Iain.d

Thanks Brian, I put the fist class numeral on the wrong door! From the literature I have it says something like (or words to the effect) that the BR roundel was placed in the centre of the carriage or under the nearest to central window or pillar if the carriage is not symmetrical. If the carriage window/pillar arrangement is not symmetrical, placing it in the centre looks odd. Restaurant carriages were often an exception to that rule. The sticky-outy bit is part of the electric lighting system - a fuse box, I think. Kind regards, Iain

Thats seriously good! Kind regards, Iain

This morning’s plans got delayed which has meant I have a little time to post what I completed in the last 12 months. I did a fair few wagon kits this year. This pair of Slaters MR Cattle wagons were any early completion. One is finished in BR bauxite and the other LMS grey. Early in the year I built this WSM 7 plank RCH wagon but only finished it a few weeks back as departmental stock. At the time I vowed I’d never build another, but with the paint on I think its okay. I saw and ‘missed’ one on eBay recently, but I’ll keep my eye out for more. I also dug out of deep storage about 17 or 18 Ratio or Parkside plastic wagon kits I originally made in the early 90s, with the intention of reworking, rebuilding and improving them as background projects. I was able to do about 10, including, three Parkside container wagons: These three medium wagons with a variety of loads: A couple of box wagons: And a couple more: I also made up this Peco Parkside LNER 12 Ton ‘Lowfit’ and built a load of brick carrying ‘H Type’ containers for it, as per an article I’d seen in MRJ 203: I also did a few carriages. A Comet Models BR Mk1 D23 Restaurant Unclassified: A Comet Models LMS D1966 Third Open + Third Open Articulated pair: A Comet Models LMS D1720A Brake Corridor Composite: A Comet Models LMS D1791 Corridor Composite A Comet Models LMS Stove R: Also as a background project I been rebuilding what was a very damaged DJH S&D 7F that I bought off eBay in 2013. The loco chassis is now at the running stage (less cylinders and valve gear) and the tender is done: I wish everyone, wherever you are and whatever you’re doing a safe and happy New Year. Kind regards, Iain

Thanks Jack, that’s kind of you to comment. I did make a booboo on the other side of the Composite Open, that I didn’t notice until I photographed it yesterday! I’m not sure if I’ll correct it – I’m not even sure how I would do it without making it more obvious/worse and I’m in no mind to strip the paint! Kind regards, Iain

My final modelling for 2022 is the completion of this pair of Comet Models carriages – an LMS D1901/D1923 Restaurant Third and its additional dining space, an LMS D1903 Composite Open. I think they’ve turned out okay. The Restaurant Third: The Composite Open: And coupled together: I quite like the way the first class section of the composite looks with the curtains and lamps, it is maybe a bit ‘twee’ and perhaps not hugely prototypical but I think it gives a suitable overall representation. If time allows tomorrow, I’ll post some images of the other bits and pieces I completed in 2022. I’d like to thank all those who’ve encouraged me with my modelling in the last year, be that via PM, posting comments or simply ‘liking’ what I’ve posted. It’s given me a huge encouragement to strive to make the best models I’m capable of. Over the last few years’ I’ve certainly seen an improvement of what I can do. Thank you and kind regards, Iain

Reverting back to the T-34. Below are a couple of images I took of a ‘destroyed’ T-34 in the former British Army ammunition depot in Ruhleben, Berlin in early 1994. The depot was handed back to the Berlin authorities on 19 May 1994. I have no idea if the hulk is still there. The likelihood is that it was disabled by a Panzerfaust striking it slightly below and between the (.30in?) machine gun mounting and the driver's hatch. From memory the front armour was quite fractured and there were splits in some of the weld seams on the body. It's not the sort of damage one might expect to see from a shaped charge detonation on an armoured vehicle. It made me think the armour was poorly manufactured. But I could be wrong. The suburb of Ruhleben was quite heavily fought over in the closing stages of World War Two and the woods and hills in the depot (up to the Olympic Stadium) were littered with fox holes and the detritus of battle. We had a good metal detector and within the depot’s fence line, unearthed countless fired small arms cases and unfired rounds, German helmets, shovels, weapons and weapon parts. I’m not sure if I showed these images before – apologies if I did, that said they’ve probably been ‘lost’ in the software issues earlier in the year. Kind regards, Iain

