thegreenhowards

Today we feature a horse box special to Newmarket returning from the Southern Region (take your pick of racecourses). It is headed by B12 61553 (Hornby) and consists of four horse boxes, two are RTR - BR Mark 1 and ex LMS. The other two are ex LNER kit built ones; a D.4 from D&S and a D.5 from Parkside. I have written these up on my workbench thread here. https://www.rmweb.co.uk/community/index.php?/topic/135510-coulsdon-works/&do=findComment&comment=3802087 ..and the normal video...

That's next but one on the list. Should be with you in a couple of days!

Fair enough. The view seems to be unanimous. I admit that part of the reason for the higher view was that I’ve just weathered all the roofs and wanted them to be in the picture!

Well even if we’re synchronised on the up, I should be a couple of hours ahead on the down, and today’s working shouldn’t trouble you at PN! As for my Tagalie, she’s is pretty new out of works (June ‘59), so that might explain her slightly less dilapidated appearance. Andy

This morning we feature the terminating inner suburban service from King’s Cross (1954). A couple of weeks ago I promised you D5054 having enjoyed the real thing at the East Lancs Railway, and here she is. D5054 was a Finsbury Park engine from ‘61 to ‘66. I think the Class 24s were mainly used on cross London freights, but did see some use on suburban workings. She is hauling my standard 5 car non corridor Mark 1 set. These (and the quad arts) were pretty much omnipresent on inner suburban workings and AFAIK were never strengthened as the platforms at Moorgate were too short for anything longer. ...here’s the vid. NB. I took these photos before yesterday’s comments. As the consensus seems to be strongly in favour of lower viewpoints, I will concentrate on them for the future, but it may mean smaller depths of field.

Hi Gordon, Thanks, I’ve been following your thread for some time since Gilbert recommended it, always entertaining and great track work. Yes I did mean D5011. I couldn’t read the number and I associate class 24s with no head code boxes and 25s with head code boxes. I know some of the later class 24s got headcode boxes, but I’m surprised to see D5011 with one. I’m pretty sure it would have had the rounded roof and discs, at least as built. Andy

I agree except that I’m not sure how three compartments have more seats than four! I suspect that 3 compartment brakes were on their way out and cascaded to less important services. They featured on Cambridge King’s Cross outer suburban trains in the late ‘50s.

Here we have the up Heart of Midlothian crossing ‘Welwyn’ viaduct. This was booked for a Grantham A3, so here is suitably dirty 60064, ‘Tagalie’ in charge. The formation is the 1959 one with Thompson RF and the SK with ladies waiting room which was transferred from the ‘Elizabethan’ in 1958. Tagalie only got her double chimney in June 1959, so I’;m not sure how she’s got so dirty already! I eventually intend to model this service in its full ‘Festival of Britain’ glory - I.e. as it was introduced in 1951, but I need to build a Mk1 kitchen car and RSO before I can do that. I’ve started on them, so watch this space. I offer a conventional view and a drone type view - let me know which you prefer. For the video I tried a new vantage position with the camera propped on my (cardboard) road bridge. This doesn’t seem very stable so there’s a fair bit of wobble, but I hope you appreciate the different view. Note to Gilbert: This is getting ridiculous! I was halfway through this post and see that you have also featured the Heart of Midlothian today. I seems to have got from PN to GJ in 10 minutes and changed engines en route!

Gilbert, I love your Gresley and Thompson stock - it looks very elegant. ‘Q’ and, to a lessor extent, FO trains were there to serve the demand on the day. And in this era the railway still had lots of spare stock to make up trains as required. So, from looking at photos and educated guesswork, I suspect that such trains rarely followed the carriage workings, but were made up from what was available to serve the need (and any return working). For modelling, the best bet is probably to copy photographs, but I can rarely work out what is beyond the first 2 or 3 carriages. I suspect that your end door Newcastle/ side door Leeds rule is more of a bias than a 100% rule and that trains would have a mix of all types of stock with a bias towards LNER designs. Andy

Gordon, The 26/0 were very much part of the early diesel King’s Cross suburban scene for the first couple of years of their life (late ‘58 to early ‘60) along with the first 10 NB Type 2’s (class 21) and baby Deltic (class 23). And the 26s actually worked unlike the baby Deltic s and especially the 21s the latter of which hardly turned a wheel as far as I can make out! I’m not so sure about the class 25 though - that would have been a rarer visitor. Andy

Thanks Gilbert, I’m reserving judgement on Isinglass until I’ve finished the steel twin TO that I’m building. I’m at the filler primer and sanding back stage which is taking a while and that would be more difficult on a coach with beading, so I’m not 100% convinced. I intend to get my kit finished for Ally Pally and talk to Isinglass there. Andy

David pointed out the lack of a double chimney on my new 60108 a few weeks back. I thought that was a quick job....but one thing leads to another and Being forced to take a close look at the front of the loco I realised that all sorts of things were wrong. So, it’s had: a new streamlined dome to replace the banjo dome fitted; top lamp iron moved down and placed between a new split handrail directly above the smoke box door hinges front footsteps made from plastic (to avoid any shorting issues) - the jury’s still out on this as the steps keep falling off despite me trying plastic weld and superglue; a smoke box door plate on the hinge; and Complete renewal of the buffer beam which was a mess including new sprung brass buffers. That will teach me not to buy ready made kits off eBay! I hope she now looks the part. If anyone notices something else I’ve missed, please shout.

