Sailor Charon

A couple of reasons. The main one being the skirt under the boiler. And the difficulty of cutting Farish bodies. Now, I suppose I could have gone for the streamlined version that never happened, but even so...

Or, perhaps, to put it another way, if I'm going to have something that's not quite up to snuff, I'd rather it was something I'd done myself. Actually no

I like them. (I wish I had a pair myself, but that's a different matter) But yes, they look good. I think the colour actually looks better than the crimson on my Mk1 horsebox (Humbrol authentic)

There was supposed to be a better picture of the Mink C, but it was taking forever to attach...

Well, I've finished tweaking it.

I found a number of little things. Like the boiler not being straight. I found out when I decided to glue the smokebox saddle to the footplate to keep it safe. So, detach boiler, test fit, glue... then fill.

There was nearly a pipe coming down from the injector. There are five good reasons why there isn't. One being that isn't always very visible. The other four being the tiny bits of fuse wire that are currently missing.

I say I've finished tweaking it. The reason for this is that I'm in danger of getting... put it this way, there have been days when I have gone back to check I've locked the door not once, not twice, (not three times) but half a dozen. Sometimes having got quite a way.

Or, to put it another way, I'm as happy with it as I can be at the moment.

I don't know how I missed that bit of... flash (I think that's the term) on the chimney. Thanks for pointing it out. I'm probably going to be using a thin bit of cardboard for the square looking thing just above the injector...

Which reminds me, I need to learn what more of these bits actually are. Rather than calling them 'square things'

And two, I need to organise my hard drive a bit better, I've got quite a few photos of granges... somewhere.

I remember I had a few ideas for names a few years ago... but I'm darned if I can remember what any of them were...

I vaguely remember thinking that BR Standard classes should have names like 'Burnt Oak', 'Elephant & Castle'... all the way to 'Mornington Crescent'

And I'm still thinking of naming my Q1 'Spike Milligan'.

Sorry I couldn't be more helpful.

Well, just a quick update. I've removed the filler from the smokebox saddle. I added it in the first place because I thought the boiler looked a little low at the front. Yes, I know... Anyway, I've taken it out and it looks better. I think. I've fixed up the smokebox door, gave it a quick file, had a scrape round the dint in the end of the boiler, and now it fits much better.

I've also replaced the safety valve cover that came with the kit with the one from the Manor. Partially because it looks better, and partially because... Well, the Manor one looks better. Even if I needed to make the shoulders out of milliput.

Missy, thank you for your words of encouragement. And advice.

Thanks. I'd been thinking of getting a couple of the 6 wheel Palethorpes vans, and this was really helpful.

Yes, that is nice. Like you said, I'm not sure what it's used for... I'm wondering what it's coupled to, that might answer the question.

They do say the line between genius and madness is very narrow. And then there's stuff that jumps back and forth continuously.

But yes, 'tis brilliant. I wish my fingers were so nimble, but alas, like Jeremy Clarkson, I have fingers of butter and fists of ham.

The plan, at the moment, is to go for BR lined green. So the question is, where can I get a bow-pen? I've tried transfer type lining before (and that was in O. Admittedly, I was trying to do the lining on the side tanks on a 4MT...), and I found it quite tricky. I doubt I could get a brush to a suitable point, so it looks like a bow-pen is a must.

Oh yes, the other thing I need to get is some handrail knobs...

Anyway guys, thanks for your comments.

The one thing I've found out about legs... Well, don't assume that your floor is level. I know, it sounds obvious. But I did, and found that at one end, there's a slight (how slight I don't know) gradient between one side and the other...

Just a quick update. I got outbid on the Minitrix A4 body... in the last two seconds...

Oh well, I have 2 Farish ones... Which is a relief.

To answer a few questions.

The A4 body... it's a Graham Farish body and... I know whitemetal covers a wide range of metals, but this doesn't feel like any whitemetal I've ever seen in kits. It's more... solid. But yes, thanks for the stripping tip. I had to take the cast handrails off, and the pipe that was down the left side, so it made a certain amount of sense to scrape it. (Since I was scraping it already to get the bits off)

With regard to diagrams... I'm probably going to have to find a good book. There aren't any on t'interweb, or if there are, I can't find them. (The usual suspects don't have them). The RCTS loco books... only have diagrams of locos that weren't. Although they do have a good set of dimensions. (As, indeed, do the usual suspects.) The only question that remains is whether the length given for the boiler does, or as I suspect, does not, include the smokebox.

Oh, and I'm not brave. Just foolish.

Seriously, the change from Manor to Grange seemed like... one of the simpler options that I knew about at the time. Now, I'd consider possibly the B17 to B2 conversion as well. (Using the B17 chassis and the Langley B2 body. In reality, probably just the boiler).

Likewise, I can see quite a few possibilities for the Farish 3MT tank chassis... (Even, possibly, taking two of them to put under the Langley LMS Garratt kit). Or turning the Dapol 9F into the 2-10-2T that the GWR didn't build... but I'm rambling again...

I've seen T gauge stuff before (admittedly, not in the... plastic?) , but it wasn't till I saw the picture with the N gauge coach that I realised just how small it actually was.

I'm not sure which I'm more impressed by, to be honest. The teak wash, or the 153.

Seriously, when I get some photos where you can actually see what it is I'm photographing, and not just a blur, I'll post them. If I get chance, I'll have a go tomorrow.

All being well, the chassis itself won't need much work (if any), as I'll be keeping the footplate/running board. Partially because it saves hacking... I mean carefully removing the undersized and wrongly placed splashers off the one in the kit. Partially because the boiler/firebox/cab assembly comes off separately. Partially because it stops me worrying about what the cylinders attach to, and partially because it has the reversing rod as part of it, and that's a lot better than the one in the kit.

The question of whether I'll keep the cab and firebox (and just separate the boiler) is a good one, and is something I'm considering, if only because it avoids the vexed question of clearances...

But seriously, when I say one halfway acceptable photo, I mean, one photo where you can tell that it's a Mink C, and not just a grey blob.

At the moment, I'm not sure. I understand that the N Gauge Society... I thought I'd seen some transfers in the N Gauge Society catalogue. And there are. Unfortunately they're GWR transfers (rather than BR) But I suspect that there is something that would do the job.

As I haven't painted it yet, as I haven't been able to get to my friendly local (ha! It's an hour away by bus!) model shop, but once it's had a coat of bauxite paint - I was right, it is fitted. then I'll think about transfers. Probably use MMT074 Ex SR and GWR general vans (fitted), I think.

Well, it's locked up again, and I'm wondering if, when I get it unlocked, I'm just making it more likely to lock up in the future? You see, the front axles have now got quite a lot of slop in them, with the wheels being able to turn through... I'd guesstimate at about 1/6 of a revolution - more than my other one (which has a broken chip and will not go backwards. It's been suggested that this may have been caused by a short in the motor.)

Anyway, I was wondering two things. One, am I likely to be able to get them both fixed - one probably needs new gears, the other probably needs a new motor - or would I be better off cutting my losses and swapping the tenders over?

I don't know yet. The problem with the 9F is that it has a lot of gears, and I mean a lot of gears. As in a 10 coupled chassis with gears on all the wheels, and presumably gears linking them together. I do know that it started clicking just before it locked up. It could be, I suppose, but I'm not sure if spares are actually available, so... I know that some of the old Poole era Graham Farish locos had the split gear problem...