BR Blue

Thanks again I was thinking of going down the Airfix route. Keeping all rakes to the same manufacture is also a good idea. I was never keen on the Hornby Es or Fs although with an overlay they might be OK. Western region 2C BSOs are high on the list. I do have a good few Bachmann Mk2 (aka Mk2z) and Mk2As but obviously too short for Bs or Cs. I do not intend to make any changes apart from renumbering as approapriate. Doing some Mk2Bs or Cs is a sure way to get a manufacturer to announce them. They have polled high in the wishlists but these are uncertain times. I would be aiming for mid to late 80s so not too different from your time period. I have lots of 50s and a few 47/4s too. I would also need to look at NE -> SW formations. Having just checked I have: Airfix/Dapol 2Ds 7 x FO (too many) 6 x TSO 2 x BSO I also have a 4 Lima 2Fs somewhere but they are all FOs. What was i thinking. There was a charter rake in my time frame with mainly FOs. I cannot remember if they were D, E or F nor if they were declassified. I will have to make a plan on what bits to get/make - roof vents, underframe components and window etches.

A really useful resource for bashing Mk2s. Thanks for putting all this up. Am considering doing some Mk2Bs and Cs for WR sets. Obtaining Shawplan window frames sounds like it might be a challenge. Normally I would pick stuff up at shows. Hopefully Warley. Thanks again for all the information. Eamon

That is a good idea As for a 57. There is no much you can do unfortunately. Maybe get a 56 with the money if you sell it

Just a quick note on your locomotives. The class 26 was pretty much Scotland only in the 1980s. They did come south but not usually that far. The 33s were a southern loco but did wander - South Wales, Crewe and even North Wales but I do not think they would be seen in the East Midlands in your timeframe. Also the class 25s would have been disappearing when the 58s arrived and were gone by the time the 60s came on the scene (1989). Dutch livery on 37s would have appeared in 1990. DRS 56 is as you say too modern. I am not familiar with the DRS 56 but if it does not have the modified cantrail grilles it could be back dated with a respray. Hopefully this helps. Eamon

I did not realise it was the old body either. I never even considered it when I was ordering. I was looking at fixing a few things in the livery but became suspicious of the shape. When I put it alongside a 33/1 it was obvious. I returned it. I never would have bought it had I known it was the old version. The newer one has issues too as mentioned but the roof shape is not something that can be fixed. It would be more obvious with a blue roof I think but I am amazed Heljan have brought it back. Not impressed at all.

The free class 108 for Christmas is a nice touch by Bachmann Thanks for the info.

This has come up before and the timeline mentioned by Paul is correct. An interesting fact about the red too. However, like Mark, I too believe this 121 is an exception to the rule, perhaps the only one, in that it had up-swept stripes but with the later dark NSE blue. When it first came out I too thought it was an error by Dapol. As stated photos can be misleading sometimes and the blue changed over time with exposure to sunlight. That said, I do think that in this case the livery is correct. Going from memory, I think there were also 121s in the original blue with the up-swept stripes. In fact I am pretty sure I was on one once out of Paddington. Finally, like Richard, I too much prefer the lighter blue. I have repainted a fair few 50s into it and I have a load of Bachmann Mk 2s that need the same treatment. In the end, the further we go from this time, it is indeed all about opinions.

Thanks. I know very little about 66s part from the fact that there are lots of them. Too 90s for me

The bogies are different. For example, the axles are not evenly spaced on a class 59 bogie but I believe they are on a class 66. For a modelling point of view just swapping the side frames means the axle boxes will not line up with the axles. Although it may be close enough for some people.

If you look at the video description on YouTube you will see that there are a number of links provided for the products Richard mentioned in the video. Hope this helps.

Personally I think £268 is silly for a model of that era. I have a Hornby 142 I bought many years ago. It was good for its day but its day was a long long time ago. I had much more hair then. Even if its a rare variation you could easily pick one up in a different livery and get it professionally resprayed for less £268. Obviously from a collector's viewpoint it maybe different and its the rarity that is the attraction. However something is only worth whatever someone is willing to pay. You do see some crazy things on eBay.

I see what you are saying. I had thought I saw a picture just after the application of the body side stripe. Having gone through a few books I cannot find it now needless to say. So apologies, I must be mistaken. I have found pictures online prior to the stripe being added but any with the stripe on flickr, are as you say, different to the model. I am planning on bringing the model forward in time a bit as to how it was when I saw it. That means changing the cab window colour so I will be amending the stripe too.

Yes it did. In mid 1986 before the cab windows went to white. I think the cantrail was changed later in 1986 but the livery above is correct. I do not know if the cantrail was the same on both sides. I have seen photos which show the different treatment of the stripe at each end as depicted on the model in photo above. Just to elaborate further. The cantrail stripe was like this earlier in 1986 prior to the application of the white body side white stripe. It remained like this for a short time. At the some point around the time the cab windows started to go white it change. Definitely 365 versions of the livery. I suspect the livery of the model was only around for a very short period of time, possibly only weeks.

Wow. You are being picky. I think the key point was tangible things. A new PTA sample has come from China which is pretty tangible. No one is saying there wont be delays. I will say no more.

Look at the PTA thread. A new sample has arrived from China. The Chinese factories have reopened. The virus outbreak is under control there and on the decline.

Try this: http://www.footplate.co.uk/index.php?main_page=index&cPath=212_437

There are good shots of the class 45 samples on the latest Hatton's Platform 1 video (Number 30) about 34 minutes in. You can see the roof variations between the different samples.

Retailers still have the Cawoods but stocks do seem to be running low. If you want some I would get them now. I picked up an extra pack from Rails at the weekend. I was going to wait but I reckoned I would miss out.

Very well deserved. I had the pleasure of seeing the layout this weekend and speaking to Al. The little details are incredible not to mention the bridge. The number of trees is amazing. I believe are about 1000.

I dont know if any in the first batch were correct. Maybe one of the green ones.

Some Scottish 37/4s perhaps.

Thanks Fran Just ordered. Dont want to miss out this time.

The litter is a great touch.

Best of luck with your new layout. Hopefully you can salvage much of the existing one and make it bigger and better. I have lots of stock for a South Wales based layout but am waiting a house move before I start.

Hard to be certain but it looks like it has the class 122 style smaller route destination box. I see some side windows seem to have been painted over so this might help identify it. I have tried unsuccessfully.