Hi Brian, Thank you for your kind words. I don’t really have any soldering secrets and some of the stuff I do can be quite a mess! My first foray into soldering was as a teenager trying to solder the side of a whitemetal tender to its end casting using dad’s bog-standard soldering iron and tinman’s solder; it did not end well! It was only wanting to put a Comet Models chassis under an old Airfix 4MT Mogul that caused me to have another go. To get me on the right track I used the examples and ideas put forward by Iain Rice in his book on etched loco construction which has many concepts, tips and photographs. Over a couple of years and a few learning experiences (disasters) I found I was able to put a reliable chassis together, and to a reasonable standard. Today, I have a cheap Chinese temperature-controlled soldering station (a YiHua 937D), the LED display states it works from 200 to 450 degrees. I have no idea how accurate that is. I have three chisel shaped bits (all Hakko): 1.1mm, 2mm and 3mm. Which in simple terms are for small, medium or big solder tasks! I make my own flux at about 10-12% strength, if my maths is accurate. I prefer small soldering iron tips to large, as it’s a good control measure of how much solder you put into a job. I work on the premise it’s easier to add a little more solder, than it is to remove it. By using a large tip, you invariably introduce a lot of solder. So my default is to use the smallest tip I can get away with. For soldering brass, I use 145 degree solder (sadly from Eileen’s) in a coil. I don’t like the blocks of solder as its difficult to control the amount of solder you can melt off. I know I can cut/shave bits off but that’s just inefficient. I apply the tip of the hot iron to the end of the coil, melt off the amount I need, and then apply the tip with the solder to the job. If I get too much solder on the tip, I wipe it off and try again. I use the 1.1mm bit the most, probably 80% of the time with the temperature set somewhere between 365 and 385, depending on the size of the job. For something like a Comet Models carriage table its 365: For a door stop, door hinge or drop light in a carriage side its 385: The other side: If the iron is too cold the solder won’t make the join quickly and I find I’m lingering, if it’s too hot it will quickly discolour the brass (a pinky red colour), which ever happens, I’ll tweak the temperature by maybe 10 degrees the other way. In most instances the discolouration will wash off. I apply flux with an old, small paintbrush – Iain Rice recommended sloshing on the flux, I don’t do that, I try and brush/dab it carefully as wherever the flux is, the solder will flow. I always try and solder from the inside. I struggle to sweat things together so will invariably drill a hole in one piece, lay the other piece (that I want to attached to it) over it and solder through the hole – so for something like a ventilator on a carriage door, I drill a hole in the carriage door, place the ventilator over the hole, secure it with a bit of masking tape and solder from the carriage inside, through the drilled hole. To stop flux splattering I may cut and use a piece of paper as a shield or barrier to protect other surfaces. To join a carriage end to a side, it’s the 3mm bit with lots of solder on it, the iron is set to 400 apply a goodly amount of flux, applying the iron and moving it along the join (that keeps the heat localised and reduces the chance of dislodging already soldered items), and out quickly. If the interface between the two is tight before soldering, the solder is less likely to flow outside the join. For whitemetal I set the station to 200 degrees and do most of the above. If I’m soldering brass to whitemetal, I coat the brass with a thin layer of 145 solder and use low melt for the join. I have a separate 2mm bit for whitemetal work. I’ve never found low melt solder flows on whitemetal like 145 does on brass, so my whitemetal joins are more like small ‘spot welds’. My whitemetal soldering experience is quite limited, it’s still work in progress. I find soldering quick and easy if the bit is clean and the brass (or whitemetal) is clean. The Hakko tips need little care other than a wipe on a damp sponge between every application. The 'tinned tip' should be nice and shiny , if it has black deposits on it (burnt stuff?) I carefully scrape that off with scalpel blade and wipe it again. And I change the sponge regularly as they soon get dirty. I’ve never used one of those wire cleaner things. I have some ‘Tip Tinner’ and will occasionally re-tin the tip. Not every day is a good soldering day, if I’m struggling with the first application and I can’t get the solder to stay on the tip of the iron I usually switch it all off and walkaway and come back later, then miraculously things seem to be fine!! I also solder in small sessions. For cleaning I use Jif/Cif cream cleaner and scrub with a toothbrush. If a new, but old, brass kit is tarnished I will scrub it before I take the items off a fret. If the tarnishing is really heavy, I might use a very fine ‘wet ‘n’ dry’ type paper to mechanically clean the brass. I clean what I have soldered after almost every soldering session to remove the flux residue. If the cream cleaner goes a dirty grey, it will probably get a second clean. It’s also a good way of telling how secure the solder join is. Everything gets a really good rinse off. Sorry if the above is a bit of a ramble, it started off as a few dot points but I felt that lacked context or explanation. It is what I do, it’s not the only way and I appreciate it’s not what some others might do either, but it works for me. Who knows it might work for someone else too. Otherwise I wish everyone a safe and happy Christmas. Kind regards, Iain

