Owd Bob

I doubt if anyone could have laid deeper and stronger foundations than i already did phil' ...Twice! They must go down a metre at least, and all built of solid concrete blocks and stone cobbles and all properly mortared in etc, it looks like i'm just too close to the side of this 40ft. high hill i live on the edge of, and i'll always have probs'....i'd no choice 12 years ago when i started building it all as SWMBO only gave me permission to have a garden line if i made it right up against the the far end of the back yard and up in the corner well away from 'er precious plants and chickens etc. I'm seriously wondering if i'd be wasting my time trying to repair it where it is, the only sensible way is to move it....but SWMBO won't like that at all Whilst some folks Wifes and partners like or tolerate the railway stuff, mine do'snt like or take any interest in any of it one bit Not in any scale or even the real thing, she do's help me out with the heavy stuff but thats has far as it go's, and you would'nt believe the amount of earache i get and go through when and in trying (not) to tell her how much things costs in this hobby ...and just don't mention the price of live steamers to her.

No way i'm going to do owt in this weather phil' i just hope we have a few days of Sunshine this Spring but i won't hold my breath. Just been out and stuck a measuring stick in vertical using the spirit level and as you can see by looking at the paving flag i laid up against the concrete fence post only at the end of last Summer that the fence & post on the right of this pic' now has a two inch gap ...and you can see how much the fence has leaned over in the last few weeks alone. The trackbed from the set of points seen behind the measuring stick for a length of about 7 feet is badly sunken and is also leaning over roughly half way along the whole back run.

Found one old pic' in a 1980 loco shed book if it helps? although it's not a Stratford allocated loco at the time.

The Snow has just started here Apollo It took 15 mins' to travel the 8 miles or so Its a bit small & powdery yet though, I remember as a kid messing about in what looked like Greenhouses? on the old Ince Moss pit site and i remember the concrete loading tower remains still stood.

Not much to report other than we seemed to have had every low pressure weather system passing over this area since last Oct' and it's been a very wet Winter so far, i would'nt mind much if we had some decent Snow so i could go play trains in it but most of the Snow we have had has'nt lasted a day.....Ah! Well! Never mind! I'm sure there's more to come yet. I've made a crude cab for the Salamander loco' now that it's tunnel working days are over, the next job is to get it running again but a new chassis will have to be found as the original was cannibalized for the WW1 loco's re- motorization I noticed some major subsidence on the line yesterday as well which was'nt there a week ago, and it's all along the rear fence-line, note how the Chapel is leaning over in these pics' and it's not the cameras fault, even the gardens perimeter fence and it's concrete posts are leaning over at least two inches from vertical It's affecting a good ten foot length of the track! All this rain is'nt helping.....so it looks like a lot of concrete mixing and track lifting & re- laying is on the cards for Springtime.....it's something to plan and look forward to though! Thats' if the whole hillside do'snt finally give way, and slides away down the hill before then!

Would be nice lined out Phil' Nice colours to! I can't say i liked the JCB Yellow version, I'd have to take the cocktail shaker chimney off it to Anglicize it a bit but it depends on your own personal preferences as to how you like it to look and what you want it to be. It's looking big enough without a tender 'un all! Roll on better weather.

Looks like a good time was had Phil' And i bet you were really tempted into spending up on the Bachmann stall! You being so close to it. Glad to see you were'nt though and spent it elsewhere

Wow! thats a big 'un Phil' can't wait to see it in action.

Phil' did you make it to the MK show?

If it is of any use for modeling class 73 purposes? then please use this pic' taken at Eastleigh with pleasure.

Should i just give in now trying to model to this standard before i waste too much more time, money and effort? or carry on and learn from the master model maker that is KNP? Words fail me as to just how real this and your other work really is!

