DK123GWR

Just now, John M Upton said:

The movie trailer for this appalling travesty went online on social media last week.  The fact that positive likes and comments are out numbered  by over a hundred to one or more by negative reaction speaks volumes.

 

No pun intended but in the cinemas, this is going to tank.

Searching for positives, your signature seems very appropriate.

WARNING: This thread is not suitable for readers of a sensitive disposition.

I haven't yet come across an RMWeb thread about the new Thomas reboot - consisting of a TV series entitled 'All Engines Go' and a film called 'Race for the Sodor Cup'. The titles would suggest a continuation of the trend of marketing Thomas towards a younger audience, which isn't surprising. A lot of the 'mature fans' will have had little interest in the later series, following the transition away from Awdry's stories and physical models to new creations and CGI. Some of these changes needed to happen and probably did the series less harm than good. The general rule of male locos and female coaches was very much a product of the time at which the books were written - and we all know that those few locomotives featured in the books would have been nowhere near able to meet Sodor's traffic requirements on their own. The cost of using physical models would probably be prohibitive nowadays when most other animated programmes are CGI. Foreign locomotives on Sodor are a slightly strange concept given British loading gauge restrictions, but the concept in itself is not inherently flawed. A visit to the Nene Valley railway could have credibly seen Thomas meet Swedish, Polish, Danish, and German locomotives, while any episode where a locomotive vists the mainland could introduce MU characters from across the world. Nevertheless, it was not managed so well, and the end product lacked authenticity and contirubted to the alienation of older fans.

It seems that the latest reboot has also alientated older viewers - specifically those aged three and over, as this article explains. Most other tabloids have run a similar story. And what are they all so upset about? Brace yourselves everybody, and remember the content warning.

This is the new Thomas. I can only assume that it is intended to discourage railway tresspass: stay away, or the monster might come down the tracks to get you!

6 hours ago, w124bob said:

From a Flickr picture with a very long link https://tinyurl.com/5yct8vhs 20037 with one medfit and an odd load near Toton, no date. I looked hard for the vac pipe, so may even be running loose coupled. This has to be modelled on an exhibition layout.

If you post the very long link, it embeds automatically. Then we can see the photo immediately, or click on the photo to follow the link and see the original caption.

Just now, 009 micro modeller said:

 

Is the company based in Wigan? I’m slightly struggling to understand why they specifically chose that as the start point.

 

 

Yes. Look at the Google info panel on the right here:

https://www.google.com/search?q=lupine+travel&rlz=1C1CHBF_en-GBGB819GB819&oq=lupin&aqs=chrome.0.69i59j69i57j0i271l2j69i60l4.1967j0j1&sourceid=chrome&ie=UTF-8

55 minutes ago, 009 micro modeller said:

It seems that it actually ends by returning to China (not in Pyongyang), but doesn’t say whether you fly back and whether they arrange that, which is odd.

I doubt they could finish in Pyongyang as tourists are kept under constant supervision - far easier if they all arrive and depart at the same time and place than expecting them to make their own way back. I guess that the tour is probably one-way so that it is equally convenient wherever you live in the world - unless you are from the UK it is probably just as easy to get yourself back from Beijing (one of the largest cities in the world) as it is to get yourself back home from a town in Lancashire.

They also do a version which includes tickets to watch Atherton Collieries AFC (maybe).

https://lupinetravel.co.uk/all-tours/atherton-to-pyongyang-tour-2022/

Have you been asking those people from Nasa about the feline that was run over by their Mars rover?

No?

Good - because Curiosity killed the cat.

4 hours ago, melmerby said:

it looks like it was plated over in later times.

Why would this be? Presumably there was some sort of advantage gained if it was done to all of them.

2 hours ago, Compound2632 said:

the pacific's key advantage of a wide grate was not so significant

Except for the implications it would have for the size of the ashpan, and hence the range of the locomotive?