I do, and usually very well thank you! What I wrote was a little tongue in cheek, what with Christmas coming. But as an estimate, I do about an hour a day, and maybe up to two hours on each weekend day. But I rarely get that as a contiguous block of time; it might be two half hours or three twenty minute sessions or a variation of. I often break modelling down into 15-20 minute jobs as I find I’m more productive like that. In fact the idea of sitting down to a long modelling session isn’t something that appeals to me, I’d get bored. If I have 10 or 15 minutes ‘spare’, I’d prefer to do some modelling rather than watch telly or browse the internet, which is probably why I’ve only made 249 posts on RMWeb in four years! Like most of us, some days there’s no modelling, because of all the other things going on. I’m also very lucky to have a room in the house with just my stuff in it, so I have a work bench with a few things on the go, so its easy to sit down and do something rather than having to pack/unpack the current project as time allows. My partner paints (as in like an artist, not a tradesperson) and she and I will often do our own hobbies but be together in the same room sharing time and conversation. I consider myself very fortunate. And yes, we have a garden, the grass does need cutting but it’s about 30 degrees outside so it’s not happening today(!) and there's always a list of household jobs to do. I also have a second part time occupation that takes up pretty much every Tuesday night and usually one weekend a month! Kind regards, Iain

Well, there’s nothing particularly distinctive about this LMS catering car, its consistent with the design of LMS carriages of the day. The only thing, to me, that might cause it to be noticed in a train formation is its length and the clutter on the roof. It’s an LMS Restaurant Third to Diagram D1901/1923 and is just about ready for painting. There’s nothing distinctive or unusual in its constriction either! It’s built from the Comet Models kit and pretty much everything needed to complete it, is included in the box. I did spend a while bending up the water tank filler pipes on the roof and locating them, there is another pipe further along the roof near the fan(?) covers that I forgot to fit before I photographed it, and I’ve soldered up the corridor gangway suspension brackets (to be fixed after painting) from bits of 1mm x 1mm angle brass and a strand of electrical cable wrapped around a piece of .5mm wire. I've made a simple swinging coupling hook. I’ve yet to make the concertina gangways from paper but I can do that when the paint’s drying. The restaurant carriage will be paired with this LMS D1903 Composite Open, again from Comet Models. They will form the dining portion of a Pines Express formation I’m partway through constructing. Not much further detail has been added other than I’ve modelled lamps for the First Class tables and made up some curtains for the windows. For both carriages I’ve cut the glass for the windows, bent the wire for commode handrails using .45mm brass wire, made up the toilet window handrails and luggage window safety bars and the handrails/safety bars for the obscured glass section of the restaurant car from .45mm nickel silver wire. I need to add roof ribs to both carriages from thin tape but I’ll do that after the roofs have had their final wash. The intention is to wash and primer them today, spray them maroon tomorrow, line and transfer them on Monday, varnish them on Tuesday…… Kind regards, Iain