Because the space will soon be needed again in the spare bedroom as it will soon be occupied by our eldest whilst she returns home for a while due to new job commitments ...will we ever get shut of 'em? I've had to shorten the layout to five feet long, but at the same time i've laid a new layer of 6mm thick ply on top to give me a firmer and leveler surface. Some recently given 'Free' off cuts of White UPVC guttering/barge boards have been used to form the ends, also the front and back, being made of a sandwiched lightweight foam it's ideal stuff and make's things a lot stiffer, stronger and neater. Prior to making a start on wall building, i've made a mold using car seam sealer and a sheet of bought in plastic card stone walling, which was impressed into the sealer whilst still soft but just skinned over. I'll use car filler to make all my own walls, tunnel portals etc from the mold which i will make thick enough so i can 'Dremal' out the mortar lines using a fine disc. The Loco's in my small but growing collection have had their first hand painted bit of weathering done, but hopefully they'll be finished to a much better standard once i invest in an air brush. Progress maybe slow but i'm still moving on and i'm not abandoning this project in any way.

Never thought anybody would ever be interested in these things but here's a few badly scanned pics' (cheapo scanner) i found recently, from back when film was expensive and not to be wasted on such things. I have much better ones yet to scan, and will admit now that i quite liked these units but don't tell anyone! Passing Springs Branch. Late 1980's? Near Dog Hill Oldham. 1987.

Everleigh Aching?

Nice Ian, taken about the same time i was mooching around the area! Some more 40's but like yourself Ian i've a lot yet to scan.

Some bad late '70's early '80' spics' i hope they can help with anyones modeling.

Worst cars i ever owned for rot (until i got this Bedford Rascal) were a 1980's Fiat Uno and a couple of Fiat Panda 4x4's swmbo once owned and very closely followed by a late '70's Datsun 120Y coupe', the best Datsun car i ever had rust proof wise was a 2ltr Datsun Bluebird, an '80's boxy looking 50th anniversary version in two tone Dark met' Blue and Silver.....the most reliable pickups i drove were also Datsuns a mid' '70's 1500, and the later '70's 1800 with column change and later a bigger Cabstar was really realiable & comfy to drive. I've got to say in my opinion i think that compared with other era's not many '80's and 90's every day user cars are or have been saved! Plenty of sporty '80's & '90's etc have been saved..... not my cup of tea at all only as i could never aspire to afford any. Big job breaking out this Spring Worst cross member/outrigger repair in history or wot!

Not sure yet Mike on the shunter as space may be a bit tight inside for batts' etc i might have to have a van coupled up with it? All are still projects i'm looking forward to for this year at the mo' but i'm getting there slowly. Thanks Paul i'm a ###### for doing things on the cheap so hand weathering with Humbrol tins has always been my own way of doing stuff, i always considered that buying an air brush or even ready made or RTR stuff cheating but i can now see from the other side of things Think i'll start saving now for a 'Helly' '0' gauge class 47!....coz i must have at least two years left in me yet The cab doors always seem to have been left open at Springs Branch back in the late' 70's-'80's whatever the class was...hence this cheeky view of 25 141 from 08 376!

Not steam or garden rail scale but my xmas present to myself a Dapol 08 shunters repaint from Green(cos' it was cheaper than a Blue one) to late 1970's Blue and a SP Wigan depot renumbering & un-finished weathering, is posed on the garden line, 'cos there's nowt like real daylight to show up all the weathering wrong doings! I must cheat and invest in a air brush soon.

Thanks Rob' Glad someone saw & liked the article, and at least i had my fifteen minutes of fame with it Never been able to afford to go the whole hog on any of my resto's but they've always been done to the safest and the best presented standards i could afford, major ongoing health probs' caused the 80's demise and i'm moving onto smaller things like push bikes and '0' gauge locos' its easier and flippin warmer indoors, the Bedford Bambi camper resto' is a Summer job and not a job i can do without help from my mates this time around!....bought by 'Her Indoors' to keep my head going! Not car but a classic to me all the same is my 1972 built crossover Mk1 Chopper bike, and the 1966 dated ex' 'Prisoner' prop' bike RSW 16.

I have posted these efforts elsewhere on here but thought a bit of garden railway-ing would make a nice change.

My own restoration & pride and joy for about 12 years which i had to let go last year was this '49, 80" Landie Fire truck, at least i still have the 1938 built Standard Gwynne fire pump trailer which i'm hoping to keep and take to shows.

A few from my fading and badly taken collection, mainly taken around Wigan SP and the Manch' area, but i think the last pic' is at Tinsley depot?

Cheers Brian! Great pics' showing there was nowt special about it at all back then....just one of many. Thanks.

Don't ask me. P.I.L