Caley Jim

Common in many Scottish goods yard. Used for tipping any bulk materials, root crops among them. Jim

Self adhesive foam draught excluder strip is good for that. Jim

Fix strips of card down the centre of each cassette with it's top surface just below 'rail' level and leaving around ¾mm flangeway gap between it and the aluminium. That will help to not only reduce derailments when handling the cassettes, but also make it easier to re-rail anything which does come off. Jim

My Uncle was a dentist in Chester. He had several patients who exhibited a blue line along their gums, a sign of lead poisoning. They all worked in the shot tower! Jim

Any poisoning risk comes from the vapour released while the mercury is exposed to the air, or from handling the amalgam with bare fingers. Amalgam filling material comes in capsules which are vibrated vigorously (in an amalgamator), the resultant mix being carried to, and inserted in, the tooth in an amalgam gun ( essentially a syringe with a spring to return the plunger to the rear end), minimising the exposure of patients and, especially, staff, to exposure to the mercury vapour. Once set, within a few minutes, there is no further release of vapour, so don't let anyone tell you that you are being poisoned by your fillings!! Any surplus is stored under water in a sealed container and disposed of by specialist firms. Jim

So, what would you describe as 'bad poisoning? Jim

Was Stroudley ever at Crewe? That's a classic 'Crewe' front end. Jim

Just one question. How did they get it through that bridge/tunnel on the right! Jim

Instead of using soaked card, you could use DAS modelling medium, which has a firm putty-like consistency. It is water soluble, so can be thinned by leaving it in a sealed container with some water. you can make any consistency from soft putty to that of thin plaster depending on how much water you put in. Jim

Hardly worth building the layout in that case, is it? As to jam making, a large proportion of the raspberry crop from the Blairgowrie area was transported south by rail to jam factories. Jim

No, no. That's cats. Dogs have masters, cats have staff! Jim

Look deep into my eyes. You will not chip me. look deep into my eyes. You will not.......... Is that a BOGOF deal your thinking of? One for the dog and one for the son? Jim

If you said that in a gathering up here, the response would be 'Pick a windae! (yer leavin')' . jim

Reminds me off the story of the man who died in a vat of whisky. Two of his workmates jumped in to save him, but he managed to fight them off! Jim (windae picked)

The walls were whitewashed to deter pilfering! Jim

It's a Doors tribute act! Jim

Just make sure the wire sit just a little under the headstock of the second vehicle so that there is no tendency for it to lift that vehicle. Jim

I have a length of wire attached behind one headstock which has an ' upstand ' at the other end which engages behind that of the adjacent vehicle. This allows the buffers to close up when propelling, but opens out when pulling. Jim

Aren't cravats so yesterday? Jim (whose never been trendy and has no aspirations in that direction!)

With exception of the wheels (I used open spoke 2-015) they are what I used to make a variety of PO wagons for Kirkallanmuir. And a selection of fictitious ones!

When you've built something as a 'best guess from photographs ' because you couldn't find any drawings or other details and someone tells you you're wrong, my response is ' prove it!' I've just finished such a drawing for a footbridge and am now designing an etch for it. Jim Edited for typo

It was a 4mm layout with outside third rail collection IIRC (or maybe stud contact). It was donated to the museum by the deceased builder, but, to get it out his house, the museum staff simply cut the baseboards into manageable chunks, right through track and everything! There was a proposal at one stage to rebuild it, but that never got off the ground. Jim

I can't tell you what Ian used, but I use DAS watered down to a stiff paste, with a little PVA added and spread on with a spatula. It can be coloured with powder or acrylic paints (I usually make it a dark grey/brown/earth colour). It has the benefit of being lighter in weight than plaster and can be added to or modified by wetting it. Any you add will bond to the original and it can be cut easily with a knife or carved. See the results in my Kirkallanmuir thread (link in signature), though I have still to add texturing. Jim

If you don't line them and then someone tells you they should be lined, ask them to provide irrefutable documentary proof! Jim

With due respect to my learned friend, I must speak in defence of the 2fs community who have a reputation for being encouraging, accepting and tolerant of all. In over 40 years membership I have never seen any heated discussions or falling out. Jim