Mophead45143

Yes, the Jubilee pair started it off in Spring 1977. Looking on Flickr and other sites, it appears that a handful of other SF class members started getting the silver roof treatment from that summer, but it was 1978 / 1979 before there were lots of them treated this way. I've seen other comments about them being silver to begin with, but it was then cheaper to use more of a grey colour later. This does seem to tie in with the photo evidence, but I appreciate what you say about the weathering affect. Here's 47130 in 1978, which incidentally was one of the ones done in the summer of 1977. Definitely looks silver to me. And here's 47003 as per the model in 1979. To be honest, it's hard to say if there is a difference in the paint, as the lighting, weathering, and camera will all play a part in how they look. There is however definitely a difference in the model of 47003 above and that of 47164 from the Jubilee pack released a few years ago, the latter being very silver indeed. I'm probably going to end up buying one anyway as it looks mega! Cameron

Just as well I put the correct me caveat then! Apologies for spreading false information.

Am I right in thinking that the SF 'silver' roof 47's did actually have silver roofs to begin with, but then they ended up being a more creamy / grey later on? 47003 appears to be the latter looking at the pictures above. Just wondering as I model 1977, and while it may sound pedantic, it is relevant as they only just started painting them then. Even for a renumber, would the style on 47003 be appropriate for this time? Regards, Cameron

A lot of people are talking about the Bachmann model as if it was a response to Accurascale (not having a go at those who are by the way!), but given the length of time that the Bachmann model must have been in development, is it not quite plausible that they were already looking to upgrade their own model before Accurascale announced theirs? It would have been a sensible move as a business so that they could keep class 37 customers as models were coming out with greater detail. Correct me if I'm just having a pop at Hornby, but with the class 91 that did seem to be a direct response to Cavalex, as all we saw for a while was a digital render of the locomotive, with no sign of any coaches or DVT for a long time. Seemed a bit rushed to me! Echoing what a lot of people have already said, class 37's and 47's are probably the only classes where you can get away with having two new high quality models arriving on the market, I'm sure both will do fine providing individual loco's aren't duplicated - unlikely given the size of the class! I've already got 37001 on order, and will happily buy further un-refurbished blue loco's from either manufacturer. Regards, Cameron

I think the cab door is the least of it's worries, but different things stick out for different people I guess! Don't bank on anyone else producing an all new peak for a very long time. I think between Bachmann and Heljan the market will be saturated unfortunately. Despite being a peak lover myself, I am well aware that they do not have as big and diverse a following as say class 37's and 47's, with their myriads of liveries etc. It's a shame that Bachmann sat on it's backside with the peaks, as they could have gone to town on new toolings covering the different classes and variations etc. (like they're doing now with the 47), but instead chose to milk the old tooling because they had the market. The peaks were ripe for another manufacturer to step in, it's just a shame that Heljan don't seem to have produced the definitive peak here. Certain aspects of it appear much better than the existing Bachmann model (underframe details, centre-split headcodes look more convincing etc.), but the cab window area is a major turn off, among other flaws in these samples. Cameron

Sorry, when you say plated I think of the cover plate version!

Plated over grilles in this shot from 1976.

To date, the down fast is the only scenic track that has been laid, and this now does nearly a whole circuit (save for the lift out section). The fiddle yard is now over 60% complete. This photo illustrates the long gentle curve which I have attempted to recreate. I have given it a very subtle cant, as the prototype was very subtle indeed. The fist crossover has also been laid between the fast lines, the next job will be to lay the up fast, as the down fast is the datum. This photo also shows the long gentle curve, perhaps a bit cruelly. Running a couple of coaches along it, it certainly looks fine, but I should be able to make minor adjustments if required before ballasting. On to the fiddle yard now, which as can be seen is well over half complete. Just another 7 through roads to lay now (19 in total), then the short dead end sidings, and eventually the upper level sidings that will hold a few extra trains. This is the curve into the fiddle yard at the north end of the layout. Some dead end sidings will be located on the left, primarily for DMU's from Sheffield. The double-slip on the right will give access to the incline leading to the upper level fiddle yard sidings. Finally, the crossovers at the south end entrance to the fiddle yard. These will provide freights which use the scenic crossovers a means of access between the slow line storage sidings and the fast lines. Regards, Cameron

Eventually the sleepers were all cut for the scenic section trackwork, and it was then time to lay some track!!! After a reasonable amount was laid, I couldn't resist wiring it up and having a play! After all, engineers trains are part of the track laying process! 45144 'Royal Signals' has ended up on rather mundane duties as appose to the usual St Pancras Sheffield services! This local will have to enter the works at some point to finish its conversion to a proper 45/1, as it was modelled some years ago before my appreciation of such details! Immingham's 47181 actually spent much of 1977 based at Tinsley before returning East later that year. It must be a Sunday, as the loco has ended up on an empty spoil train, as appose to the usual MGR. The loco is also testing out some newly laid fiddle yard roads.

