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Johnson Street IEMD

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Blog Entries posted by Johnson Street IEMD

  1. Johnson Street IEMD
    27th and 28th April 2024 - Birmingham NEC
     
    An incredible weekend was had at this weekend's Key Model World Live where the Railnuts managed to set a World Record for the Longest Portable Model Railway at 649.9 metres in length and a pair of Freightliner Class 90s were used to haul the measurement train - Congratulations Pete and the Railnuts team.
     
    My DB90s came along for the event as well, with the Malcolm train. 
     
    There were lots of other cool trainsets on show as well, the 805s came along as well and the Pride Pendelino was on show as well and the big thing about this event was that it was a modelling event for all kinds of modellers with all sorts of exhibits on display, from tanks, model planes, a superstar destroyer from Star Wars - Return of the Jedi as well.
     
    Some clips I managed to take whilst keeping trains moving 
     
     
     
     
     
     
    The moment the World Record was confirmed 
     
     
  2. Johnson Street IEMD
    Loco update - March 2024
     
    Latest DB90 to join Johnson Street IEMD
     
    90035 was one of DB's active 90s during their tenure of the contract to provide traction for MALCOLM Group. 90035 was, during this time, repainted from tired EWS livery with faded decals into new DB red but unlike matching classmates 90019 and 90028 wasn't named. 
     
    One of my first DB90s to join my fleet was 90028, named Sir William McAlpine, nicknamed "Bill", named at York's National Railway Museum Museum in early 2019, seen below at this event, a Class 90 on a turntable, an unusual sight for an electric locomotive.
     
     
    This, following on nicely from Multimodal (90019)'s appearance inside the NEC exhibition centre, for the Multimodal logistics trade show in 2016, seen below, 
     
     
    90035, now into DB red went off to join an electrification testing project team on the Great Western mainline (GWML) electrification project, seen below:
     
     
    This was then followed up by 90035 being seconded for similar work, again as part of a consist for the Midland mainline (MML) electrification project.
     
     
    At the end of this project, 90035, fondly nicknamed CB Hall on my YouTube channel returned to Crewe International Electric Maintenance Depot (Crewe IEMD) for pantograph conversion work ahead of a return to traffic most notably on MALCOLM workings, seen on the last leg, thank you to Youtuber Angel Of Crewe:
     
     
    90035 working on MALCOLM post GWML / MML work:
     
     
    Having already acquired Bill and Multimodal for Johnson Street IEMD, the first Bachmann DB90 to be unveiled two years and several seasonal release windows after the first Class 90s were launched in the summer of 2019, inevitably this was always going to be one I already had commissioned and so it was with Bill. 
     
    With Multimodal having also been sourced, I left "New Bill - 32-616NRM" off my priority radar, now though with this coming to a more sensible price point, he's been acquired. 
     
    Changing Identity
     
    One of my existing DB Cargo red 90s will be unnamed and renumbered into 90035 - a nice job for the magician 🎩 he knows who is. New Bill just needs a weathering.



  3. Johnson Street IEMD
    MT3 @ Blakemere - 7th January 2024
     
    Having joined the volunteer team at Making Tracks Three in the summer, a further opportunity was extended to me to do so again at Blakemere and I had signed up to do four days there, over the exhibition, culminating in four Sundays, the last of which was 7th January.
     
    It was a great day, really busy and a pleasure to work with the other volunteers and the Railnuts gang to entertain the folks of Cheshire.
     
    For this event, I took along my MALCOLM rake and some DB electric traction, DB Cargo 90026 got the nod along for blue box duties and later in the day, two light loco moves got an airing ...
     
    90026 on 4M25
     
     
    Christine (90037) and Malcolm (90024) on 0Z90
     
     
    92042 and 92027 on 0Z92
     
     
  4. Johnson Street IEMD

    Making Tracks Three Christmas at Blakemere Craft Centre

    By Johnson Street IEMD,


    Johnson Street IEMD - 90s on tour
    16th December to 7th January 2024
     
    As one of the volunteers at Making Tracks Three at Chester Cathedral, i was asked if I would like to take part over the Christmas period and when someone asks would I like to take my locos out for a run out through an electrified landscape, that could only lead to one answer ... hell yes ... so ... my DB90s took to the Making Tracks landscape, this time, at Blakemere, which is near to Northwich, Cheshire (CW8) ... I have been twice so far ... and had a great time ...
     
    Week One - Christine (90037) came along for the ride - light engine
     
    Week Two - Bumblebee1 (90026) and DB Blue (90034) came along for this session - but Blue failed - so Bumblebee1 went on solo MALCOLM workings:
     
    What will be out on my next visit ?
     
