3rd Rail Exile

Well my GP surgery has now been in contact to say that there are no appointments to book at the local centre in the Civic Hall, and not to contact the practice about a booster unless you are housebound. The message does then say that they are keen to encourage all eligible patients to take up a booster, and directs them to the national NHS booking website...

I had been waiting to be contacted by my GP surgery for my booster in the same manner that I was contacted for my first two doses - it's exactly a week before 6 months is up from the date of my second jab, but I've not heard anything yet. However, given the recent exhortations to get the booster done, rather than keep waiting I've just gone online and booked a booster jab for later this week (180 days since my second jab) at a centre which is a 10 mile drive away (rather than 20 minutes walk). Marginally more inconvenient, but at least I know I've got it booked! No doubt my GP surgery will now be in touch imminently... All of which is a long-winded way of suggesting that the low initial take-up may be due to people waiting to be contacted (as it seemed to work well for the first two jabs), rather than pro-actively booking...

That's the conclusion I also came to when I saw the difference in the couplings. Though to be fair, running with the couplings as provided hasn't caused me any issues so far - the coupling hook has a lot of horizontal 'play' on its mounting on the pivot, so it might be moving sideways enough not to cause me a big problem. But I'm not shunting the rake through tight reverse curves, so other people might encounter more trouble on their layouts...

A route I hadn't had an HST over previously (but I know what you mean about not being able to tell what the motive power is once on the train) The views were certainly the main selling point - the S&C never fails to be spectacular!

There are some of us who went and "did it" precisely because they used an HST...

I'd guess that there are a good number of people quietly and patiently waiting for this to be announced without actively participating in the "discussion" (this post notwithstanding). The situation re advertising has been clearly (and repeatedly, for those who didn't get it first time) explained (if you can be bothered to read the thread - if not, why are you on this thread?), so as far as I can see it's sit and wait for "Silver" to be announced if the "full fat" WoR Plus isn't to your liking...

The whistle at one end wasn't properly located in its mounting hole when I unpacked my model. I gave it a gentle push to try to reseat it and it just pinged off in an unknown direction to be consumed by the carpet monster. The top lamp brackets also deem easy to damage, especially with the loco inverted to fit the detailing accessories...

There haven't been any later batches yet as far as I'm aware, though there indications (mentioned up-thread by others) that this may happen in the future. All Hattons' 66s currently in the market are from the same batch, so may still be subject to the same (minor) issues.

Unfortunately, the "couldn't-care-less's" congregate in places many of us would like to return to. I've had more than enough of being a hermit over the past 18 months, so for me it's a case of assessing and minimising the risks (such as picking my time carefully if possible) rather than complete avoidance...

To add to the comment from @frobisher, on the green model the bogies on both trailer coaches are as shown below - is this what you are referring to as the Mk4 bogie? On the blue/grey model the Trailer Composite also has these bogies, but the Buffet has Commonwealth bogies as shown above by @andyman7. Given the comment above about buffets having their bogies swapped from 1960 surely this is correct? On both the green and blue/grey models the inner (non-motor) bogies on the driving coaches are also of the type shown below.

I can only speak from my own viewpoint, but I'm not qualified to comment on very much related to Gill Head (it's well out of my "area")! Nevertheless I have a fondness for the S&C and an admiration for the work going into modelling a portion of it in such detail and realism. So I'm happy to just "lurk and like" on this thread!

Agree totally! To me, it beggars belief that anyone would consider travelling abroad at the moment unless they really had to - things are just too uncertain. Is a week or two in the sun really that vital for some? We had a short spell of hot weather in the UK recently, and loads of people were complaining about the heat...

True, as long as you go for the "download PDF copy" option that appears below the QR code (and then can find & open the download on your phone). I know people who have only proceeded as far as getting the QR code visible, and then found it had disappeared when they went to show it when trying to enter a venue. The NHS App kicks you out after 15 minutes so the QR code disappears and you have to log in again, which is where coverage at a venue becomes important. The "download PDF copy" option might be better placed above the QR code - I suspect the option might be off the bottom of some screens without scrolling down... However, I've not had anyone check that the downloaded PDF copy of the QR code actually relates to me, nor has anyone scanned the QR code - just checked that I have one. EDIT - which is pretty much the point that @Nearholmer made in his edit, which I only saw once I'd submitted my comment...

