Grimly Feendish

I really like the layout - the track plan is simple but very effective. I was building a "watch the trains go by" model of Twyford in N before a job change and country relocation put a stop to that. I was wondering what track you used? It looks good. Cheers, John.

Very nice! I'm guessing the Farish Mk1's are the earlier Poole type?

The signal look very good, what make are they? Thanks, John.

Hi Mark, unfortunately I've had to put this on hold for a while. We moved house and will be moving again in a few weeks, It will be a while until I can get back to modelling Cheers, John.

Next installment... Here is the end plug added and the roof and joints filled. And here are the DMBS and TC getting ready for priming. The TC ends are masked because I want to keep the factory printing if I can. At this point a couple of things were dawning on me. First, I wasn't happy with the way the etched sides looked. Nothing to do with the etches themselves, everything to do with the way I stuck them on. You can see the huge gap between the etch and the roof. Also the way the etch was stuck to the side was not robust. The cyano could not tolerate any bending of the plastic side. So I removed the sides, rubbed them down again and reapplied, paying more attention to the fit and using a thinner cyano. This resulted in a better fit, but is still not robust. At least now I am careful in handling it and it's surviving so far. I know I have to do something with the roof of the TC too. Second, on the DBMS I managed to get the roof profile reasonably acurate, but there is an unsightly gap between the two roof sections. I'm hoping that with judicious weathering it might not be too noticeable. You might get an idea from this photo, which shows the roof alongside the body after priming. I decided on a different approach for converting the second 121. I would slice off the cab and put on an end plug as before, but would keep the roof in one piece and build up the profile at that end with filler, as shown below. I am much happier with this approach. The two are shown together below. Both have had a few rounds of filling and rubbing down since this shot. I don't have pics for that yet. I'm sure you have noticed that as it stands, I'll have 2 DMBSs and 0 DMS. Since I struggled with the etched sides I'm tempted to keep it that way. I think I would rather have an incorrect consist than risk the look of me bodging the etched DMS sides on. I am not convinced I can get the joint between the etched sides and the Dapol cab looking decent. Anyhow, that brings us up to date. It'll be a while before I can get back to some modelling, but I'll post when I have something to show. Cheers, John.

No I hadn't. It's certainly a thought. My CAD skills aren't great though. I've 3d printed my own servo mounts for turnout control, which was fun. In the end I found it was more reliable to use proprietary ones, since they worked better.

Very true and I hoped I could use this to my advantage! But alas, by my time period - the 70's, they all seem to have been converted.

Clive, it was great to meet you. I always think of you as the man who builds the flat pack diesels. I liked pig lane. It's got me thinking that perhaps I should build something on that scale, that way I may have a chance of actually finishing something! Cheers, John.

Good question, and one that has had me scratching my head for quite a while. I may not bother in the end, I'll see how the DMBS turns out and see how they look together. The biggest difference might turn out to be that the DMU ends were flat whereas the Mk1 ends have a slight angle on them. If that is too noticeable the razor saw will come out again and the ends will be replaced by plasticard. The gangway ends might end up being scratch built too, but I did pick some up from B&H yesterday that might do the job. Cheers, John.

A few things spring to mind... - motorising is easier - cab fronts look better - Gazing is better because I can re-use a lot of the Dapol glazing I can let you know how a comparison comes out, since I picked up a B&H one at Alley Palley yesterday. At this rate it's going to take me a few years to finish both though!

An update.... So it's been a while since I posted. There has been some modelling, I just haven't go round to posting. First up, the DMBS. Attacking the Dapol 121 with a razor saw, saw a cab and cab roof removed. I then made an end plug from plasticard. The idea is to fill the roof in with filler. The TC with etched sides over a Farish shell came out needing some filler to cover the gap between coach side and the overlay at the roof line.

Really capturing the atmosphere of Shrewsbury. Very nice!

Good luck to Simon. I've really enjoyed his work in REx over the last many years, not least his product reviews. Congratulations to Hattons, a smart move. John.

Thanks Craig. That had been my guess, although I didn't realise they should be laminated. I'm intending to use the Dapol cabs, but may try making these up just to see what they're like. Cheers, John.

A little progress... Self-etching primer on the brass Cutting and filing the Mk 1 body, ready for etched sides Some CA and some courage resulted in this. I'm not sure whats next. Perhaps taking a razor saw to the 121! Cheers, John.

Peter, thanks for your thoughts. It's good to know about the fragility of the Dapol unit, I will certainly bear it in mind. For the TC roof I'm thinking of taking a mold from the Dapol roof and trying to make a resin one. Maybe I'll just try to pickup a spare unpowered unit, but it can be a bit of a pain getting stuff on this side of the pond. Cheers, John.

I'm building an N Gauge layout based on Twyford in the 1970's, so I need a class 117 DMU (probably a few of them in reality). Life's too short to wait for Bachmann to decide if they are going to produce a version in N gauge, so I've been pondering routes to creating one. So far I've assembled the following kit of bits... Worsley Works Class 117 etched sides Dapol Class 121 - Powered Dapol Class 121 - Dummy Farish Mk1 BSK I will use the Mk1 as the basis for the Trailer Composite. I intend to rub down the sides of the Farish Mk1 and remove the windows. I'll then overlay the etched sides. I'm still pondering what to do about the glazing, I have some microscope slides which I might use. For the DMBS, I'm thinking I'll hack off a cab of a 121 and will rebuild that end, perhaps using the etched sides. The roof end I'm not quite sure of yet. The DMS will be similar. Not sure yet to model the corridor or non-corridor version. The non-corridor version would be simpler, but I'm not sure would be accurate for '70s west London. Has anyone else done anything similar? Any advice? BTW, progress won't be quick. It's taken me several months to get this far! John.

Thanks for the info. Unfortunately a little late for me, but good to know. John.

Not quite sure I understand the question, but 00 wouldn't run on EM having the same problems as on P4.

Hi Peter, I'm building a layout with the same idea. As others have said, N gauge wheels won't run through 2mmFS points and crossings. Finetrax looks nearly as good as 2mmFS but doesn't offer flat bottom rail or concrete sleepers. So fo my layout I'm using... - Finetrax points - 2mm Society flat bottom rail and concrete sleepers - Peco Code 55 points and track in the fiddle yard. It's quick to lay and reliable. John.

Another question re mineral wagon markings. What was the significance (if an) of the the white diagonal stripe on the side of the wagons?

There is a fleeting, almost subliminal, shot of one of the machines in this film at about 7:06. It wes indeed 1d. This machine is in green. https://youtu.be/gs0Vzg7nE_A John.

Thanks very much Mike, the signaling notice is going to be really helpful. I wasn't aware the refuge siding still existed at that time. These are probably dumb questions, but do you know what the dock siding and refuge sidings would have been used for in the 70's? Thanks again, John.

Sounds like an excuse to tell my wife I "have" to get a Farish 40

Thanks Ed, very interesting. Didn't know 40's made it to Twyford. John.