papagolfjuliet

Our old pal Gostude currently has one - along with three of those God awful Hornby lwb open wagons with the brake van chassis and the mirror image sides (seriously, the two sides point in opposite directions on what is mean to be an end tipper wagon) - for sixty notes.

AI description for the same seller's Tri-ang Class 101: "This Hornby DC diesel locomotive is a replica of the BR 101 and comes in the iconic British Rail corporate livery with a beautiful green color. It features a 4-4 wheel configuration, 1:76 scale, and analogue control system. Perfect for collectors, this model railway item is listed under the Collectables, Model Railways & Trains, Railways & Trains, and Locomotives categories on ebay. The Hornby DC diesel locomotive is a stunning piece to add to any collection and will surely catch the eye of any train enthusiast. With its attention to detail and high-quality design, it is a must-have for any collector looking to add a classic British Rail replica to their collection." I don't think we need to worry about the robots just yet.

"This OO gauge Hornby 0-6-0 Pannier Tank Loco is a must-have for any train enthusiast. With its stunning green colour and detailed Great Western Railway corporate livery, this replica steam locomotive is an ideal addition to any model railway or train collection. The locomotive is a replica of the famous Pannier Tank and is suitable for Era 3 - The Big Four (1923-1947). The wheel configuration is 0-6-0, making it a powerful and reliable locomotive. Whether you are a seasoned collector or just starting, this Hornby locomotive is sure to impress." It's a knackered Gaiety pannier with hardly any paint. https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/335105621160?hash=item4e05d9fca8:g:DuoAAOSwz3plR7Nk&amdata=enc%3AAQAIAAAAwHTZGOGpxgGJ8ZvRj%2FBnUO65rE%2BplvGEzRf5D5z0CjCHFaQNPdzDHsT8ipXoHgoskRgVc6qVBnkRZzPuc5JR87Ry6ujB6ZR33cBOpmEwdIWIWbHKGwI0VzrsfPKA%2FYj56yqiF%2FMSF0Wm4Ukootf80O5gEhiMVhXql7ElKBZzcYkcPYwtiKc5lr0zjbz5jLq6i5j35pdP7SmFqfgI%2B7Yb6eV50dhl5s%2BESJCZOwQz67T55uaMvT2a9UrvGE09sAFxIg%3D%3D|tkp%3ABk9SR6zn1ub1Yg&autorefresh=true

This is the least attractive Chinese brand name I've seen since that time I saw a range of MINGE LEATHER wallets and handbags in a supermark in Qingdao (really true). https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/266442631186?hash=item3e0937e812:g:QawAAOSwmU5lH6uK&amdata=enc%3AAQAIAAAA8PODhPjkG%2FxVObgmZ%2Bef4imHwM%2Bi%2BQRhyB%2BpbllxyQ5I9FjG7hwDBZ%2FaouoHZA4AfLYQl7tap8339wcD57%2BWM3HaqAMTrSoGcMCYkKBY5GxZ%2BzWNIJN3iAAehnyyhEIxJCr7UT7JkkgLydZsoOSjBm%2Bi1O6M5N%2FnadUApyREA0Evk%2B7XzldXoHwAH8IiAU3QPBD3aBryxAb4Lz2qFna4ApGJRoA5pBMsgyBhsZGbIIs9BEJ9T6O8UWNol5w7Wn8MO2ddu3LEvt%2B4ksByitz2Dh5sLYnSmQUi3C1l2EQbqpMvNKniPgRf%2FG8v5ZIAhAbTlw%3D%3D|tkp%3ABFBMoLm85fVi

More optimism. https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/295949629461?hash=item44e7f8f815%3Ag%3ARhQAAOSwqdllEu5m&amdata=enc%3AAQAIAAAAwDzZ8U5ibolqcP92ZHxSpWQ0okvEBpO1rGm1xfM5W5DXztrooPuIZid%2Bw3uzpsFzxW8%2FW5Xd8hXKawqug7SfZXVtjF2SfefHtBVSXU8oxgXypxTSDXVVxOWnA9pZZ7BT0QBd34Mm%2Ffx3xVRNenRKj0YLoG4RTi8AVh5y9JP7nAWMhj4W3irFiNHWYgtReV25oN7GYSstcGHlo6qt1MSrnIkeOizC1jQseqRCVncxYuM1CF3cdY7rKQ3oOApsNxlXvg%3D%3D|tkp%3ABk9SR5yDreL1Yg&LH_ItemCondition=3

That's partly a generational thing. The people running preserved lines in the 70s and early 80s were largely of a generation who predated BR and loathed it - hence all those fictitious and pre-grouping liveries on BR-built engines. The generation which replaced them in the mid-80s had a much more nostalgic view of BR and wanted to recapture their 60s and 70s childhoods - hence twenty years of everything in BR black ("David Wilcock's Improved Engine Green" as one wag dubbed it) and Rail Blue. Now a third generation has come along which takes a much more ecumenical view and wants variety, and as a result we have seen the return of pre-nationalisation and even fictitious liveries on lines such as the NYMR and KWVR (41241 being a case in point) along with the embrace of DMUs from *that* generation's childhoods. The days of preservation's high heidyins saying "You're not running THAT on my train set" are not long over but they are over.

