Jesse Sim

Headmaster just sounded better then Head of Department. The 23rd it is at 9pm. But don’t worry I’ll wake up earlier on my first day off of the holidays to get you all sorted!!!!

I completely agree, when you do start a whole new world opens.

Well I didn’t want to name names, typical Kiwi always spoiling everything. When I mentioned Ash in my comments here it wasn’t in a discouraging or rude way. As did I Jack, even offered to help him build one. Now that I can knock up a wagon or two with my eyes closed, sounds cocky, but time will tell as I’ve just sent one to the Headmaster. Should be with you in a week or so…hopefully. 23rd is the next planned one for our Christmas wishes and all that, mostly just talking nonsense.

Sorry, good morning my master, apologies for the lack of introduction I had a terribly busy and stressful day at work (silly season), therefore caffeine fuelled my unexpected outburst on RMWEB and Facebook. Oh I don’t know, one thing you have taught me non-railway related is to speak ones mind. Sometimes I need to think before I speak. But that’s another story for another time. Don’t forget adding leather wearing motorcycle riding to your list. Anyway, I completely agree with a “veil being lifted”, I myself have had that happen twice. The first time was when I finally picked up a soldering iron or dived into kit/scratchbuilding and the second was when I had seen the light to model a prototype. Is soldering the motion backwards on a P2 in front of a young Australian first timer a failure? Or a “do as I say not as I do” lesson? In regards to looking down upon those who don’t actually “model”, I feel I showed that I don’t do that today in the Facebook group. One fella who is a friend of a friend commented and we respectfully argued/discussed my post. He mentioned he doesn’t have the time or money etc to start kit building, but he has an abundance of Hornby A4s. I mentioned that instead of buying at least half of those locos he could have started his kit building lifestyle. Although after the post was silenced we spoke through private message and I found out the reason for his lack of time and money and it’s personal so I won’t divulge it here. But the fact was, during said conversation I offered to walk him through a whitemetal kit like I did with Dylan Sanderson. Even though I was huffing and puffing about people not kit building and made out to look like i am king sh*t, which I’m far from it, I offered to help someone who hasn’t built anything before. Another thing I have noticed Tony is how far my English has come along since meeting you. No more “Hey Tony’s” am I right? No doubt you’ll find several mistakes, but pat on the back for me me thinks. Again sorry for the outburst, need a good vent. Jesse

Don’t be stupid, I thrive off poking the bear!

Been an interesting few days in the railway facebook groups. My W1 arrived This arrived in the post today (W1) My W1 is broken My W1 is broken My W1 arrived My W1 is broken Look what this W1 went for on eBay Looking for a Hornby W1 My W1 arrived today My W1 arrived today My W1 arrived today (plus video) My W1 arrived today Now I’m probably going to be shot down in flames for this (cue AC/DC song) but am I the only one that’s A: sick of seeing it and B: not that overly joyous about a Hornby W1? You rarely seen a W1 on LNER layouts, due to there only being a SEF kit, when you did see one it was almost like the real thing, “Hush Hush” but now every man and his dog will have one. I feel that railway modelling has moved away from “actual modelling” to what can one person have with the most money. There is no longer any skill required in the railway modelling world. When myself and others say this you get shot down with “it’s too hard”, “oh im not good at that” (when they haven’t even tried)and “rule 1” being abused. I get the first two quite alot when people see some of my wagons, “are they Bachmann” “no they’re kits” “oh much to hard for me”. Have a GO! Or when people say “why can’t Hornby or Bachmann do this loco” when there is a perfectly good kit awaiting to be purchased and built from a locally sourced manufacture. It doesn’t excite me one bit about my one arriving. Yes, I am getting one, but only the original condition W1, I have a resin kit here to finish of the rebuilt version by Graeme King. (Pictured: GK cut and shut on a Hornby A4, remind me to get the correct tender from SEF) It sounds hypocritical but I exploit what the RTR boys have to offer and kitbuild the rest, as most of you know. Just the thought and ramblings of an Australian! Have I been hanging around you too much Tony? I posted this in a Facebook group, no doubt I’ll be cursed and thrown out. UPDATE: My post in a Facebook group was basically silenced because I went against one of the rules by talking about Rule1. Even though majority of the people agreed with me.

Hang on, that’s your layout? I’ve watched those videos for so long, I never even knew!!

We also found that Geoff Haynes did some work on her when I brought it over in 19 for it to be repaired (by you) and weathered. It’s a cracking loco, one of my finest in my roster/collection. Even with DCC! I must finish my W1, I’ve rang SEF twice now about a tender and I don’t hear anything back. Then it needs to be painted, which I think I might get someone to do.

I hope Hornby don’t make one! My A2, although I didn’t build it, turns a few heads on when seen on my layout. It would have been the same for my Graeme King rebuilt W1, but now that Hornby have brought them out all I’ll hear is “oh is that Hornby’s W1”. Before Hornby brought out the W1, you hardly seen one on an LNER layout (just like the real thing) as no one wanted to or couldn’t build one, now every man and his dog will have one. I think I’ve been hanging around Tony too long!

