97406

5 minutes ago, Porcy Mane said:

Whist I appreciate the point Covkid is making about it shouldn't be necessary to tweak a new model, I count myself lucky that we are no longer in the era of having to carve of moulded in handrails, to replace them with handrails fashioned from oversize paper clips.

 

Funny how nobody has complained about the funny shaped door grabs that the pre prod pics of the Accurascale 37 show.

It’s the moulded class 40 door handrails that I though were OK until I took a fairly close up photo. They’re going to have to come off at some point - staples are about the right size.

I am definitely of the era when model locos were far less sophisticated than they are today. I do love customising them, though, and there are a few very good examples, the Lima 31 being one, I’ve even kept the 3 pole pancake motor in mine!

4 hours ago, Covkid said:

They do because you took the trouble to do after market modifications to them, using a steel rule IIRC. Shouldn't have to do that, and if you slip and damage the paint finish, then it is your problem. I just think the model is spoiled just for a "ha peth of tar" handrails.  

...although you could always make a little bending tool out of some really thick plasticard to lessen the risk of scratching the bodywork. Or hardwood strip for that matter.

46 minutes ago, Covkid said:

They do because you took the trouble to do after market modifications to them, using a steel rule IIRC. Shouldn't have to do that, and if you slip and damage the paint finish, then it is your problem. I just think the model is spoiled just for a "ha peth of tar" handrails.  

There’s very little that I run ‘straight out the box’ long term, though there are several locos that I haven’t got round to doing yet. 25s, 37s, 40s and AC electrics tend to get pushed to the front of the queue as they’re my favourites. 

5 hours ago, Covkid said:

Sadly, and I apologise for sounding like a stuck record, but that is the issue for me.  If Ben could assure us that the 2nd batch will be fitted with authentic looking cab handrails I would be tempted to order three of them - two green and a blue. Until then I will be waiting for the Bachmann model. 

Nothing wrong on the cab door handrails on mine. They look close to those one a real 25.

1 hour ago, boxbrownie said:

Well considering you know who Percy Edwards is I am very surprised you know what a Beatbox is 

Well, this is from the same eras: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lMkvaVhEusE

DCC and sound’s still some way off with me. For now I make the noises myself, so it’s a bit like a cross between a human beatbox and Percy Edwards’ animal impressions from when I were a lad!

I’ve had a couple of mails today from Hattons saying they’ll be in tomorrow (subject to the usual caveats). It means I don’t have to pay for them until June courtesy the credit card company. Which is nice!

16 minutes ago, 37114 said:

Basically it is a minefield and you really need to find a photo of your particular chosen model. There were examples of cowling/ovals as well as no cowlings/circular buffers (in addition to the more common Cowling/circular and no cowling/ovals) to which was further complicated by whether the headcode was plated or dominoes, examples of both being seen with the above combination. The period 1978-1982 was when most of the above changes were happening and it did vary between works/depots how and when the changes were done. In one of my class 37 books it showed a few examples in works and the cowling removal/headcode plating/change to ovals was being done at the same time but other locos had changes done separately.

 

37215 when in blue had ovals at no 1 end, circular at number 2 and that wasn't unique, buffers often being swapped due to accident damage at one end only.

End details as well, like the aforementioned headboard clips, Western Region style lamp brackets. I had my ViTrains one all painted and numbered up before noticing that the example I’d chosen didn’t have the headboard clips, so another example was chosen, and it became the romantically-named “Cardiff Rod Mill”.

I trust Fran took the opportunity to get his tape measure out whilst he was there

6 minutes ago, Graham108 said:

What are the bits above the headcode box - different at each end?

Headboard clips. You can see there that it lost one in a fight.

14 minutes ago, ThaneofFife said:

 

Youre way too late to the party now to be finding fault.........any concerns should have been raised a long time back with the development of this model.   I noticed a few things not quite right with Hornby's forthcoming Class 87 "87006" City of Glasgow albeit it was only being shown as a pre-production sample image but I got my feedback into Simon Kohler before final artwork was due to be signed off for this version. 

