Keith Addenbrooke

As I’ve mentioned in a post just now in the “Welcome to TT:120” thread, my progress this past year have been sadly minimal. I’ve just had far less time than I expected for modelling, and with my other projects in HO and Narrow Gauge to take care of as well, I’m afraid I’ve become more of a bystander in terms of TT:120. What I’m seeing here and elsewhere is impressive of course. We’re due to move house in the new year to a more suitable property, but one where I’ll have far less storage space for multiple interests. Moving itself - whenever it happens - will be a big enough project for 2024 on its own. So it makes sense for me to pause this thread here, to say “thank you” for all the support and encouragement, and to wish everyone well from the sidelines for the foreseeable future. Thanks, Keith.

Happy Christmas! Maybe it’s a little early, but I wanted to wish everyone on the TT:120 Forum a Happy Christmas before getting too busy with festive duties and celebrations this coming week. A year on since our first Christmas, and we now have the first Peco wagons in the shops - I saw them on at least one retailer’s “best seller” lists when they arrived. Hornby of course continue to lead the way in terms of r-t-r: a year ago the first two train sets were just starting to arrive - now we’re looking forwards to HSTs and Class 50s. 3D printing is unsurprisingly playing a big part in the scratchbuilt domain, fitting for a new venture to be using the latest technology from the start. In terms of layout progress, Facebook seems to be a good place to find a lot of fresh starts. We’re still just eighteen months in, but my personal view is that there’s a lot of good things happening in TT:120. I have to confess that life and other projects (HO and Narrow Gauge) have conspired to limit my own progress in TT:120 to the completion of my Moorbach Station building, and with an impending house move I’m afraid I’ll be watching with interest from the sidelines for the foreseeable future. But I remain really encouraged by what we’re seeing in TT:120, and long may that remain the case. Enjoy! Keith.

Thanks Brian - we have a winner! As the L 319 was introduced in 1955, this presumably makes it an early production model, but helpfully that widens the scope for use for anything from the mid ‘50s onwards (most of Epoche III). Much appreciated, Keith.

I’m not very good at re-imagining things for a different context, so was wondering if I could ask for some advice here. I have a number of fairly generic building kits modelled on American prototypes, and was wondering if they might pass as German. Apologies if this sounds obvious, but I figured the best way to test the idea was to ask. Of course, with Germany being a large and geographically diverse Federal State, buildings won’t be uniform (why would they?), so any pointers as to any regional examples will be welcome. Hope that’s OK - nothing too serious* A. This large station always strikes me as being a bit like a condensed version of St George’s Hall across from here in Liverpool - to me it could pass as any imposing civic structure in almost any Western country? Personally, I could see this as a German city structure? B. This low relief brick warehouse with loading dock also looks fairly generic 20th Century to me? Northern Germany perhaps? C. A more modern low relief structure - 1970s perhaps? Do the doorways look too American though? C. An oil tank and a tin shed are an oil tank and a tin shed - or are they? D. An older style wooden warehouse - could it pass as an older railside Goods Transfer Shed? E. A General Store - again mainly wooden. Do the shutters give it enough of a European look? G. The final question is a trick question: this is a German Faller model, but I’ve read on a translation of a Stummiforum post (that I can’t now find) the suggestion that it could also pass as French (perhaps Alsace, which if built 1871 to 1920 would be German historically)? The question here is can it pass as other than German I suppose? At a stretch, if whitewashed, I could almost see it on the Swiss Furka-Oberalp? Any thoughts welcome - I like structure kits and will be keeping them all anyway, so I’ve nothing to lose. Hope that’s OK, Keith. * I’ve explained elsewhere I’m having a bit of a clear out before a possible house move, so am going through all my stuff at the moment.

When I was looking at UK GWR Branch Line Modelling in OO a while back, I settled on a ‘four train’ model inspired by @Danemouth and his terminus - fiddle yard layout. I felt it could give a suitably interesting basic operating pattern - even if reality might only see a variety of half that: 1. Branch Shuttle 2. Branch Passenger 3. Through Coaches 4. Local goods Would that translate into German for a KPEV branch around 1920, I wonder? (That’s my next question): Just wondered? (My T16.1 has been posted off for a Service today, so I’m currently a bit light on motive power and filling my spare time pondering!). I’m not layout planning - I simply realised I’ve accidentally got the same mix in my 15 pieces of rolling stock. I am needing to review my project list (again!) as it looks like we may be moving house in the new year (as noted in my other thread on Track Code). I do find I keep being drawn back towards Continental modelling - despite my own feeble efforts to resist. This photo of a pair of pre-owned coaches that only cost me £17 each and have been plonked on the track as they came probably says it all as to why… Have a good weekend, Keith.

DCC is popular on small American outline Switching layouts, where the sound and light functions add prototypical complexity to each operating step, thereby increasing the mileage (so to speak) achieved when operating a small layout, usually when there is only one locomotive in use at any one time. I don’t have DCC (due to the cost), but I thought this worth mentioning as DCC is not only good for large loco fleets on big layouts, or multiple units working as a consist. Just a thought, Keith.

