SteveyDee68

Just read the entirety of your thread, and can simply say the same as everybody else - simply exquisite modelling of the highest order, and inspirational at every turn. I realised yesterday that I have the copy of BRM featuring your layout ... but upon checking, discovered it was the last magazine my father "categorised" i.e. tore apart into separate pages for "archiving" before he lost interest in reading, so I have found a half page photo of the harbour steps - the rest has gone! Thankfully, your amazing photos and thread more than compensates. To clarify, my father has Alzheimer's with dementia, and his lifelong habit of only keeping parts of magazines he was interested in, felt was useful for his own modelling or simply inspirational was one of the last vestiges of his former self that we lost. Typically, it just happened to be a magazine that I would have found useful/informative! Please keep the modelling and photos coming - this armchair modeller has learnt a lot simply reading posts from the likes of yourself, Andy Peters and the ilk. Steve S

Hello again, Mr P Have found the "follow" button (doh!) so will watch this thread with interest. (My Dad was a keen O Gauge modeller, and all his locos and stock are stored upstairs for now). I was going to make a suggestion for your original plan (now long superseded) - could a "lift up and forward" mechanism similar to those installed in "TV coffee tables" (the kind that raise up to provide an appropriate height eating surface) be installed to bring the FY tracks behind the warehouse up and over to allow easy access without stretching? I am sure one if your many contributors could "imagineer" (to steal from Disney) such a contraption? A similar device was used to great effect a few years back for the professional touring version of "Grease" - the band played the overture "on stage" before being lifted up, forward and down into the "pit" *whilst still playing*, the entire band being set up on a hydraulically moved platform! Stunning to see, and the audience went wild! A vertical fiddle yard system has been developed/patented, but I've never seen what I've just attempted to describe. (Probably a good reason why, ha ha!) Steve S

I know this thread has kind of run its course, but having wrote that last night at an ungodly hour and my iPad dying on me a few minutes later, I should say that the 'marathon' has not felt like that at all - more like one of those books that grab you and you *have* to turn to the next page. I dabbled (badly) in OO and OO9 as a teenager - I returned earlier this year via Ebay and a Hornby Sentinel, and since then have sunk WAY too much money already into random purchases! (All in the name of being good for the soul and restoring a little spark of happiness into quite a bleak personal time.) I am planning to unashamedly "copy" some of the scenes you created, Andy, to help develop and practice non-existent skills - your scene composition proves your artistic eye again and again. I will continue reading and learning from the many talented modellers on this forum ... what I need to do is work out how the "follow" buttons work! Steve S

Dear Mr Peters I have spent the last month reading through your posts about the many and varied layouts you have built, and have enjoyed nearly every moment as not only do you create inspirational layouts, you do it all with humour, humility and a "warts and all" writing style that creates a real "author's voice" (for some odd reason, you sound like my Uncle Ron, who was a lovely man). Your regular "contributors" all help in that too (I am still chuckling at the sausage factory hijack of the Bitton thread!). There were a couple of things I have not enjoyed as much ... your bouts of quite serious ill health (written about so lightheartedly by yourself) which made me quite anxious about whether you were going to be okay or not (although not half as much as for yourself, family and friends) and then learning - but a few days after my own 50th birthday - that you had sold King's Moreton! Why, I berate myself, did I not read a bit quicker (instead of sleeping, for example) so I might have been in time to bid for a suitably "big" birthday present?! There's a converted loft space just the right size.... Seriously, thank you for sharing all your posts, photos and videos, and wishing you good health and a long and happy future of continued, unpressured modelling. I will continue to eagerly await any future posts you upload, when and if you feel ready. In awe Steve S

I contacted John after downloading the blue ship, suggesting a red version to allow a "Manchester Liners" vessel, after one of the railway mags carried suggested plans for a Manchester Ship Canal/Trafford Park inspired layout, and he promptly produced it! (Also many chemical tankers have a red hull so another ship possibility) I am trying to work out how to widen John's ship to five containers wide ... it is so well designed that so far I haven't had any success! The Hairy Viking is a good thread to read if going down the scratch building route for a larger vessel, although it might be easier to adapt the superstructure/bridge from John's kit than build it in Lego! Look forward to seeing what you come up with.

Returning to the hobby some 30 years after last being involved in any way, I had hoped to pick up some reasonably priced older locos and stock off you know where and have, to date, made quite a few purchases at less than today’s prices and scored a few bargains too. (I’ll be posting some questions for help with sorting out some of those “bargains” in other threads!)

Rats! Didn't know that ... now realise my eBay bargain wasn't!

Hi Reading your thread with interest because modelling the ship to shore intermodal activities is something I've wanted to do for some time. If you're not aware already, John Wiffen of Scalescenes has what he calls a "feeder" container ship available in several colours and that measures out at approx 1m long! For details of the build check out the Wynard Lane blog linked to from the Scalescenes website. John also does a Freightliner crane and a selection of containers. All of these are in card!! I've been busy researching STS cranes and they are big. Selective compression might be the order of the day for modelling, especially in 4mm/foot! I stumbled across a ship build on an HO layout which is awe inspiring - if I can find the direct link I'll post it into this thread if you think it might help. Good luck - I'll be keenly watching your developments as I will not be able to produce anything like what you are attempting!

Hi - thanks for the response Wild Boar Fell... I obviously didn't read your original post properly or I would have realised you said he was using the full chassis! The actual Atlas model is very good for £12 and as mentioned is pretty darn close to the Bachman model albeit mostly mounded details. Skinnylinny's post about them not holding the track very well is spot on, because the back to back on the wheels is greater than needed for OO track - maybe they'll sit on EM track? I'm investigating as to whether I can reduce the back to backs, rather than pay out for more wheels, as the actual wheel profiles seem okay. The other thing is the bogies - they are screwed on damn tight! More investigation there to see if I can get a rolling chassis - if I can then I can experiment with towing it! Cheers

Can you tell me what wheels they are using, please? Would save me hours of searching! Sorry to be dim, but what do you mean by the "Teton 10"? My "inspiration" was of class 66 locos being unloaded off ships onto the dockside and I think these were the last batch delivered so probably would be low emission locomotives. Steve

Thanks for that heads up, Emma! I'll see how it looks when it arrives, but my big issue is weight ... a non-powered, lightweight dummy is what I'm really after (all plastic construction?). I have an older Lima class 59 which I'm playing about with, and have noticed the non-powered bogie is entirely plastic... toyed with the idea of getting a second plastic bogie to reduce weight still further as an experiment, but as I ultimately want to have the 59 powered it seemed a bit pointless! Steve

Wow. Just come across and as I have an eBay purchase of the later but essentially the same Hornby version sans stabiliser legs and chimney, I too would be interested (having neither the desire or the abundance of cash to splash out on the forthcoming miracle of model making that is the new Bachman RTR version!) Steve S

Hi Just wanted to say that having read through your thread I find all of your modelling quite inspirational! Please keep updating us with whatever you do next! Steve S

Thanks for the info, Skinnylinny and Compton 33 - I tried all sorts of search strings but either ended up on eBay or Hattons announcing their new model! I will grab an Atlas Editions model from Hattons and see what exactly gives - shame they're not in GBrF livery as will need a repaint... will need seven for what I have in mind; wonder if would be possible to create a resin "master" to be able to produce a batch of resin cast versions? Will also investigate replacement wheels to improve the ride. Thanks again! Steve s

Does anyone know of a kit or basic body shell to enable “dummy” (unpowered) Class 66 locos to be built?