mabel

Could anyone point me in the direction of where I could get either drawings or basic measurements of standard (ish) Reading signal works gantries (bracket gantries) as in the pics below please? I have been trawling the net (and rmweb) for some time now so any help would be greatly appreciated. I have noticed that some gantries seem to be wider than others, is this just camera angle? Also, what are the walkways made from? Thanks, Tony

I still have an old Hornby body somewhere with some white metal headcode boxes crudely Araldited on.... we were easily pleased way back then! T

Thanks for that. I did think of getting a Lima shell to cast some myself, but being lazy I thought I would try the easy route first T

Is there anyone out there that sells resin replacement noses in split headcode format for Vitrains class 37? thanks Tony

There does still seem to be a few missing but that list is great. Many thanks.

I don’t know if this request is in the correct section. Mods feel free to move if necessary.. Can anyone help me with a definitive list of class 37’s & class 47’s produced by Vitrains? Despite repeated searching of the web, I can only find a handful of different locos.. Thanks in advance Tony

Does anyone have a Hornby 4VEP in nse livery that they would like to part with? no crazy prices though Thanks

Or this.....

These are just the kind of thing I’m after. Many thanks.

Thanks for all the replies chaps. Plenty of info there. Thanks to ChrisH for the detail info. John, I tracked down a copy of the NSE handbook at Baterdale books for a bargain price of £2.95. Merry Christmas everyone. Santa will be here soon

Ian, after a 3 year survey of our neighbours (and Mayor), they are more worried that we will voluntarily leave...... taking our British £ with us. I’m sure once the political dust settles, everything will be just fine. I hope so anyway!! Tony

Hi Ian. How’s tricks? We really must catch up next time we are over there... Tony

I am looking for pictures of large NSE station frontages from around 1990 ish if anyone can help please? I have trawled the net and come up with very little (see below) I am specifically looking for details such as ugly 1980’s extensions (a bit like Basingstoke for example), window frame design, privacy blockers in ground floor windows etc etc. This is for a build I am about to start of the Vollmer kit of Baden-Baden Station. Slough Station shares a similar design so it should make Anglicising the kit fairly straight forward. Thanks in advance. Tony

Once again, many thanks chaps. As always, a mine of information! Tony

Many thanks for the informative replies chaps Tony

Found on a YouTube video, a train of cartics and 10 ferry vans heading through Reading station in September 1990. Can anyone tell me what the traffic is and are these vans the same as Hornby VIX van? pictures are ‘borrowed’ stills from the video. Train appears at around 6 mins 20.

Andy, Humbrol is water based acrylic and Tamiya is solvent based acrylic. I could bore you for hours on what manufacturers paint & thinners does or doesnt work with other manufacturers...... T

GWR coach brown I use 70.822 German Cam black brown in the Panzer series. I havent used cream as I only painted a siphon.Hope that helps T

Rich, One of the 6 or so RAL colours the Royal Mail use is RAL3000. Vallejo model color equates to 70947 Red (or dark vermillion on some labels). I also use it for red stripe on original Rfd locos. I don't always use a primer with Vallejo, but the various reds get better depth, especially if you use black. Warning panel yellow (pre '98) also has a number of RAL numbers that meet RSSB standards: RAL1003 - Vallejo Model AIR 71.135 I.J.A chrome yellow. Looks like the deeper yellow of early Rfd loco's RAL 1004 - not available from Vallejo RAL 1018 - Vallejo Model Color 70.952 Lemon Yellow. to my eyes it is plain wrong. Ideal for American CNW though! RAL 1021 - No Vallejo match RAL 1023 - Vallejo Model Color 70.975 Deep Yellow. Great for banger blue loco's... I will cover Rfd greys when I next have half an hour spare. If you are new to spraying Vallejo, you will find that sealing each colour with their varnish saves masking tape peeling your paint off. Look out for their latest polyurethane varnish as it is way better than the old stuff. In over 30 years of spray painting, it is the best paint I have used. I have a couple of Rfd 47s waiting paint. These will be the guinea pigs for pre '98 warning panel yellow, and railfreight grey. I will post my findings back here once I find the time to paint them! Go to the Vallejo website and print off the colour conversion catalogue. Very in depth, cross matches Tamiya, Humbrol, Gunze, Games Workshop, RAL and BS colours. Handy to keep in the reference library. Cheers Tony

A generic enamel thinner is easily bought in bulk too. £15 for 5 litres inc p&p on ebay at mo. Cellulose thinners is similar price. That is a heck of a saving over the grossly overpriced small bottles retailed by the big names, and will last you forever.....almost! Incidentally, the only difference between enamel thinners and celly is that cellulose goes off faster. Depending on temperature of your room, spray booth etc, it can cause dry tip and therefore start clogging your airbrush. But can be used with great success once you are used to it. I am still staggered by the number of people who believe urban myth, social media warriors and youtubers about what to thin paint with. Just check with the manufacturer, it is really that simple. I don't understand what possible benefit there is by using lighter fuel (for example), or window cleaner (for acrylics)...

To resurrect this thread as it may be useful to some.... I use an ikea coffee stirrer. I don't think ikea sell them anymore, but there are lots of resellers churning them out for .99p on ebay...

Boyes in Malton have a great range also Paul. And they have it on sale at the moment @ £1.90 a bottle. Yates' agricultural emporium also in Malton has a bigger range (believe it or not!) if you happen to be in town. Tony

I know this is an old thread, but I come up against this on many military modelling sites. Vallejo paints should be thinned with water, or their own brand thinning agents. Anything with alcohol, or windowlene or whatever concoction the guy on youtube uses, will turn it into goo. I use nothing else but Vallejo model color (colour!). All the hints and tips and guidelines on how to use the paint are on their website. Personally I use model color and not model air. The pigment is way better. To spray it I use their own brand 'flow improver' mixed 50/50 with the paint. I have tried their thinner which also works as it should, but flow improver stops a dry tip on your airbrush. I spray with no problem through a 0.2mm needle/nozzle. For brush painting, I always have a small pot of water with a tiny drop of washing up liquid in it, to loosen the paint or to make a thin wash. An added bonus is cleaning of brushes AND airbrush is done with water!! No smell, no fuss. Just my two penneth worth, hope it helps new users of the paint. Tony

Was in our local ACTION supermarket last week. What a find (for France....). They stock glues, acrylic paints and varnishes (similar to Vallejo), cutting mats, paint brushes, etc etc. All very cheap. Quality varies from excellent to budget, so summat for everyone. Well, everyone who is in France anyway! As an extra bonus, Heinz ketchup was half the price Leclerc sell it for, plus other goodies such as Mars bars etc at UK prices. If you live there, you will understand the relevance of this information

Used them many times. its difficult not to impulse buy when the TFI Fridays email comes in!! Excellent service every time. I wouldn't worry (too much) re the lack of emails. I think our American cousins don't live on the internet as much as we do in the UK. cheers Tony