73080

From Public Timetable dated 18 April 1966 - 11 June 1967 List of all weekday departures from Waterloo to Bournemouth (* = and Weymouth) listed as having refreshment facilities: B = buffet L = light refreshments (presumably a buffet, but only serving light refreshments) SX = Monday to Friday; SO = Saturdays only 08.30*, 10.30*, 11.30 - all B - SX (L - SO) 12.30 Pullman service - 'The Bournemouth Belle' 13.30* - B - SX (L - SO) 15.30* SX - B 15.35 L 16.35* B 'The Royal Wessex' 17.30 and 18.30* B - SX (L - SO) 21.20 B - SX (nothing SO) - train ran to Poole arriving 00.26 One curiosity is that there was no service on the 19.30 to Bournemouth / Weymouth, but the 21.20 to Poole was given a full buffet service Mondays - Fridays. The only trains reaching Bournemouth with a full restaurant service in this period were 'The Pines Express' (running via Reading) and 'The Bournemouth Belle'.

Whilst the LE Models website is still functioning, the consensus in Italy is that they are in a form of administration. Therefore, no new models can be expected for sometime, if ever. The LE Models E636, E646 and ETR EMUs are still available in Italy as is Gr851.191. The E626 have been sold out for some time. From my own experience I have purchased from the following Italian websites and there have been no problems in receiving purchases in the UK. Postage is typically in the region of 20 Euros. However, the Tecnomodel-treni website states that they are offering 10% off with free postage for purchases over 149 Euro until 30 September. http://www.tecnomodel-treni.it/ https://www.trenietreni.it/cc4/locomotive https://bonsaglionline.it/

DM 98 / 99 - Bagagliai per treni merci (Goods Brake Van) This has been produced in HO by ACME between 2010 - 2018 in the following liveries: 40151 (2011) - Ep3b castano (brown) 40152 (2010) - Ep4a grigio ardesia (grey) 40152S (2012) - Ep4 grigio ardesia (grey) 40153 (2012) - Ep4a grigio ardesia (grey) 40154 (2018) - Ep4a grigio ardesia (grey) It is possible that some models of ACME 40154 are still available at cfbonline.it , though I have never purchased from this website: http://www.cfbonline.it/index.php?option=com_virtuemart&view=category&virtuemart_category_id=16&Itemid=58

To avoid this thread drifting a long way off topic, I have started a new topic in the Overseas Modelling section entitled: Italian Railways (FS) - a beginners guide to modelling

Italian Railways (FS) standard gauge steam locomotives remaining in traffic 1970 onwards The following information is taken from The North Eastern Locomotive Preservation Group publication - 'An Enthusiasts Guide to Steam Operations in Austria and Italy in 1972' by R.M.Wheeler. "Although over 800 steam locos remain in Italian Railways stock, only about 200 are required in traffic each day, and about 300 are officially classed as 'under repair'' Locomotives of the following classes have been reported in action during the last 12 months (i.e. in 1971/72). I have used the Italian notation, so Gr625 = Class 625 Gr625 2-6-0, built 1910-23. Mixed traffic (light axle loads) - c100 in service, used throughout Italy Gr640 2-6-0, built 1907-30. Passenger - c50 still active at Turino, Chivasso, Novara, Alessandria, and Cuneo Gr685 2-6-2, built 1912-27. 4-cylinder passenger locos built for express passenger. By this date, Udine had one or two in traffic, typically working a return early morning passenger between Udine - Cervgnano and station pilot duties at Udine, plus one or two in traffic at Cremona Gr740 2-8-0 built 1911-23. About 200 in service throughout Italy Gr741 2-8-0 rebuilt with single Crosti-boiler from Gr740 in 1954-60. About 50 in service, mainly in Sicily but also at Verona for Fortezza - San Candido. Gr743 2-8-0 rebuilt with twin Crosti-boilers from Gr740 in 1942-53. About 40 in service, all in northern Italy Gr744 2-8-0 built 1927-28. About 9 surviving including at least one active with Caprotti valves at Venezia Mestre (Venice) and at least one active (with walschaerts valve gear ?) in Sardinia. Three stored at Foggia. Gr835 0-6-0T built 1906-22. About 150 surviving throughout Italy. Used on shunting and pilot duties. Gr851 0-6-0T built 1898-1924. Sixteen remaining in stock but many stored - in southern Italy and Sicily Gr875 2-6-0T built 1912-16. Last example was station pilot at Udine in 1971 Gr880 2-6-0T built 1912-16. About 32 in service, all in northern Italy. Used on local passengers. Gr895 0-8-0WT built 1909-16. The 6 active survivers shunting Novi Ligure marshalling yards. Gr896 0-8-0WT built 1921. Most in Sicily, but one or two may still have been active at Novi Ligure and Udine. Gr940 2-8-2T built 1921-24. About 35 still in service - main active fleet was 10 at Lecco working passenger and freight. (In 1974, they were still working two peak-time short workings at each end of Lucca-Aulla line). Gr981 0-6-0T built 1922. 4-cylinder rack and adhesion locos working Paola-Cosenza Classes withdrawn 1970/71: (Information from 'Italian State Railways Steam Locomotives' by P.M.Kalla-Bishop 1986) Gr471 0-8-0 Gr480 2-10-0 built 1922 - last example at Catania Gr623 2-6-0 rebuilt with twin Crosti boilers 1952-54 from Gr625 Gr735 2-8-0 built USA/Canada 1917-19

