Northroader

Haven't used it for years, but don't you put the foam around the track, it sort of stretches and envelops it, and then lay the two together? Then I used to pin the track down, which might not suit modern tastes.

Just a staff suggestion, boss, bin it and nuffin more will be said, but looking at your poster, don't you think you've got the basis of a lovely little layout encapsulated in that poster? Yard of plain track on a plank, small overbridge halfway along to define the known world, some space behind the track for a small platform, shelter like say Cooksbridge, and the poster giving the basis for a scenic backdrop, Pevensey? Terrier with push pull if you can't fix a steam car. Keep it simple, and all that. Also much better for your pocket and time and space in the present circumstances.

Here's a dimensioned sketch of the ground signal, taken from same source: No idea of what "rbc" stands for, but looking at where they're placed, they appear to apply to the two ground discs which are furthest away from the signal box, and facing away from it. Presumably the back blinder confirming the operation of the signal couldn't be seen, and some sort of repeater was fitted.? Over to you, Mike!

Lifted this out of opc book "pictorial record of SR signals" - no good duck should be without one

I'd be tempted to say "sod it", tin everything and apply a hot iron. Crude is my middle name! Good luck with the other screws.

One thing which I'm curious about, and shouldn't in any case affect the short term outcome, is the tree surgery in Sonning Cutting. This has the random effect of the mast planting, only in spades. Young saplings and old trees come out here and there, old trees have a few branches lopped, others left with just the main part of the trunk showing. There's no mass clear out of the whole lot. While criticising, what about the two old yard lighting poles either side of the lines in the Scours Lane area? Donkeys years old and rotten bases with it, I should think. Just detail, but someone ought to sort it.

For a change, I'm doing a post on some of the rolling stock on Englefield, starting with the two cabooses, ?cabeese, ?cabeeses.. (You say " tomayto, etc ") These are a must for a 1950s freight, forming a rolling HQ for the conductor, the guy in charge of the train. There was a cupola for a lookout over the train, and a desk for paperwork, freight car waybills, and so on. A stove kept the car warm and heated coffee and meals. Boxes underneath carried useful spares like coupler parts and air brake hoses. Beside the conductor there was very likely a brakeman. All trains were fully air braked by then, so the brakeman no longer ran along the roof screwing hand brakes down, he helped by throwing points at passing sidings, setting out cars, and protection when stopped on the mainline. The caboose was usually assigned to one person, and was well cared for as a result. Some turns could end end out well in the sticks, and so there were four benches/ bunkspace inside for the train crew to doss down. These cars were a standard CNR design, but typical of most North American designs, slightly shorter at 35' than the standard boxcars of 40'. The models were made from a drawing in the Model Railroader for Aug 84. The body is mainly .060 plastikard, with an external layer of Evergreen V groove styrene sheet, which gives a neat finish. There's a wood strip inside to help with weight. The bogies aren't very obvious, but are Walthers, diamond / arch-bar framed. These are the old type, before the cast steel types were introduced, and by the 50s were banned from movement off individual roads, but still used for internal use. The Walthers kit has frames, bolster, wheel sets, then six teeny little coil springs go in. Horribly fiddly, but once you have the knack of assembly, they are the most perfect runners you could wish for. Spot the difference fans can look out for window spacing, storm windows, doors, handbrake wheels, cupola bracing. In the 50s the cars were repainted orange, I used Humbrol flat orange with a small quantity of Matt White mixed in. I did have a Roundhouse HO car with black roof, which I thought looked smart, but the drawing said mineral red, so... The transfers are C-D-S decals, a Canadian firm, which are a treat to apply, and you'll find they also do some USA lines as well. My South African mate, currently suffering from heatwave and drought, tells me there is an Englefield in Northwest Territory, which looks like more of a geographical feature than a town. Should I model tundra, snow, and a polar bear with his head stuck in a wheelie bin? Urrrhhh.. Think I'll stick with a fictional place somewhere in Quebec or Ontario, with "Fall" scenery.

It still makes you want to go to Bognor, doesn't it? I stayed there last year, but sadly she wasn't around. Good luck, Edwardian!

LMS forever, (and why not?) Present set-up is the majority of the masts are in on Didcot Reading stretch, with random gaps here and there, say just over half the head span bracket thingys, and a bit less register arms. Wiring is still just a stretch east of Pangbourne, on the relief, I couldn't say about the main, but there is some catenary and/ or earth wire spreading out from this. Wiring also ready in the new depot at Reading. There's a good proportion of the base tubes gone in east from Reading, although I haven't been past Maidenhead to see up there. Probably well over half the base tubes in to about the Oxford road bridge east of Swindon, but no masts yet. Substation looks done at Foxhall and smaller unit at Uffington. Must get a trip in to Oxford and Newbury!

Those Dean clasp brakes are total sods to do, aren't they? Yours are looking good, fit nicely. On the home stretch now!

When you saw the structures going in, did you think Wehrmacht war surplus store, second hand Tiger tank gun barrels? Credit to NR to trying to save some money. (Question to the Stationmaster re Basildon viaduct)

Oh, I did enjoy that rant, sorry! I won't get carried away again, promise. Two points on the way home this afternoon, nothing has happened at Twyford yet, it looks terribly bare in comparison to places on either side, and then going over Basildon bridge, on HST doing a ton, "whatever was that?" There's some sort of tubular erections on the bridge. Is it the new sensitive to the environment structure? Will the inhabitants of Goring leap about clutching it to their bosoms?? Have they taken the wrapping off it ??? Call me old fashioned, but the new structures are really nice, now I've gone through them a few times. Further up, we overtook a container train, and sideways on, there's not a lot of clearance between the register arms and the top of the train, obviously there must be some.