This week I’ve worked from home so have saved about an hour a day on travelling to and from work. I’ve invested this time wisely and moved on with the build of my Comet Models D1901/1923 Restaurant Third and D1903 Composite Open. I’ve completed the construction of all the major metal parts and now its adding the whitemetal fittings and building the interior. I like to make the roofs removable on my carriage builds and, because of this, the soldered sides and ends while being worked on, can be a bit delicate and flimsy for my heavy-handedness, so I like to solder hefty cross beams between the sides. These are drilled to accept bolts coming down from the roof to secure it in position. I decided to put an extra cross beam on the RT just to help keep it all square. The main components of the Restaurant Third: And of the Composite Open: And the parts put together: The roof on the RT has quite a complex arrangement of vents, fans and pipework and this has all been drilled pending fitting of the components. I like to drill most of the holes in the first instance with about a .8mm bit and then follow up with one closer to the size of the component diameters that will pass through/be secured in the holes, effectively drilling each hole twice. I used a pin vice and by the time I had done both carriages I had a blister on my thumb and finger! There has to be an easier way. The end hand hold holes are drilled .5mm and the pipe securing brackets are drilled .7mm. Despite my care and attention two holes on the RT were notably out of square and needed re-drilling and the wrong holes filling. The only plan of the Composite roof layout I have is the one that came with the kit. For some reason the third class luggage area doesn’t have its own vent like the first class one; maybe the LMS didn’t care if the luggage at that end smelled. Kind regards, Iain

Sorry, I don’t really have any idea - they were fitted in the ceiling when we bought the house!! That said, they’re 10w LED with each unit about 100mm/4in across, having about eight individual LEDs, the ‘glass’ is a hard opaque plastic, which probably softens/diffuses the light; they’re produce a very ‘white’ light. Kind regards, Iain

Thanks for your kind words, Chas. I have seen your thread - you have demonstrated some real patience with your lining and the experiments with the paint. It has come out as a superb job. The jury's still out on either me starting a workbench thread or also posting something in the 'Kit Building and Scratchbuilding' topic; maybe thats something for next year. I don't have a photo booth! I just use a couple of pieces of white A2 card that I lay on my desk, on which I place my model. The room has two downlights in the ceiling, one just off the the right of the subject and one in front of it. I have a big window to the left but its not a great light source as that faces south and there's a high fence with trees above it to the neighbouring property. I have a good camera and always use a tripod. I will occasionally use some fill in flash and the white balance is set manually, even so some images seem to have a slight colour cast and others don't. Kind regards, Iain

In addition to the trio of wagons shown a post or two above, I’ve also progressed with a couple of Comet Models carriages – a LMS D1901/1923 Restaurant Third: And a Comet Models LMS D1903 Composite Open which will be the restaurant carriage’s additional dining space. I’m not normally in a rush to build or finish anything, part of the pleasure of modelling is enjoying it as you go, although I can get frustrated if things ‘hang around’ for too long. So I will often prepare models for assembly sometimes long before I ever intend to put them together, as is the case with this pair. While I’m lucky enough to have a modelling bench in another room of our home, I will normally do this preparatory work, on a tray, on the dining table or in the living room so as to be near the family. I also find then that the initial assembly at least, is quite quick. In the week, I soldered in the droplights, door hinges and door stops and built up the basics of the bogies. And then yesterday I put the main body pieces together. I will try and do the carriage chassis’ this week, I always do these after the body is put together as they sit inside the body base and there’s not much margin for error. Kind regards, Iain