Yeah I sent it to you to be rebuilt, it needed a scratchbuilt chassis. Which I admit is beyond me at this point in time… one day. So I sent it over and it returned here completely destroyed. It looked like customs had opened it and did the dodgy. Then we came to an agreement of swapping a v2 I had here for a rebuild of the D2. Nice bit of bartering. Tony will do a much better job of it then I could, as I said, at the moment. With the Bachman V2 on the horizon, I intend to kitbuikt whats not on the RTR market. Which I think is sensible.

Has to be the one. It’ll look the ducks guts when it’s finished. How’s that D2!

Is that the one you and I were talking about ages ago? Hoping for it to be in its later days with Gresley cab and boiler?

If I may? I didn’t help remove the stock, I believe I was either in Malta with the rest of my family, I stayed home and worked the family business for 5 weeks, met them in Malta for a week, then returned home and I left for 5 weeks in the UK. I also didn’t go home after the LNER weekend, I went north to my other adopted British family David and Christine Miller in Newcastle, who visited LB whilst I was there in November 2019. Then I went onto the Scotland for week. Then, unfortunately, I went home. Also Tony, you and I went to BRM and helped edit the moving pictures for the DVD, mostly by telling the fella in the media department of BRM where we wanted each shot to be. An all round fantastic experience for a young modeller like myself. I’ve said this before and I’ll probably be saying it till the day I clock in. But you have no idea how much that weekend meant to me. I’ve always looked up to you Tony as a kid (I’m doomed now that we’re friends) and it was also seeing Grantham in the March 2014 BRM that made me decide to go LNER. So for me to be able to be part of the ‘gang’ for a weekend and also help build Grantham in a small way ( don’t look to closely at one of the station canopy’s support brackets) really was just amazing, there are no words to describe what it meant for me. Now to call you all dear friends, I wouldn’t be the modeller I am today without all of you. So to Graham, Jonathan, Greame, Roy and Baz, thankyou. Also thanks to John Smart, Dave Jobbling and Steve White who have opened me with welcome arms through covid during the Skype call sessions. and thanks to you Tony, for giving a young, inspired, long haired, tattooed, pierced Australian bogan a chance. Better throw Mo in there for feeding me and washing my clothes! And also the rest of you lot who I’ve spoken to countless times on RMWEB!! Right, no more sooky posts, it’s back to inappropriate comments and modelling!

Don’t worry, leave that one to me

Now that you mention it…

Oh yes, I can still hear the colourful words that came out after the flash went off!

I can’t believe it’s been over three years since that weekend. I wouldn’t have missed an opportunity like that, thanks to you and the rest of the chaps for the invite. It was such an excellent weekend and five weeks for me in the UK. Halfway through putting your 58 stock back on. A picture you took of me taking the controls during us running trains for the other BRM video. Who needs you Tony, I know how to run LB with my eyes closed, with no cock ups! and lastly the team! Bit of a blurry photo as it’s a photo of a photo…. But you get the idea.

Are we showing off Department Trains? Not going to miss an opportunity to show mine again.

Tony = 1 Jesse = 0

Ahem… they’re wrong!

Oh I know now, unfortunately I read it at 5am before my morning 4 coffees and oh boy you don’t wanna be around me at that time! No need to apologise, it is i that should, so sorry about that. Must remember to wake up before reading stuff.

After the fifth it doesn’t matter…. Wait what were we talking about?

Oh that’s where I’ve gone wrong

Well now haven’t I reached a milestone over the weekend. TRAINS RUNNING I REPEAT TRAINS RUNNING!!!! Finally a train moving on the new layout. I must say I’m very proud of myself, first prototype, first use of bullhead track, first time glueing track instead of pinning it down and the first time making up different track connections (bullhead to code 100). It runs beautifully, once I finish some wiring at the north end fiddleyard and finishing layout the down lines in the scenic section I’ll take a small video and upload it on YouTube with the link posted in here as well. Excuse the mess, I’d been going at the railway from 7am Saturday morning. So here goes nothing. Please excuse wrong head codes I grabbed the first loco’s I seen. The department train snaking its way onto the fast line at Woolmer Green Box (not modelled yet). Excuse the open wagon at the front easiest way to get a Kadee to couple to the O2. Now rolling across the viaduct towards Welwyn North portal. A parcels train thunders past, in charge is the modified C1 ‘4419’. There are three more bogie vans that need to be added to this take but I haven’t finished them yet. Now cleared to enter the main line, an out of gauge working, a department bucket machine thingy, hauled by an O4. Might be a little too high even for an out of gauge working but we won’t tell anyone….

I didn’t have doubt when I went into wagon building. After the first two or three they went together quite easily. I’ve build four coaches and a number of NPC’s….