    You'll just have to wait and see ...
     
    The exhibition is on until 7th January 2024, if you haven't see it, there's still time to get to see it ...
     
     
  5. Johnson Street IEMD
    Christmas is on the nearby horizon and in light of this, Santa Claus's sleigh accidentally dropped a couple of new arrivals in to the Johnson Street stable.
     
    One of the Skodas I had been looking to add to my stable for some time was Christine, in DB red. 90037 had been going to Toton along with 90039 for new liveries. 90039 had been going for Grand Central liverying. It was all set to become the fourth of five DB90s into Bumblebee livery, when the news broke that the plan to operate push pull Class 90/DVT and Mk4 carriage sets between Blackpool North and London Euston had been cancelled due to the Covid-19 pandemic.
     
    90039 ended up being liveried into Backbone livery and the three already liveried DB90s into Grand Central were de-branded and returned to the freight pool.
     
    90037 went into the DB Glider livery and was soon out working with several of the de-branded Grand Central 90s on MALCOLM group workings, a good shot of this, seen at Stafford, five DB90s in the same place, very unusual. Jack Mills (90036) was also seen in this clip, working with Multimodal on 4S47 DAV-MOS duty:
     
     
    90036 in DB minus Schenker, named Driver Jack Mills, weathered and sound fitted was one which came across my radar whilst I was in the process of sorting consecutively numbered team Red Skoda, 90037, in the more recently liveried Glider livery named Christine. Christine has also been weathered to reflect an in-service liveried state and has her own acoustics as well.
     
    Christine, not long after returning to traffic in her new colours:
     
     
    It seemed a shame to let Jack past on this occasion as he had been created by the magician tasked with my loco masterpieces, so Jack got snapped up. Now, Jack Mills was already a mainstay of my stable already so Old Jack is going to get a new identity.
     
    What that will be remains to be seen but either one of the 90s currently missing? Either 90020, 90029 or 90035 .. 90021 in Donald Malcolm is one on the radar for the future and there's going to be another 90, one which is going to keep the new liveries going. 
     
    In the real world, these 90s are now stood down, retired by DB and are due to be sold soon, but in my modelling world, they're very much active under the Team Red brand. The last 90 to be liveried was Donald Malcolm (90021) and my plan is to have a DB90 to follow on from 90021.
  6. Johnson Street IEMD
    1st January 2022
     
    Christmas 2021 falls later in the Calendar year and runs into early January 2022 in the form of the ex-Grand Central ''Bumblebee livery'' Bachmann Class 90 wonderfully replicated by @Squirrel Rail. Seen here at Johnson Street IEMD, having been out on test, with Jack (90036), having changed pool codes from WEAC to WEJS. 
     
     
    It's a real shame that the DB90s allocated to Grand Central workings, 90026, 90029, 90020, 90039 and 90021 (in order of actual and/or planned painting into ''Bumblebee'' livery. 90026 was the first and was followed by 90029 and then 90020. 90039 was ready for painting at Toton when the news of the demise of the planned services, it was subsequently liveried into Backbone livery and 90021's overhaul pre-Bumblebee was postponed and has only just recently gained refurbished bogies ahead of a mooted 2022 return to traffic. Shortly after the cancellation of the Blackpool North to Euston Grand Central DB90 plans, the three painted examples were de-branded, as seen here moving the GC stock to Wembley.
     
     
     
    This livery was one I knew I needed to have some level of represenation at Johnson Street IEMD.
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
  7. Johnson Street IEMD
    15th February2020
     
    Love is in the air @Johnson Street.
     
    Okay, so we are twenty four hours back from Valentines day, but the perfect sight for the forthcoming layout is the sight of the Malcolm Rail Bachmann Class 90 fitted with DCC Sound. Below is a link to my fledgling YouTube space and the Malcolm 90 going through a start up with DCC sound.
     
     
  8. Johnson Street IEMD
    Another arrival in the Long term store siding 
     
    Since 90031 arrived in my long term siding, it was always my intention to have another Crewe Long Termer (LTS - Long Term Storage) join them for company and to add to the scene space. The layout is becoming a kind of diorama in some ways, and although 90031 is DCC fitted, there isn't any plan for it be going anywhere.
     
    Soooo, what should join 90031, well, if one looks at what has been sitting alongside them for a good long time and would be the perfect partner for them, that would have to be 90025 in a super tired state. Almost like fate, a suitably scruffy RfD 90 sound fitted appeared on my radar and the deal was done.
     