This week I’ve managed to finish off a few background projects I’ve had on the go for a while. Early in the year I dug out of deep storage some plastic wagon kits I had made many years ago. The aim was to try and strip/breakdown and rebuild them through this year. While I knew it was always a stretch target, I have now completed eight of them. On the left is a Ratio (Kit 572) LMS 12T box van and on the right a Parkside Dundas (PC08A) BR 12T box van, that I think was based on a former GWR style body with corrugated ends. They have both been improved with Alan Gibson sprung buffers, Lanarkshire Models buffer housings, screw/instanter couplings and brake safety loops (Bill Bedford) and various bits of undergubbins detail added. When I stripped the paint off them, I was surprised to find that the Ratio one had pre-printed sides for Harvey’s Bristol Cream. Both have been painted in BR bauxite and finished with Custom Cambridge Transfers and homemade ones. I realised after I varnished them that I could have got away with using transfers from the CCT sheet for Parkside PC08 on the Ratio van! Typical! I have weathered them slightly. Also, earlier in the year I started building an ancient WSM brass open wagon kit. Its based on the RCH 10/12T wooden underframe PO wagon (from about 1906/1907?) I wasn’t sure how to finish it as I thought it unlikely many of these would be in revenue earning service in the 1950s (my era of interest) and it was Headstock (Andrew) who suggested finishing it as a departmental wagon; so I have. Its finished in plain black, unsure of the numbering I just made something up but I think its semi-plausible. I added 3 link couplings and I scribed and painted some very thin plastic card and then stuck it to the inside (its seems rougher in the image than real) to represent old tired planking. From not being particularly happy with it when I built it, I’m now quite satisfied. It’ll probably live at the end of siding somewhere one day. Kind regards, Iain

Thanks MJI. I’ll give it some thought. To me, its not about followers, I show what I do because I think it may encourage others to have a go and show their work. If it gets appreciated or commented on, that’s a bonus. Kind regards, Iain

Thanks Steve. No I don’t have a thread on the coaches I make. To be honest, I didn’t think many other people/modellers would be particularly interested in what I make and so I’ve only ever shown them here on Wright Writes. I’m not sure either that my model making is prolific enough to warrant a workbench type thread. There is a thread on ‘Special interests – UK prototype’ of LMS coaching stock which has a mix of prototype and model making and I have thought to show them there, once complete, if that makes sense. Kind regards, Iain

This week I was able to complete the build on a couple carriages I have had on the go for a while now. First up is this Comet Models LMS D1720A Brake Composite. These were originally ‘Period II’ vehicles that had their sides replaced in the fashion of the ‘Period III’ carriages; they retained their original roofs, ends and underframes. This is pretty much as it came in the kit other than adding curtains and making my own scissor gangways. I’m quite pleased at how it has turned out. I did have problems with lining it. When I built it, I had soldered door stops on the centre black line of the lining below the windows and couldn’t get the lining pen to go neatly above or below the door stops. I stripped it, reprimed it and repainted it and had a second go; but that wasn’t any better. So I stripped it again, but before painting it again, I re-drilled and soldered new doorstops about 1mm below where the lining needed to go. Much neater. I’m not 100% sure the running number is in the correct place at the brake end. That said, there seems no ‘right’ way as in many of the pictures I have access to, the number could have been where I’ve put it or under the grey panel. There seems little rhyme or reason to the placement of the grey panels either, it could have been where I put it or on the guard’s doors. I’ve yet to add a screw coupling. And I completed this Comet Models LMS D1791 Corridor Composite. Done as the BCK above, with home-made scissor gangways and curtains from ribbon and thread around a small plastic frame. Windows are cut from microscope slip glass. The Stones Ventilators are from Rumney Models. It should also have Stones Ventilator over the lavatory windows but the aperture in the coach side was too big, or the ventilator too small, so I just ignored it. With these now done, I have started a couple more carriages: an LMS Restaurant Third and LMS Composite Open as its dining carriage. If I make much progress, I’ll maybe show them next week. Kind regards, Iain

