BWsTrains

It's only 5+ years but here's another nudge for an old chestnut. Maybe 2024 will bring a brand new version of 48xx/14xx, hope springs eternal, but there is life left in the old Hornby model and here I can add hope by way of describing a genuinely excellent performing older version. All the various problems over many releases mask that the 2008 release (R2778) was actually a good place to start and I've found the effort to have been worthwhile. Advances in DCC technology and downsizing of the processor and Stay Alive circuitry means it's now possible to add a fully functional Sound package. Attention is essential to the physical side, improving wheel wipers and replacing traction tyred middle wheels, but these are not overly difficult to achieve as described here: Reports on the Sound upgrade will follow there shortly

I'm pretty sure the stone paved approach at Temple Meads is well back into your era and before and drain is clearly visible here: https://www.google.com/maps/@51.4493083,-2.5812244,3a,75y,115.92h,88.62t/data=!3m6!1e1!3m4!1s0V45YqX4gLjhWCm0YBXEtQ!2e0!7i16384!8i8192?entry=ttu and another here: https://www.google.com/maps/@51.449499,-2.5815464,3a,48.8y,355.73h,61.68t/data=!3m6!1e1!3m4!1sa9se_XVY2MSETVBKJDqP6A!2e0!7i16384!8i8192?entry=ttu I remember similar at Weston-super-Mare Station front approach, none of which is meant to imply that I'm particularly familiar up that close with gutters! 😈

You'd be surprised how much water is collected by a solid surface, just 10mm (a shade under 0.5in) falling on 1sqm = 10 Litres. Any decent surface area of solid road would cause significant run-off and flooding without drainage. I collect our rainwater and my modest 60sq m of roof collection area will fill my 2400L of various tanks from around half the monthly rain we get. So, I find it near impossible to imagine storm drains and associated drainage piping not being integral to any metalled road installation from the outset. I'm less sure about the era of cobbled surfaces but the presence of kerbstones and two lines of stones forming a rudimentary gutter are indicators of intent. Still seen in our remaining Victorian Bluestone paved Melbourne laneways are central gutters and grills. Photos of similar structures in London are online. I noted @Mikkel had a good looking drain grill in his Stables entrance gutter stones (1910s ?) and I'd planned having one on the down slope of my Station approach road. Colin

Drawing up a full to do list for 2024 was too much and has been postponed! After some quiet time spent in a darkened room to recover, I decided to push ahead with some key jobs which are both needed and I'm keen to get on with. Top of the list were my DCC Decoders and the scenic break at the entrance to the traverser. Available and willing young helping hands prompted in favour of the latter so here we go. To refresh on the geography which needs to be taken into account in planning the scenery at the Tannery (South West) End. The viewer sees Upper Hembury Station and approaches from across the River Tale looking towards the South East. The scenery is dominated by the long ridge (running NE to SW) about 2km distant, culminating in Hembury Fort which holds a commanding view point over East Devon. Hamlyn's Tannery is nestled close to the river and with good water access from the land rising behind. The building of the GWR line required construction of a small cutting (approx 30ft deep) in the elevated land behind the tannery. This is shown on the map, along with the new improved facilities for the relocated Creamery. A useful resource is Google Maps Street view and from Grange Rd (marked) looking SE, the gentle rising hill leads up away from the road to the ridge and Fort in the distance. So in my scenic setting I've tried to capture the cutting, hills and ridge as best possible. Stage one was to create scenic blocks to mask the solid Traverser end wall. I decided that the cutting embankments would make a good start and the young helpers were called in to cut wire mesh and plaster over the cloth base. Young S was puzzled at first by bits of tubing sticking up but then figured out they could hold trees. Early days shown below here. Those embankments are too steep and need some retaining walls. In part I was expecting that dense foliage would mask the excessively steep contours needed in the available space. Some old hedgerow material was just popped loosely on to gauge how it might look. I've settled on November 1936 for the date so hills will be in very late / falling leaf with most of the upper land already bare. First stage was adding mostly hedgerow Hawthorn along the leading edges, shrubs and the odd trial tree (later replaced) So far so good but still plenty to do. After some more plant materials and a back-scene paint job.

I'm thinking something built onto an electronics prototype board, three perhaps four pins inserted to match the curve (one each end other(s) along the line of the curve. Bend wire to fit the curve, bend ends around end pins to set the shape etc,,,,, Twist wire 90 degrees at ends to suit mounting holes in the end

True; but at least back then the pace of technology change was much slower.....

Sorry Ade, I missed replying to your question. You are correct, to the extent that I can I do the majority of the painting as I go. Usually a final wash of some sort will go on after assembly once I'm happy with the job. Colin.