Another vote for "Keep the pictures coming" please (unless they're becoming a real pain to do or there's some other reason you'd prefer to post less frequently). It's great watching the progress you're making (and the occasional re-thinks).

I think more have tried than you might imagine, but for various reasons haven't been satisfied with the results and don't persevere long enough to learn the necessary skills. I'd suggest a few areas of frustration, all of which have featured in this thread from time to time: Getting the chassis running smoothly Choosing an appropriate motor & gearbox combination Making robust, reliable pick-ups Putting together valve gear properly (unless you want to wimp out and model the G*R), and having it stay together rather than one end flying off at high speed... I bought and studied Iain Rice's books on chassis and whitemetal loco construction before making a start on my first kit, and even with the help of these it was a struggle. And finally, what I think is the single major problem: Painting & lining/numbering etc. Unless you're expert at these, your kit-built models can really look second-best next to modern RTR. Even getting the five digits of a BR locomotive number to sit in a straight horizontal line when applied to a cab side as single digits is beyond some of us! Another problem that many aspiring kit-builders bring upon themselves is that they don't "start simple" - they buy kits of the locomotives they want for their layout/collection, not simple ones that will teach them the skills - in my case DJH rebuilt West Country, DJH Standard Class 4 Tank then SEF King Arthur! All run, but have been retired in favour of modern Hornby/Bachmann RTR examples, which weren't available when I embarked on the kits but are more reliable and better-finished.

I can see where you're coming from, but it's a little more complicated than that. We've been down this road a few times previously, but: The "Mk 1 coaches" all need to have lighting One of the "Mk 1 coaches" is more akin to a DVT, DBSO or dummy power car, with the headcode and marker lights Through electrical connections are required so that only one decoder is needed for the whole unit. Kernow's 4-TC was released 5 years ago - unfortunately for us, a lot has happened to inflate prices since then. The CEP was released in 2010 and my first one cost me £104. So give or take a motor you've very roughly got doubling every 5 years. I'm not saying I like it, but I can understand why it's happening and I've decided that I'm willing to pay it. We each make our own choices...

I don't normally comment on prices, but I can understand why some people think this is a bit steep. However, Bachmann have been heading in this direction for a while, so personally I wasn't greatly surprised. But like others above I do fear that multiple units (particularly those exceeding 2-cars), may become commercially unviable. For my own part, I pre-ordered both blue/grey and green examples when they were first announced (without a price). I was then contacted by my retailer about a month ago when the price was announced - it was a case of "please let us know you still want the models at this price, or we'll automatically cancel the order". Even at over 4 times what I paid for the blue/grey CEP on release in 2010 (and over 6 times what I paid for the green CEP in 2013!), they are models I really want, and I don't want to mess around (both me and the retailer) by cancelling and waiting to see if the price drops (and by how much). I'm looking forward to them arriving in due course, but might have to get a pair of fine cotton gloves to handle them with!

My BR lined Black one arrived a couple of days ago - very nice... Can't easily do any pictures at the moment though...

I did give it some thought myself, but ultimately I felt the statements shouldn't go unchallenged...

The differences between "Don't go out unless it's for essential purposes" and being "locked in" are semantic to anyone whose normal life includes venturing out of the home for purely enjoyable purposes from time to time. Which, I would contend, is most people... I would suggest that most people feel as if they have been "locked in" (or "locked down"), but understand why and have dutifully complied. We just don't tend to hear about them as they don't make for sensationalist headlines...

I don't think anyone has ever said "you are totally safe with 2 jabs" - just that the risk of catching it is much reduced and the risk of catching it seriously enough to require hospitalisation (or worse) is massively reduced.

I received my SECR Green one a couple of weeks ago (dispatched 14th June), and was emailed this afternoon to inform me that my BR early crest one had been dispatched...

Unfortunately I can't easily do a comparative photo at the moment, but I'd say they were pretty much identical. The Stones generator might be ~0.5 mm higher on 17, but no more than that (it's surprisingly tricky to look at both at exactly the same angle...).

Happy to see that the new coupling fits into an NEM pocket - if it's too rigid at least I can try fitting something else! Something with a bit of vertical play in it - an unfortunate combination of gradients and curves has caused no end of problems with the very rigid couplings on my IETs, even after the fixes to stop the bogies catching on the bodies...

I find it focusses the mind on how much more I want to fit into my existence before that day comes...