47 minutes ago, ianmacc said:

I should think health and safety would make it about as far from suitable as it was possible to be, except maybe if you were in open mineral wagons! 
 

 

 

Flat wagons?

4 minutes ago, john new said:

 

It has always slightly puzzled me that given the inclines like Bincombe, Shap, Worsborough, the Lickey etc,, where so many trains took on banking engines that on at least one of them none of the companies tried a rack option. Would that not have been more suitable for the assisting engines than just adhesion? Is there an obvious drawback, perhaps speed when pushing using rack, that stopped the option being trialled here.

Perhaps it's overkill, given that racks are often used for gradients in excess of 10%, far steeper than any of the inclines named. Given the associated infrastructure costs, I can't see any railway using a rack unless absolutely essential. Wikipedia suggests that 15mph is a typical top speed, and 25mph on the fastest systems.

22 minutes ago, Curlew said:

Shays are inherently unbalanced due to an offset boiler.

 

I understood that Climax locos could be relatively nippy

If Wikipedia is to be believed (I'm often hesitant about trusting it for technical matters - especially for what is perhaps best described as a niche area of interest) then the Heislers were often the fastest of the geared locos.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Heisler_locomotive

On the perennial favourite subject of banking locomotives, could an articulated geared steam locomotive have been of use in this or any other role in Britain? They seem to have been more popular in North America, which might indicate that operating conditions or loading gauge prevented their effective use elsewhere, although I believe Avonside built a few narrow gauge examples for export (and Kirklees Light Railway/Whistlestop Valley have a 15inch gauge loco based on the Avonside them).

21 minutes ago, ScottishRailFanatic said:

I’m sure it’s been done many a time before, but here is a concept for a Class 08 with dual cab operation. 

Honest question: would this need to be extended into an 0-8-0 in order to ensure that there's enough space for all of the internal bits?

1 hour ago, Andymsa said:

Was it brought recently then I would return it.

No it wasn't. When it runs it's excellent, but it's been having a little trouble with short circuits (decoder touching PCB - my fault) and pickups recently (they're an odd design too - but at least all the same as each other). It was only on taking it apart that I noticed the strange flange.

1 hour ago, Colin_McLeod said:

Which wheel in the photographs are you referring to?

The bottom right of the top photo, which is bottom left in the middle photo.

I have been trying to sort out a few problems with my ViTrains 37 this morning. It is a traction tyred version bought second hand from Hattons. I have noticed that one of the wheels has a very different flange to the other 11 (and indeed to any other wheels I have seen before). Can anyone suggest why?  

1 hour ago, RedGemAlchemist said:

 me of a conversation I had with @Paleopotato09

And it was inevitable to be honest for there to be a really low-effort Thomas cash grab on here at some point. Two Hornby starter tanks, one with a Duck face, the other with the Thomas face. Yawn. Moving on.

It's possible that these are the by-products of other projects. It's quite common to use the Dowlais loco's firebox door to convert a Hornby Thomas into an E2 model.

Just now, tubs01 said:

did my post about the Hornby pride wagon get through? it isn't showing up here, even after refreshing. If not, you'll hear about that project when I finish it, not typing all that out again!

No, sorry.

6 minutes ago, 33C said:

career in the modern, supervisory and management grades

6 minutes ago, 33C said:

in partnership with Railtrack.

8 hours ago, tubs01 said:

I'm no closer to an actual layout yet

My advice on this is not to think too big. The aforementioned three platform terminus has gone the same way as every other layout I've attempted to build on wood - baseboard, track, electrics, platforms, stalled...

