BillB

On couplers, my Jouef "Impéreales" have come with three types of coupler. What I take to be the earliest have something not unlike the old metal Hornby Dublo / PECO Simplex secured with a screw. This has the advantage of allowing a coach or wagon to be lifted out of a rake without hassle.

What I take to be the "middle" version have a Roco style hinged loop coupler on a stamped metal frame, again secured by a screw identical in diameter and location to that in the early type, so those two coupler types are interchangeable. These Roco style are for me the ones that tend to bounce off each other rather than couple.

The real stamped metal Peco Simplex is a slightly different shape to the Jouef version, but the hole at the back is in the right place and the right diameter to also fit with the Jouef screw, making it a direct replacement on "early" and "middle" chassis, and my first thought was to fit these to all of the stock, as I have a load of them.

But then I got some of what I take to be the "latest" version, which have NEM coupler pockets fitted with Roco style couplers. These coupler assemblies clip onto a plastic peg which protrudes from a modified floor moulding, i.e. no socket for a screw. This design allows easy fitting of NEM Kadee couplers, which also make it easy to pick up a coach from the middle of a rake. These Jouef NEM pockets have no centering springing, so don't always align.

The only coupler type that will simply fit to early and late chassis types is the Roco coupler. The only way to fit Kadees to the early chassis would be by using body-mounted coupler boxes, but these would at least provide centering springing and be reliable, and should be no problem on such a short chassis. The Rivarossi Bourbonnaise is designed to couple to stock with Roco coupler hoops, my Metrop "Bicyclette" tank has screw-link couplers, and the new REE model will have NEM pockets and thus take Roco or Kadee couplers. So I am undecided!

Best Regards,

Bill.

Thanks very much, that is the very wagon, and carries the same number, k.Sachs 46882, as in the Fleischmann set.

Best Regards,

Bill.

Hi folks, I have seen a Fleischmann goods train set issued in 1989 as Fleischmann 4886. It contains a steel open wagon lettered for Saxony. I am wondering if this was issued separately? And if so what the product number is? I don't want to buy the set, as whilst the wagons seem to have NEM coupler pockets, it has a KPEV T 16.1 which does not have NEM coupler pockets. I don't need a 1989 issued wagon if it was issued at other times with other #s, provided it is for the k.Sachs. I have looked on ebay Germany and thru my old Fleischmann catalogues for such a wagon, but have not found it, so maybe it only came in that set.

Best regards,

Bill.

Dear Klaus and Rekoboy, thank you very much for your replies, which are very helpful. My branch line will definitely be before 1920 and air-brakes. As to which company, that will depend on which loco is on the tracks at the time. I have a selection of interesting small tank engines, essentially one goods loco and one passenger loco for each railway, and all from traders stands at train shows or ebay, so not a new one amongst them!

Thanks again,

Bill.

I forgot to ask, what is the role of the brakeman's cabins when the train has a proper Gepackwagen at the back? And in special reference to short goods trains on branchlines, did a train need to have a gepackwagen too if it had a van with a brakeman's cabin?

Thanks,

Bill.

Hi, I am asking this here rather than on the prototype board because it is about getting my modelling practice right. I have several questions and even if some have been asked before I thought it might be handy to have all the answers in the same place!

1. Were brakeman’s cabins glazed, and the un-glazed models just a cost-cut?

2. Did each cabin just control the brakes on that wagon?

3. Was every brake cabin in a train manned? Or was there a mandatory number than had to be manned when a train was moving?

4. Did the brakemen on a train have to be from the same Landerbahn as the engine crew? Or could they inter-operate?

5. Did the brakeman on a train need to be in a cabin on a vehicle belonging to his own employing Landerbahn, or could he use the cabin of a “visiting” wagon?

To put the above in context, if a goods train ran from Berlin to Dresden did responsibility for braking the train change at the border between Prussia and Saxony? Or could a Prussian brakeman in a Prussian wagon with brakeman’s cabin control the train for the whole journey? I have used Prussia and Saxony as the example, but the question applies more widely.

And could you have a train running entirely within Saxony, say from Dresden to Leipzig, where the only wagon(s) on the train with a brakeman’s cabin was a Prussian wagon, with the cabin manned by a Saxon brakeman, or would the train need to have a Saxon wagon with brakeman’s cabin for the Saxon brakeman to use?

