CKPR

An appropriate place marker whilst I finish off the painting and lettering of various wagons. Bassenthwaite Lake was, of course, on the CKPR and is one of my favourite places ever since the mid-1960s when I was first taken to watch the 'sail boats'. Sadly, the CKPR was abandoned west of Keswick by 1966 and so I only knew the station after it closed, but remember the permanently open crossing gates and the line still being intact. Here's a little puzzler for you - how many lakes are there in the Lake District ?

Given that the M&GN tangentially comes within the orbit of the Midland, possibly Arthur Whitehead and Robert (Bob) Essery ?

Well, as I need both NER hoppers (P5 or earlier) and an NER brake van for my interpretation of 'Brampton Town', a perusal of the Furness Railway Co. catalogue for the former and dusting down plans of the O/F 'Waskerley brake van for the latter would seem to be in order. I've always wanted to build a model of the Waskerley van ever since I saw a photograph of one running on Bill Tate's 'Millport & Selfield' layout (from which I first read of the North Sunderland Rly.).

A good example of a single platform station on a double track line is, of course, Maryport where this arrangement is still in use with the platform being on a loop off the running lines. This arrangement dates from at least 1860 and possibly from 1840 when the first Maryport station was built. The retention of this arrangement might be related to the fact that the M&CR was essentially a goods orientated railway and Maryport station was right in the middle of a complex of goods lines to and from Maryport harbour, various pits and ironworks as well as dealing with freight going to and coming from Workington. Therefore, the single platform on a loop arrangement probably worked well as a means of keeping the passenger trains out of the way of the goods.

As I've got a rake of Smallbrooke Studio P1s waiting to be built, I'll pass on the caldrons and wait for the S&DR long boiler 0-6-0 that must surely be in the pipeline...the mineral lines of the north east are a long-standing interest of mine and my hypothetical project would be the Waskerley line ( perhaps just a working diorama of the loco shed ?)

Bait taken - have a cigar !

I stand corrected - classics was never my strong point and as for Ancient History, it always seemed like a right carry on to me.

I've never got past Sid James as Julius Caesar...

You want pig anecdotes ? When I was at the grammar school in the 1970s, one of the science teachers was explaining Boyle's Law when he looked out of the classroom window , exclaimed "Good heavens, there's a pig on the headmasters lawn" and then continued with the lesson. The rumour subsequently circulated around the school that one answer in the end of year physics exam asserted that Boyle's Law states that the pressure of a gas is inversely proportional to the volume of the pig on the headmasters lawn...

Got your PM - it's all yours and I'll be in touch about posting, etc.

I've got a 16mm (32mm gauge) Corris Rly bogie coach going spare. I think it is scratchbuilt or possibly a batch built item (Archangel ?) - it's wooden and neatly made if a bit basic (no interior fittings, etc) and I've fitted it with new metal bogies. I bought it on a whim some years and it's completely & utterly surplus to my requirements. It can be collected from Ludlow, otherwise it will cost about £10 to post.

The rot of stripped pine pastoralism and all things Artsy Craftsy cottagey had started to take hold by then (compare 'House & Garden' in say 1972-3 with any copy after the mid-1970s) - I grew up in the 1960s with full-on Danish modernism and my parents were always a bit sniffy about Habitat, preferring Elizabeth David and Divertimenti when we used to go on holiday in Chester.

That is pretty much the material reference point in my life and all my hobbies, interests & home comforts are aligned with and can be met by what was available then. Most of my leisure shopping for my main hobbies (railway modelling, old-school military modelling and wargaming, analogue hi-fi) involves searching for NOS or re-usable stuff from 40-45 years ago !

A large poster board ?

I initially thought this was a scratchbuild - excellent work, Linny ! To my northern eyes, it certainly looks very southern and could be straight from the pages of Vivian Thompson's Period Railway Modelling: Buildings.

As per the old Wills / SEF twin cylinder gas tank kit IIRC

Unboxing ? I remember unbagging the Panther kit after buying it for 1/6 in Woolworths when I was about 8 years old and being quite disturbed by the artwork with the burning ambulance, which contributed to a life-long loathing of Nazi Germany (perhaps that was Roy Cross' intention ?!).

Definitely the best article in this month's RM.

Two other uses for plastic kit sprue from 'old-school' aircraft and AFV modelling: softening it over a candle flame and then pulling it to make 'stretched sprue' in various thicknesses to use as fine plastic wire and rod. chopping it up and dissolving it in one of the milder solvents to make DIY filler (use a small 'Tiptree' jam pot with a screw lid). Both of these techniques can be a bit risky so you need to take some sensible precautions (stretching the sprue outside and avoiding breathing in the solvent or DIY filler).

Now that there have been some sensible suggestions, I can offer the last two words on the topic of LNWR & MR stations - Carlisle Citadel !

Wagon = thar knows wot wagon is, soft lad Van = big wagon wit roof on top CCT = big van wit doors on t'end

If 'Python' is carrying a new motor car, this suggests a late pre-grouping source of traffic that could be seen anywhere in the country, as automobile manufacturing seems to have been a national industry from its inception.

Going from the photograph in question, I'm presuming 1918-1925 or thereabouts [I bought a tin of Humbrol 98 chocolate especially for the 'Python'].

Tell me about ! My clinical placements in York in the early 1990s always seemed to coincide with the 'campaign' as I think the seasonal processing of sugar beet was called.

I was just painting the GWR 'Python' CCT for the 4mm M&CR when I had a thought about why one was photographed in what looks like a post-WW1 M&CR train. The 'Python' is travelling alone without an accompanying horse box and it dawned on me that it might be conveying a new motor car from Oxford, Birmingham etc. Any thoughts ?