Dunsignalling

Though some will regard (some of) the already-fulfilled priorities as yawnfests, too. Those interested in Southern prototypes, so far, have nothing even to anticipate. TT:120 is frankly not yet a place for those requiring a coherent range of models matching their personal interests, and it won't become one for several more years. That said, If you like the size, the items that have already been released/announced, and can tolerate extensive mixing and non-matching for the foreseeable future; go for it. Whichever category you occupy, though, don't imagine that your desires will be fulfilled in the new scale any sooner or more widely than it has taken the established scales to get where they are today. In any new scale, prototype choices will be heavily influenced by known popularity. Hornby knows what has sold well for them in OO; why else were the A3 and A4 their first releases in TT:120? John

I think that the inevitable problem with starting a new scale is that any coherent range would have to be so narrowly focussed on one group/region/era, as to entirely exclude everyone with other interests. At 72, I recognised early on that I don't have fifty years in front of me to wait for TT:120 availability to reach fifty percent of what is already covered, or even what I already own, in OO. Those who like the scale must, for now, mix and match in the hope that the gaps will gradually narrow over time, or just not mind/care! The critical question is, perhaps, whether enough people have enough patience to stick around for as long as that may take. John

TT:120 seems to have been aimed at the trainset/Rule One mob from the get-go. My suspicion is that subject selection is biased toward how well they sold in OO rather than any coherent connection with one another. John

Perhaps it's time the egg theme was laid to rest.....

Or wilfully not, as the case may be...😃😉

I was replying to The Johnster's post relating to his earlier conversion efforts rather than a 2721 that might (or, more likely, might not) attract the attention of Accurascale. FWIW I think anybody wanting models of panniers that started as saddle tanks needs to learn kit-building. The remaining numbers and distribution were pretty negligible by WW2, and it's unlikely that any of the survivors matched any of the others by then! Unlike the aforementioned Adams Radials and Beattie well tanks, only the initiated will recognise the distinctions between antedeluvian panniers and their newer replacements. John

Hence my use of the word approximation, implying it probably couldn't be any worse than the Hornby effort! The smaller rtr panniers might serve as a better basis dimensionally, but would lose the benefit of just removing half of the 57xx cab rather than having to make one from scratch. There comes a point with all conversion ideas, though, where the effort and skill required exceeds that involved in building a kit! John

I've always thought it would probably be easier to make a better approximation of a 2721 by modifying a Bachmann 57xx anyway! John

I don't consider prototypical survival long enough to receive the later BR emblem remains a prerequisite for commercially viable rtr models. However, lots of interesting pre-group classes lasted until the mid-1950s, and that would seem a logical (and safer) move before ruling out the post-nationalsation era altogether John

Common user, but Cadbury traffic went in vans, anyway!

Agreed, in the estate of 90 or so houses that I grew up on, the old Morris 8 with which Dad replaced his BSA A7 combination in 1955 was only the fourth car on the estate. From memory, local bus services weren't significantly more frequent than today, and Southern National's fleet of Bristols working out of Seaton was only slightly less varied than the assortment currently operated out of the same depot by AVMT. John

Totally agree about the Period I and II LMS corridor stock. Long overdue. A modern-tooling iteration of the old Airfix lavatory non-corridors would be welcome too; not to mention a Stove R with properly designed underpinnings. GWR (or at least WR) is better catered-for than it used to be, Colletts in gangwayed and non-gangwayed form plus Hawksworths from Hornby. Un updated (and extended) take on Bachmann's Sunshine stock would be welcome; they have taken their old Thompsons and Bulleids in hand so maybe there's hope, and it sounds like Dapol will extend their interest in Toplights to include the corridor sort. The LNER exotica is thoroughly misplaced IMHO. They need to get the "everyday" corridor Gresleys sorted out first, both in shape and range. Those basics have been largely covered for the SR contingent, but the much requested Taverns/diners are needed to complete the top-rank express formations in the BR era ; though a similar lack which affects all the groups. There are other gaps, too. Hornby's Maunsell p/p sets only existed for five years from 1959-64 and an Ironclad pair would be far more useful for many of us, as would others of the breed for secondary main-line work. Plenty for all brands to grab a lucrative slice of the action... John

Lovely to see one coming back for a change!

Only the V2 boilered A2/1's (60507-60510) were rated 7P6F, the rest were 8P7F (and utilised accordingly) so should have been eligible for blue. However, by the time Blue Peter emerged from the works with a double chimney, BR had stopped painting anything blue due to it's poor durability in service. Pity everybody seemed to have forgotten that by the 1960s! John

The proof of the pudding will be an ascent from Axminster to Honiton tunnel; hopefully not too far into the future..... 60532 rather blotted her copy book in the 1960s attempt and it would be nice to see how an A2 on form compares with the likes of 35028 and 71000. John

My current Garmin seems only slightly less "adventurous" than my old TomTom. The route it gave to Nailsea show on Sunday worked a treat, though. Last year, I thought "you cannot be serious" and ended up doing two laps of the busiest roads in the town (on the Saturday), so this time decided to give it a try.... Some of the mispronunciation is quite entertaining, too. John

Does it come with a pair of self-changing trousers? 😱

The word you are groping for is "obsession". 😉

Just for the more-money-than-sense end of the collecting brigade. It probably means Hornby won't make something else that I might want. That used to wind me up but I've got used to it and ceased to care. There's plenty else to spend my money on. Others cater for me nowadays and if Hornby fortuitously produce the odd item that I do want every two or three years, I'll buy it. The days when I spent two or three grand a year with Hornby are a distant memory. Whether these commemoratives constitute a gold-plated lifebelt for Hornby, though, remains to be seen.

Me too, but this sums it up: 🤡🤡🤡

And main line stoppers of 5-6 coaches on the Western Region often included at least three different patterns of coach and looked a right dog's breakfast. Even the odd stray LMS vehicle showed up occasionally. Mine (a mix of Hornby Colletts and Hawksworths) are nothing like random enough! 🙃 John

There'd be no point in the guard being on the loco anyway. He'd not have been able to see or do anything the driver couldn't. Is it perhaps as simple as that?

The presence of a brake van, complete with side lamps certainly suggests that the continuous air brake on the vans is wholly or partially inoperative. However, IIRC, the usual practice of the guard riding in the back cab of the loco only pertained on class 20s when used in multiple. (I'm not 100% certain of that as they didn't work where I did). Also, given that it's an MOD working, it might also be carrying more than one kind of guard..... John

Exactly as one does on a DC layout. On a DCC layout it makes no difference whether IRJs are used or not. On a DC layout you might be able to get away with some insulated and some not but which may well vary depending on other aspects of the layout, and you'll still need to feed it through a changeover switch. Insulating all the rail ends just eliminates any possible variables. Should you later decide to change to DCC, all that is required is to relocate the feed wires from changeover switch to the power bus.

Too disorganised to be dangerous...