After having had a couple of pretty busy weeks at work, I’ve been able to sit down this weekend and get the carriages I have under construction to the painting stage. All the bits are good to go other than adding rain strips to the roofs from tape; I’ll do that after the last clean tonight. The compartments will have their final seats added after the interiors are secured to the chassis, utilising the bogie fixing bolts. I’ll only use a smidgeon of glue in case they need to come out at some point in the future. The Comet Models D1704A Corridor Brake Composite: And at the final check to ensure it’ll all still go together: And likewise, the Comet Models D1791 Period II Corridor Composite: I’m fortunate to have this Monday and Tuesday off, so I should be able to at least get them primered (Tamiya Oxide Red Fine Surface Primer) on Monday and the maroon (Tamiya Maroon TS-11) on, on Tuesday. Might even get the roofs and chassis’ painted too. Anyway household jobs beckon….. Kind regards, Iain

Many thanks, they look good. I'll employ that method on a batch of LMS 50ft parcels vans. Kind regards, Iain

Do you have any pictures / drawings of what you've done?. I think I need about another 10 or so pairs (having done about 25 so far), any ideas on something simpler would be much appreciated. Kind regards, Iain

I’ve managed a reasonable amount of modelling time over the last few weeks, although the progress on a couple of Comet Models LMS carriages still seems glacial to me. The main work has focussed on making the scissor gangways / corridor connectors. Below are the main pieces for one set: plates (three of, one for the carriage and two for scissors to attach to, the ‘scissors’ (1mm x .5mm brass strip 27mm long, .5mm hole drilled at one end), .45mm NS wire for the scissors to be threaded on to.) The curly brass is really thin brass shim to make the cowling for the coach plate and the scissor plate. Hopefully the picture below illustrates better than my poor explanation of parts above…. The cowling is formed around some coffee stirrers and lollipop sticks; the one cowl sits inside the other and will be joined with a piece of neoprene rubber cut from an old super soft mouse mat. The ‘scissors’ slide in a soft brass strip ‘U’, bent round the end of a small screwdriver for consistency. The bellows are cut from quality black paper and interwoven. The scissors are secured on the bottom pin by a wrap of single copper wire (taken from a mains cable off cut) and soldered. The right-hand corridor connector is soldered up solid, as it will be the one attached to the end of the brake carriage. A thin plastic closing door cover will be done. For such a surprisingly simple task, these connectors have taken a disproportionate amount of time in relation to the other bits of this build. For both carriages, I have prepared most of the inside detail. I decided to paint the panel detail of the compartment sliding doors. Photographs I have seen of the interior (which I looked at after I'd painted them!) seem to indicate that the wood was actually all one colour / type but I think it looks quite nice so they'll stay as they are! I had to file away some parts of the etch to clear my roof securing cross beams and I’ve also done the first-class seats blue with antimacassars, again I’m not sure if this is right, but it’s done now. The roofs are yet to be fitted with rain strips or end hand rails. The D1791 Period II Corridor Composite: The D1720A Corridor Brake Composite: This week I’ll look to put the interiors together and paint them and carry on making detailing parts including couplings, brake pipes, curtains (another chore) and handrails. And maybe paint a few passengers. Kind regards, Iain

Mine arrived today! Along with my Pines Express 306: The Bulletin of the Somerset & Dorset Railway Trust. Hopefully I'll get some quality reading time this weekend. Kind regards, Iain

