rue_d_etropal

magnetic couplings, 4 wheel chassis, continental style bodies. why re-invent the wheel? Nothing wrong with companies working together, assuming that does not upset other parties. Just found some Markin Thomas stuff, looks familiar, https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Marklin-Clarabel-And-Annie-From-Thomas-The-Locomotive-New/363204544829

I bought one of the Marklin My World sets a couple of years ago. I have also seen a set being 'operated' at York exhibition. This is the current website https://www.maerklin.de/en/products/my-world/ I think the similarity is obvious. I found it ideal for fast train running but not enough control for shunting, so put it to one side, for the moment. I did run on outr club layout OK, which is handbuilt finescale! Mind you, ther are no chairs, so even old Lima will run OK, but do sometmes have problems with new Hornby locos(wheel back to back?) Also Marklin and Hornby have worked together before. A couple of years ago I noticed a Thomas range was being marketed from Germany, and it looked like Hornby bodies on a Marklin chassis. Nothing wrong with this, but I think it should be announced to everyone. Marklin are producing some innovative ideas, and as they produce a detailed leaflet online, it is relatively easy you find out about them, thanks to Gaugemaster distributing these pdf file leaflets . Most continental companies send out new release leaflets as pdf files , as do some American ones . Simple and effective.

looks like the Marklin system launched a few years ago.

I suspect some of the drawings will have already been in Alan's magazine, but he has been very helpful in the past.

ordered a copy last week, looking forward to it arriving, although I suspect some of the info I am looking for is not there

found this. pity it is a basic model https://www.nasshan.com/en/schuco/005931-piccolo-aec-rt-london-bus-doppeldecker-pearl-polo if it is plastic it might be possible to cut out windws, but a a lot of work for what starts out as a not so cheap model

I knew something was not quite right. I think the London Country buses I used were RTs not RMs. In my mind a much nicer front end. Maybe someone will bring one of these out in HO. Probably more common than the RM as well, and then there are some films which used old RTs, namely 'Summer Holiday' and 'Live and Let Die'. I think the bus in Harry Potter was also based on an RT, so possibly more marketing oportunities for a model of an RT.

I notice EFE did various versions , includig long and short bodies. For me the red one is more suited to one of my modeling projects. Only reallyinterested in the London Country one for personal reasons,and not really that bothered, and could easily get one of the EFE ones. It would not have been that difficult to have done modifications for a Greenline version, exta door panel, and alternative lights.

old London double deck buses have found their way to many parts of the planet. Not sure if they wee Routemasters but some were used in San Fransisco when the tram system was out of action as it was being upgraded. Also some tour comanies have used them,such as Top Deck. I have been on some of their tours, and to most people they would look like London but think some came from other places. Initially they were all rear entrances. Having nbeen in one of these buses travelling down a road in Norway, I can easily imagine anyone we pssed thought they were seing a London bus. So from a marketing point of view there is apotentially big market out there, mainly railway modellers whowant a London doubledecker on their HO scales layout. There are already a lot of near OO scales one s on the market, Oxford Diecast helped that along in their early days. As for price, it is in the normal continental HO price range. It has puzzled me for a while that a company like Oxford has not moved into HO market(apart from a few American models), as they could easily take on the German companies, in the same way they took on EFE and their own original company Corgi and Lledo. Interestingly though, some of the early Lledo bus models are pretty close to HO scale.

It should not be forgotten that the 'Clean Air Act' came into force in 1956. The health problems caused by poor quality air, in particular London,triggered work towards this, and no coincidence that diesel development was increased, and rushed with all the problems that resulted in. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Clean_Air_Act_1956 If more had been known about diesel pollution, then maybe more would have been done to build electric rather than diesel.

For a London Country version I would be tempted just to do a minor repaint of the Greenline one. I do remember London Country double deckers in Kent. Used them a few times, As Sevenoaks bus station was also used by Maidstone and District I did think they looked more comfortable, especially in winter as they had doors! Not a cheap model, and it would be a red one I would require for one of my projects(West London). As for routes not too difficult to print off different routes to fix on bus. Odd that theydid not just supply a sheet ofalternative routes. Does not surprise me they got wrong number as numbers are similar, and sometimes old documents can be difficult to read (I have to be careful with measurements printed on plans especially if they are handwritten)

Fortunately I found a spredsheet online covering RM over the years, so all I have to do is do a word searc on it. I have a couple of othe lists, as well as the MRC special -model drawing reference book. That backed up with a quick search on Magazine Exchange website as that sometimes has more info, but not always. I tend to be looking for drawings, and sometimes find what is there is either not that good or incomplete, but have found some gems.

it was the only article about Anhydrous Ammonia wagons listed so hopefully it is the right one.

February 1994 RM - ANHYDROUS AMMONIA TANKS - Steve Flint constructs modern tankers from Hornby items in 4mm scale

I know. I have invested quite a lot of money in good books with drawings.

I have a couple of NER locos in my range. The 0-6-0 tender loco would be ideal I think. I wonder if a motor might be fitted in tender. http://www.rue-d-etropal.com/3D-printing/3d_printed_sg-trains1.htm and coaches and railcars here. http://www.rue-d-etropal.com/3D-printing/3d_printed_sg-trains2-lner.htm The GCR railcar is already available in 1/220 scale.

its odd, if you pay for somehing and it is not quite right for you, then you will try to modify it to fit, but if the item is a free gift you will grumble whn it is not quite what you want and expect what you want for free!

