Craigw

Colo Vale... I live in Campbelltown! I will contact you about the zoom meeting. Regards, Craig

Jerry, I have been a member for a few years now but am really feeling the urge to have a go. I have a Farish 64XX, Sonic 56XX and now the EFE Austerity stashed away and started a few wagons but I think something is going to happen soon. Thanks for your recent posts in here, they really are very inspiring. Regards, Craig W PS, I am in Oz, I know there are a few people scattered around.

Rails have a number of versions of the J94 at 50% off and I indulged in one with a view of converting it to 2mm scale. I was trying to resist, but not at that price. Craig W

While I model German WW2 subjects and have a large collection of books on both army and Waffen SS units, I am also painfully aware of what those same units were ultimately fighting for and that is something that never leaves me. The thing with modelling German railway subjects in WW2 and after that troubles me is not the flat wagons loaded with the material of war. It is the cattle wagons and vans that I know were being used for something else and travelling across other countries too. Most of the wartime layouts I have seen have tanks and things everywhere and seem to have no understanding of the organisation of units and the composition of them, in particular they display little knowledge of the timeline of AFV construction. There is quite a selection of 1:35 locos and rolling stock kits available, and they are seriously large.

While I admire the scenic work on the layout, as one who is also a military modeller , the actual military stuff does not gell for me.

The Balkenkreuz used today is the WW1 period version Craig W

I did not mean railway modelling, rather military modelling. German WW2 subjects have a massive following across most countries. it is quite unlike any other areas of interest that I can think of Railway modellers are (by and large) far more parochial. In Australia this even extends to not being the least bit interested in layouts from other states! Regards, Craig w

It probably comes as no surprise to find out that most people are parochial and prefer their local prototype. The same thing happens here (Australia) and from what I have heard, most other countries. The only thing I can think of in modelling disciplines that appears to transcend borders is German WW2 subjects. Regards, Craig W

It was not all down to rivalry. The Reich needed labour to support the war effort so the brutal reality is that those who could work were used as slave labour. Those not considered capable were murdered.

I had quite a collection of NSW railways HO scale brass at one point and the quality of it varied enormously. A number of them were very indifferent runners (Ajin!) while the later Samhongsa models as well as the Ajin models varied a great deal in quality. I had one loco tender that had a huge bow in it when unpacked. They also had varying quality of castings and soldering too. Brass has its own issues too. The people who work in the factories are model builders but few of them do that as a hobby.

You can play with toys if you wish, more power to you. But I build models and my family and friends all appreciate the effort that goes in to what I do. None of them are disparaging or negative at all. It is funny that people complain about being portrayed in a negative manner when you and several others in this thread are the worst offenders. Craig W

The GWR put in a fairly concerted effort to apply the 1922-1923 livery. I am fairly sure that an article has made mention of them allocating extra funding for it. I don't recall seeing much in the way of crimson lake livery stock from the mid 1920s. Thankfully, I am modelling the early 1920s so crimson lake it is. Just to keep on topic, my card was hit over last weekend but my order is still showing as a preorder. I am kind of used to a world where you get charged for something when it is dispatched. Craig W

I hate to mention this again, but those 1925 vintage tender springs really do jar - at least to me. I saw photos of a Masterpiece Models Saint for sale on the weekend and they had these springs fitted as well (on a loco in original condition with no top feed. I would be more than a little annoyed if I had stumped up for one of them!

You can have your very own game of Aussie rules in the UK. Throw a handful of hot chips in the middle of a group of sea gulls. Some states in Australia follow Rugby League :) Craig W

I still have my original Triang Jinty that was a present on my 5th Birthday plus my Peco jubilee I received on my 10th Birthday in 1974. A few years ago I was helping a friend sort through a huge collection of stuff. All 1960s and 1970s Triang stuff plus some Mainline and Airfix. I sold it in one lot because I just could not be bothered sorting it out. I kept a Rocket boxed set and another one of a Dean Single and a coach. That was it, they are just curiosities really. No deep seated nostalgia for any of it really