James Harrison

It's from the 1931 version, but then this scene was cut and pasted also into the 1941 version.

You might want to close that bridge before sending the inaugural train across.

I'm rapidly coming to the conclusion that restoring and redecorating the house is something that's perhaps best done in smaller chunks, not just one room at a time but perhaps limiting it to only a few rooms each year (I say this after launching into it and going what feels like non-stop since late February on various things and now having had two weekends with leaking plumbing situations. I'm getting tired, worn down and irritable). So; once the lower part of the hallway has been sorted out I'll probably set-to to clear up the spare room and finally start work, albeit in a fairly limited sense, on RLS. To which end this morning I'm idly looking at the IKEA website at the lower variants of the Billy bookcase- what I want to achieve is something neat that runs around two of the walls of the room, and to my way of looking at things I'm thinking building on top of bookcases might be a good way to start, especially considering the railway room is going to be just that- where I keep my books, prints, railwayana and the layout. It's going to be a little while yet but I'm hoping I'll be able to make a start before the end of the year.

5 days from cutting metal to painting the bufferbeam. During a bout of 'flu, if I remember right from one of his books.

Yes, I'm erring toward employing a pilot loco myself (I think I've enough small 0-6-0 and 4-4-0 tender engines to have a dedicated pilot engine). I anticipate operating RLS with separate arrivals and departures platforms, however I'm also in favour of being able to have bi-directional running in the platform roads (one thought of mine being that local trains operate almost like the Jazz service- in, loco change and out again-considering how Rufford is placed to allow local services to Nottingham, Lincoln and Sheffield means things could get quite intense in the morning and evening rush hours).

Progress of sorts. Having dug out one of my Imminghams, I'm partway through repainting it in GCR black. I'm also considering building a parcels train, which gives me opportunity or excuse to run NPCS from other companies. The currently-planned consist is a couple of GCR bogie fish vans (from the accident report of Aylesbury [or was it Amersham?] in 1904 the parcels train involved had three or four of these in its makeup), GCR 40' bogie newspaper brakevan, GCR CCT, GWR Python CCT, GWR K14 Dean parcels brakevan and GNR parcels brake. Bogie fish vans- I've got a scratchbuilt one donated to me a few years ago (for which I remain very grateful) and I've hackbashed one from a GWR siphon (and I have another siphon waiting it's turn for the same procedure). GCR newspaper brake - Brassmasters etches GCR CCT- Isinglass 3D printed kit, not sure if this is still available? GWR Python CCT- Parkside kit GWR K14 parcels brakevan- Ks kit GNR parcels brake- Isinglass 3D printed kit. Actually, I've probably got enough for 2 parcels trains there, considering my 5-bogie-carriages limit.

Thanks; I forget where I bought it from, but the last time I looked the British Library sell a few of them (the artist is Alvim Correa, if anybody is stumped for where to start looking).

I need something to unwind in the evening (as I don't have an aerial in there it only plays DVDs- maybe I should have a projector in a magic lantern case?)

This, incidentally, is what has been eating my spare time of late. I insist that my pre-grouping layout should reside in a pre-grouping house. This place was built pre-1911 (going by census returns) and I've nearly got the first room (of six) to my desired pre-WWI Gentleman's Club look.

Work on redecorating the sitting room is nearly finished and I've yet to get a handle on how I want the next room in the house to look, which means that it's probably time to hunt up the next locomotive for the works. I've managed to find the Jersey Lily and Immingham that had gone into hiding, of those two I think the Immingham should be the next to be looked at. Let's concentrate on freight and mixed traffic stock this year, eh?

A pilot engine is I think my preferred solution; I have enough small locos (0-6-2 tanks or superannuated 0-6-0 or 4-4-0 tender engines) that could fulfil the role. I seem to be between projects this evening. The planned next project is one of my pair of Imminghams. I know where one of them is, which needs both a repaint and chassis work, the other (which only needs a repaint) seems to have gone into hiding.

The difficulty is that much as I'd like a loco release road, it would add an extra foot or so to the length (for the pointwork on the platform roads) and limit me to shorter trains. I'm reckoning on four carriages plus loco plus van for my mainline rakes and that would be have to be reduced to three carriages plus loco plus van. Plus I'd then need to find somewhere for a carriage siding or two.

That's right, looking on the right hand side top to bottom we have a slip leading to platform, platform road, centre road,platform road, then a final platform road. Coming to mid-scene top to bottom we have running line, crossover, running line and goods yard/ loco depot lead.

I've further developed Regularity's sketch for the station throat from February; not feeling confident enough to take a hacksaw to switch and crossing work I instead played with the idea of the track centres 'are what they are' in station confines and then reduce to 50mm centres on the mainline. By coincidence or serendipity this neatly allows for the insertion of a centre road. I'm in two minds at present whether to make this just a carriage siding or to add more pointwork at the platform ends for a loco release road.

Excellent job!

I could do with some of these for my house... just beware of Riddoppo.

Right, new white paint pens have arrived and the tender is finished, what is hopefully the final coat of black paint is drying on the loco, I can now proceed to line out.

Fish engine; progress report of sorts. I've fixed the front bogie, which had two bits of whitemetal come adrift. I've removed my original lining to the cab and the tender. I've smoothed down the firebox sides (this was a kit that could be built as either the GC original or the LNER B5/3 with raised boiler, this being achieved by casting the firebox and smokebox saddle for the raised boiler variant with instructions to cut down for the GC type. Needless to say when I bought it it had been built with GCR boiler fittings on the increased pitch of boiler.....) I've then started to repaint- it looks as as though the tender paint and the Great Central insignia can be saved- which so far as the tender is concerned just leaves the lining. Of which I've done the red, but started the white and then the (fairly new) paint pen packed up. So I've had to order a new white paint pen. Meanwhile I can of course be getting on with the loco and the boiler bands, and the red lining to the cab sheets and the brass beading to the splashers....

Next little project is going to be a repaint of my GCR class 8 'Fish' 4-6-0. After that, if I can find them, will be my pair of class 8F 'Immingham' engines.

All it needs now is a final coat of varnish. That is a remarkably handsome livery, even considering I only did the more noticeable elements of the lining.

Lining out is finished; now for the number and nameplates, a first coat of varnish/ PVA and lettering to follow.

I was told by the modelling steward of the GCRS, so I'd imagine it should be black. I'm just having a look through John Quick's GCR liveries book at the moment and it would appear that red oxide tank tops weren't universal; the bogie pom-poms had black tank tops, as did the green Sir Sams and the Lord Faringdons. Some of the surviving paint schedules quoted in the book state two coats of lead oxide with a top coat of black. Interestingly there's also a discrepancy in that some classes had their tender fronts painted black and other crimson. I think most tellingly is a statement on page 27, "the tender top was black and this included the coal rails if they were fitted". So, the question is, was the red oxide finish officially sanctioned or just something the Tank did that was tolerated? And, was it universal or only applied to certain classes?

I'm told that the back of the tender top should be black, so that will be put right today. Other than that, I'm planning to make some boiler bands (assuming I can find a black ballpoint pen) and make some cab handrails, and I might also apply my usual coat of diluted PVA to protect the lining that's been applied.

There's an interesting what-if discussed at length in (I think) volume 2 of Dow's trilogy, an MSLR line to Fleetwood and Blackpool.

I've not forgotten about that; just not got around to it yet. That can be today's little job, along with repainting the bufferbeams and the inside faces of the cab sheets.