I often get asked if I can supply stl files , and always politely say I can not, so I have created a small number of files which can be downloaded via Shapeways, as they have that option on their system, and I don't have to do anything other than ticking a box on those designs. One design I did was for a freelance coach, a request from someone to test a new printer. I have also included a couple of items which I considered too expensive to get printed, but even then after someone asked, I set one item to be available for Shapeways printing and I think they ordered a print. I am now getting asked why I can't just email stl files when asked. The simple answer is that I don't. By using the option on Shapeways I don't have to get involved and don't use up my valuable time on sending emails. Some stl files can be pretty big, and require to be compressed into zip files, something I would not prefer to get involved in. Why should I when it probably takes less for someone to download from Shapeways. Apparently to be able to download from Shapeways you have to sign up, and some people seem to object to that. I can't understand why, and why should I have to do something just because they don't want to sign up. I do not have to offer stl files to download, for free, I did it as a favour, and to see what would happen. I won't name and shame, but please use what is out there, it is better for everyone. Compared to most of the online services you have to sign uo to, Shapeways are pretty good, certainly no extra junk mail or marketing ,which are the norm on many websites.

I have quite a large selection of 3D print designs for locos, railcars coaches and wagons, mostly only down to N scale, but I have resized some down to Z and could do more. All are available printed from Shapeways. Biggest problem would be finding chassis to fit, even for coaches as British coaches are narrower than most European ones.

if you can get the book, it is worth while but as it is now out of print prices have gone up.The Micheline railcar was very experimental, going through a lot of changes. The early ones , one of which was also tested in Britian had articlated lorry/car type front end. Marklin have produced a similar model(not the same version though) as the one that did run in Britain. Then a later verson, a type 22 , similar to the top photo was tested in Britain, and from that a locally built version, the Coventry railcar, was built. It all seemed to fizzle out in Britain. One problem was that they were too quiet , being on rubber tyred wheels, and railside workers had difficulty hearing them approach. The drivers cab being raised above body, was also somethinf which the H&S people of the time did not like after a railcar(not a Michelin type) in Ireland with that type of drivers compartment crashed, I think into some cows, as the driver could not see too well. In France this type of cab was used on a lot of railcars, even some high speed ones(eg Bugatti), with few problems, except when shunting in reverse the guard would be in front of train communicating instructions with driver.

glue works for me. Also I don't do much glueing wsf to wsf, as I prefer complete bodies not kits. I do manage to stick card and wood to it though with no problem. As I said I have been told by someone who was exhibiting at Warley a couple of years ago, that they had managed to stick styrene to wsf using standard plstic glue. I presume the glue soaked into gaps .

everything is always a compromise. I aim for somewhere in the middle. There are those who want something complete, all the bells, and minimal work to finish, but there are also those who would prefer to have it more basic, a scratchbuilding aid, and if I was to do a differet design for even those two extremes, I would be buried under the extra worklod. The cost reduction by not including , say, the solebars, would be minimal, and any competent modeller should be able to cut off anything they dont want. I now tend to only do the smaller scales in finer plastic. It is actually less work for me as I can usually just resize a bigger scaled design. If someone asks I will set options for finer material for any design, if it fits in max size limits, and the bigger the size, the bigger the increase in cost (those legs seem to be the expensive part!). SW remove the legs, some other companies leave them for the customer to remove(hence reducing their own cost ).

the digital images are based on the actual digital instructions. the way it looks when it prints is the next step and depends on the printer and the person operating it. Even if a model prints perfect one time, it might be slightly different next time. As for glue, I find most glues work, and someone told me that they found simple plastic glue worked, because it gets ito the gaps between the grains of fused nylon and locks them together. That is ,I think , why water based paint sticks to it when being nylon you would not expect it to do so. It is obvious you know very little about how commision/add on is calculated. I don't add that much to basic cost. The taxman probably makes more on each sale than I do! When everyone else starts working for free, and everything is free , then I might consider giving away what I work on. Compared to the cost a commercial mould would cost, then 3D printing is still better value, and is sustainable. Digital designs can be modified easier than physical moulds.

have you never read in magazine articles about how a mdelle only spots a small error when they have taken a photo. Even pre digital, that happened. The human eye might be more powerful , but we tend to be very selective on what we want to see! Also because digital photos are often not perfect they get photo shopped, so how do you know what you are seeing is actually real.

I think the problem is that some seem to think of 3D printed models as final product, wheras I think of them as something to help them on the path. The WSF may have a rough surface, but it can be smoothed down if you know how(some either reject that or don't know!), and I keep recommending good quality non cloggng sandpaper. It is not a quick job, but like those who finish off wooden models can be very satisfying. WSF also has a big advantage when it comes to painting and that is simply that any water based paint can be used on it. I use low cost emulsion paint , available in most DIY shops and a lot cheaper than small pots of hobby paint. The paint stains rather than sitting on surface, so does not cover up smalldetail, often a problem when paintin traditional plastc models(we have all seen those tar thickness paint jobs!) WSF is a lot tougher than the finer plastics. Granted it can't be printed as thin, but even there SW are now putting in increased minimum thicknesses for the finer plastic. With care and time someone could wittle down some of the areas which need to be thinner on WSF prints, but those same areas with finer plastic can be very fragile and break easily. For fragile areas in WSF I apply a few drops of cheap liquid superglue before I do anything else such as buffers. As far as I know there are actually two different technologies used under the 3D printing name that is I think how the finer plastic is printed, but as it is printed in air, it rquires legs to support it, which then have to be removed very carefully(SW do this but that adds to the cost) This I think is what WSF is. As the model is supported during printing, it does not need legs . I believe that ,due to the heat and static build up , plastic dust will stick to the surface when model is removed from printer. That is the rough surface.