Dr Gerbil-Fritters

It's a Fleischmann Br78 4-6-4T, model number 407801K. They do lots of variants, but I wanted one suitable for EpIV. It is delightful!

Any good? Lots still to do on my rather idyllic interpretation of a German branchline in the early 1970s.

A few pics from a short operating session yesterday.

50 2840 has had a first pass of weathering.. I need to tone down the magnetic arm of the kadee though, it looks a bit naff... One of the things I really like about Roco is that spare parts are readily available... this seems to not to be the case with UK models so much, which makes repairs/modifications rather difficult. I've got some bits on the way from Germany for these loks to bring them up to EpIV standard and it was just a matter of finding the part numbers and ordering from the Roco website.

I had a thesis completion meeting today, after which I needed some therapy. I got the piston rods, cab ladder and handrails on. Now all she needs is a bit of weathering...

I wonder if it's operated by an electromagnet rather than just mechanical or friction.

I got round to fitting two of my Br50s with the front couplers yesterday. I really like the brutish look of these, even though they're actually quite light engines and eminently suited to branch line operations. I did a bit of shunting just to try things out. A van and a flat to the goods shed, and a loaded hopper to the coal merchants. It all seemed to work ok, but I need to work out where to locate the uncoupling magnets. I'm not getting much time on the old moba at the moment which is frustrating as I really want to crack on with the scenery...

I found the parts- I'd 'safely stored them away'... so a few minutes work and two of my BR50s now have front couplers. I used KD #18s.

It looks European to me - I'd be searching vintage Piko, Markin, Fleischmann et al. for operating accessories...

I did... and I hadn't looked at it closely enough! There is the little s0d, randomly in a 'bag with accessories'; part number 116371

Anyone know what the spare part number is for the front coupler arm thing is? I went to fit mine yesterday - none in the box! I looked at the Roco spares sheet and can't identify what might be the correct part...

My preference would be a nice T shaped throttle lever... push forwards for accelerate and pull back to decelerate... Could also include a voice that says 'retard, retard' at key points

I flatly refuse to use anything 'touchscreen' - zero haptic feedback.

Probably because most of them were designed in the late 90s early 2000s and there's no commercial imperative to improve them. The Powercab is a bit big for my hands - and I have hands like shovels. (I play bass guitar) I don't operate often enough to find it completely intuitive or comfortable just yet. What I would really like is something like the Protothrottle but a smidge smaller. I prefer analogue levers and switches to rotary pots with no stops, personally.

British Rail had a crack at this a loooong time ago I seem to recall seeing it on Tomorrow's World but can't find any footage on the normally reliable Tube of You. There's a bit of information in this research doc from York, and a hint of other work on cybernetic railways. I'm not a fan of automation. What happens when one day there are no jobs left for anyone? As an aside, Rio Tinto already operate colossal 'robot trains' in Aus. See here. US railroads already have 'robot' DPUs and remote control units everywhere. So I suppose it's only a matter of time before we are left with nothing to do, just sit at home waiting for the robots to deliver our ready-meals, binging netflix. Thankfully I won't be around to see it.

Very little progress to report. I did receive the holder for the Powercab handset from Tarkine Models in Australia. It's designed specifically to fit this particular handset, giving secure snug support and still allowing access to all the buttons. I'm very pleased with it, and efficient service from Tarkine and Aus Post. Even her maj's hobby rozzers left it alone. No customs to pay! That's the first time in a while they've not held a parcel for ransom...

Ah, Trains on Film... good job Duran Duran decided to rename their single, it might not have been such a hit

I've not seen it this bad even in Mexico, which is notorious for train robberies. So much so that many trains now have heavily armed guards riding on the container wells...

Well, nobody's perfect.

It definitely deserves a secure future. I still can't quite believe that one of the finest layouts I've seen was only ever an interim project...

I didn't know ducks hibernate

And if they'd then teamed up with a famous motor lorry company, they could have had staniers panniers karriers harriers.

The best thing that came out of Swindon was the MSWJR...

If only the LMS had pannier tanks... they could have been Staniers Panniers.

A big thumbs up for Andreas. I ordered some EpIV suitable numbers and DB logos for my DB Br50 fleet and they arrived within days. And very nice they are, too. Now all I need is some spare Indussi gear to bring my 50s up to spec...