Amand

Initially it doesn't look promising as some parts of the website have 2010 as the date for forthcoming events. No phone number or address either. However, they advertise in the MERG quarterly Journal. There is a connection with 3mm Scale Model Railways, www.3smr.co.uk That website gives a phone number and address, more promising. No connection with either of the above....

Insert a flat bladed screwdriver between the solid metal wheels (as shown in your second photo) and the metal chassis block and twist. The axle should disengage from the plastic centred wheel. If you try the other side you risk damaging the plastic gear on the inside of the wheel. Agree with Andy G above - the plastic looks like its cracking and the axles are rusting. The wheels are part no X6023. When you come to re-assemble the motor use some switch cleaning solvent or IPA to clean the brass tube that the axle sits in, then apply a tiny drop of PowerLube (Peco) to the axles, it will stop corrosion and help transfer power to the chassis block. Plenty of cleaning videos on Youtube, although there have been a few variants of Ringfield motor over the years the basic dismantling process is the same.

A few questions - page 14, what's the size of the iron tips in mm, and how long to recharge the battery? Page 22, where's the class 97 details?

The price of 8 inch floppy disks has trebled in the last week, so I'm guessing quite a few have been bought to copy the data over. The tecnology will be a system with a built in spell chequer

Scouse woman goes on holiday, later on her husband joins her

The brand new ones have the collar is 1/3 of the way in the cog, so insert it so that the 2/3rds covers the ale, makes it much easier to fit . Guessing that the collar deforms slightly and that grips the axle. I've had a few silver coloured ones (Aluminium?) fail, but the brass ones seem to last, whether the original ones from the 1970s or the new replacements from Peters Spares. With practice its 1/2 hour job.

When you applied power to the bushes was the decoder still wired to the motor? If so then there's a chance that the motor drive circuitry has been damaged beyond repair - the lighting circuit may have survived, if so the decoder could be used to power the lighting circuit in the dummy end unit of the HST. If you follow the link from BromsMods you need the 4th HST item, which is a video. I've scanned through it, just be aware that he uses extender wires which don't follow the correct colour coding. Also the decoder used has a removable harness, so the decoder isn't connected when the multi-meter is being used to check the motor is isolated. The video below uses a Hornby decoder (same as the one in your HST) but he uses a wired DCC plug, ESU part 51950. I'd recommend using one as it allows a decoder to be changed in seconds, or replaced by a blanking plug for pure DC running. This allows for easier loco servicing and investigation should a loco suddenly stop running.

It's a fairly easy fix, to avoid damage remove the gear retainer and the 4 plastic gears. I take the front plate off (where the carbon brushes are held). To do this you may also need to remove the drive wheels, they will come off the axle at the geared side. If there are screws holding the carbon brush holder arms then remove them - in some generations of ringfield the screw will extend into the metal block. The face plate has four clips, take care as the plastic can become brittle. Placing the armature spindle facing down on a solid metal surface, put the replacement cog on the shaft. There's a collar inside the cog, this deforms and grips it in place. Using a nut spinner that has a hole larger than the axle diameteror tap the cog into place. It needs to be a hairs width above the metal bearing. Apply oil sparingly between the cog and bearing. Before assembling the motor, check the condition of the armature. Using IPA and a cotton bud give it a clean including the gap between the segments. If the ends of the carbon brushes aren't level then other use a file to flatten them off, or replace them. It's usually a sign of a loco that been run in one director more than the other. Using electrical cleaning fluid clean the bearing insides and wheel axles. Apply was tiny drop of Peco Power Lube to the axles then re-assemble in reverse order. The part from Peter's Spares is PS94. Same price on eBay as the web site, but postage is only £2 on eBay but £4 in the web site.

I meant it ironically!!!! Can you imagine the train wreck that would be!

Let's hope he doesn't get a job with Coopercraft!

My Rocket runs ok with the 3 coaches round my layout on the 4th radius curves, and that's with tweaking it so all the wheels rotate. It may cope with 4 coaches maximum, but 6 would defeat it. The layout is mostly level, with a tiny incline at one corner. If extra coach packs were available in 3s then 2 would stay in the box or go on eBay.