Evening all, Been a very long time since I posted on here, but that doesn't mean that nothing has been happening on the layout. Progress has been slow the past coupe of months though, as other commitments have gotten in the way as usual. I'll start with a couple of photos from late February, where I start placing the track lengths out on the scenic section to get a feel for what lengths of flexi I would need, and mark out the points for the crossovers. The next step was to start the TEDIOUS process of cutting out the sleeper webbing to allow for a more realistic sleeper spacing. This took some time as can be imagined, and was done in between other jobs so that I didn't lose interest! The end result will be well worth it, although in future I will definitely look into more fine scale 16.5mm suppliers which come well spaced to begin with!

The SLW class 24 would surely be on par though? I don't have one, but a few 25's are on order. Cameron

While I have nothing solid to back it up, I have heard multiple accounts that Mr Harrison was somewhat 'in bed' with Sulzer, which I'm guessing led to the bias towards the 47 design. No doubt this also contributed towards the decisions made when comparing D-hydraulics with D-electrics. The Germans certainly did alright with engines over 1500 rpm! Anyway, nothing more than off-topic hearsay! Cameron

I have a rake of 27 which I put to test on my layout the other day. While I am still not able to leave things running as there is not yet a continuous loop (layout still under construction), I was able to both pull and propel the full set at varying speeds through a complex set of point work and curves. I will follow up with some video footage later, but safe to say I had no issues whatsoever, be that with couplings or road handling. These wagons are just SO good! They have a nice weight to them that helps keep them on the track in a long rake, but they are also so free wheeling that they will roll for weeks! As such, they are not hard to pull, even a Bachmann 08 managed the entire rake with relative ease on tight curves! The combination of weight and free wheeling is also good fun in a long rake, as even in relatively gentle stops, the wagons keep rolling and bang into one another before bouncing back and snatching just like they would in real life! Quite satisfying! Regards, Cameron

The policy of 'less is more' tends to help make scenes (that are perhaps already compressed from reality) look more convincing. Regards, Cameron

They would certainly have been common up until the very early 80's, at which point unfitted mineral traffic started to die off. By the mid 80's, most coal trains were of the air braked block variety (usually MGR), and mixed freights were either vacuum fitted, or air braked as part of the speedlink network. My guess is that they would have been mega rare, if not non-existent in your area by that time. Any unfitted vehicles that had survived at that point tended to be on specific local flows. For instance, South Wales still had a number of unfitted MDO's on certain coal circuits, but they didn't stray away from the area. HUO's were similar I believe. Regards, Cameron

Back to the drawing board then....

Can anyone please advise what the 'Corpach' pool was all about, and when the ABN yellow spots were applied please? Definitely interested in a few of these! Regards, Cameron

Almost all 31's still had end doors during 1977, but in the following years plated doors were more and more common. I would also estimate that at least 50% still headcode blinds by the end of the year, albeit wound to '0000' (and variations of the theme). Also, there were still a few dozen that had the exposed side steps, not yet plated over. Cameron

https://www.keymodelworld.com/article/all-new-Bachmann-class-25-diesels-oo The one on here has plated doors, but note that they are referencing 25057 instead of 25060 for BR blue. The Bachmann website lists both numbers for the same model!!! Have they changed there mind? 25057 is unusual though as it had the royal train communication port on the lower cab front, which is not captured on the tooling. Cameron

I wonder if Bachmann will announce more locos in due course other than 25060 and D5282, as those EP's offer more variants (water tanks present / removed etc.) for each body style.

No idea on specifics, but if it helps, when doing research for prototypes I would say from around 1978 onwards the plated doors started to be more common, and probably early 80's for the last to be done. You'd be best looking at photos of individual locos to be sure.

Will the boiler filler and side steps still be intact or plated over on 31248? Looking at placing an order, with the aim to re-number to one of 31243-7, which were more suitable for me being IM and MR machines. Regards, Cameron

I'm curious, has anyone attempted altering the brake gear on an Accurascale model to represent other variants of these wagons? For an early 1/148, I'm thinking that some of the details from a Parkside LNER 21t hopper chassis would do the job, with other bits from the spares box. Tie bars would need removing and axle boxes replaced where applicable. https://paulbartlett.zenfolio.com/brhopperhuo As for a diagram 1/153, there's the larger buffers, vacuum pipe and lack of tie bars for starters. Again, brake rigging needs altering, and on that subject, I would imagine the brake equipment on the RH wheel would need scratch building? Is that similar to what the vacuum fitted COVHOPs had? https://paulbartlett.zenfolio.com/brhopperhuo Cameron

Very nice James! I too had 'Toton: The Works' on VHS and enjoyed it as a child, and also found the overhaul of 56094 to be a highlight! Must get the DVD version at some point.... Cameron

Very nice James! I too had 'Toton: The Works' on VHS and enjoyed it as a child, and also found the overhaul of 56094 to be a highlight! Must get the DVD version at some point.... Cameron