Just to close off this topic and say a proper thank you for the responses, I’m now holding fire for the time being as it looks increasingly likely we’ll move house in the new year (things have moved forwards since I posed this question last month). As I already have quite a bit of Peco H0e Code 80 track, I may stay with Peco Code 100 for now after all, as @Gordonwis suggested. While I still don’t like the width of the Code 100 railhead, when placed side by side the relative heights of the standard gauge and narrow gauge rails don’t look as bad: I’m not planning to change my Narrow Gauge track. Interestingly, Code 80 has been confirmed by @Hobby as suitable for contemporary European / Austrian Narrow Gauge lines and I do have this Peco SL-404 ‘mainline’ version. Thanks to all, plenty of useful information as always to draw on when the time comes, Keith.

An enjoyable diversion from the tasks of the day, thank you for the time taken to put this together and to arrange the Poll, Keith.

Thank you all for the help and advice. The retailer who sold me the set has kindly offered to give the locomotive a service, including replacing the brushes and removing any hardened oil or grease. Hopefully that will get to the bottom of the problem. Thanks again, Keith.

Thank you - good idea. I don’t have any electrical equipment (a multi-meter?) but I’m sure I can find someone who does. Good point - all I can say is not noticeably at all: when I’ve picked up the loco to reattach the body I didn’t feel any undue warmth.

The block weight does look to me to be heavy enough to prevent unwarranted bouncing - but there'll be one way to find out. I await the video with interest... Keith.

I recently acquired a pre-owned Fleischmann H0 Scale Prussian T16.1 0-10-0 as part of an anniversary set originally issued in 1989. Both the loco and the rest of the set are in excellent condition and came from a very reputable retailer (I treated myself to the set following a small win on the Premium Bonds): The loco shows very little sign of use - wheels are clean and it runs very smoothly at all speeds, with clear working lights. The problem is the familiar one of the smell - the burnt electricity / ozone / bad fish smell is worryingly strong. I've removed the body (easily done by removing two screws) and the block weight (one more screw), and all looks in good shape inside: I've cleaned the commutator (I think it's the commutator) as best I can, including with a cocktail stick in the side of the slots where visible. The gears looked a bit greasy, especially the middle one, so I've wiped off the excess as best I can without affecting performance. I use a sewing pin to apply just a single drop of oil to each oiling point when lubricating my locos, which was easily done in this case as the instructions clearly showing where to add oil (and where not to!) were in the box still. I don't think I've over-lubricated it. I can't see anything amiss, even when running the loco without the body on (no sign of sparks or anything like that). The last time I had a loco that smelled as bad as this was in the early 1980s: an N-Gauge Pannier tank that ran increasingly noisily and badly as the smell worsened. At the moment there seems to be no link between the performance (lovely) and the smell (awful). My concern is that - even though this loco runs flawlessly - the smell is telling me to be careful. What am I missing? I realise this must be a basic and oft asked question in this Forum, but as a total novice when it comes to locomotive maintenance, I'm happy to be taught the basics. Any help and advice will therefore be much appreciated. A couple of short videos in case they help - a faint "flapping" noise can be heard when the loco is in reverse, which is more discernible in person. The controller (not shown) is a Gaugemaster Combi. Hope that's OK. Thanks, Keith.

I’ve looked at several different Continental projects over the past couple of years, mainly in H0 Scale. Although various ideas (and their trains) have come and gone, I’ve kept hold of this Mercedes-Benz L 319 van from Gaugemaster: As I understand it, they were built between around 1955 and 1967, thereby helping date any layout it might appear on. I’m wondering if I can find out more about it, specifically if anyone can help identify the number plate - country or region (if anppropriate) and possible date would be ideal? Fully magnified the Licence plate appears thus: I’m afraid I don’t know enough about European Licence Plates to identify it. Bearing in mind it is only 4mm wide by 1mm tall and on a model that only cost me £3, it may not actually represent anywhere in particular. I’m just curious to see what I can find out… Passenger Sam appears in various of my photos - often posing as an American, even though as a Preiserling he is really European. Hope it’s OK to ask a kind of non-railway question. Thanks, Keith.

Er, no. Just no! 😀

Thanks Andy, might the reference you mention have been this blog post by Lance Mindheim: https://lancemindheim.com/2023/01/the-finished-layout-landmine/ I quoted and linked to his previous post, with this as the inviting "next post" title to go to at the bottom? Definitely worth a read. Thanks, Keith.

As you say - a classic: simple, straightforward and achievable. Just one quick comment if I may: a single slip would be more likely than a double slip - I don’t think the upper turn back route through the double slip would ever get used? Keith.