Maybe he found a working Amstrad E-mailer?

There's two big problems with the retail outlet my wife works in. Customers can touch the majority of the items on sale, some in cardboard boxes, others in plastic or polythene. Do we know for definite how long a drop of moisture containing Covid could remain active? Also the card machine isn't linked to the till, so the sales assistants have to touch the number pad to enter the monetary amount. The customer then touches the same keypad to enter the pin if the transactions is over £30 (that was the cut-off amount before shutdown). The minimum transaction amount at the till is £5, but there's plenty of items priced below that where it was cash only. Merchant service charges wipe out the profit on a £1 birthday card. We're thinking that she should take an unpaid break or possibly just pack in work if she's not happy with the situation.

An MOT can be done at any time, it will last 12 months from the date of the test. However, if you have your MOT done close to the expiry date (one calendar month less one day) then the MOT is deemed to have been done on the date the current on runs out, preserving the date. Be cautious of used car traders saying a car will have an MOT with no advisories dated for the day you buy the car, mainly traders selling cars in the sub 3K area. Happened to a colleague who bought a total lemon. ABS warning light bulb had been removed on a car with faulty module.

That was announced a few hours before Boris made his announcement. Technically model railways aren't essential, and maybe the staff attending work are breaking the rules of they're more all from the same household. Boris could have said all retail functionality had to stop, but he didn't go that far. Maybe he has a trainset in one of the rooms in number 10?

Her Rindoors

Hornby X03 / 4 motors give off a particular smell, and I remember reading a hint that when buying a 2nd hand loco at a swapmeet / exhibition was to ask if the loco had ever been run then ask to smell it. No smell = unrun or not run for many a year. Combine that with a lack or wear to the wheels. Old electronics components are the same. My uncle passed away over 30 years ago, and I still have a metal box full of resistors, capacitors, transistors and a large tobacco can full of very powerful and pungent flux. Just opening the box reminds me of him and his layout.

I had heard that Pete Waterman was combining his music and model railway interests. Apparently the first group involved is................. AC / DCC

Looking at Hattons, they have in the past sold R3668 J83 which was RailRoad branded, they show the retail box. With regards to steam, other than Tornado and 9F / Crosti, the RailRoad models use the older chunky Margate coupling rods and valve gear, albeit without the shiny finish. Much more durable than the softer metal used on high end locos. My view is that RailRoad models have long since paid off their original development costs many times over!

Or more likely Hornby are waiting until the 1st and 2nd deliveries are received before any are distributed to direct purchases or retailers. That way they have enough stock on hand to meet all the pre-orders without anyone receiving fewer than they've ordered, not disadvantaging any retailers. Patience, my little one

It's my understanding that other than TTS and Sapphire Hornby only have one type of decoder. It's the number of wires and the plug that differs. They are identical in size and looks, with solder pads for 8 wires. Unfortunately that means they all lack CV2 start voltage adjustment.

Rocket needs a six pin decoder. Due to the size of the socket a decoder with pins attached won't fit. Other tiny Zimo decoders have too much wire in the harness. The only decoder that I can see fitting is R7150 Hornby. Its a tight fit, and the wires have to be bent at the point they are soldered to the plug and decoder. The decoder is a snug fit in the top of the barrel. However, it does run perfectly well, the only limitation is the lack of CV2 to determine the start speed step.

I've managed to fit a Hornby R7150 6 pin decoder in mine, and its a tight fit. The wires coming off the decoder and socket are sharply bent round, so take care they don't become detached. I had wanted to fit a Zimo decoder, and even the smallest 616F / 617F would be a challenge due to the length of the cable - reducing the length of the cables would involve some precision soldering, and probably ought to be hosted in the DCC installation section of the forum. However, the loco runs very well with the Hornby decoder, I was pleasantly surprised. The only thing I with it supported is CV2 start voltage.

I wish! My phone likes to try to auto-correct things! R3810 about 2 weeks behind R3809.