With the depressed foreground, you certainly see a lot more of the layout, very good when there's not much of it anyway. Sort out your puddles before putting the track down, that's a new one! But damn good idea...

They take pictures looking along the railway so that the structures are prominent, you'd have to make a special trip to the overbridge to take that shot. Most of the stretch there is in a cutting or behind trees. Then witter on how the whole area is despoilt. Haven't they got anything else more important to worry about? Do any of them use the railway? It's in a commuter belt, with houses fetching high prices due to the mere existence of the railway. Self important w*****s, we've got far too "touchy feely"!

This line is being made as a small branch line terminal, for restricted space, with no particular place in mind. It's intended to form a setting for running short pregroup passenger and goods trains. Having worked in most scales, N, TT-3, HO, OO, I have now settled in O gauge for about the last twenty years. This is solely because the bulk of an O gauge model appeals to me. To make this comparison I only had matching continental wagons, so you're looking at continental O, 1/45, and HO, 1/87; rather than British O, 1/43, and OO, 1/76; but you get the idea. Modelling in O is more expensive, and having trawled through RMweb I greatly admire the OO layouts, which sometimes are done by adapting from a pool of used and RTR models. The chances of doing this in O are very limited. To keep costs down I do a lot of scratch building, the problem here being the time it takes. Another thing I like is pre-group modelling, generally the 1880 - 1900 period. Trains were compact, well balanced designs and attractive colour schemes. Going back to a time when kids read books, I'm showing my two favourite authors from those days, as they started my interest. E.L.Ahrons ran a series of articles in the Locomotive Magazine way back in the 20's about the late Victorian scene, which were later printed in book form. (As an aside if you can find bound copies of the magazine in a reference library it's a wonderful source of information, a lot of the outline drawings appear in it, for a start) Then there's C. Hamilton Ellis, who did several histories of specific lines, plus various evocative books and a lot of paintings. The main characteristic of the line I am making is that it is very small. I never have enjoyed layouts which sprawl, and I wanted to set a very tight limit on the train sizes running on the line. After experimenting with some train make ups, I decided on a train length of 24". Sorry, I'm old enough to be all feet and inches rather than metric! You'll see for this length it has to be small tank engines only, no tender engines, and either three goods vehicles, or two 4/ 6 wheel coaches. Next post I'll try to explain the design, or perhaps the lack of it.

Out of interest, strictly serious, sorreee, what sort of temperature are you getting up there these days?? I know space heater is loo,, but just wondered??

I would have thought Bristol PW as an objective makes sense as the main depot for the mainline sets, which will be sitting there bottled up, is in the triangle just to the west.

Do the old style wiring trains, of several coaches with flat roofs, still exist? I haven't been around when it's going on, but seeing kit parked in sidings suggests the rail access road type vehicle with cherry picker platforms gets into the act, although I'm still trying to work out what carries the cable drum. It makes sense in terms of getting in and out of worksites speedily, and I can't see H&S liking the idea of men clipping up wires above their heads as the train creeps forward, like wot used to happen.

On the joys of getting off a train and scoffing beans, sausages, and such, please don't overlook the cafe at Redruth station. It ain't just the dining, it's lingering in the hope that a certain divinity may pass through, sit at the corner table, and sip tea whilst in transit between London and her hacienda on the Lizard. I'VE SAT AT THAT TABLE, IN HER CHAIR!! And there was dried mud in the corner where grandad Duck put his rugby boots on the way home from the match! The simple moments in your life when you're part of history.

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Easter is just ten weeks off, Stubby, we're all awake at night worrying....

For adaptability, I like my layouts to have a detachable scenic back, which is just painted cartridge paper clipped to a hardboard support, which bolts to the rear of the b/board. (Curving of which I was rabbiting on about earlier) This means you can alter the "setting" of the place from Dowlais to Wentloog, frinstance, in two minutes. Then removable plug in buildings or bridges can round off the changes, generally in my case for different pregroup companies. My impression of your models is that you work in a great amount of terrific detail which isn't so quickly swapped, so going from scrap yard to coal merchant is more difficult.

More progress with the track work. The far end point is now fixed in, although control switch yet to do, and a track panel for the loop line made and installed. You may notice the dog eared copper clad sleeper ends at the front, the adjacent tracks are fed from feeders at opposite ends, with one being through a switched polarity point frog, so there's a risk of shorting if I'm not careful. With this track in place I can check the alignment of the platform line, now I've got the fourth and final point made. AAR track centre standard is 14 feet, I've knocked a foot off, but still well into the depot platform. You're looking at an 18" wide b/board here; Gordy, you're right, 21" would be better, spec. writers for the Delaware & Hudson layout please note! The trouble is my depot building is a fairly typical type with wide overhanging eaves, so another problem to solve. The dowels locate the base of the building. The curved strip by the new point is a flexi curve (W H Smiths) which I find useful for marking out. I can also finish fitting sleepers to the run out of the first point I made now I know where it's aimed at.

Where's the fjord going then?

Right you are, it's your line after all. Will await developments with interest.