AY Mod

A few years back I'd often have to sit at the traffic lights there in morning rush hour; lovely little station building.

True; there was no need for it to be a tunnel until some yards further on but was there to appease the Ansons (who liked boats more than trains). Brassey could have done away for it altogether if he'd gone a few yards north and through the house itself. :) They managed to avoid doing another tunnel northwards until the approaches to Glasgow but that one's not much either.

Don't be depressed by it; in fact take heart from the fact that it's less contrived and therefore better. Don't hide it away; develop it and show it off here.

It can be used for such and I have done so. As with PVA a few drops of detergent help it soak in more and a good soaking is needed (otherwise it will be friable as DavidH advises). It will have a sheen, as does PVA, but that can be addressed with a waft of matt spray varnish. One benefit, thanks to that friability, is that the ballast can be dug out from around the track more easily if necessary than with PVA.

I think we'd be better waiting for some more informed narrative ( @Blandford1969 ?) before reacting to the divisive anti-young Daily Mail slant.

Finishing touches. Nothing to see here.

For some reason you just don't feel like yourself this morning.

You'll be setting up around lunchtime then?

"Much ado about nothing" or "Henry the something"?

It can't be changed at this end, it's down to Apple. When you take pictures take them with the shutter button to your right.

That may not be the sort of cake you would want to eat anyway. I am stupid enough to have tasted some.

I hope you all have a great weekend and a suitably enjoyable day tomorrow. I'm disappointed I can't be with you all but Rob has done the most fantastic job of pulling everything together.

You've perked up in the passenger seat at the sight of some torn fishnets. Hope Mark's got earplugs tonight

Please refer to

SUCCESS FOR THE QUARRY HUNSLET CRUSADERS! Ever since the first Bachmann Narrow Gauge OO9 scale Quarry Hunslets arrived at the end of 2022, a loyal army of enthusiasts have been asking when more of these delightful locomotives will appear. Today Bachmann Narrow Gauge answered those questions by revealing the latest addition to the OO9 scale range – Holy War! Announced alongside the launch partner for this model, the Bala Lake Railway, the model will be available to purchase at their ‘Welcome Back Alice and Holy War’ event next weekend (Saturday 29th and Sunday 30th April 2023). One of eleven Alice Class Quarry Hunslet locomotives built for the Dinorwic Quarry in North Wales, ‘Holy War’ was delivered in 1902 and identified simply as No. 3 – the name ‘Holy War’ was not given until 1908. The locomotive spent much of its working life on the higher levels of Dinorwic Quarry – for a time being housed in the highest engine shed in Britain at 1,860ft above sea level on the quarry’s Lernion Level. Withdrawn in November 1967, ‘Holy War’ was the last working steam locomotive in a Welsh slate quarry and so ended 120 years of quarry steam. Purchased from the quarry in 1968, ‘Holy War’ moved to Quainton Road in 1970 before being sold again in 1975 – the new owner selecting the Bala Lake Railway in North Wales as the loco’s new home. A full restoration followed, during which an enclosed cab was fabricated and fitted in place of the original open-cab design. The Bala Lake Railway secured ‘Holy War’s’ long term future when it purchased the locomotive in 1989, decorating her in the mid-1990s in the vibrant lined blue livery as seen today. In 2018 it was time for the locomotive to be overhauled and 2023 sees the return to steam of ‘Holy War’ alongside sister locomotive ‘Alice’ – a locomotive that has already been modelled by Bachmann Narrow Gauge. The Bachmann Narrow Gauge model of ‘Holy War’ depicts the locomotive in its preserved state, with enclosed cab and in the stunning lined blue livery. Featuring a diecast boiler and running plate, accompanied by a wealth of separately fitted details including handrails, valves, springs, brake shoes and cab controls, every aspect of the prototype is captured in miniature. The 0-4-0ST wheel formation is faithfully modelled, with authentically-profiled wheels running in metal bearings ensuring smooth running, powered by a coreless motor with flywheel, and with a 6 Pin DCC decoder socket for those wishing to use the models with a DCC system. NEM coupling pockets feature at both ends, into which standard OO9 scale couplings are fitted. ‘Holy War’ is in stock now and will be available to purchase from our launch partner the Bala Lake Railway during their ‘Welcome Back Alice and Holy War’ event on Saturday 29th and Sunday 30th April 2023. For those not attending the event, the model can be ordered online now from https://shop.bala-lake-railway.co.uk/ As an additional incentive, the Bala Lake Railway will include a voucher for a free return ticket (valid from 2nd May to 4th November 2023) with all models ordered before midnight on Monday 1st May (including models purchased in person during the event). Please note that online orders will not be dispatched until after the event. The model is priced at £149.95 and proceeds from each sale will help the Bala Lake Railway.