    The level of scruffiness found on the acquired RfD 90 wasn't sufficient enough for Johnson Street IEMD and with the brief under the purview of @Squirrel Rail a heavily cannabilised DB Cargo Class 90, 90025 emerged. It's missing the roof detail, a couple of light fittings, buffers and more, a reflection of these parts keeping other DB90s fully functional.
     
    The sound chip which the RfD 90 is going into Bumblebee1 (90026 in ex-Grand Central) and the dcc chip he had has gone into 90025. 
     
    A great arrival for the layout and great to get to see them on my birthday as well !!!
     
    What's next, we'll, there's going to be a few more DB90's, a 92 or two 🤔 .. one has not that long ago arrived in 92042. Even though the theme is up to the minute DB and electric, there's no retirement plans for the DB90s here. Climate heroes all the way .. the sparky Climate hero types ⚡️⚡️⚡️



  9. Johnson Street IEMD

    30th June 2023 - Loco Update

    By Johnson Street IEMD,


    Johnson Street IEMD - Layout update
    30th January 2023 - there's a Dyson in town
     
    Having taken the Dyson for a quick spin on the test track at the local model shop yesterday,
     
     
     
    today was a layout debut for the highly anticipated Accurascales DB Schenker branded Class 92, 92042. As it used to be known, ''Honegger'', well, Honegger got to meet his new stablemates,
     
     
     
    alongside probable brief classmate George Eliot (92027), briefly visiting Johnson Street IEMD before being off to pastures new potentially.
     
    Currently the main bug bear is about the panto's, is there a function to allow switch-over from the rear forward facing pantograph when direction changes, I would have thought it automatically changed over with the front panto (in direction of travel) went down, and the rear one came up .. when the direction changes ... I will post this in the Accurascales Class 92 forum to see what the answer is ... 
     
    When I first mapped out my sidings for the planning of this layout, the 92s were the forefront of my thinking, i think i still have a picture of them somewhere, The Bachmann Class 90s have taken priority so far and the marketplace for the Accurascales Class 92s are starting to plato so potentially making them more affordable. 92042 will be the first of at least two or three DB92s, a three beasties one is a must and either the YIWU 92 (015) or the new one just out of the paintshop, 92029, formerly Dante.
     
  10. Johnson Street IEMD
    This morning 90031 has arrived at his new resting place, with the assistance of DB yard mate 66065, having had the necessary wizardry from @railtec-models to create the artwork to replicate as near to what 90031 actually looks like now. Thank you Steve.
     
    It was then the turn of Jerry  @Squirrel Rail to create a significant aged look inspired by the actual example but not necessarily every blemish - the 90 in my world would likely have worked more so would be less aged now :-).
     
    Thank you so much to both of you for making this come to life or rather to fruition with one of DB Cargo's long term storage Class 90 examples, 90031 in "tired or eternally sleeping" state faded EWS branding.
     
    The intention is not to run 90031 as such and it may be the case that further example(s) of the German TOC come to rest more at Johnson Street IEMD in the future. After all, there are a number of classes at Crewe like this, not just 90s.
     
    90031 had originally joined my loco fleet last year but it was never my intention to have him in the new @KMS Railtech look. This would be appropriate for modellers modelling the era of EWS. My era is very much up to the minute and whilst i want the legacy liveries to sometimes show a presence as they do at Toton, Crewe Electric Depot and Warrington Arpley, the main colour here is Red.
     
    From where 90031 will reside he will just about be able to see the electrification of the headshunt line and will probably see other DB90 and 92 classmates brought to the shed for maintenance and as the final details are completed on the layout some further weeds may pop up along here. @Andy7


  11. Johnson Street IEMD
    Layout update
     
    The layout project has had to go a little slower tthan forst thought at the start of the year mainly due to having a lowsy chest infection which wore me down.
     
    The plan to go out and buy insulators to start scratchbuilding registration arms also had to be put on hold till Mid-february at the earliest with them not being available - I imagine the making tracks team had to snap up a good few for mt3. 
     
    The year has also seen some unexpected good and bad news for the traction of choice at Johnson Street with the DBC Dysons getting modified to again be able to run on the WCML between Crewe and Wembley, with 92011 being the first of the Class to be modified.
     
    It's understood that the 90s however may about to be finding themselves on the operational fringes with their use being postponed due to the coming together of several detracting aspects:
     
    1 - increasing electricity costs once again
     
    2 - A number of recent failures by the Class on their main work with WHM.
     
    3 - A strategic change to the arrival of trainsets into Mossend where there are no wires.
     
    In a world where operational effectiveness is everything, this is a bit ominous for the Class, hopefully a solution can be found.
     
    With this in mind, I mocked up what a busy yard at Johnson Street IEMD if the 90s weren't out on WHM. There'd still be other operators electric traction coming over for specialist repairs as per 90043 in the foreground.
     
