Michael Delamar

I always thought they were on the site of what is now the Grand central depot.

Found the sidings, I never knew about that line they were on.

Thank you for those Brian. So where the sidings in the triangle?

Just out interest as I sign the route past these sidings and my friend used to tell me how he would work as far as here from Aintree/Fazakerley. Im looking for any photos or plans of how it was in the steam era. I believe it was a gravity yard and was replaced when Healey Mills yard was built? Many thanks.

I was in early on. Helped me so much beyond modelling. When I look back at some of my early posts with text speak they make me cringe. It has helped me with grammar and writing better. Greatest memory was Andy Y phoning me with career advice. Ill never forget that.

Thanks ive ordered some Parkside ones, the red panda ones will come in useful for something else in the future.

Thanks Brian. The reason I asked is I have some Red panda p01 chassis kits and Bachmann lowfits.

higher quality pic.

Is the Red Panda chassis PA01 suitable for the Bachmann body?

Ive ordered a further 17 which should be around the limit for my longest fiddle yard siding with a loco and brake van. Something to do later in the week in self isolation.

I started building a train of Red panda Lowifts yesterday with Minix Ford Anglias. Ive always preferred the shape of these to the die cast ones. My dad has collected Minix cars over the years and has given me these along with Corsairs. The train will be from Fords at Halewood to Liverpool docks which my dad remembers on individual wagons, we think because of the tight curves in Liverpools docks and we recently come across a photo of one of these workings in the Walton area. Im building the wagons as they come from the packet with little alteration other than screw couplings as I havent decided exactly how many ill be doing yet but ill need a load more to make a realistic train. Ill also have some Bachmann lowifts but I know the chassis needs altering for these.

Cheers all. Do we know of any other photos of this wagon type?

A while ago I put a load of Parkside van kits away for a rainy day. We’ve had plenty of rain so... All have Markits wheels and Smiths screw link couplings.

Thank you John. Is there a kit of the bolster wagon in 4mm?

I wonder if anyone could tell me about the glass wagon in the background please? Ive looked in Don Rowland’s book and done an online search but nothing yet. I think it would make an interesting model. Photo taken at Huskisson goods yard Liverpool 1964.

Identified as Chilton street Stoke.

Are you using the Markits return crank on the centre axle or is that the Bachmann one?

The prototype research is always ongoing. I recently discovered in Jeremy Suter’s collection a shot by John Ward taken in Broad green heading south about to pass under the LNWR Liverpool Manchester line. The notes on the back say 92113 5/5/62. 7:57 5 Grain vans from Walton. Jeremy has given position for this shot to be shown here. John was an enthusiast in the area who made detailed notes of workings on the line and took many photographs of the line. His shots and notes have been immensely helpful. Judging by the negative numbers on the back he would take whole rolls of film in the same position. In fact he has another shot of the same loco in the same location on the same day heading in the opposite direction with coal hoppers for Clarence dock. I was glad to see the grain wagons, I have several I was going to run on the layout even though I wasn't sure they ever went through the area. I just liked them. Its good to now have this shot and I can recreate it although its given light to more questions as there to where exactly the wagons were going to and from. I cant think of any dedicated loading facilities at the docks at the time, they may have been loaded direct from a ship. The model locos and wagons are due for renumbering and detailing and weathering soon.

Chris Hewitt has been working on a model of Fazakerley west junction box. It has a Modelu signalman inside, 2 Severn models lever frames being a 60 lever frame and Alan at Sankey scenics did the sign. Anthony Graham who photographed nearly all Liverpool boxes has been very helpful with regards its features. My original idea was to have the backscene curving around so that the layout can only be viewed from the front... However after seeing the signal box model and the layout being a roundy roundy I think its best to have a flat backscene which would enable the ends of the layout to be viewable to the public. It also means the box can be placed closer to the position that the prototype was. One of the reasons I wanted the box on is it gives something next to the backscene letter box. Ive never liked holes in backscenes but it is was it is. Chris working on the other end, painting the kerbstones. Having the backscene flat would enable the public to see the buildings from this viewpoint at this end also. This means the lighting pelmets need some conversion.

Some more.. The roads are not quite finished yet. All the signs on the shops. And billboards which will be added later have been bespoke made by Alan from Sankey scenics, who has been a great help and offers these in his range.

Roadworks.. I must stress that all the work here is by Chris Hewitt. All I do is lock him away until he has done enough to deserve a pie and a pint, occasionally he gets access to a computer and looks at this thread and asks why am I getting all the praise when its all his work. So here is Chris’s work.. The roads in this area are not flat, and the buildings need to match this, the buildings were built as per the photographs such as the shops which are on an incline. Then the roads have to match this. The highest part is in the centre of the crossroads junction so this was built up with various strips of wood and then a sheet of hardboard was glued on top. The strips were cut with the camber of the road in them and have expanded foam in places under the hardboard. Then the hardboard was cut where the buildings would sink into, then it was covered in DAS modelling clay up to the buildings to avoid any joins, smoothed off and the various paving slabs scribed in... Looking a bit snowy with the DAS modelling clay..

Time for an update I think, ill do this in a few posts because of photo size limits. The fiddle yard. The fiddle yard will act as a storage box for stock on the move so that most of the stock does not have to be removed at shows. Enabling faster set up and end of show times. The 3 fiddle yard boards will have lids on with sponge underneath. The stock is separated by 1 inch strips on 2mm plywood. First we cut grooves for the strips to sit in.. Testing strips before gluing in... All done on the centre board.. And on another, some of these roads arent as long, to secure the stock on each siding a square piece of sponge will be used, it can be moved about depending on stock lengths. First coat of paint.. One of the reasons for this is that all of the stock is freight and a lot of the stock will have 3 link, instanter and screw link couplings and they take a lot of time to couple up at shows. Im not concerned if stock jumps off the rails in transit as it inevitably will, the dividers are there to stop them all ending up all over the place, it will be just a simple matter of rerailing a wagon rather than coupling them all up. Some will be long trains such as the empty Clarence dock power station workings which I have recently been told were 21 loaded hoppers and the returning empties were 42. 42 hoppers an O4 2-8-0 and A brake van will fit in the longest sidings, we already have a rake of 21 loaded and I am in the middle of finishing off the 42 nearly all of which all Hornby at the moment some are the older Airfix Hornby types, a few Accurascale, renumbered using fox and Cambridge Custom transfers, Markits EM wheels and Smiths Instanters. Id like a few of the Cammel Laird of Nottingham Liverpool power station hoppers in the future to include in the rake but I wont be doing a full train load.

Im glad you've said that John. Maybe I was a bit hasty posting earlier, it doesnt seem to bad now Ive actually tried one, but some seem better than others out the packet, as long as the etched middle part doesnt have a pip which cathces the hook.

These are the ones. Ive only opened one pack and some look like they should do the job others seem tight and as if the first link is too small as it catches the etched centre part. Look like they will go round one curve but in a reverse curve I think they will snag. They also seem to pop apart easily. ive been fitting just as many Smiths 3 links and instanters to my unfitted stock recently with no problems as I say. Both the normal and fine types. I went all in and ordered this many screw links, so you can see how many vans and fitted stock ill be running. I should have tried one first. I think part of the problem is model railway hooks don't swing side to side like the prototype.