Besides, if it still bothers you when it’s sat on the layout, then do something about it. With the ladders, I’ll wager replacements can be made easily from a suitable etch - signal ladders look promising. That’s what makes the hobby fun for me. Not buying a ready-made loco and plonking it on a layout and that’s it. It’s tweaking it until I’m happy with it. I still draw the line somewhere.

I really can’t be bothered with the door handle recesses or those little triangular steps under the corners of the buffer beams on my Hornby models, but they have reached a point where I look at them and gain a sense of nostalgia for those days in the late 70s or 80s or whichever period the layout represents today.

I can see my banger blue 86/0 getting sealed beam lights and multiple working stuff in due course. From the pics it looks like an easy conversion to do and the lights will work  

4 hours ago, Southwich said:

 

 

Yes, that’s the one. I have a number of bits on order from Brian at Shawplan. I wonder if he may be up for doing some grommets. Or maybe look to get some made up myself.

8 minutes ago, Enterprisingwestern said:

 

There's a reason for that!

 

Mike.

It’s taken years for the manufacturers to get there though. The Triang 37 was the worst of the lot, but Lima and Vitrains were bad. The original Bachy ones were closer but no cigar. Now all I need is the grommets!

I’ve not used the backing plate, instead I’ve filed the windows out using the etch as a template until there is a little lip for the glazing to sit in. I kept the 2 middle bars as they help centre the etch and they are an extra surface to glue the etch to, but what remains is very thin.

I then attached the etch to the 2 centre pillars with superglue, let it set, then attached the sides by using a thin card to spread the superglue underneath the etch.

Finally, I used the superglue and activator method to fill in all around the tops of the windscreen a la Barrowmore’s class 40s. See link. http://www.barrowmoremrg.co.uk/Journal/BMRJ_Issue_40_pub.pdf

The next one I do will have the backing plate as it gives a representation of the welded seam around the windscreens, but it is a minute detail at that scale, for the rivet counters (or weld spotters) out there.

The latest Bachmann class 40's windows match the etch quite closely, and the recent 37s look close too, so I'm still umming and aahing whether to do them. An etch for just the raised grommets would be ideal, as it's too subtle on the Bachman screens. Think there's a thread on here where someone painstakingly cut them out from the Shawplan etch and stuck them on and the result looked superb.

A Vitrains 37 and Early Bachmann/Lima Hybrid 40 (awaiting horn grilles) below.

54 minutes ago, faulcon1 said:

Here's a Hornby Magazine review of the Heljan 25/3 with Mike Wild telling us how it has full buffer beam detail, turned metal buffers, separately fitter wipers and flush glazing which has been around for donkeys years. Well my Bachmann 25/3 has all that so that's no major advancement. I can see the only real major advancement being the purchase price which will advance to a higher level.

 

 

The curve on the front cab roof gutter line on the Bachmann 25 is awful. So much so that mine ended up with Hornby cabs grafted on. The Heljan model looks like a 25 from the front. I need to revisit the Bachmann one as it’s not one of my better efforts, though as I attempted the Ice Cream Van livery, and it looks a bit grungy close up. I have an SLW Tamworth Castle on order, as it does look to have the edge, and another identity eventually  beckons for the Bachmann one. The Heljan one’s here to stay in the fleet, I’m very pleased with it, compared to the original Bachy offering.

24 minutes ago, Michael Hodgson said:

No, no.  Please carry on - everybody else is !

Yep! For goods made in the Far East, a lot of the customers I deal with ship direct to the UK or EU now to avoid the UK/EU border. I appreciate that Heljan Denmark may wish to QC the goods themselves before the final release to the UK operation, but direct shipping could perhaps be a solution for the short term at least. It’s terrible that a couple of friends’ businesses are feeling the pinch at the moment, and it is a real risk to them going under at the moment. What with the pandemic as well. 

