MrWolf

Definitely. The builders would have done everything to protect and maintain the towpath, you don't see an earth only towpath under bridges. You would probably find that around bridges it was a part of the bridge foundation. If you look closely at the towpath on the Lancaster canal below and ignore the tarmac, you can still see the cobblestones under the bridge and this is the same on all the rural sections. Further into the country, the towpath is compressed stone and earth, as it probably always has been.

The ground frame plates were either "liberated" by souvenir hunters or smashed up for scrap.

I had an interesting conversation with someone years ago regarding my collection of enamel signs (long gone and occasionally lamented) where it was rightly pointed out that they were still technically the property of the oil companies and their successors. (Some even have "property of..." Printed on them.) He went on to say - What about all that railwayana, that was nationalised and is technically property of the state?

That's a can of worms for sure.

Everyone Has Someone - Hank Blackman And The Killers

California Sun - The Rivieras

46 minutes ago, rockershovel said:

 

The great thing about old Amals is (are?) the short, straight fuel passages. Even if they are blocked with varnish (a common problem with bikes parked up and forgotten in the US) they can be cleaned out without too much trouble. I’ve got a 1970s Keihin from a Sportster somewhere in the workshop, which has defied all attempts to clean it out for some years now...

 

Have you tried soaking it in cellulose thinners for a few days? 

On 26/11/2020 at 09:58, Northroader said:

Will you be having the “All Nations” tree in the view?  (I think it’s the Arbor tree these days)

 

Um....

You got me there. 

I might be asking @KNP nicely for tips on obtaining the materials and making Many Trees...

Time Makes You Change - The Dells

My Troubles Are Not At An End - The Penguins

1 hour ago, New Haven Neil said:

As a going concern, if it really is nice and shiny it may bring £2k or a little more, 2750 for a real original nicey, but they're not a particularly sought after bike.  They have a cam chainy reputation too.  I had a 900 many moons ago - much the same, but they also throw rods if abused, to add to the woes. 

 

As it stands, under a grand.  The main thing is the carbs - if any fuel has been left in them it is a nightmare to get them clean, and these are particularly finicky carbs - they won't run properly without the original air box as a for-instance, pod filters are a no-no.  Ultrasonic cleaning and meticulous assembly and checking of all airways (ultrasonics don't always get them all) is essential.

We had a similar carburettor problem with a 1995 CB500 twin last year that a friend bought as a non runner for £200. It should be simple, but the carbs were gunged up. Sonic cleaning, followed by cellulose thinners and a stiff brush and attacking with compressed air got the carbs in a fit state to receive an overhaul kit. 

I much prefer tinkering with those old AMALs that everyone loves to hate. Just about any fault can be fixed and most problems are baboon related. There are many far better carburettors out there, but once they're worn out in the bin they go. I've developed y very low opinion of anything that cannot be overhauled, especially now that people like to throw about the word "sustainability" . In my book "sealed for life" is a polite term for "Throwaway c2ap". 

The reason why my friend picked up the little Honda twin so cheaply is that the previous owner had been told by the local bike shops that it would cost more than it was worth to recommission, but we thought it was criminal to scrap it. We had a couple of spare days on it and now it's taking my friends son to work. It more than paid for itself in the first week. 

Trouble In Paradise - The Crests

They're all beaters to be honest, though one looks like a refugee from Quintinshill. To be fair, it's a charity shop selling them, I imagine that they will fetch decent money.

The bigger question is, as they aren't toy trains, how did they get into that state?

I Played The Fool - The Clovers

There's A Fool Born Every Day - The Five Superiors

That Day Will Never Come - The Parktowns

Well spotted! Interesting also to see the evergreens and box hedging opposite the platform instead of behind it.

Strange Days - The Doors

It's not just me then. That's a relief.

I collected them for past layouts, the largest one of  which measured 14'x20', but job changes and house moves put paid to them. I picked them up here and there since the 1980s. Never had a count up. I will have to go through them once the layout is sorted, build some, sell others. 

Now that I am posting progress on here, I have the chance to see how far I am getting each week.

Tomorrow the world!

3 hours ago, RailWest said:

Looking at that photo, and the vehicles in the station approach road, what sort of date would you put to it? Looks quite old to me...

 

The car headed towards the camera looks to be an Austin Heavy Twelve saloon. The wheels (under a magnifying glass) have large chrome hubcaps, which came in with the wire type wheels that replaced Artillery wheels c1932. So I would say not earlier than that. The truck I am not sure about, could be the back end of a mechanical horse? 1933/4 rings a bell for those.

56 minutes ago, Tallpaul69 said:

Hi All,

Notice that no one in their "confessions!" of outstanding projects has dared to mention wagons or non passenger/ engineering stock! 

But then there is the "wait and see if the RTR boys solve the problem for me" list, although I can say that locos are the one department where i have nothing outstanding. This is mainly because I have nothing started!

I daren't try to build anything in the loco arena and renumbering/repainting and minor bodging is too scarey for my liking.

Still it is a good job we don't all like doing the same modelling otherwise things would get boring with nothing to look around for help on.

Take care, pray for tier one after 16th December(or tier 2 if you are unfortunately in tier 3).

Best regards

Paul

I did, on my own thread "Aston On Clun", not only did I confess to having some 115 assorted unbuilt  wagon kits, several of which date back to when I was still at school, but (and this is the part that will scare a lot of you...) SWMBO is well aware of their existence and quantity.

She even helped sort them out, which is why I know exactly how many I have. 

Ain't gonna bring me down - The Meteors

1 hour ago, Enterprisingwestern said:

 

 

It's a reinforcing gusset for welded tube construction, it's amazing what you can re-purpose!

 

Mike.

It's definitely one of those "I've seen something like that but I can't think where" items.

As for it being a railway footbridge, or being worth almost £20 with the postage, I reckon that it qualifies for at least 50 points on the Poop-o-meter.

Sorry 'boit that.

But...

Offtopic? You don't know if he got his toupee or his advisors cheap off eBay and had to make an "item not as described" complaint.

Or whether several million Americans wish that they could complain to eBay....

To think that when I was a kid, people mocked Reagan. He at least will go down in history as having been instrumental in ending the cold war.

I wish that everybody stored their bikes the way that you do! 

The last ZA10 I rescued had a missing primary case filler cap. Clutch and primary chain rusted solid and the drive side bearing a write off. Lots of very small snails dead in there too. 

Another one is being asked to put a price on a 60s / 70s jap two stroke and the sinking feeling I get because my first impression is that the spark plug has been out three or more decades.