Those on P4 layouts are expected to scratchbuild their own rather than using ready-to-eat.

Warners were approached by the association to be involved with the show to make it viable in terms of return against rising costs. We have a ready pool of traders who want to be at the show so that is beneficial to its longer term future. Quarts don't fit into pint pots as they say so some sort of rationalisation has to take place; maybe it's not perfect yet and communications could be a lot better but the intent is to make sure the event has a future rather than the same things being done as before and there not being a show at all.

I did look into this yesterday and was advised that, being oversubscribed with trade stand requirements, there was insufficient space remaining for some societies.

BACHMANN HELPS NELPG RETURN ‘JOEM’ TO STEAM! On Tuesday 18th April 2023, Bachmann Europe Plc visited the North Eastern Locomotive Preservation Group (NELPG) at their Hopetown Workshop in Darlington to present models of the J72 Class locomotive ‘Joem’ and a cheque for £504 to help with the completion of ‘Joem’s’ overhaul. The OO scale model of No. 69023 ‘Joem’ was released by Bachmann in 2020 as a Limited Edition for the Bachmann Collectors Club. Available to purchase exclusively by Club members, just 504 models were made and £1 from each sale has been donated to help with the ongoing overhaul of the real locomotive, which is being returned to steam in time for the 200th anniversary of the Stockton and Darlington Railway in 2025. The cheque was presented by Richard Proudman, Bachmann’s Rail Brand Manager, to John Hunt, Chairman of NELPG. Stephen Tooley, Research & Development Manager for Bachmann was also present and handed over the very first model to the Group’s Archivist, Chris Lawson. Two further models were provided: for NELPG member Fred Ramshaw, who recently stood down as the long serving caretaker for ‘Joem’ and for Maureen Howe, partner of the late NELPG member Allan Toomer, whose bequest has helped significantly with the overhaul of the locomotive. Several of the volunteers who are working to return ‘Joem’ to steam were also in attendance during the presentation. Richard Proudman and Stephen Tooley from Bachmann Europe are joined in front of ‘Joem’ by NELPG volunteers as a cheque for £504 is presented to John Hunt, Chairman of NELPG – PHOTO BY BACHMANN EUROPE John Hunt said: “Can I take this opportunity to thank Bachmann for their generous support of the overhaul of ‘Joem’ through the sales of their superb model of the locomotive which, with the presentation of this cheque today, has now exceeded £1,600. It is very much appreciated. I am pleased also that, with their help, we have been able to mark the contribution of Fred Ramshaw and the late Allan Toomer to our efforts to keep this historic, Darlington built, North Eastern locomotive operating into the future for the public to benefit from the sight, sounds and smells of steam at work. We all look forward to seeing ‘Joem’ back in action in 2025 as we celebrate the 200th Anniversary of the Stockton and Darlington Railway”. Richard Proudman said: “NELPG helped us immensely during the development of this Bachmann Collectors Club model of ‘Joem’, even supplying paint samples to ensure the colour of our model was spot on, and we are delighted to reciprocate that help with this donation to help get ‘Joem’ over the line. Today’s visit has been a long time coming as the pandemic halted our plans shortly after the model was released, but it has been a privilege to meet the NELPG team and see the amazing work going on to ensure the locomotive steams again in time for the 200th Anniversary of the Stockton and Darlington Railway in 2025”. The Bachmann Collectors Club Limited Edition model of ‘Joem’ is still available to purchase, but with less than a dozen remaining, prospective buyers should act quickly to avoid disappointment. More details can be found at www.bachmann-collectorsclub.co.uk. The North Eastern Locomotive Preservation Group has recently been awarded with a grant of £124,000 by the National Heritage Memorial Fund for repairs required to ‘Joem’s’ boiler before the locomotive can return to service. For more details about NELPG and the locomotives in its collection, or to support the Group, please visit www.nelpg.org.uk.

Can I ask what screen resolution you have set and whether you have any browser magnification other than 100%?

Sheep's eyes are on the side of their head, not the front. Obviously I have not been able to reproduce the issue.

Don't worry, I think I may have heard the song. Anyway; it's a light-hearted topic, as was my comment.

I've not looked back to see what that references but Concrete Bob landed here for review today and when the sound was first turned on the start-up process worked until the first main engine and exhaust sounds started and cut off after a second or two. I tried several times with system restarts with the same result. Then, I started the loco moving before turning sound on and got full running sounds. Spooling the loco down after stopping and on the next start-up everything worked as expected, several times over. The sound is phenomenally good, proper throaty!

Please retain some sense of perspective, any more silly outbursts and I'll remove your access to the topic.

Hope no-one was in a rush then!