railroadbill

Very nice model, JSpencer. Looks very impressive and selling me even more on the "get a P2" idea. You mention that the loco needs 4' curves to get round. On the BRM video review, it's mentioned that the Hornby P2 has a large gap between tender and loco, presumably to get such a long loco and tender round very tight curves (esp the railroad model?) Could anyone who has examined the Hornby model say how easy it would be to shorten the drawbar to make the tender/loco gap closer to scale?

Totally agree with that. Also, just been looking for another Heljan loco, the Danish litra E pacific (in HO). Available from model shops in Denmark, the price for the DC version is 3195 krone. Current exchange rate, 8.9 DK to the pound. So £150 for a model of a large steam loco versus £360 for a model of a large steam loco (in the manufacturer's home market) isn't looking quite so bad....

Yes, but opium is totally addictive, uses up all the victim's money and takes over their life completely. Whereas railway modelling..... er....

Wow, that weathering and the picture is so good that you've sold me on getting an O1 now, forget the star....:-) really like the carriage and trees just visible behind behind the cab. Top marks.

Perhaps camera angle. There's been a lot posted on this thread about name/number plate mounting. Having printed ones to overlay the etched plates on would have helped. I used drawings in "British Rail mainline diesels", the Ian Allen book, which shows the number plates to be in line with the name plates, so I used a straight edge for that. Took the height from the drawings with a digital micrometer (both name and numbers). Since all that, one of the fan grills came away and had to be stuck back on. Also there's a brake hose somewhere on the track which I can't find.... that's life. :-)

Re Yodel. Just come across this thread. Several months ago my Hatttons order got sent by Yodel, although I'd ticked the Royal Mail option. Hattons took a while dispatching the item and we were away when it finally got sent. Our postman knows where to leave post when we're not there and my neighbour was prepared to take it safely in. When we returned there were 3 "couldn't deliver" cards from Yodel on the mat. Right, their web site only lets you select a date to pick up the parcel from their depot. The nearest one is 35 miles from me so I would have had to make a 70 mile round trip to pick it up and the weekend wasn't an option either. However by using their automated telephone system it was in fact possible to arrange another delivery date and hurrah! Yodel did deliver the package on the day requested. Because it had to be signed for, my wife kindly waited in all day for it. It took over a week to receive the parcel. Yodel might just as well have taken it to the nearest post office. It was very badly packed with very little packing and the item was rattling around in the outer package. Although its nothing to do with Yodel, the model was faulty after all that and went off to be repaired. So the moral of this sorry tale is: if you wern't in when Yodel tried to deliver, DON't use their web site to rearrange, DO use their automated phone service - and you should get a delivery date that suits you. (unless they've changed that since, of course). ps I've bought equipment from Kernow, Rails and Ontracks since then and had superb service from them all - via Royal Mail.

Foyle's payment system used to take forever, seemed even worse when you were on your lunch break. It did call itself the biggest bookshop in the world (is it still or is Amazon etc. really a shop?) According to text on the hoardings outside where the new premises will be, Christina Foyle was known as the Red Queen of Charing Cross road. Easy to shop now, shop looks very bright inside as well. Some years ago think there was a big bookshop on the other side of Charing Cross road, that's gone now.

I was unusually in the area yesterday and thought I'd have a look. Must have been about 4.30 to 5pm, still open and a few people coming and going. Yes there are some German railway books left, and some UK - unfortunately nothing I really wanted. Some aviation, military and car books as well, plus dvds. Then went and had a browse in Foyles, which is moving to larger premises just along Charing Cross Road from their existing shop. They seem to be doing very well. Nostalgic experience from the years when I worked up near there. Also, I think that Hamblings was definitely nearer the Charing Cross road end but didn't recognise which shop it was.

Out with the paint pot then.

H'mm. Thought I'd try photographing stock in daylight rather than loft under fluorescent light. Here are results. To my eye the loco maroon looks slightly more pink and the Bachmann BSK maroon slightly browner compared to each other. The second pic has an ex-LMS coach resprayed in Halfords Vauxhall Burgandy acrylic paint then finished in Testors Dulcote, (a truly wonderful varnish). That looks a little lighter red. Back in the loft the shades look similar again. Just noticed that the loco door handles need painting silver - presumably they would have been chrome on full size?