Worth noting that the Paignton & Dartmouth or whatever it's called this week is not and does not pretend to be a preserved railway. Like the Snowdon Mountain it is a mass transit tourist railway which happens to use steam. It has no volunteers, makes no concessions to 'heritage' anywhere along its route, and since 2020 has had no intermediate stations. It is a business out to make money through running steam trains (and buses and a ferry). That's fine in its place but it is hardly a model for preservationists to follow and most lines would quickly go bust if they tried. Indeed preserved lines which because of their location also operate as mass transit tourist railways tend to have to compensate for that in other ways because they simply can't afford or attract a 100% paid workforce: there is no economic or operational reason for the Ffestiniog and Welsh Highland to maintain a working fleet of four Quarry Hunslets or for the NYMR to run a Belgian steam tram and a rake of LNER teaks which can't even go to Whitby, but volunteers would soon take their labour elsewhere if these were removed.

Six years in the case of No.19, which moved to Loughborough in 1987 because the NYMR had enough serviceable steam to operate most of its train and had reduced the diesel diagram to one return trip per day, first thing in the morning and last thing in the evening with a day long layover in between. No.9 remained on the Moors until 1990, but after returning from overhaul at ICI Wilton - in green - in 1998 it was only based on the line for a matter of months before moving to Barrow Hill. The NYMR used lots of diesels in the early 80s because it needed them, but within a decade both Deltics and both Class 14s and the Warship and the Hymek and the Clayton and the Class 100s were gone because they were no longer needed, and all that was left was a trio of Sulzers and a Hoover And the visitors did not love the blue and greys, which is why they were phased out. The kind of people who lean out of train windows pretending to be aeroplanes loved it, and there they are in that photo; there is almost nobody else around. Diesels are much more marketable now than they were then because they are now rare sight on the national network; in the 80s most preserved lines which would even give them house room saw them as a necessary evil.

On a point of order D5032 only ran in rail blue for its first few months of service, and even then BR insisted that the double arrow and TOPS class number be painted out, so in fact it ran as number 032. It was then repainted in a fictitious two tone green livery which it carried until 1982, after which it wore something which was almost but not quite BR green. A detailied history can be found here: https://www.derbysulzers.com/24032.html

His RAF Princess is... interesting. https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/325871586909?hash=item4bdf75ce5d:g:uwkAAOSw5mplOTyX

Ever since lockdown many people have been treating ebay purchases as though they were sent on a sale or return basis, and ebay lets them get away with it.

It doesn't matter whether you allow returns or not, becuase ebay provides a loophole whereby all the buyer has to do is say that an item is not 'as described' - with no explanation - and the return goes through on the nod anyhow.

No idea. I've never understood why the two VBTs (and the Hunslet, now sold) were restored to full working order merely to be placed on static display. I note however that the BMR website states that the museum is closed until further notice and no longer lists 'Redstone' as BMR stock.

I sold a tatty Kitmaster Stirling Single - clearly labelled as such - a while back. Buyer returned it because he thought he was getting a Rapido one... for twenty quid. How these people manage to dress themselves is beyond me.

The first of the Collection X locos, a WW1 Dick Kerr petrol-electric, is now on display in the new VoR Museum (alongside the aforementioned Jung and the late Adrian Shooter's Ford Model T railcar): https://www.facebook.com/photo?fbid=850168953775877&set=pcb.850172647108841 The rest of Collection X can't be far behind, as the late Peter Rampton's house and farm are now on the market: https://search.savills.com/property-detail/gblhralar230028

The Norris 4-2-0 (as also used on the Birmingham and Bristol Railway) was available with a different chimney and bogie coaches as 'The Lafayette' for many years and for all I know still is, although the version with the four wheel coaches was not available for very long.

So proud of the orange Scot were Bachmann that they put it on the cover of their 1986 catalogue. 'Quality.'

I should add that Bachmann also produced an AUTHENTIC REPLICA of the Royal Scot.

It's an authentic replica. Of something.

Mind you, Bachmann's effort is worse. Why yes, that is an orange Mainline Rebuilt Scot. That blurb bears about as much relationship to reality as a party political broadcast.

Thanks Stan. So presumably it was the third owner who added the buildings and repainted parts of the backscene, and I am at least the fifth owner?

If anybody feels like doing a OO 3D print, put me down for a couple.

That Atlantic got about a bit.

This is fascinating, although it's sad to see the state of the MR signalbox. Does anybody recognise the continental thing near the turntable?

How on Earth do you get the body off these things? The Hornby service sheet is no help at and although I can work out how to detach the cab I have no idea how to remove the body as a whole. Any guidance appreciated.