Western Star

At risk of going off question although in pursuit of historical accuracy, I put your comments to John Lewis (HMRS Steward for GWR wagonary)... herewith his reply. <<quote>> Of the wagons you asked about: 18733 was a 1-plank open built on Lot 1. However, I wonder if 18733 was a mistake for 13733, which was a cattle wagon built on Lot 64. 23403 would probably have been a loco coal wagon as the 23xxx series seems to have been reserved for them. 13593 was probably an 'old' wagon pre-dating the Lot list i.e. pre-1867, or a wagon built on a renewals lot where we do not have all the numbers, or else a wagon acquired from an absorbed railway. The only way to check on these wagons is to mount an expedition to the NRM Library and look at the Registers. <<end quote>> regards, Graham

All this mention of pigs in crates does puzzle me... if pigs in blankets are in vogue at the end of each year then when are pigs in crates to be considered as "delicacy of the day"? On the other hand, and being serious for once, there were regulations relating to the comfort / well-being / call of nature of animals in transit. In the case of cows the animals had to be inspected and watered after a prescribed period of travel. I suspect that the same regulations applied to live pigs... can such regulations be applied "inspected" or "watered" in the same manner as cows? Looking at the train service times offered earlier one may put one and one together and come to the conclusion that Kemble was an authorised place for carrying out the regulations - there are several loads which arrive at Kemble on one day and leave on the next. Easy to carry out the regulations with cows, just unload into a convenient cattle dock..... but a pig in a crate? Is this the point when we ask The Stationmaster for his view? regards, Graham

Stephen @Compound2632, To answer your question about anomalies, access to the relevant GWR wagon registers in York is desirable, I shall ask Chris Brown about what number ranges he copied a couple of years back. A transcription error is possible, I shall talk to my "source" to see if the original reference material is available at this time (item was - maybe is - in a private collection). regards, Graham

For those who love trying to interpret the way things were in the past.... here is an extract from the Kemble wagons received book of 1881, the extract focussing on GWR wagons used for pig traffic to / from Kemble. The data tells us where the traffic originated and the destination of the traffic - in most cases the pigs are being sent to Cirencester. What the data cannot tell us is if the pigs sent from Cirencester to Paddington on 13th September where amongst those which were received at Cirencester from New Milford on 11th Spetember. An initial scan of the wagon numbers suggest that the traffic was carried in cattle wagons... to be confirmed. regards, Graham

The paint finish is excellent.

Irrespective of the unusual plank / frame arrangement for today's model the impression is just so for the intended prototype. Do not lose heart, keep going and overcome the "Dreaded Dec". regards, Graham

Kit @kitpw , I believe that Richard Kelham @wagonman has done some research on this image in regard to his book on Somerset PO wagons (published Lightmoor Press and a good read / reference). regards, Graham

Nice to see that the topic title has been changed to reflect the successful outcome of the OP.

Think S7.... The conversion often requires removal of the wheels and sometimes removal of the wheels requires that a solebar is removed for access to the bearings. Some of the Dapol wagons have been issued with the cast baseplate from the Lionheart mineral wagons and those baseplates have alternative holes for the break gear (used for Lionheart wagons assembled for S7)... access to the top side of the baseplate is advantageous for moving the brake gear from the O-FS position to the S7 position. regards, Graham

Do you really want me to make a suggestion? Just think about tiffin... Kyber pass... oh well, carry on then. regards, Graham

Here is a photo circa 1964. This photo is the copyright of Tim Mills / Brian Dale, publication of the photo at the web address given is by Brian Dale who reserves copyright. The loco in the picture is a "Grange". regards, Graham Beare

Exactoscale produced a grey ABS mounting plate to enable fitting of a Tortoise motor underneath a baseboard. The mounting plate was not scale specific and I think that these items are/were used by 4mm and 7mm scale modellers irrespective of track gauge. The Scaleseven Stores does not hold stock of this item and I wish to obtain some stock. Is anyone a member of the EMGS / S4 and can check the respective stores lists? thank you, Graham (S7 modeller).