    Note,the Skodas setback hasn't dampened my enthusiasm 😀 but it's not what I wanted to be hearing (from a source)..
     
     



  13. Johnson Street IEMD

    Knitting lessons - page two - 25th November 2022

    By Johnson Street IEMD,


    OLE / Catenary research
    Knitting lessons - page two
     
    Whilst out for an extended lunchtime today in what could only be described as a crisp, fresh but bright mid November in Stafford, an opportunity to study the heavy gantry at the North end of Stafford Station, one which is going to feature as part of the Johnson Street IEMD OLE plan.
     
    I'd gone to catch the DB90's movement down to Daventry DIRFT following the failure of 90029 and 90034 at DIRFT and Mossend respectively - this movement later ended up being cancelled,
     
    https://www.realtimetrains.co.uk/service/gb-nr:R47813/2022-11-25/detailed
     
    yes 4M25 went past on schedule, 90020 leading 90037:
     
     
    but the chance to do some OLE studying was not to be missed.
     
    A big thank you to Ebayer blueflash90 - for the gantry, its going to become a great showpiece on the layout and in time stand out less with the Skodas,  Dysons and other traction stealing the show.
     
    Here and now, the raw materials of the gantry pictured below and also the actual gantry showing where both the contact wire and catenary wire go - we may gave to scratchbuild some of the wires as well but at least we now in detail what we are working towards.





  14. Johnson Street IEMD
    23rd November 2022
     
    The advent of my layout returning home following the sad passing of good WCML and model Rail enthusiast Ian Rae in September known to some here as amertonman, has seen my OLE plans changing somewhat.
     
    The original plan was to be using nBrass and whilst this may still feature in some capacity, the main catenary sections are here and now going to be using ebay innovator blueflash90 whose catenary is available on ebay currently.
     
    Tonight, having had my shipment of OLE and with Bill McAlpine (90028) in attendance I have mocked up how the new OLE will be positioned potentially. Given this is a Christmas present, I may not fully assemble this till then .. or not .. we shall see
     
    The cantilevers will mirror the OLE seen immediately outside Crewe IEMD which is the inspiration for the layout.
     
    Kat 
    Johnson Street IEMD 




  15. Johnson Street IEMD
    The layout project currently finds itself at a red signal. A bit like the DB90s sometimes, held for what must seem like eternity, the good thing is that I am never short of inspiration. 
     
     
    Also like many of those of us who are watching on with interest at all things @Accurascales in relation to the impending Class 92 which will further enhance the electric traction offer to OO gauge modellers. I look forward to getting my hands on one of these, having had a few of the poor relative in the form of Hornby's alternative before the stakes were raised by Bachmann.
     
    Until my pet project can fully get going again I am taking the opportunity to add bits and bobs and sort those things I need, like the PECO catenary wire sets, I am planning to give mine the green look like those seen at @making tracks2 earlier this year. 
     
     
    And if along the way, other stuff is found in the treasure chest that is Ebay, well, all the better. 
     
    When the late great model builder @amertonman passed away recently, my nBrass OLE kits appear to have got lost in the packing up of all things at his place - hopefully they'll reappear in the coming weeks so I can get on with becoming a soldering whizz.
     
    Kat @JohnsonStreetIEMD 
     

  16. Johnson Street IEMD
    20th September 2022
     
     
    Following a lovely livestream from Rachel and Shaun of Angel of Crewe Youtubers -
     
     
    This is a bit of a taste of what Rachel and Shaun get up to when they aren't modelling in N or OO gauge ...
     
    known on here by @Mini Wistaston junction alongside the West Coast mainline where they plugged my channel a little .. I decided to do a bit more of an up close and personal layout tour now my layout is back home, about 80-85% done, maybe I should have said 90% done LOL.. well, anyway, here goes:
     
     
    Enjoy !!!
     
    Kat @Johnson Street IEMD
     
  17. Johnson Street IEMD
    13th September 2022
     
    Following the sad passing of good friend, modelling right hand man and West Coast mainline Enthusiast Ian who went back by the username @amertonman last week , the layout has returned home to its rightful place, its about 90% completed in the main. The OLE still needs to be plumbed in and the fiddle yard track still needs to built and set up but this latter aspect was always going to be some way down the line. A programming track is also part of the plan as well, given that Johnson Street IEMD is going to be layout which sees lots of different loco mixed consists.
     
    A good number of members of the modelling community of Staffordshire are feeling the effects of a truly wonderful man - and will continue to feel this loss for many months and years to come.
     
