brianusa

Over here at a local air show, a ride in a two seat Mustang is around $450! Just as good!! Brian

The famous links at St Budeaux and Lydford to enable service to Plymouth in the event of serious damage to the main lines. Both were in use long after the war. Brian.

Discretionary spending is up to the individual. What may appeal to one is of no interest to another so if one is interested in trains then driving one is the ultimate experience so be prepared to spend a pound or two. As has been mentioned, its for the good of the railway after all. I did my stint on an Alco diesel switcher over here and not having an enthusiasm for hard work, found that it was just right for me and a great experience. Brian

Its amazing how this site and our common train interest means a lot no matter if we live up the street or the other side of the world. We get concerned when a regular misses a post or two, so for some it means a longish wait until another post shows up. C'mon Phil! Brian.

Tis is happening on US E Bay O gauge also. They really need to make it easier to report such incidents; I know, spoof @E Bay.com, but it needs a clickable entry for immediate notification. E Bay like many others, F/Book, etc, guard their privacy jealously when a simple E Mails would answer a lot of questions instead of jumping through the hoops to get anywhere! Brian.

"I sprayed the figures with matt clear coat although the lights still make things look shiny. Glad that's done. Phew!" That's why I always buy them painted, John! Brian

Interesting picture, never seen it before! Brian.

For whatever reason we all have our personal preferences, in this case loco liveries. If it were up to me, engines would be in one of their pregrouping colours, Midland red, Southern malachite, etc and GW, of course, green. Feel free to choose your favourites! Brian.

Weeds never seem to give up at Bodmin Road. However, NRs weed train seems to give up knocking off weeds easily! Every time we visit the weeds are there most usually on the Down line for some reason. Brian Brian.

In view of what the Pentewan Railway was all about, most likely it was basic black. What they transported would soon dirty up any loco and pictures, even black and white would confirm this. It is doubtful if anything like fancy lining would have been employed as the PR was not very rich. If this question had come up a few years earlier, my Grandmother would have had the answer as the railway passed by her old home in Polgooth and she used to tell me of the railway. Sadly she didn't mention any colours! Brian.

It was almost criminal for BR to paint such a loco in black. But they did it on other unlikely locos also, all no doubt in the name of economy with no thought to the reason for the class and its workings. Other locos such as the Southern T9s suffered the same fate. Brian.

Its more than logical to have the third rail 'live,' as in my O layout the o/s rails are the return conductors for working accessories, etc. Besides the 'real ' railway has a live centre rail! Brian.

Quite a sylvan scene and the track certainly looks in better shape than in time past. Brian.

Thanks Gary, often wondered what it was like there. Brian.

From the description of the layout, it was intended to be a watch the trains go around type layout along with a few necessities needed for this operation; station, sidings, etc. My Dublo days ended years ago but now I have an O gauge tinplate layout that follows the same need and description as this one; somewhere to watch the trains. This one does so admirably in the space allocated and while it could be extended for more realistic operation, in its current state it gives a lot of enjoyment. I've always wondered about the long sidings along the edge in a lot of Dublo layouts, especially far from existing stations, etc. It would seem the space could be put to better use but they are invariably prevalent.. I suppose they could be considered refuge sidings for parking trains.. Also, T/Ts are nice but they take up a lot of room, IMO better to have a couple of sidings with an engine shed and use the other space for goods or carriage sidings and perhaps doing away with one main station building. On the other hand , do exactly what you want to do and enjoy it! Brian.

City of Churston? Hmmm!! Brian

Fixed or not! Brian.

I wouldn't say I was flabbergasted but certainly surprised. It would be great to think of its success, but that's what all train enthusiasts think, otherwise they wouldn't be enthusiasts. But the public are a fickle lot; all for it to start with but do they support it over the long haul. All it would take are a few delays, leaves on the track or some other excuse and they would be back in their cars, congestion or no. If that what should not be mentioned, ever comes to pass and the line is open all the way then perhaps as an entity, it might achieve some success. There again maybe not! Brian.

For New Zealand, that scenery looks remarkably like North Cornwall! Brian.

Some nice old cars! This time of year, summer eventually arrives over here and so its time for collectors to bring their cars out for an airing. Recently a Triumph TR3, and an MGA showed up around the harbour, top down, blonde optional. Also several 'fifties American cars including an immaculate '57 Olds, made their appearance but there was no car show which usually brings them out on the street, so it must be the weather. I was driving my '95 Lincoln MK8, which in a few years will be eligible to join in. Brian.

If you were a soldier in the UK, more than likely you wouldn't remain there very long. You would soon move on to whatever theatre of war was important. If you were in the US, you were invariably in training to move on to that same theatre, before taking a long and dangerous ocean voyage. Brian.

FB like so many internet sites has its lovers and haters. I don't exactly hate the idea but I have no need for it as I subscribe to favourite sites that interest me. I spend (waste) enough time with these. When it first started I subscribed but over the years passwords have been lost and in spite of trying to sign in for a special need, I have not been able to do so. I write them, they send new password, I sign in with new password which doesn't work. This happens all the time, I give up! Brian.

Back to horses between the rails. One of the most lasting, if not the last, was the Lee Moor Tramway AKA the Plymouth and Dartmoor railway which most know ran from the quarries high on Dartmoor down to quays on the Cattewater in Plymouth. Even I can remember this being active, or at least seeing horses pull a couple of wagons. When the line was eventually closed, we were able to play around parked wagons and work the signals at the Coypool crossing. Different times! Brian.

Hi John, I traded up in my train life from OO to G. Didn't go the garden route but E bay was a good source. The main trouble with the weight, was the cost of shipping. There used to be a toy shop ( McCullochs?) in Bangor by the old harbour near McKee clock and I bought some Hornby there years ago, so probably long gone by now. The G gauge didn't last long as I moved on to tinplate trains. Brian.

Wise words form our Mod. We all have sympathy for the victims and probably anger when it comes to the perpetrator and his religious views. Another message indicated that in earlier times it would not have been so widely and frequently covered by todays media. This part is relevant to the times as a continual TV barrage of repeats and reruns of what we have seen many times before, keep the country reminded every few hours of sadness and horror, which is exactly what the terrorists want. This incident has had excellent world wide coverage but there is a time when normalcy must return in our lives. It will not be possible sadly for some but for the country everyday things in life must return to what is considered normal in this day and age. Brian.