Introduction “The world is in a rush, and is getting close to its end.” A sentiment many of us might appreciate. Trouble is, when the former Archbishop of York Wulfstan put it in a Sermon it was over a thousand years ago, in 1014. I can only wonder what Wulfstan would make of life in our always-on, 24/7 world. Just think about how we can shop: credit cards, same day deliveries, flash sales, eBay or Facebook marketplace. Life is lived at a pace, and aspects of railway modelling are inevitably affected too. My budget means I fish in the warm waters of the second-hand / pre-owned marketplace, a place of incredible choice and often great value, but not one that encourages me to take my time. The best items just don't stick around. They can be sold within hours (sometimes minutes) of appearing on sale. In the same way, when I start to wobble on a project, I can pack up and sell everything I've collected in just a few days too. It goes as quickly as it comes. And then more comes in again. The market for new items can move just as fast - in BRM I read of products selling out before reviews get published. Yes, pre-ordering can mean a wait, but batches may be small - if you don't sign up quickly you won't get one (or it won't happen). This is by no means a complaint or a criticism - it is simply the flip side of the incredible range of quality models now available. But I need to slow down. How can I take my time when time is not on my side? A response from @AndyB to my last blog post (here) made me think: "For as long as I can remember I've always spent a long time mulling over purchases." As a lad, I remember pouring over catalogues for months on end, delighting in the bright, colour photos of pristine (always) locomotives and rolling stock, dreaming of which one(s) I most wanted. Lo betide any change of mind in the final few weeks before a birthday or Christmas, when it was obviously - or not obviously - too late for a rethink, because somewhere hidden in the house was a much longed for item, already bought and waiting for the big day. With money tight and options limited, we were not only learning patience, but also how to value things. It should have prepared us for adulthood, but even our hobby, our relaxation of choice, now sometimes moves at a rate Wulfstan could simply never have envisaged. Buying can be exciting, unwrapping the latest purchase always a thrill, but to be a modeller and not just a collector requires me to slow down. I've often commented on the importance of patience when building a model - my first Scratchbuild took three months - but since then I've been moving rapidly from one idea to the next, trying to keep up with the marketplace, and trying to get ahead of regular changes in family life. It's time to relearn the lesson from Wulfstan. Narrow Gauge Railway Modelling: I enjoy narrow gauge railway modelling as much as standard gauge - I belong to the 009 Society and I enjoy the monthly gatherings of our local group. The advent of r-t-r 009 locomotives and other models from Bachmann, Peco / Kato and Heljan over the past couple of years has been almost as much of a surprise to some as the launch of TT:120. Here on RMweb, the Narrow Gauge Forum may be a well kept secret - it is listed below Site Information and Notices, after all - but there's just as much wisdom, expertise and fun to be had in Narrow Gauge modelling as anywhere else. I took it up to make it easier carting things up and down to our attic room, and still enjoy watching trains run on the mini-layout I built. This will only take a minute: I initially wanted to model in American HOn30 rather than European H0e, but the availability of plenty of second hand good quality H0e provided me with a great way to get started. I've also been encouraged to try some more scratchbuilding. This trial piece: led to this finished model: And there's room for the inventive and quirky too. This: became this: and after a bit more weathering ended up as this: I don't think Narrow Gauge modelling will completely replace my other interests or dreams, but as an antidote to too much shopping, I find a freedom to experiment that's ideal for someone with my limited practical skills, to set a standard I'm happy with for myself, and to surprise myself with what I can actually turn out: (a whitemetal Woodland Scenics Flagstop kit) I'm not sure what my next Narrow Gauge Project will be - a plan I had to expand my mini-layout with a Mk. II has been paused as we're probably moving house soon to a more suitable property for us (but one which will be tighter on space). But I don't have to be in a rush to decide! One thing I'd be sure of though, if Wulfstan did come back to ride on trains, I think he'd quite like Narrow Gauge railways: WIth Christmas just around the corner, I don't expect to post another blog entry until 2024. Thank you for reading my random ramblings - please feel free to comment if you'd like - and may I wish you peace for Christmas this year, Keith.

Continuing the thread drift (sorry) but hopefully of interest: I note the loco in the photo says: “funkferngesteuert” which I think translates as “remote radio control”. The reason there’s no sign of a driver / engineer / Lokführer in the cab is therefore presumably because it’s the person hanging on to the rear wagon of the train (who would be using a remote control securely strapped on)? Just wondered, Keith.

Can you also factor in the transition, after the new style was introduced but before it was applied to all existing rolling stock? I don’t know about standard practice across the KPEV but in some countries there are photos of later transitions tacking years or even decades. @BillB, will you be setting up a layout thread for your project? Sounds very interesting, Keith.

Is there a photo of the other side? Also, anything protruding from under the loco - and anything sticking up between the rails along the length of the loco?

Valid point, but for someone like me who grew up in the area and passed through New St as often as possible to see the trains, but now live 100+ miles away and rarely visit, the new arrangement upstairs is completely confusing! Picture and caption from a recent visit...

Currently heavily discounted in a pre-Christmas sale for anyone looking. Rails of Sheffield also have some Z on their eBay Pre-owned site, but with more of an American emphasis (note: while the category is listed as “American Z” to reflect this, European items are included). (I can’t comment on overseas posting personally, but everything I’ve read across RMweb suggests Hattons especially ship to customers in Australia successfully on a regular basis). Hope this helps, Keith.

So sorry to read this - but thankful it wasn’t any worse. Hope your wrist heals quickly, Keith.