    Having the layout make the short journey across the County town of Staffordshire, there has and still is alot of stuff relating to the build to sort out, i have set up the layout, without being fully operational to see what's what etc etc.
     
     
    Railwise, it appears the real world Malcolm and Multimodal are back together, being back out on 4S47 last night:
     
    Stafford station was busy as there was a Steam Railtour in on Platform six
     
     
    the DB90s, having been paired together back in 2016 just after they had their new colours Malcolm Rail and new style DB Cargo red respectively, 90028 and 90035 followed 90019 into this colour scheme.
     
     
     
     
     
  18. Johnson Street IEMD
    Loco update - 14th June 2022
     
    7th DB90 at Johnson Street IEMD 
     
    As soon as it became apparent that 90021 wasn't going to be seen out on the network in First Barbie Scotrail, it was always going to be a matter of time before she departed Johnson Street IEMD.
     
    Then, in a short period of time we were introduced to two DB/EWS era Class 90s from Bachmann, firstly 90028 in DB Cargo red and following on from that 90030 in EWS. With 90028 "Bill" already in the stable already and 90030 being slightly out of my era, it was always going to be something different to the above examples which became my next "red" Skoda. 
     
    With that along came an opportunity to add 90039 in "I am the Backbone of the economy" to the DB90s based at Johnson Street IEMD. 90039 liveried by Rainbow 🌈 Railways joining fellow Rainbow inductee 90024 in Malcolm Rail and also pictured 90034 in DB Blue.
     
    Backbone, post Rainbow introduction has gone on to get named seen below on test at Stafford Station
     
     
    and also has a Freightliner-ish orange tipped panto and is weathering away from perfect but other than that is looking pretty good.
     



  20. Johnson Street IEMD

    Knitting lessons

    By Johnson Street IEMD,


    Johnson Street IEMD
    Knitting lessons - Friday 11th February 2022
     
    The beginning of the OLE at Johnson Street IEMD starts today.
     
    nBrass multi-track spans will shortly criss cross the main shed area, like the below:
     
    The terminating gantry mast is a PECO mast with the cantilever arms removed.
     
    The Ayr style gantry adaptation is similar to those seen in the below Youtube clip by fellow Youtuber Smokie Joe:
     
     
    See between 0.14 and 0.29 ...
     
    It has always been the plan despite countless shots and video clips of the space by t5he three track shed that WCML Mk1? OLE would criss cross this space, the back story of the depot, to be located closer to Daventry than Crewe and to service DB's increasing use of electric traction on intermodal workings, primarily that of WH Malcolm.
     
    Whilst @amertonman was on the soldering, I was tackling the smoothing of the post solder work to the uprights and horizontals ... after getting through roughly two structures worth of components, we took a break for a dog walk and a bit of choochoo time 
     
    The regional office now DB branded, later Multimodal got to see some of his class mates out on brief test runs
     
     









  23. Johnson Street IEMD
    14th November 2021
     
    After long periods of slow progress due to mostly unforeseen circumstances and possibly other more important things, my layout is heading into the latter stages of completion, with a large thanks to the enthusiasm and craftsmanship of @amertonman. I can really see the later stages of this coming to take shape. Here and now, the hard standing has been improved and now, the buffer stops have gone in with their DCC lit red warning markers. Still to be done (and not exhaustively) are the depot lighting, the scratch build OLE cantilevers for the nBrass gantries for the electric end of the depot, including the holding sidings and head shunt track to the left of this as well as mounting and positioning of the signage and laying the carriageway markers for the road deck going across the depot scene. As an enthusiast of OLE, i can't wait to see this aspect come to life, and it is really going to transform the electric shed end of the layout, currently most easily identified as the area where the three-track shed is positioned. The OLE on the approach here will be in keeping with Crewe IEMD's main shed approach so I am looking at the gantries across that area as well as looking at some of the structures and cantilevers in the Crewe Marshalling yard areas, which vary in their orientation compared to most of the West Coast mainline Overhead Line Equipment (OLE).
     
    With Christmas approaching, there is that slim possibility that there could be loco arrivals or even changes at Johnson Street IEMD, watch this space :-) ... having traded in my two 60s and a 67 some time ago, there's a possibility that I may get my hands on one of those again, a Class 08 shunter is also something I would like, not to mention the Accurascales Class 92 and at some point, a Heljan Class 86 (86401) in WCRC Cally sleeper livery - but the 86 and 92 are some way away - Bachmann's latest Class 90 releases don't cater for DB/EWS modellers, something to which I have made a point of saying ''hang on - three in freightliner and not one in DB or EWS - that's not very funny - hopefully, there'll be a Bachmann DB/EWS 90 in the spring releases - come on Bachmann !!!
     
     






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