Gilbert, I’ve heard of the later splitting train (1752 from King’s Cross) being double headed, but I never realised this one was. Are your pictures definitely of the earlier train? If so, could you point me in the right direction? Andy

Today we have another overnight service and another of my favourite rakes on Gresley Jn. This one is the car Sleeper Limited, 20h05 King’s Cross-Perth. This train was the first Motorrail service to run in the UK. It started in 1956 using LNER designed CCTs built in 1939 and 1950. Later on it was upgraded to bogied vans based on some old underframes and then propose built ‘Newton Chambers’ car carriers, but the former is not available, even in kit form, and the latter is only available as a kit from Southern Pride. So when Hornby were disposing of surplus CCTs cheaply I snapped up a batch to form the rake. The train is headed by 60066, Merry Hampton. This was unique in having a raised ventilator on the cab roof. My model is based on the Wills kit but mounted on a Hornby chassis. This gives exceptional haulage ability through the weight of the white metal body. I’m afraid the length of the train and the low perspective has prevented me getting it all in focus. The formation was: 10x CCT Mk1 BSO Mk1 TSO 3* Gresley SLT Thompson BSK - converted to permit use as a sleeper The only kit built coaches are the three SLTs for which I’ve used Kirk kits, either complete or the sides mounted on Hornby donors. Even if you don’t normally watch my videos, I’d recommend this one to see the full train.

John, Thanks for those comments. Yes, ladders and rails will be added in due course. I forgot them on my first order so they’ll have to wait for a bit. The instructions say balance arms should be four feet below the signal arm if the signal is in a public area and 4ft above ground level otherwise. This will be just off the end of a platform, so I’m assuming that’s a public area. Andy

I’ve been building signals again. This one is for our club exhibition layout Oakbourne. It will be a platform starter with the left hand doll for the branch exit and the right hand for what is currently a headshunt and will eventually be a short branch leading to an industrial complex. It’s waiting for finials which I will add later for fear of breaking them. The layout runs in different regional guises, but I’ve based this on LNER practice hoping it will also pass for Southern to the less discerning eye. This is built from MSE components. I’ve built a straightforward MSE kit before, but never a signal from separate components and the instructions were rudimentary. So some questions for any signalling experts out there: 1. It looks too tall. I realise that signals were all sort of different heights for sighting purposes, but is there a standard height for situations where sighting is not a problem? If not I’m inclined to take 10mm off the larger doll and 30mm of the main post. 2. Can I get away with a normal home arm for what is currently a headshunt, or should this be some sort of shunt signal? 3. Have I made any glaring errors with the ‘kit’? Thanks Andy

On PN time stands still in August 1958 (except when you have a DELTIC wobble). Whereas on GJ a tardis is required as each train represents a slightly different time period. I assume the tardis was employed in this case.

As a true super hoop, I would have had Chelsea going bust if there was a B17 so named. But they weren’t anywhere near LNER territory - at least Loftus Road is close to the GC. My respect for the Mortimore family has increased if you have a hoops blood line!

John, The brakes at both ends have no toilets - four out of six coaches with toilet access. The rear brake was the fifth coach because (I think) of platform length restrictions somewhere on the route. I think the white window on this is the guard’s compartment. The rear Coach was a SLO. The GN was the only part of BR to have mark 1 non corridor stock with toilets. It was designed for these services which had toilets going back to the 1903s if not before. As you say, very civilised. Andy

Today we have the 1915 Royston to King’s Cross - a standard non-corridor outer suburban 6 set. The excitement comes in the form of the first run on Gresley Jn for 61027, Madoqua. You’ve seen this engine before as 61008, Kudu, but I’ve now got round to renumbering and naming it to Madoqua, a Hitchin stalwart through the mid ‘50s. I’ve also augmented the Bachmann weathering with some of my own. ...and the video.

...and I thought my broadband was bad! I suppose I really ought to find an app in which I could put in sky etc. and reduce the size. But if I started doing that there would be no time for modelling and that would never do.

My wife’s from Preston and I went to Ewood Park a couple of times to escape the in laws. I think we lost both times, but that was in the early -mid ‘90s around the time when you were champions.

Yes, I think I sort of half knew that. Of course, Accrington Stanley did go bust and I think they were a founder member of the league. But of course, there was no B17 named after them.

Today we have the 19h55 down Cambridge Buffet Express in its 1958 formation. According to the carriage workings, there were two very similar rakes on these services; one had mark 1 BSK(4)s on each end, but this one had Mark 1 BSOs, so I had to go digging in the loose stock. In practice, I suspect they had one or two more ex LNER coaches in the formation, so I need to do some photo research to vary the rake a little. The train is headed by 61662, ‘Queens Park Rangers’. It’s a little known fact that there was a B17 named after the mighty ‘R’s, but in my parallel universe, Manchester United went bust after the war, and British Railways decided to rename 61662 after QPR who had just won the 1st division title! She’s come out today to celebrate last night’s victory over Derby. Sorry if I’ve offended the purists (or Man U fans) out there. I managed to get this down to 1.4MB by cropping. I can’t find any way on my iPad to reduce it further and I can’t face transferring it to my laptop and editing in paint or similar. I guess I could take a wider view and crop more heavily but does anyone know of a more elegant iPad solution? Here's the video.

Ah, cunning plan. Logging out sounds a better better than waiting for the next day!