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Well, that's an interesting article! I may have research further the use of a K1 chassis with some A4 parts! That's going to be sometime in the future, though, and, as ever, dependant on funds! Still.... Roja

Modellers Law strikes again! I've just opened my download copy of Railway Modeller and guess what's in it? Gresley K4 described! 😂 Roja

Hi, that is a train of my dreams! There's a place for expresses but I prefer gentle meanderings giving time to appreciate the views! Roja

Hi, just a wee bit of proof I've done a few things recently! This is a Hornby CR pug repainted from it's blue livery to a more workaday BR livery and converted to EM. It need a small tender, which is the next project. Next is a K4. This is a modified Hornby B17 body attached to a Bachmann K3 chassis and cab with new steam pipes. It needs hand rails fitting, for which I was going to use the existing holes, even though I know they're in the wrong position, but now I'm beginning to have second thoughts about moving it to the correct position. They both need some more work. More weathering, expecially their motion, crews added and new couplings. Paints are acrylic and the transfers a mix of Railtec and Fox. I'll convert the K4 to EM at a later date but for now it'll run on Whitfield, once I complete the wiring. I know the weathering looks a bit blotchy, but there's a good reason for this, as I tell myself! As a change from all the layouts that feature fine weather, and the occassional frosty/snowy ones, St Mungo's is going to be set in a heavy rain storm. This means researching the appearance of trains, and in particular steam locomotives, and how rain changes this. I had to make a choice, trains in motion or stationary, as this changes how they look, and I choose stationary as St Mungo's is a terminus. So boilers are relatively dry but other parts, such as the top of the footplate, are wet. All good fun! And not forgetting the rolling stock and infrastructure! Plenty of scope for puddles! Onwards and upwards! Roja

That gate post is going to get a bashing leaving some scratches on the trailer! Roja

Hi, definitely animal carcases, although I can't be certain as to what they are: pig, sheep or even calves. Before WW2 farm stock was allowed to grow larger than to day, especially sheep and pigs, until being processed for our comsumption. If they are being imported I wonder where they were from? Roja

Hi, I must admit that, like many others, I'm really impressed by the standard of your work with these kits, and their speed of construction. Are you some sort of sorceror who can manipulate time so that you can build these and still get on with normal life?😄 Roja

Hi Philip, I have a bit of a butterfly personality when it comes to modelling! I keep it under control for sometime then it escapes and madness follows! I've always like the ES1 since seeing picture of one in the Observer Book of Locomotives way back in the early 60's! I shall get one sooner or later! The Cathcart Circle had the wires put up in the early 60's for the Blue Trains. Dmu's rarely visited so it's only natural that my branch should have wires too. I'm currently figuring out a way I can add the third rail in a way that it's fairly easy to add/remove when needed. However, in my Universe St Mungo's has a direct link, via a circuituos route, to Glasgow Central that is not electrified so I have an excuse to run cl100, 101 and 107 dmu's plus a 120 on the scenic Land Cruise that used to run. The advantage of a small layout, such as St Mungo's, is that the way the station is portrayed - the building is low relief and mostly hidden by the platform canopies and the signal box off scene - is that it's easy to change companies and eras, especially with what few vehicles and figures will be on it. It wasn't designed with this in mind but it's a happy accident! After posting on Dewchurch yesterday there is a possibility, just a possibility, that Southern and Great Western stock may be making an appearance too! I have an appointment with a shrink on Friday!😁 Roja