6. Would a branch-line train always have a wagon with brakeman’s cabin from the home company, or could the brakeman occupy any convenient cabin?

7. Did there have to be a wagon with brakeman’s cabin at the end of the train (e.g. to prevent runaway if a coupling broke mid-train).

8. Where the brakeman’s cabin is lower than the height of it's van and so has no commanding view, would that be manned in a journey or just used to brake the wagon when stationary, and thus that wagon could not act as the brake on a running train? (example, Fleischmann 5853 K).

I'd be grateful for any relevant info,

Thanks,

Bill.

Thanks very much, I never thought of googling the question in French!

Best Regards,

Bill.

It's just too easy to post something and forget to click the "Follow Topic" button. Maybe it would be better if the default was "Yes" and you had to click something to not follow it? You can't follow a topic you forgot to follow except by posting another message and clicking "Follow".

Hello again, I'm browsing REE SNCF Ep.III wagons, and I see a van with a big "VB" on the side (REE WB-741 SNCF(exPLM) 20T van. EpIII), another van with a big "MT" on the side (REE WB-742 SNCF (exPLM) Fruit van. MT. EpIII), and a flat car, also with a big "MT" on the side (REE WB-502 SNCF Plats TP . EpIIIb). I am wondering what these letters indicate, e.g. something simple like "Vacuum Brake", or something restrictive like "Maintenance of Way Dept", or "Not for use on the main line".

I'm also wondering if there is an index somewhere of French wagon lettering - not hopeful and have searched the web, but there are comprehensive indexes of, e.g. German military nomenclature, so maybe.....

Thanks,

Bill.

Hi Andrew, thanks very much for your reply. By coincidence my question was prompted by my browsing PD's weekend "Promos", but I had not seen the MMM RG coaches. Unfortunately I have a Metrop ETAT "Bicyclette", of dubious running qualities, and so I probably need all of those MMM ETAT coaches for it, but with their ETAT lettering unaltered, but not this weekend!! But you made me think of the Jouef "Imperial" fourgon which is commendably short, 3 1/2" over buffers, and which has open doors, enabling a bit of character to be added in the form of packages, milk churns, etc. I have just hooked up a Jouef ETAT fourgon with a Roco ex-KPEV 6-wheeler and they look fine together, buffer and coupler height are perfect, and even the "greens" are close enough to look the same. The roof of the fourgon is a bit low, such that the roof of the birdcage lookout is level with the main roof of the 6-wheeler, and lower than the clerestory, but that wouldn't matter if its primery role was luggage, not train safety.

And thank you David. I had not been thinking of a fourgon being required as a safety buffer. I had been wondering in part whether if a guard / brakeman was present in the Guerite, that would make the need for one in a van redundant, thus the only purpose of a van would be for luggage / cargo. And I hadn't envisaged branch line trains to be anywhere near as long as in your photos.

Thanks again,

Bill.

I am contemplating an HO French branch terminus to fiddle-yard in a small space, probably 6-ft long, and possibly as small as a 4-ft scenic section plus a 2-ft FY on the same board. I appreciate that in France there was a standard gauge mainline network and a narrow gauge secondary network, so I may be introducing an English concept, but I want to work in standard gauge, not narrow gauge. I like the Roco ex-Prussian 6-wheelers. They are interesting and short, and I have most of them, so I want to use them! But they have no luggage compartments as an English branch consist would have. So I am wondering how a French branch line would handle passenger luggage. Did they make provision for luggage of the type an English branch line would, e.g. mail sacks, bicycles, etc. There are Roco 4-wheel “Thunderbox” type vans, Roco France 4204F, but they have a different character to the coaches and might be overkill on a branch train? They look more like a French equivalent to an SR GUV / PLV for mainline trains. And there are Roco G10 boxcars. I would appreciate thoughts from anyone who knows / has attempted similar / or is interested!
Thanks,
Bill.

Re "Did anyone buy the Olive set?", I did, to run behind my Olive H2 "South Foreland", as I found a pic of an H class heading a rake of these on the Brighton to Portsmouth service. B&W, so can't be sure everything was Olive, but who cares!

On a different topic, and not rivet counting, but are the LSWR set "too pink"? I saw them in Rails and they look pinker than the old PC models LSWR "Salmon", but which is right (and does it matter, as I think the only suitable "LSWR" liveried engine is the "BR Heritage" T9 by Hornby Collectors Club).