I have started this topic in response to a request for information elsewhere. A good start before purchasing any models is to understand the various Epoches. It is common for both Roman and Arabic numerals to be used, so EpIII and Ep3 are the same. There was a lot of change in the Ep3 and Ep4 periods, so both are often split in two e.g. Ep3a and Ep3b. The best guide I have found to Italian Railways modelling Epoches is: http://www.fimf.it/fimf_prec/images/nem/nem814.pdf If you do not understand Italian, search 'fimf epoche' on google and click on 'translate this page'. Some of the translations into English are rather unusual, but it is generally understable. There is an excellent guide to Italian Railways models that have been produced in the last c20 years (as well as unreleased new announcements in fainter type) at: http://gamos81.altervista.org/ An English translation can be obtained by a google search of 'gamos81' and using the translation facility.

The LE Models Gr851 is nearly sold out, so if you want one you need to be very quick. They appear to be available on ebay, but if you would prefer to purchase from a shop, you may wish to consider: https://www.bonsaglionline.it/LEVEL_LE21277_LOCO_VAPORE851_191 They are not the cheapest shop in Italy, but in the past I have used them to purchase items that have sold out elsewhere in Italy. A few years ago, postage was around 22 Euro to the UK, but may have increased. Delivery to the UK was about 7 days. The rumours in Italy suggest that LE Models is in receivership, so it is possible that no further models will be produced. However, their website is currently stll active: http://www.lemodels.it/

My information is not necessarily up to date, but I understand the current position is as follows: All the RAS railway negatives are still owned by Rail Archive Stephenson. In the last 20+ years, none of the RAS images have been readily available to purchase by the public as photographic prints, other than the ex-Photomatic collection, and these have only been available in postcard size. That said, some publishers have been able to access the collection, and many have appeared in print. Whilst a few larger photographic prints have appeared at photograph fairs etc (such as at Kidderminster in two days time) and on ebay, the chances of obtaining a specific image in larger format is very small.

The loco is the preserved Irish NCC WT class 2-6-4T No.4, so the location will be somewhere in Ireland.

The Britannias allocated to Oxley for the Summer 1965 timetable were 70045/47 & 53.

