Ben Alder

Just shows what a bit of old fashioned modelling can do to solve a "problem"......

Couple of shots showing homespun method of restricting swing on the front bogie - a shaped fillet of plasticard, which works well enough. IIR, this was going to be a temporary measure until I perfected some form of guiding wire control- a job still in the pipeline., I'm afraid....

Thanks- reread the blog, and I think I restricted the front bogies travel with stops on the curve- I'll take a look tomorrow when I'm up at the layout- Clan is more or less a shelf sitter these days, but I should have posted a picture of that part of the mod as well..

It's a bit homespun but works, and here's a link to the entry in the blog on it. it does make a big visual difference on curves, I may add. http://www.rmweb.co.uk/community/index.php/blog/62/entry-1742-clan-gathering-at-kyle/ HTH

Copy of their latest newsletter for anyone interested. Acc+Ess Protocab Update - April 2015

This sort of thing has so much potential for modellers- absolutely fascinating, adding to an already wonderful inspiring thread.

Fascinating- absolutely superb! A PDF would be wonderful for those of us lacking such input skills for drawing...

Usually about a quarter inch flat although recently have changed to an angled shader which is basically a flat cut at an angle, giving the option of a fine line on it.

Yes, it was/is in a league above most of the the other larger layouts that graced the Glasgow show for so many years. I do think that modelling a prototype has several advantages, one being perhaps a restriction on the"whimsy" element that can appear in many joint ventures. The incorporation of the surrounding village and a depiction of the line itself also gave it a real sense of place that struck a chord with so many viewers.

Was a highlight for me at the Glasgow show- it certainly stood out amongst many other rather inferior offerings there and I am glad it it being given a new lease of life- It is well worth catching when if it goes back on the circuit.

Sunday afternoon in the Highlands- nothing stirring on the Sabbath...

Here is my take on them- still haven't got round to replacing the bogies! http://www.rmweb.co.uk/community/index.php/blog/62/entry-3028-the-preserved-caledonian-coaches/

Agree with you totally there- it was a spur that the eye couldn't ignore, and I used it a lot when building the last layout, taking WIP pics as I went- the amount of later corrections and mistakes it saved were numerous, ranging from the nit picking to serious, but helped avoid some of the things that proved problematic shortcomings in the previous layout.

My type of modelling! Keep on inspiring......

Yes, only picked up on that point after I'd laid all the track. It, however, will be borne in mind in any future project.

Good for you. There's a great feeling of satisfaction once you bully/coax these venerable offerings into a finished product, swearing never to do it again. Then you start another one......

For better or worse, I have stuck to 00 gauge all my modelling life, apart from a brief trial of EM about thirty years ago, which foundered on the twin rocks of chassis replacement and point building. I just did not have enough spare time ,or indeed interest in tackling PW, to devote to the hobby to achieve anything worthwhile in a wider gauge, so since then have used C&L plain track and Peco points along with Tracklay underlay. This was covered in a blog entry here- http://www.rmweb.co.uk/community/index.php?/blog/62/entry-10836-tracklaying-with-tracklay/ -and I am pleased with both the cosmetic and running qualities of this product. The points however, with their flatbottom rail and vestiges of chairs really showed up in photos, breaking the continuity of flow to the eye. So, after some gentle pushing, I decided to apply cosmetic chairs to the points, which has made a considerable visual improvement to them. I posted a thread entry on this work some time ago, and here is a link to it - http://www.rmweb.co.uk/community/index.php?/topic/75560-cosmetic-alterations-to-peco-code-75-points/ - which shows the work done, but thought it might be useful to have it here where it might be easier to find. This, and a tidy up of the extra plastic at the business end of the points makes a real difference to the overall look of things. Here are a couple more shots of trackwork to show this. Edit Reinstatement of images, in no real order, but better than nothing...

What issue number is the T9 please.

I hit the same problems with the six wheel version some years ago, and compromised by doing a crimson and maroon version, although I suspect a coating of grime would be more authentic. Here they are as they stand, as built, awaiting further weathering...

As the perpetrator of the assault on an innocent T9 I would like to add in mitigation that this was a project to get a working model of a Small Ben that would pass muster to the eye and run to modern standards. Exposing it to the digital camera shows its many shortcomings, and I would have been better doing a Big Ben, but they didn't last long enough for my timescale, and all in all, I'm happy enough with what I made for the layout, but if I had wanted a "shelf" model I wouldn't have started from there. There does appear to be potential for some rather attractive CR locomotives from it though.

Here is Clan Gordon, from the new Clan ,with a tender taken from a later Britannia. It has had work done to the rear bogie to free it up and extra pipework added, IIR.

Nice piece of work- water columns are a sadly neglected item of station furniture and really do deserve some manufacturer's attention.

Low light in the Highlands. 78052 was used on the Dornoch branch for a while, and has been caught on film during its stay.

I struggle with the site, but have dealt with him by phone often, and service has been speedy and helpful on each occasion.

Coming up in the next few days.....