Best Regards,

Bill.

Regarding the delayed J26, I hope it is because they are improving the chassis and the current collection wipers.

I bought both LNER J27s and both developed the same problem on their first run out of the box - they ran forward fine, then on the first run backwards a strange noise started, and on inspection one wiper on each loco had twisted round and was catching between the wheel spokes. It was a different position wiper on each loco, one was rear left and the other was front right. Both were sorted out with a fine screwdriver blade, but both are now mis-shapen and don't contact their wheel tyre as well as they might. The loco needs stiffer / better current collectors on the driving wheels.

On a related issue, the tender pickups are also weak, on LNER No.1214 the pickup on one side on the tender middle axle doesn't even touch the wheel. There seems to be no springiness in the pickups to press them against the wheel tyre. Once they are bent they stay bent.

The second issue with my J27s is they are noticeably stiff going through Peco #2 radius points ST-240 / 241 (the set-track points - I know I shouldn't use them, but in a limited space...). In contrast my Hornby J15s glide through my passing loop of Peco #2 points, so an 0-6-0 chassis can cope with set-track!

On the positive side, the J27 looks wonderful, especially the fully lined LNER No.1214, and when working properly they move slowly, smoothly, and silently. I can't quite decide whether No.1214 looks nicer than the also lined Hornby  J36 LNER #722, the early L. &. N. E. R. with the number below on the tender on both locos to me looks splendid, and the best LNER goods lettering, but the J27 certainly looks a more powerful and purposeful engine and the 2-window cab also gives it more substance.

Best regards,

Bill.

Thanks to all for a very rich reply. For Chris I attach a link to a page about an accident at Woodlesford in 1910 when a rake of carriages was pushed through the buffers and onto Aberford Road. I hope your ancestor played no part in it! I use the last pic on my lockscreen, as being a published postcard it must be in the public domain, and wonder which of the assembled villagers I encountered as a child. BTW in the 1970s I commuted daily from Woodlesford station to Hebden Bridge, change at Leeds, and was never without a choice of seats on either leg of the journey. My main problem was falling asleep, and I once woke up in an empty Trans-Pennine DMU in Leeds.

https://newwoodlesford.xyz/woodlesford-station/trains/carriage-mishap/

Just seen photos of the MR station at Grassington. I hadn't realised the MR built all-wood stations (my local was Woodlesford - called Wood but actually brick). How common were they, were they just on branch lines, and are there any kits of a wood MR station building? I am familiar with the Airfix MR signal box. Asking on the prototype board because I'm also interested in other real examples. And why did the MR build Grassington in wood in an area where stone is plentiful? Did they have pre-fab wood buildings like the LNWR?

Grateful for any info,

Bill.

Yes, I know it's not the best, but I am expanding a train set. The Bachmann UK website lists all the E-Z track parts and beside almost all it says "Arrived". But on retailers websites except for a few items Rails have it says "On Order". There is no way to email Bachmann to ask them why they seem unable to get their stock to their retailers, and they don't have an on-line shop like Hornby. So I am faced with the prospect of having to buy the parts I need by mail order from the USA, at huge cost in postage. I am talking basic items here, like the packs of 4x 9" straights, BAC 44511, and one each of the 30, 45, and 60 degree crossings and 2 Hayes bumpers. Even on ebay all the items listed are from the US. There is a "Find a Retailer" function on the Bachmann website, but locally apart from Rails most are small shops that don't have websites and don't even answer the phone.

I have looked on all the big retailers websites, Rails, Kernow, Gaugemaster, Antics, and some smaller ones like B&H in Lincoln. BTW, why don't Hattons carry Bachmann anymore?

Grateful for any info,

Bill.

A used Peco SL-43 just sold for £50 on ebay! Another sold for £26 yesterday. They had their issues - keeping the PB clean and you had to rig your own end-gates. But one unit was a perfect cradle for exchanging a pair of HO scale 40-ft boxcars in the FY - I believe the new double is still a bit shorter than one old single, and the end-gates are internal so you have less length if you use them. Lifts are perfect for couplers that can uncouple vertically like Kadees or PECO Simplex. More of a fiddle for other types, as you can't get an uncoupling ramp right up to the entrance.