10.00am - 4.30pm - free admission - 20 tables of Dealers Kidderminster Railway Museum photograph collection on display and copies available. The Museum is adjacent to the platforms at the Kidderminster Severn Valley Railway Station. SVR car park is to the rear. At Kidderminster Railway Museum Station Approach Comberton Hill Kidderminster DY10 1QX Tel: 01562 825316 Email: photographs@krm.org.uk Further details on website: http://www.krm.org.uk/

The relevant timeline appears to be: 10 October - Hattons list receipt of Bachmann Mark 2F TSOs & RFBs, D3 'Skiddaw' and 37.688 'Kingmoor TMD' DRS livery (appears to be last listed delivery of new stock direct from Bachmann) 22 October - Hattons announce that they are offering Wholesale terms to other retailers for their own commissioned models 30 October - Hattons announce Sale of the Century. Reading through Bachmann's t&c for supply of models, I can find no possible breach by Hattons' Sale of the Century that could not have been remedied quickly by Hattons, resulting in resumed supply of Bachmann models. Given that this apparent dispute appears to require 'discussions', it suggests it may be the offering of Wholesale terms that was the trigger. The offering of Wholesale terms to other retailers (as compared with sharing around own commissioned models between a few retailers) suggests that from Bachmann's point of view, Hattons may have crossed a red line and will now be treated as a competing manufacturer. If so, then that would definitely require 'discussions' for there to be any prospect of resupply of Bachmann models.

If Mr Kale is the publisher, why is he not stated as such on the mnabooks.com website which takes payment via Paypal ? Stephenwolsten in an earlier post implies that David Wilkinson is the publisher. If correct, then Mr Kale is taking payment for books for which he is not the publisher. There may be nothing wrong in that, as booksellers do it all the time. However, it does suggest that Mr Kale is not the person receiving payments via the mnabooks.com website. Every other legitimate seller in the UK, with their own website taking payment, appears to give details of who is receiving payment, so why does the mnabooks.com website fail to do so ? When I contacted Citizens Advice, I was told that as an absolute minimum, any UK website taking payments should display a contact name and address. So I regrettably have to repeat: Why does the mnabooks.com website not feature a contact name and address (as Citizens Advice state is required), nor state the recipient of any payments made via their website ?

Stephenwolsten on 26 July stated: "As regards means of redress, a buyer has standard consumer rights from a retailer and Paypal has its own buyer protection scheme. The Paypal scheme applies to 'misdesriptions' or misdelivery, as opposed to the stronger rights you get via Section 75 (credit cards). But Paypal does at least provide some protection for the buyer. This is posted for information. I have no connection with MNA books other than a common wish to see the books succeed. I suspect that they are almost a labour of love!" I also wish to see these books succeed, but the above statement appears to be incorrect - there is no definite PayPal buyer protection in this case, and there still appears to be no way to contact the publisher from information on the website that takes payment (other than via an email address). PayPal protection only applies if it is an 'eligible purchase'. The definition of an 'eligible purchase' EXCLUDES 'the purchase of goods and services prohibited by the PayPal Acceptable Use Policy'. The PayPal Acceptable Use Policy states that 'You may not use the PayPal service for activities that ..... relate to transactions that.... are for the sale of certain items before the seller has control or possession of the item.' This issue is discussed in detail, but from a different angle, on the DJModels 00 APT thread page 42 post 1048 (31 July 2018 - 14.42) onwards. Whilst the 'Latest News' section on the mnabooks.com website has an entry dated 1 August 2018, I still can't find any reference on their website to the name(s) and address of the publisher, nor any contact name, address or phone number. Why not ? Edited to distinguish Stephenwolsten quote from my post

