D6150

Couple of better photos today (I hope)! 70810 approaching Raith's Farm, Dyce, with the 04.33 Irvine Caledonian Paper to Aberdeen Waterloo tanker train. Quite a fine day for the end of October.

A couple of snatched photos of an unidentified Colas Rail class 70 on the 13.02 Aberdeen Craiginches to Oxwellmains cement tankers earlier today. Bucksburn in Aberdeen. The train was a few minutes early, so I didn't have time to get to the location I'd planned. Colas Rail colours do quite a good job of camoflaging the loco amongst all the autumn leaves.

A couple of photos of an unidentified Colas Rail class 70 heading through Bucksburn on it's way out of Aberdeen this afternoon. The service is the 13.02 Aberdeen Craiginches to Oxwellmains cement tanker empties. The low-rise industrial buildings to the left of the train were part of the former Twinspires Creamery. This closed around 20 years ago, having opened in the 1950's, and was served by milk tanker trains up until the late 1960's. Apologies, a bit of a dull afternoon weather-wise.

A photo of 70801 passing through Bankhead on the north side of Aberdeen earlier this afternoon. The 04.37 Irvine Caledonian Paper to Aberdeen tanker empties again. I thought I might be able to get a bit closer to the fence, but the vegetation's recovered pretty quickly since the area was cleared for access during the upgrade of the Aberdeen-Dyce line a couple of years ago.

Thanks for the feedback, that would make sense. Will have to try and get some photos at some point.

A couple of photos of 70806 crossing the Bucksburn Viaduct with yesterday morning's Aberdeen Waterloo to Irvine Caledonian Paper tanker train. The tankers are loaded this time. Does anyone know if Colas Rail locos lay-over in Aberdeen between trips? Apologies again for the dodgy picture quality, and the lampposts and railings getting in the way.

A few photos from me of Colas Rail Class 70's in Aberdeen. First off we have a couple of shots of 70806 passing through Bankhead on the northern outskirts of Aberdeen with the 04.37 Irvine Caledonian Paper to Aberdeen Waterloo tanker empties. Photos taken earlier on today. After that we have a shot of an unidentified class 70 coming off the Bucksburn Viaduct on an Inverness to Waterloo/Craiginches working on 24/08/20. The flats to the left of the loco are built on the site of the former Bucksburn Station. All photos taken on my phone I'm afraid folks, so sorry for the slightly dodgy quality.

Well it's supposed to be a real prototype, but whether it turns out like it or not.... European, and in service from the late 1950's to the early 1990's, with a few lingering longer. Thanks Ken

Thanks for all the feedback folks. Glad I'm not the only one who's struggled with the way Revell put their kits together! Not sure why they have taken this approach. Yes the F104 was pretty notorious for a while, especially in West German service. Very much the wrong aircraft for low level missions. From what I can make out, the Italians latterly only used them in the high altitude role they were originally designed for. Horses for courses.... Thanks Ken

Another wee project moving closer to the finish line. Revell's kit of the Lockheed F104-G Starfighter. It's been a long time since I tried an aircraft kit. This one was a bit different to the (mainly Airfix) ones I remember, the fuselage is in 4 bits not 2, and getting them to join neatly wasn't easy. Would like to blame Revell, but its probably me... This will be painted up as an F104-G of the Italian Aeronautica Militare. Italy was an enthusiastic user of the F104, only retiring the last of their S variants in 2002. An old aircraft that still manages to look futuristic, at least in my eyes.

Hello, Thanks for the interesting suggestions. I'm not going to reveal the correct answer just yet, in case there are any other guesses. Thanks Ken

To cheer myself up following imposition of a local lockdown I've decided to do teaser photo for my next project. I'm not going to say what it is intended to be, guess away. What it actually ends up as may be a different story. Possibly pushed to the back of the "work in progress" shelf. Comments and suggestions welcome as always. Ken

Thanks for the feedback. If I ever get the time (unlikely..) I wouldn't mind collecting some of the many space toys that came out in the 1960's and 70's. There's a bit of skepticism about the Apollo programme nowadays, but I personally think it was a remarkable achievement (although I would say that being a fan). I also find it quite weird that here in the 21st century we no longer have the ability to go to the moon...