I've found progress much easier when working in the limited space offered by boxes. I was walking down the road one day when I noticed a TV box which had been left for the binmen. I have built a BLT to about 80% of scenery complete, destroyed it (there were a number of problems, and am currently working on Mk2. I am currently building a very simple Inglenook - two shoeboxes form the baseboard, with one strip of cardboard for the FY. I have used two set-track points cut down to fit the space more effectively (somebody, from memory @DCB, had suggested doing this to reduce the distance between track centres, but I used it to save length) and some second-hand flexitrack. I want to get it finished in the next month so I can take it to university, and because the space is so manageable I really think that I will. The great thing is that a layout it a box can be packed away easily - no mistreatment by family members. The concept favours shunting layouts, and @TechnicArrow has produced some excellent examples in shoeboxes, but there is no reason a first radius loop couldn't fit into a TV box - you may even fit an R2 loop into a larger one (the crazy 100" TV's advertised at the Euros would have boxes big enough for R4 plus, but as this is the size of my front window I can't imagine too many 'normal' people buy them).

I would imagine a TV box or some shoeboxes could be acquired easily on Freecycle if you don't have them already, and I would highly reccomend looking at this option if you do want to start a layout.

8 hours ago, WessexEclectic said:

 

WTAF?.... Is it powered by compressed air or exhaust from the local council chambers?....

I haven't a clue. I'm staying in Middlesborough at the moment and my Dad took us to Stockton, refusing to tell us what we were there to do. Often, this is just in order to be annoying but I think his question 'how could I possibly describe that?' was a fair one in this case.

Hi Tubs.

I would like to second everything that Nelson says above. Education is of course far more important than modelling and it will almost certainly be your primary focus at the moment. That said, don't force yourself to work too hard. Everybody needs a break from time to time and you shouldn't beat yourself up for taking one (this applies to education, modelling, and virtually everything else in life). Remember too that the summer after exams is often long and relaxing - if you want to do some modelling then allow yourself to use that summer as a reward (it may be worth saving for it).

As for whether to go to college or sixth form, don't worry if you haven't fully decided yet. You should be able to apply to both and then choose between them later in the year. It's amazing how quickly a picture can form of what you want to do, even if you previously thought you wanted to do something completely different. I went through school knowing that I would go to my school's sixth form and then to university - because I'm embarrasingly academic, the school's sixth form was very good, and it didn't make sense to move out of an environment where I was already settled (other people need a change though, and end up at different school's sixth forms).

However, I was very uncertain about what I wanted to do at university. The main options were physics (I was the top student in my school at GCSE), or something to do with politics or economics (subjects I was interested in but wasn't able to study until sixth form). I don't think I actually made my choice until last summer (year 12 into year 13) when I applied for various courses in the field of economics (sometimes combined with politics). It felt like most people had decided broadly what they wanted to do before they even started sixth form. I can assure you that some of those who had changed their minds a long time after my plans were set. One person was adamant until Christmas (2020) that they wouldn't go to Oxford irrespective of whether their application was succesful, and will start their History course at Oxford in October. Another person was set on a particular uni course until a month or two before exams, and is now taking a gap year because they've changed their mind because they want to apply to a conservatoire. I hope you can see why I reccomend applying to college and sixth form if you are unsure - people who have been sure often change their minds, and you really don't want to end up doing something for two or more years if your heart isn't in it.

Finally, on the subject of locos not working, I am very tempted to join the Jeremy Clarkson school of maintenance with respect to one particular Railroad A4 which has always run flawlessly - but has now developed an issue where it either won't move at all (pickups not making sufficient contact with wheels), or will cause a short every single time it passes over points. Several other locos have also given up, despite thorough cleaning of every moving part an electrical surface,  and I'm left trying to operate a three platform terminus with a 50, a 56, a 66 and an 08 with a loose wheel - not really ideal.

Stockton-on-Tees. No further comment.

10 minutes ago, RJS1977 said:

Reminds me of the child who thought that wind was caused by trees waving their branches about!

 

Don't be silly - the wind is caused by windmills and turbines acting as giant fans. The increasing frequency and severity of storms is nothing to do with climate change brought about by pumping greenhouse gasses into the atmosphere for two centuries - it's all these new wind turbines being installed which are blowing the wind harder! The turbines don't actually generate power - they contain electric motors which spin the blades. I thought everyone knew this!

Are we still on topic?