Hi, I am looking to use OO loco lifts as cassettes. My experience is that the copper(?) tarnishes quite quickly, and cleaning it with a fibre-glass pen makes nasty dust. I'd be grateful for tips on how folks keep their lifts clean and conductive. Also, I only have experience of the old lifts, and the new loco lifts look a lot more enclosed and thus harder to service? I'd appreciate any advice.

Thanks,

Bill.

FYI I found the answer - "Peters Spares PS34 Lima Replacement 11.5mm Wagon & Coach Wheels" are a perfect fit and roll smoothly on Code 70 track.

Bill.

I can confirm that the "Peters Spares PS34 plain disc Lima Replacement 11.5mm Wagon & Coach Wheels" are an exact fit to replace the original wheels in the old Jouef Imperiale coaches. I replaced one axle in the coach shown above and the coach was horizontal on the track, i.e. the same height at both ends with a mix of axles, and when I had replaced both axles the buffer and coupler height matched an un-converted coach of the same type, and the coach ran like silk on PECO code 70 track.

Whilst I used the plain disc wheels there are also PS115 3-hole disc wheels and PS116 8-spoke wheels of the same diameter and axle length. I didn't order the spoked wheels as they look a bit "waggony", but I will try them for appearance under my green birdcage brake / luggage vans (Jouef 5648).

I found a drawing of a double-decker coach which shows the same style of disc wheels as the photo of the preserved example, with the distinctive four small semi-circular cut-outs near the rim (see pics below), and as no-one makes anything like that I think I will use plain discs for my double-deckers. Not least, the two decks must have made them heavier than the single deck coaches or the vans, making discs more necessary for strength and safety reasons.

Next tasks, order the Rails d'Autrefois books "Hors-série n° 2 : Les voitures à impériale" and I also saw "Hors-série n° 6 - Les locomotives 030 Bourbonnais du PLM"; and I need to find some smoother-operating couplers than the Jouef originals, which rarely couple without help from the "big hand from the sky". I hope that by upgrading my coaches the more effort I put in the more likely it is that REE will issue some scale coaches to match their forthcoming Bourbonnais!!!!!

Not much point in upgrading my Rivarossi Bourbonnais now REE are stepping in! (though it is cosmetically excellent and a reliable runner).

Thanks for your help,

Bill.

Thanks very much. If you want to see the Jouef maroon 4-wheeler, google "Jouef 4501". They are nice little coaches, and I have found a supplier of 11.5 mm dia wheels on 24.5 mm pinpoint axles intended as scale replacements for Lima wheels, and have ordered some samples to see if they fit. It is "petersspares.com". I will provide an update when they arrive and I have tried them.

The Jouef "Imperiale" 4-wheeler coach models have disc wheels, and photos of a preserved double decker also show disc wheels, but I am wondering if that is about modern safety standards, and whether back in the 1850s - 1910s they might also have had spoked wheels. I'd be grateful for any info.

Also, the Jouef models are all lettered for the ETAT, but they use both Green and Maroon for the 2nd class bodies. Does anyone know what the correct class liveries were? And were the colours era-specific??

Grateful for any advice,

Thanks very much,

Bill.

I saw some speculation earlier that the Airfix Booking Hall is to HO, not OO (which would mean 1/87, not 1/76). I am building it at the moment and the "normal" doors / doorways are 25 mm high (6' 3" in OO), and the double doors / doorways are 26 mm high (6' 6" in OO).

I got the following from the Everest website (!)

The most common (standard) door width in England and Wales is 2’ 6” – 30 inches – 762mm.

In Scotland, the door width is a little smaller, usually measuring 28.5 inches – 726mm.

The most common (standard) door height in England and Wales is 6’ 6” – 78 inches – 1981mm.

In Scotland the door height is a little taller: 80 inches – 2040mm.

So I think that makes it OO. Especially as people were shorter in the 19th Century !!

Bill.

Update - ZZ 24603 is just as impressive as ZZ 24602.

Bill.

Hi, I know at least some of the Airfix Trackside OO/HO kits were based on real buildings, e.g. the Signal Box was based on the MR signal box at Oakham, Rutland, and the Church was based on Old St Boniface Church, Bonchurch, Ventnor, Isle of Wight.

I wonder, does anyone know the original buildings the Booking Hall and Engine Shed were based on?

Info on any other prototypes for the Trackside kits would be welcome too.

Not sure if I am asking in the correct forum...

Thanks,

Bill.