So here we have the airfix moon buggy, or more correctly the lunar rover. I have added seat backs, antenna's, and the cargo rack/bulkhead behind the seats. I still need to add the satellite dish on the main antenna, and the distinctive orange mudguards. The two astronauts in the background are taking rock and dust samples, that's some kind of probe, not a rifle. These guys are roughly half way through painting, I think the space suits look better with a matt finish. I also have a Revell F104G starfighter in progress at the moment, will get back to something rail-related soon.

Thanks for this. I put one of the buggies together last night. Pretty easy to do, but it lacks quite a few details (seat backs, mudguards). I will try and add some of the missing bits and get it painted up.

A bit off topic for RM Web, and about 12 months late for the Apollo 11 anniversary, here is my first attempt at the Airfix astronaut figure set.... These are made of slightly squishy vinyl rather than hard plastic. This can be hard to paint (ask my 12 year old self), but it turns out a quick coat of watered-down PVA glue works as a primer (leftovers from IKEA). Paint used is a mix of humbrol and revell enamel, with some cheap watercolour paint from The Works for weathering. Think I will try assembling one of the moon buggies next.

That's great, thanks for your help. Ken

Hello. Resurrecting an old topic here. I was wondering if anyone has come across drawings or blueprints of the CC65000 loco? I've asked Google, but its come up with nothing..... Any help appreciated. Thanks, Ken

So my latest project is completed, or nearly. A repaint and minor detailing of the old Hornby class 37, which had been stored away and largely forgotten for 20-odd years. Briefly I have... - Fitted new air horns - Fitted fixed-beam and high intensity headlights - Fitted some jumper cables (possibly not all of them) - Fitted new cab steps in the correct location (removing the class 47 steps wasn't easy) - Altered the nose grilles - Removed the buffer beam cowls - Changed the buffers - Renumbered as 37681 from 37130 - Repainted in a generic modern livery. Theres a bit of TfW, a bit of Virgin Trains and a wee bit of LoadHaul in there. As the experts amongst you might know, the real 37130 was scrapped after an accident in the 1990s, so there is no accurate modern livery for this particular loco. Horns, etc., came from an old Dapol Deltic kit that went very wrong very quickly..... Incidentally does anyone know what service the 8H22 headcode Hornby used referred to? There will eventually be a short rake of BP tta tanks to go with the loco, inspired by the Lairg and Fort William tank trains. So there we go. Comments welcome.

That's a handy photo. Realised I'd missed a couple of details off the roof of my 37......

So having completed the first Hornby TTA wagon, I've moved on to my next project (victim?) Hopefully still just about recognisable as the Triang Hornby R751 class 37. I'm trying to complete the modification/detailing I started a few years back (1997 if I'm honest, it's been a busy 20 years or so). The plan is to update 37130 to it's final form as 37681. I'm still debating liveries. Various alterations to the body shell so far (some better than others). Not one for the rivet counters I fear, but I have at least filled the slot in the fan-end nose. I have good memories of class 37's on the Elgin/Inverurie-Shotton timber trains in the mid 1990s, and may have some photos somewhere, if I can find them.....

Thanks for this, I will have a look on the web to see what I can find. Incidentally I'm still trying to work out when and why the BP logos were removed from the TTA's used on the Lairg and Fort William trains. Does anyone know?

So after a bit of a gap, some progress to report. My ho scale Australian project is currently on hold as I grapple with the bits I'm not so good at (scenics, buildings). Meantime I have been clearing out some of the old Hornby/Lima which has been cluttering up my folks loft for the last 20 years or so, and seeing what (if anything) i can do with it. First up is one of the omnipresent Hornby TTA wagons. This was the red Texaco version, but is now in BP colours, inspired by the Lairg tanker trains and quite a few posts on here. Quite pleased with how this has turned out, but probably not one for the rivet counters.... Planning on doing a couple more, so any comments and suggestions welcome.

Ok, so limited progress of late, other demands and priorities. However I've made a start on the small Station building, creating a basic card "box" that all the detail can be hung on. I've tried replicating the clapboard/weatherboard finish of the original using thinner card, and although it's a slow process, I'm impressed with the results! Hopefully this will continue..... Ebay has provided some excellent Ho scale corrugated sheet from Auhagen for the roof, of which more later.

That's the one! Thanks for your help.