Really good videos. Locos look the part. Actually the sound of the wheels of blue/grey coach train going past sounded about right. Also - liked the vegetation on the viaduct (going to do that) and the cct on the back of the milk train (now done that on mine). Having seen the vids I'd like to take a stopping train to the station and go for a walk around the area. Hopefully there's a tea shop with a view of the viaduct..... ps Meant to post this on this thread, put it on your layout thread instead.

Really good videos. Locos look the part. Actually the sound of the wheels of blue/grey coach train going past sounded about right. Also - liked the vegetation on the viaduct (going to do that) and the cct on the back of the milk train (now done that on mine). Having seen the vids I'd like to take a stopping train to the station and go for a walk around the area. Hopefully there's a tea shop with a view of the viaduct.....

Super wizard wizzo wizz. I really agree that westerns look better without tension lock couplings, maybe because of the deep valance. As an experiment I super glued a u shaped wire loop onto the tension lock hook on one end of a coach. This then drops onto the loco coupling hook. Also the coachs tension lock coupler still works ok when coupled to another tension lock coupling. Bit like the slotted bar couplings that o gauge coarse scale exley etc. coaches used to have. Cost? Nothing. On freight trains I've used a van with one nem coupler removed and the loco's scale screw link coupling dropped onto the coupling hook (then tension lock fitted vehicles can be coupled to the other end of van). ps Very good Youtube video, Phil. Cracking layout.

Yup, would have helped. Printed plates to be overlaid, perhaps?

No, perhaps surprisingly, mine were ok (well, the tube I've used). Gwiwer made the point that if you use a supermarket or cheap tube, you haven't lost too much if it dries out. All tubes empty is a bit extreme, though. Don't need a high quality glue for some things. (Bought some pva glue for £1 a bottle which is just great diluted for scenery or ballasting - might be more suspect for glueing furniture etc.

I used Gwiwer's and others method with superglue (5 tubes for £1 from, where else, the Pound shop - but you only need a little). I measured the plate position from "British Rail Main Line diesels" (Ian Allen) with a digital micrometer. I also found that a wide coffee stirrer from Costa Coffee was actually the right depth from the bottom of the body sides when the body was off the chassis, to the bottom of the plates. Stroke of luck there. Pieces of Tamaya masking tape marked the end positions of each plate. Thin smear of superglue on back of plate, popped it on loco along top of taped on coffee stirrer, checked with micrometer. Job done. Except...next day I decided that one number plate was ever so slightly misaligned..... I looked at it and thought about it and looked at it etc. etc. It was so nearly there. In the end I plucked up courage and prised the number plate off with a scalpel. I was lucky to find it again after it had pinged across the room. Checked position again, used steel rule to check it lined up with the name plate, glued it back on. Now it's done. But still haven't tried fitting the lifting rings for the roof... I bought the plates for Western Lady from Kings Cross model railways, long gone, in York Road just across from Kings Cross station, more years ago than I care to remember. Never fitted them to the Lima Western I had then. Now they are on a model worthy of them.

You're right there. Can't remember the chap's name but I know he died some years ago (obit in Railway Modeller). It's a long time now since I worked near there but one lunchtime I went in and when paying for whatever bits I'd bought, asked about whether nickel silver or brass or steel was best for track/wheels. Wow, he really showed great enthusiasm for once and told me all about the history of Hamblings, how they'd made parts in the basement workshop (esp the wheels) in the 1940s and on, and how demand had now slackened so they had to use brass rather than nickel silver for wheel rims to keep costs down, although NS conducted electricity better. So my last memories of Hamblings are a bit more positive (and I always use NS track and Romford type N/S wheels etc.) They also did scenic backgrounds, I think. On an earlier occasion, I asked in the shop whether they sold 4mm scale coupling rods. He was horrified. "What? You have to make them yourself!" So I went home and cut and filed up some rail.... Bless him. Sorry Motor Books is going. Bought stuff on various railways (particularly Scandinavian that I couldn't get anywhere else) and Oz and NZ railway magazines - this was pre internet of course. Curiously, I was just talking about St Martin's models today, I've got 3 cars I bought from them (could be 20 years ago) sitting on the table in front of me right now. Coincidence of course. The years go by.