Who is the actually legal publisher of these proposed books ? I was about to place an order this morning but stopped as I could not find the business details of the publisher of these books. Unfortunately, such details do not appear to be available in the public domain. Please will some-one provide information that I can't find if it is available, but: - I can find no record of 'mnabooks' nor 'Never Again Publishing' existing as a legal business entity in the UK. If neither is a legal entity, then they cannot be the the legal publisher, and presumably the legal publisher must be a person or a partnership of people rather than a business. - I can find no record of any address or telephone number for the publisher on the mnabooks website - From the mnabooks website, I can find no way of contacting the publisher other than by email, should the books never be delivered - whilst it is possible to pay by credit card, the payment goes through Paypal, so the usual credit card protection for payments over £100 would not apply. In summary, if I should pay in advance for these books and they not be delivered for any reason, I appear to have no means of redress or even knowing the name of the person(s) or business entity that had received my money. I write this in the hope that the publisher reads this and provides the above information. I am sure that the publisher would not like to be seen to be operating in the same way as 'scammers', which is what is happening if the above information is not available. P.S. The Facebook page for 'mnabooks' gives some information, including the phone number 07979 802848. A web search of this number shows it in association with the names David Wilkinson and David Wilkinson Associates. The later has an address of 52 Surman Street, Worcester, WR1 1HL. The Facebook page for 'mnabooks', gives an address as Kidderminster Station, but the accompanying map shows a location on Station Road 4km due east of Cleobury Mortimer. A Google search of "David Wilkinson 'Never Again' " produces an entry stating that an update to the mnabooks website was made on 4th April 2018 by David Wilkinson. Is David Wilkinson the legal publisher ?

I have checked my own collection of photos and various books & websites, and they all show 34050 as having a 5,500 gallon tender during the period from being rebuilt in August 1958 and withdrawn in August 1965 (i.e. NOT the Hornby tender - assuming the Rails photo is correct). The dates on the photos are: Undated official photo - likely to have been taken in 1958 immediately after rebuilding; plus 27 Sept 1959 24 Jan & 25 Nov 1961 March, 11 April & 25 August 1962 26 July 1963 16 May 1964 13 June 1965

The Railway Photograph Fair is taking place this coming Saturday. If you wish for confirmation from the 'horse's mouth', please phone the Museum itself on 01562 825316. For some time the Kidderminster Railway Museum has not been keeping their website up to date. Last January's Railway Photograph Fair was also not advertised on their website. The Museum's website appears to have been last updated on 14 March 2018.

The accounts for Golden Age Models Limited (company no. 05292243) for the year ending 31 December 2016 have now appeared on the Companies House website. They state that they were approved and authorised by the director on 28 June 2018. These accounts state that the company incurred a loss of £1,592,663 in 2016 under the 'profit and loss account'. These accounts state that as at 31 December 2016, the company had net liabilities of £1,162,563. The accounts for the year ending 31 December 2017 are due to be presented by 30 September 2018.

LE Models was established following the closure of the Hornby Italian model railway design department (Lima Expert) c3 years ago. At the time there was speculation on the Italian equivalent of RMweb (forum-duegieditrice) as to the terms of the 'redundancy agreement'. Whilst I am not aware of any formal statement from either party, the consensensus of posts on the website forum was that LE Models had acquired the rights to the prototype E646 model. As for the E636, whilst LE Models acquired the right to use the tooling, there was uncertainty as to whether they acquired exclusive rights or shared rights with Hornby.

10.00am to 4.30pm - free admission - 20 tables of Dealers Kidderminster Railway Museum photograph collection on display and copies available. The Museum is adjacent to the platforms at the Kidderminster Severn Valley Railway Station. SVR car park is to the rear. At Kidderminster Railway Museum Station Approach Comberton Hill Kidderminster DY10 1QX Tel: 01562 825316 Email: photographs@krm.org.uk

Dapol Class 73s for £73 at The Hobby Shop, Faversham. Three versions currently available: E6039 (blue) E6047 (blue) 73138 (Dutch)

AccuWeather is currently stating that during Friday and Friday/Saturday night, when most of the traders would be travelling to the show: " travel will be extremely difficult and dangerous" - Friday; and "travel will be dangerous" - Fri night/ Sat early morning EDIT: quotes are for Kettering itself rather than East Midlands

Whilst R2786 appeared in the 2008 catalogue, it was subsequently dropped and was never actually produced. When (if ?) 6825 with late BR crest and small tender is actually issued, if the change in catalogue number is ignored, it will be 10 years from being shown in a catalogue to being actually released. Would this be the longest delay in recent times for a model to be produced ?