Hi John, Nice looking vehicle! I think your thought process for tidying it up are sound, well, they’re what I’d be doing and have done similar in the past! I haven’t done a Blacksmith model either, but there is a pedigree link to Roxey Coaches of today (I had a long phone conversation with Dave Hammersley on it a while back when he was helping me document some other carriages I had) and I’ve done a fair few Roxey's and encountered, to some degree, most of what you mention. For this this type of roof I would consider a single bolt fixing pulling down from the centre of the vehicle. Something like this (apologies for the crude image, it was done a while ago, long before I ever considered showing work on RMWeb – I can do fresh if it helps): It’s a short length of tube with a 10BA or a 12BA nut (can't remember exactly) soldered to one end. I made a plastic card base from a few layers of material, drilled a hole to take the tube and then filed a taper in the open end of the hole closest to the roof. I made a few score/cut marks on the plain end of the tube with a file and epoxied it in, lining it all up with the roof in place before the glue hardened. The taper and the scores prevent the tube being pulled out of the plastic base, when under tension. Another method I have used is similar to the Triang one, where instead of a nut I’ve soldered in an off-cut of a bolt thread into the tube which passes through the carriage floor and a washer and nut under the floor do the fixing. This works but I found it harder to line everything up (This is an Ian Kirk carriage rebuild). Securing the tube to the roof is the same method as above. To pull sides in / push out, I have done this – a small loop soldered to each side of the coach and a piece of wire bent to the required length, the wire is removable so the interior can be fitted/removed as necessary. I appreciate you might not want to do this as you’ll not want to damage your paint finish, but to stop yours bending in, you could glue a piece of plastic with a hole drilled in it, to each side, and insert the wire. With everything in compression, friction will hold the wire in place. Don't forget the First Class logos on the windows - have fun lining all those up!! Kind regards, Iain

I have managed to progress a couple of carriage kits along the workbench; a Comet Models LMS D1791 Corridor Composite and a D1720A Brake Corridor Composite. I think they’re looking okay, the bodies, underframes and bogies all went together easily and the roofs have been cut to length. I’ve started scratch building the working scissor gangways (a real chore for me) that these carriages had and I’ve yet to start fitting my preferred roof fixing method, I need to buy some brass strip but won't be able to do that until the weekend and then I’ll start the interior. Kind regards, Iain

Seeing the few posts relating to Hornby Black 5’s caused me to pull out the box on an old model of mine. It’s one of the much-maligned Hornby tender drive versions from the mid 1980s; I bought it from Beatties in Banbury in the summer of 1986 for £40.99 (with one of my first pay packets!) It was in LMS livery, as that was all that was available, but was quickly painted in BR lined black as in the photo below. The image portrays much evidence in the way of my inexperience at the time. In the early 1990s I replaced the loco chassis with a Comet Models version, it was at that point I found out the Hornby model was under length, and the tender drive replaced with a simple Comet chassis frame. From memory it ran reasonably well, although the D13 motor driving the rear axle runs better in reverse than forward! Something to do with the way thrust acts on the bearings, I believe. I did do some work on the loco body – I took out the ‘skirt’ below the boiler, and detailed it with things like sprung buffers. The front step on the offside has been lost along the way. So why show it, given I have two Hornby models from the 2005-2010 era and a Gibson one in the kit pile? Because I’m fond of it and it was part of a modelling journey and, in keeping with the budget theme, I have acquired many bits and bobs with the idea on mind of upgrading it. I did purchase most of the parts needed to detail and improve it. This included a replacement Hornby body for it – before the better Hornby ones came out – with the intention of really seeing what I could do with it, but then someone gave me one of those plastic display models of a Black 5 as a gift. As kind as it was of them, they’re not really my thing and I saw the potential in using that as the basis of upgrading my old runner! I haven’t checked the plastic display model for dimensional accuracy, the tender doesn’t seem quite right but the loco body on face value seems to ‘look’ okay. If it ever gets done, I appreciate, it’ll be more of a ‘Trigger’s broom’ than an upgrade of a mid 80s Black 5! Kind regards, Iain