Thanks to all above for all the info about dcc sound and speaker mounting, particularly about sealing back of speaker for good performance. Having seen pheaton's excellent videos I'll just have to have a go, definitely convinced a 37 is a suitable candidate. By the way, liked the retaining wall on your layout, Pheaton, given me an idea for a part of my layout.

Looked through this thread, got lots of information about sound, but can't find this exact project.. For my first sound project I want to fit a Bachmann 37, the later 21 pin chassis with all axles driven. Seen a friend's 47 where he fitted the speaker under the fan grills - (Loksound decoder with SWD sound files) which sounds very good to me. So I thought it best to put the speaker in the same place in 37 roof. What I need to know (before buying decoder!) is if the speaker will fit ok in 37 roof - there's a baffle fitted already under the fan which I guess is for the Bachmann factory fitted speaker, maybe. If I take that out, can I fit the Loksound oblong speaker ok and will wires need lengthening? Or is there a better way of doing it? Also get the impression from this thread that swd or Howes have best sound files - any feelings on this, although that must be very personal! Very grateful for advice from someone who's sound fitted this particular loco.

Agree completely, cabs/headcodes on my msyp came out easily. Headcode assembly is held together by a length of black sticky tape and I found it easiest to pull the clear headcode 3 sided boxes off this before adding headcodes. It reassembled ok. Need to be careful that the cab bulkheads seat into the groves inside the body correctly when putting it all back together.

"Should have taken more notice of information in this thread could have read more carefully what Nidge and others said Thought my syp 52 was finished but I spoke too soon windscreen pillars should have been light grey and not (blasted) maroon". I'm sure it's been said already, but - how light a grey should be used? Great pics posted earlier look almost white?

Hi Luke, Thanks very much for the information, just the job, i know which pipes need adding/taking off now. Couldn't find a reference to which pipe was which. Thanks for your help. Bill

Luke, below the right buffer (looking at the front) of your loco there is a pipe which matches a pipe below the left hand buffer (both with some yellow on). This wasn't fitted on my loco - I presumed that it was an air brake pipe which wouldn't be present on a loco with vacuum brakes only ie syp maroon period. Am I wrong about this pipe and does it have another purpose and should therefore be fitted? Info gratefully received... Bill

If you look down on the loco the curved edge of the 3 sided clear headcode box lets you see the whole character better... I'm still wavering between "scale height correct or looks a bit better smaller" ... apologies for slighly out of focus pic. but writing speech for daughter's wedding tonight so mustn't be seen going back in loft to take another shot! Cheers, Bill

Ok, here's the test. I cut 4mm numbers/letters from Heljan sheet, stuck on top of scap rectangle of clear plastic, Used dab of plastic cement and smear of pva. That gave me 4 inserts. 2 of them disappeared from workbench, not even due to carpet monster but to "things that disappear into thin air for no reason" monster so had to make 2 more number sets and had to use different numbers from those left on sheet. The down train now leaves at an earlier time Mondays to Fridays... Body came off easily, cabs/headcode assemblies also came out ok. Did notice that there are clear plastic squares inside body under the cab windows that seem to clip body in place on chassis. My loco only had 2 of them left (but it reassembled ok). Pics show the headcodes fitted. They are pressed in but additionally secured by a fillet of clearfix round back. Think they do look a bit big, or rather surround is small (but this could be the rounded edges of the transparencies - from above you can see all the codes ok). The characters are the same as the Heljan 35 next to the 52 in one pic, they look a bit big on that one too (but they were much much easier to fit behind the removable front panel). In various pics I've seen of the full size locos characters take up nearly all the height of the panel, but often not wound level with each other so top or bottom sometimes hidden. Like Gwiwer's locos, there is a bit of light leakage round the codes as well. So I'm not completely sure, loco looks much better with headcodes fitted, so I'll live with them for a while and see if they need changing. I see from the the pics that one front hose has fallen off and I've bent a lamp iron. Otherwise loco is running very well indeed, especially slow running.