November 1950 and May 1961. There is a picture of 693 as built with a conical chimney and the initials SWR on the tender on page 14. It looks like 30695 was the only 700 that ran on the Swanage Railway in British Railways days. It has been spotted there from August 1953 to 1961. It should be easy to alter the number from 30693 to 30695.

I have just been told that the Hornby R4585 bogie passenger brake van in BR blue (Scottish Region) livery has arrived at Hattons. I don't know why it is described as in Scottish Region livery. Perhaps some were sent to Scotland but it would be helpful if Hornby were to mention this in their catalogue. I think the model is based on the prototype at Corfe Castle Station. This was restored in BR blue livery by a group of youngsters called the Sygnets. I missed out on the first batch. I would like to buy locally but my local model shop on a preserved railway is not taking any orders until after Christmas when the B vans will be sold out so I am going to buy it at Hattons. I hope the other B vans don't come out tomorrow or I will waste £4 postage but I do no want to miss out on this one as I am modelling Corfe Castle Station on the Swanage Railway.

There is some information about the Drummond 700 in Locomotives Illustrated 64 by Ian Allan March-April 1969 Pre-Grouping Southern 0-6-0s. One picture by D.M.C. Hepburne-Scott on page 35 shows 30695 between Furzebrook and Worgret Junction on the Swanage Railway on 21 April 1960. The locomotive looks in good condition with the 71B shed plate and front number plate clearly visible, a late British Railways crest and a white disk mounted above the centre of the buffer beam. It is hauling a rake of about 15 covered clay wagons from either Eldons or Furzebrook Sidings. I cannot identify the brake van but the final one was a grey 25T SR pill box van no 55687. The caption in David Larkin's picture of the brake van on page 252 of Swanage 125 Years of Railways by B.L. Jackson says "bearing the inscription "Not in common use, to work between Wareham and Furzebrook." but the inscription says "..,to work between Wareham and Furzewood." I did not notice this either until Robert from the Isle of Purbeck Model Railway Group pointed this out. I wonder if there will be any articles about the 700 in the model railway press.

00 gauge model of the Swanage Railway.

While waiting for the Hornby 700 to appear there is an opportunity to consider how to model prototype trains and to compare Hornby's model with other models. Union Mills has produced some ready to run models in N gauge. 00 Works has made some in 00 gauge. BEC and other makes have produced kits. Topics could include the liveries the prototype carried, the types of trains it hauled, where the 700s were shedded and where they operated. There would also be an opportunity to post photographs of the prototypes and models.

The minimum radius for most 0 gauge fine scale locomotives with a six coupled wheel arrangement or a six wheeled tender is 6' so the Peco Set Track will not be much use. I like using large radius Set Track as the curves are accurately machined and easier to obtain smooth running than flexible track. I belong to the Isle of Purbeck Model Railway Group and we have 0 gauge running nights at the huge Furzebrook Village Hall so space is not a problem. Our layout is 60' long so we do fill all the available space.

I still have not got mine. Looking forward to receiving R4534A or R4534B before Christmas. Hopefully Christmas 2013.