On 10/04/2021 at 16:09, 97406 said:

I recall Ben said a few days back that they are in transit between Denmark and the UK. They have today's customs to get through, plus quality control, distribution, etc. In the pandemic as well. It does look like they will be worth the wait though!

Looks like customs clearance from the EU is typically taking 14 days, and it is necessary to pay customs for the privilege. I’ll save my political rantings for elsewhere.

I’m a regular user of the High Peak Trail (when we’re allowed to go there), so layouts like this fascinate me. I often potter past Friden brickworks on the bike en route to more knarly trackage. For some reason the locals seem to pronounce it ‘Fridden’, not ‘Fry-Den’, so apparently I was saying it incorrectly for many years.

Looking forward to how this layout develops.

I recall Ben said a few days back that they are in transit between Denmark and the UK. They have today's customs to get through, plus quality control, distribution, etc. In the pandemic as well. It does look like they will be worth the wait though!

Although on further thought, a little thinned down black acrylic applied carefully around the edges of the glazing with one of those tiny pointy brushes would probably work. Capillary action will draw the paint in. I sometimes do that when I make my own flush glazing or install Laserglaze to tone down the edges.

I’m made up with my banger blue version. The only problem to me with the Ice Cream Van is the yellow on the inside of the window frames. On my loco, the glazing very well glued in, so not easy to take out to paint them black. 

I do like that early blue livery, and there is a plan afoot to have a small green/blue transition fleet, so I may just get one if they’re still available after the ‘Can’ order has been fulfilled and paid for. 

46 minutes ago, SGP said:

I still quite like the Hornby 86 myself.

Any comparison pics regarding that one or is there a thread somewhere that I can't find?

There’ll be a few from my layout in a week or two. Currently I’d say the Heljan model has the edge, though my Hornby ones will remain in the fleet, as they’re still good and one of the most rewarding models to modify. There’s one in my Profile pic at the moment. Ultrascale wheels are on order as they wobble a little at present!

3 hours ago, InterCitySpud said:

Nothing like a gentle nudge!

 

I've been waiting most my life to be able to accurately model the southern end of the WCML, blue era around the start of the eighties, this 86/0 takes it one step closer. Bachmanns roarer now has competition to pull the Northampton Cobbler.

 

While I'm nudging, and to complete my scene, this excellent model can't be run alone and deserves a class 310 and class 81 to run beside, but that's for another day..

 

Oh and thanks to Patriot87003 for posting the comparison pics, great job.

For me, this is a possible future Class 81 project based on the Bachmann 85 as the cabs are a very close match.

4 hours ago, Patriot87003 said:

I’ve taken a screenshot of the Hornby Mag video and compared the profile to a screenshot of a pic from the internet ... and the profile looks bang-on the money to me, both longitudinal and height. I also overlaid the profiles and changed the opacity ... I would show but there’s not much to see as it overlays almost perfectly. Even the insulator positions between model and the real thing are a good match. Interesting to note that the height of the pantograph base is almost level to the top of the roof dome ... on both model and the real thing.

 

 

 

Unfortunately the 86/0’s are a bit before the era I’m modelling (although it’s damn tempting!) ... but I do have 5 x 86/4’s and 86/6’s pre-ordered .... and if 86401 in NSE is produced then I would be hitting the buy button again!

 

Also, if Heljan produce spare pantographs of the upgraded type, I would likely purchase a few to upgrade the original Heljan 86/2’s that I have. (Don’t worry Ben, I’ll still be very likely to buy any new 86/2’s in future to add to my fleet!)

 

 

The application of the yellow end wraparound looks more accurate on the Heljan model compared to 86101! Not that I disliked the retro 101 when it was out and about looking  like that, though

On 03/04/2021 at 12:23, Francis deWeck said:

Yes, but the toilet coach would naturally leave the company flushed with success. Of course, this subject might well get bogged down with the details, or even end up on a roll.

Will it be a working toilet coach? Maybe with a range of different ‘materials’ that you can fill a little reservoir from a bottle. And DCC control option to mimic the prototypical practice of flushing whilst its in the station, etc.