Well, I'm still here, still weaiting for the move, but I haven' idle. At least, not all the time! St Mungo's is still packed away, but I have a feeling that it will soon see the light of day so I can detail and weather the track after checking the electrics. I have a Scalescenes canal wharf boxfile to complete. This is to EM gauge so it can be attached to my distillery boxfile. I've converted a cheap Hornby CR pug to EM and repainted it black. It needs numbering and weathering. I'm going to build a tender that was attached to some of these loco's so that I can place a dcc chip, and possibly a speaker, inside it. Shapeways have several variants on their site, regarding size and coupling options, but the postage charge made my eyes water and my heart skip a beat! Scratchbuild it is then! Awaiting converion to EM, and some other bits and details, is a Southern Pride 2EPB unit. This will form part of the stock for when I run St Mungo's as a Tyneside terminus. One day I'd like an ES1 locomotive, and a couple more emu's. Currently I'm at the stage of adding transfers to a K4 I've cobbled together. This is a modified Hornby B17 boiler added to a Bachmann K3 chassis with the Bachmann cab. This currently in OO. One day it will get modified, but I've also got a small roundy roundy layout, Whitfield, just so that my partner and I can watch something going around in the limited space we have, and the K4 will run on this. I need to finish the wiring on this then the scenics can start! A future project is for a V4 locomotive. I already have a V3, which is for Whitfield, but I love the V4 so I just have to have one! To help with this project I have a Silhouette cutter coming this week. It has now got to the stage where cutting straight lines by my usual methods is becoming a bit more hit and miss so a cutter will get a lot of use with future wagon and coach projects. The model will be built from various thickness of plasticard with brass bearings and parts from other loco bodies from the scrapbox. Frames for the loco and tender, as well as the tender body have already been drawn up. I know a lot of you will hold your hands up in horror at the thought of using plastic for the chassis, but, even with a lot of added weight I'm not expecting to break any haulage records! After all, St Mungo's is only 4'6" long without the fiddleyard so no 10 coach trains here! My roundtoit pile has grown steadily. Mainly buildings but also locomotive, rolling stock and signals. Oh, I'm also planning on making a start on building some turnouts for a future layout, Kayingham. And if that wasn't enough, after a bit of thought, late last night, because of the nature of St Mungo's, and the way it can be used for a variety of eras and regions, and after making a couple of posts on Gopher's Dewchurch, I realised that, by only making a few small changes, I could, in theory, run any region between the years 1890 to 2000, maybe more! I think I'm really in need of some help! Know any good, cheap psychiatrists?😅 Roja

Mm, a couple of Panniers, a Mogul, B set.... Argh! Roja

Hi, When I decided to build St Mungo's it was to be purely a Caledonian Railway small terminus in Glasgow set between 1918-1920. That soon changed, due to my interests, so I'm currently building stock for LNER c1936, BR c.1957, BR 1962-68, Tyneside electrics and, rather an odd one, a fictitous terminus for the Spurn Head Railway! Fortunately, all that will need changing are to accommodate all these are a couple of buildings, road vehicles, people and signals! A third rail for the tyneside electrics will be easy to add/remove, which means that I could even buy/build some SR stock, both prewar and and BR periods! If I was ever tempted to join the dark side I think it could even become a GWR terminus! I think I need help!😂 Roja

Hi, on a previous layout I used various card buildings. Adding various relief details, such as window sills, door frames, gutters/drain pipes and changing the windows makes a big difference to their appearance for not too much money. Roja

In the kitchen! You're a braver man than me! Roja

Hi, definitely B, quite atmospheric. Photo A reminds me of photographs published in books, C looks too bright and clean to my eyes. Roja

Mmm, ultraviolet light as a fading and weathering agent! Will it catch on?😄 Roja

Hi, regarding the chimneys yet lack of stoves in the signal cabins, I wonder if when they were orignally built stoves were fitted but it was soon realised that they weren't really necessary in a cabin that would only be used for a few minutes for each train then not needed for some hours until the next one, the signalman either performing other duties or keeping warm with a brew in a station office? If that's the case then I would presume the stoves would be removed for use elsewhere. Roja

Hi, not having a 25 chassis to hand, and being a bit of a tightwad (according to some!) I used the origanal chassis. I did, however, give it a thorough service, which improved it's running to a more than acceptable level. Not that it has far to run, my layout, St Mungo's, is a Glasgow terminus that measures 4' x 2' plus a rotating fiddle yard! Roja

Hi, Ian is right about the effort to convert one. The Hornby 29 is a bit of a mish-mash of 21 and 29. I converted one to a 29 and EM a couple of years ago, which runs on ultrascale wheels, but it's a lot cheaper than the Dapol model and makes a decent layout model. Unfortunately I didn't take any photo's and it's packed away, pending a house move (ongoing for the last 8 months!). I sometimes get the urge to convert one to a 21, maybe later this year! As you model oo I would think that it would be possible to rewheel it using coach wheels. I believe quite a lot of modellers have done this with older models when they need them to run on finer scale track. Roja

You know you really want one! Resistance is futile! Roja

A bowl of rhubarb crumble with lots of custard? Roja

Roast best rib of beef and all the trimmings and plum pud yesterday, cold beef with leek, red pepper and cauliflour in a cream sauce tonight all prepared by me! Roja

I wouldn't wait until then! Been there, it's not a good time to visit, over-crowded and anyone who models anything from the previous centuries gets, er, re-educated! Roja

Hi, cracking photo! I wonder how many modellers would spend time making sure there was no kink in the track and that the signal post was truly vertical! Roja

Hi Brian, I'm getting better letting her help, although I still find it difficult watching her do something that I found myself able to do, even if it was with some difficulty! She is worth the effort! Roja