Matt, See my PM Colin

Early last month I returned to look my Class 48xx which got a trial run on UH. Over New Year we had visitors from Perth on an extended stay and young James was very keen to put UH though its paces, running the majority of my small wheelbase locos to the four corners of the layout. This in itself highlighted a range of issues requiring attention plus ideas for new opportunities. So much so that I'm prompted to prepare a 2024 Actions Listing. Since I retired, I've had an aversion to being tied to action lists of most sorts (well beyond the weekly shopping run and OS travel). My attitude aligning with the late great Douglas Adams who once noted of Deadlines, that "he loved the wooshing sounds as they went racing by!" Still, nothing's for ever and I'm contemplating what might go on the list! Returning to 4869 it occurred to me that its excellent running might offer hope that I could upgrade to sound. The newest generation ZIMO chips have a smaller footprint, and can support up to 1000uF of SA Capacitors directly wired. Presently I have 2200uF on board so first step was to pull the old install apart and explore how well it ran without SA support. This shows the configuration as used in the video. With the SA and Electrolytic Cap snipped away, the loco was given a brief test run. Wipers needed a quick adjust and then it ran very well with just the faintest of hesitation, probably due to my still not perfectly cleaned track. The second photo shows a dummy MS500 Sound chip (14*10*3mm) installed over the motor, so I could test the remaining headroom in the firebox area. There is a 0.75mm spacer lifting the "chip" above the rotor. I can see there is a further clear 3mm above when the bodywork is fully in place and tightened, so I can leave a greater gap between motor and chip in the full install. The Chip is as far forward as it'll fit but this leaves room at the rear for a tidy exit of the wiring down to the Cab floor. The speaker can then sit in the bunker.

Thx for sharing this. Quite some time since we've been able to get to an ACO concert here and thanks to the prompt I've found one in Melbourne around mid-year that's right up our street. ACO pre COVID did annual European Tours so if they resume, for anyone who gets the chance it's something worth catching, promise.

Somehow I can't imagine SBB, OBB or JR tolerating such potentially lengthy disruptions to the smooth operation of their railways in the 21C

I've a similar photo to your 2nd but captured at Highbridge 1928; 80+ churns all lined up for loading - LOTS are required to fill just one early type Siphon.

Neal, if you're referring to the TTS then IMO you do get what you pay for on the Hornby Railroad and it's well worth considering an upgrade to a full range Sound chip and Project. Accurate and adjustable chuff rates and ability to coast being just two of many features I find invaluable. Chuff rates on the Steam TTS system (at least as it came at that time) are totally unrelated to wheel rotation rates at just about any speed. I should dust mine off and give it a quick run over on UH given the level of interest / discussion here. Colin

Best if I clarify the limited scope of my knowledge on this release. AFAIR the new Hornby Hall was released in both Railroad and "Regular" ranges from 2013 on but that there were only modest differences between them in most things BUT price, something which attracted considerable commentary at the time! The usually reliable Modelraildatabase.com lists R3170 (2013); R1184 (2015 - mine) and R3499 (2016) as "RailRoad Locomotives". Others dating from 2013 (R3205, R3220) not so branded.

See my previous post. Mine is Ketley Hall 4935 (2015). Now if you'd said that 4 months ago a deal would have been as good as done. Pity.

Hi Graham, Happy Christmas etc. The Hornby Hall from about 6-7 years ago did get a very good write up from someone known to be fussy in these GWR matters and it has been one of my most trusty locos. Fitting sound was not a big deal because mine was sold with TTS, eventually replaced with the "real thing", bit of carving of the Tender was all that was required.. It was also one of my great bargains of all time bought as part of a heavily discounted Pullman Train Pack which I promptly broke up, on-selling the Pullman Coaches and recovering a fair part of the initial outlay. I think I got a brand new Hall for less than 40 quid nett. Even better it was probably the most heavily worked and reliable workhorse on the old Westown-Heathfield Layout, now a distant memory. Gone are those days eh?

At Minehead, it's clear from the photo that the gate was in timber pickets with the rest of the fencing iron spear. Everything remains in situ today except the enamel Advertisement signs Minehead Yard Entrance today Regarding fencing It seems the choice of yard fencing (as opposed to gates) was a case of either picket / or spear. The latter being more expensive / useful during WWI and hence being far less common thereafter. The Minehead yard entrance / access was very public, right off the seafront which might indicate why the more deterrent fencing was favoured and retained. (thx to @john dew for these insights) The prototype stations which are references for my Upper Hembury setting all had picket fencing, as at Kingsbridge. http://disused-stations.org.uk/k/kingsbridge/index.shtml see the 4th (1921) photo for the double picket gates at the main platform entrance in an all picket fence. Colin