Today I have been informed by David Stapleton (Precision Paints) that Len Newman has died. Len was found dead at his home when one of his Sons made a visit. David was not able to say either what was the cause of death or date of a funeral. Len was - I believe - the creator of K&L trackwork, later C&L trackwork and subsequently (part?) owner of Exactoscale; even though Len and I chatted about how the businesses came about I was never sure that I heard the whole story - especially that surrounding the P4 Track Co. - and I doubt that I shall now. The current pandemic has pevented me from visiting Len since the end of 2019 and the telephone conversations in that period suddenly seem such a poor recompense for all that Len had given me over that last twenty years. Len - RIP. Graham Beare

A very nice choice - as far as I am aware the only trade7mm offering of this prototype was a resin kit from Meteor Models circa 2005 to 2010. I suspect that the kit was not popular as the company offered the remaining stock to me - I bought all there was to buy. When planning the sides/ends, be wary of the bottom two planks on the drawiing - I think that the "thin" plank was not a plank at all, rather the drawing shows the covered wagon after water run-off angles were fitted on the top edge of the bottom frame member. regards, Graham

Pray tell us what you think is being said.

Mike, now I understand your earlier comment. The simple answer is likely to be "ask David White" because for most of the last fifty years the prime source of 7mm wheels has been Slaters and the "standard" 7mm pin-point axle has been a constant throughout that time. Just be careful what you wish for though... there is a current 7mm RTR maunfacturer who has either three or four different axle lengths / diameters across their current range of wagons and that causes all sorts of problems when considering conversion to S7 standards. regards, Graham

Mike, I do not understand what you are saying in your most recent post. As I cannot recognise what you are poking it is not surprising that I may appear to be exhibiting apathy. regards, Graham

Sounds like a happy convert... well done.

Mike, The photo above shows a bearing cradle with folded lugs at each end - those lugs are one of two options for attachment of Exactoscale brake hangers. Do you have any packets of Exactoscale brake gear? Each packet provides parts to build the brake gear with either hangers fixed to the baseplate or hangers fixed to the lugs in the above photo. In the first option the brake blocks remain in a fixed position as the wheels move up/down. In the second option the brake blocks move with the wheels. My preference is to have the brake blocks fixed in hangers which are fixed to the floor... so I can remove the wheels without disturbing the brake gear. regards, Graham

Mike, Just in case you decide to take Mike's suggestion, here is a link to a topic about a couple of Slater's tar tubs that Peter and I have built. You may notice that I have used some techniques / methods that are familiar to you... with due acknowledgement. Near to the top of the thread is a photo of Peter's tar tub which was painted and weathered by Adrian Marks; Adrian wrote about his methods on RMWeb, here and are worth reading. As to weathering, Rob ( @Rob Pulham ) has written here (or WT) about how he has weathered his tank wagon, worth lookiing at for the way in which Rob has treated the spillage from filling of the tank. Rob, can you supply a link? regards, Graham

Mike, If it helps you, we can alter the drawing and re-run the etch cattle bars.... consistent result, no hassle, time for a cuppa.... regards, Graham

In the first photo, that drystone wall is worthy of a dribble or two. The trackwork looks exemplary, particularly the treatment of the rail joints.

The photograph to which Mike refers was published in the Model Railway Constructor in 1986, Len Tavender based, probably, his drawing on that photo / MRC issue. The same image can be found on the Staffordshire archive website, here . If you access the link you can see how good is Mike's model when compared to the photo. regards, Graham

I do not generally do "me too" posts... this is a rare exception because the most recent post from Mike shows a very realistic appearance to the join between top and side. I am waiting with anticipation to see the result. regards, Graham

Mike, I am not sure what you mean by "disguising" the join... given the period when this tank body was built I expect that the top / sides were held together by rivets through inside angle iron (or similar) hence a join between top and side was visible with an appearance just like that shown in the last photo of your most recent post. regards, Graham