Best wishes to everyone for the Festive Season. I thought I'd finish the year with a summary of some operations on Christmas Eve when our young Sydney visitors arrived. First up a crisis at T minus 2hrs when any outbound loco from the station triggered a short on the single slip. A short which didn't stop when the loco was removed! After some calming advice from @SRman I went back and found the issue. The two slip switchblades were installed in the kit just a shade to close each other (where they butt up end to end but should have a gap!). Forward motion was enough to bring the rails together; issue was "fixed" for operation session but needs a permanent resolution. Then Ops went very well, stock movements on/off the traverser, trains pulling into UH, loco then running around for the outbound run. Even a goods run where the uncouplers delivered superbly, amazing the youngsters with my ability to uncouple and then relocate wagons in uncoupled mode. A Brake van was even parked to the short dock siding while goods wagons were shunted around. Most satisfying. I even enlisted some help on building further embankments but time just flew away all too quickly. Finally, an overview of the Station and Yards, tidied up greatly for the visitors. From this angle nearly all the yard uncouplers can be seen. I was thinking to do more reporting on progress made during 2023 but that'll have to wait a few days. Young James from Perth and I might just make more progress once he gets here for the remaining days of the Calendar.

Yes! A photo of Minehead Yard Gates has been shared with me for my own setting, my guess 1930s; sits open with no signage or enamel advertising panels. (sadly precluded from posting here). An open wooden picket large single gate, the remainder of the yard being in iron spear fencing. Colin

Returning to the Traverser entry screen, I've been working on a suitable transition between side and front panels. First try at this was fashioned out of 6mm galv mesh overlaid with papier mache (I later switched to using a torn up old sheet). The final layers were PVA reinforced Plaster of Paris. An additional support was added and then attachment by magnets. (magnets on the uprights, thin sheet metal on the panel) Using magnets, all the sections are easy to position and remove if required.

Don't mind me, I'm only stirring!

With apologies to Messrs Python The Colonel - "Stop this sketch, it's getting all together too silly!" I was OK with you can't have too many GWR Panniers but now Class 73s, really? 😈

Thx Mikkel, I guess that it being my first time on setts, there was more challenge in maintaining the quality and positioning of each stone so I didn't have time to relax or get bored!

Paving Methods Now into my second effort with this method, it's starting to become more comfortable and easy to apply. Regarding materials, I have used two types of sheet, EVA and PS. The former is a tighter foam and well suited when you want a smooth finish on defined surfaces. PS is more open and is suited to surfaces like my pavers where you want a rougher finish. PS is trickier to emboss being more brittle than EVA, gentle even pressure is required to get indentations rather than cuts. My EVA is in 1.5mm and 2.5mm thick sheets. Both readily available here at Daiso (although what comes and goes from "in stock" is somewhat hit and miss) at $A3.30 a pack I'm not complaining! The 1.5mm is what I used for this latest project, the granite setts. The thinner sheet is well suited to when you want many even indentations, you press deep enough to near the far side (supported on a hard "safe" surface ( in my case my desk formica top) The pics show how the embossing progresses, I chose a blue sheet as any residual colour print thru was suited to my target surface. The embossing tools are simply old paint brushes, reshaped to give large and small sett sizes (4*3mm and 3*2.5mm ID) The final tool, not shown is a 3.5mm flat blade screwdriver with the two leading corners ground down to curves. This was used only to deep indent the middle channel of the gutter before embossing with 3*2.5mm setts Painting The EVA sheet was primed with Dulux All Surface primer after embossing and then painted with two coats of Reeves "Intro" Artists Acrylic. Black / White ratio 40:60. This gives a very deep shade of grey but then repeated very thin washes of the same primer builds up the mortar in the recesses and brings the grey back to a more neutral point. The primer also helps reduce the gloss finish of the acrylic somewhat.

Ah Memories! Reminds me of our trip in 2018 to York. Kings X - chaos. Our train not available so "wait until new platform number is advised" - no official info - not a word, just the wise words of a travel weary regular. When the new number popped up there were 5-6 min max to haul all our luggage + 2 young grandkids, one sick, to the other side of the station where an aging Class 43 IC 125 awaited us. our son (now in his 40s) said "I had a model of that when I was seven! British Railways are so behind the times". (Yes I know we run the same between Sydney to Melbourne but that doesn't count as we're not serious about IC Rail) As per your trip, all our First class reservations were voided and the aging train set had no time to receive new manual ones. We grabbed what we could. The interior was violently buffetted by every passing South bound, not being airtight in any sense and the straight-to-track, "DO NOT FLUSH IN STATIONS" loos were an eye popper for the youngsters. I later learnt these aging sets were then repurposed with fresh exteriors and dispatched to ScotRail. At least your hardware looks rather more up to date.