Nick_Burman

On 28/11/2022 at 08:43, 009 micro modeller said:

Honduras used both 3ft and 3ft 6in and I’m not sure which gauges are shown in the videos.

The top video is in Costa Rica, so 3'6".  The bottom one is shows what remains the Standard Fruit RR which was the system centered on La Ceiba and which was 3' gauge.

Cheers NB

3 hours ago, Mol_PMB said:

The green loco in that photo looks a lot like this...

https://www.keymodelworld.com/article/murphy-models-class-121-diesel-oo

Not identical but maybe a starting point?

 

The Murphy Models 121 has two issues, one is that it's OO scale and the second that it's one of those locos too expensive and rare to chop up...

Cheers NB

Anyone here familiar with Polish online hobby shops? If yes, can they be trusted? I'm asking because I found an item at this particular shop https://kolejowemodelarstwo.pl/ which I'm interested. However, I'm feeling unsure about ordering as the page has no other language option and no mention of shipping outside Poland within the EU (I'm in Italy). I've emailed them in Google Translated Polish and English but so far, silence. Any suggestions?

Cheers NB

21 hours ago, adb968008 said:

It certainly could use better transport connections, this was the roads on the peninsula when I was there.

I, too, was there several years ago on the tourist path and my experience was that the roads were not near as bad as the one in the picture - at least the main ones, such as Merida - Valladolid - Tulum or the "local" (not toll) Merida - Campeche road. The pavement was in good shape (freshly repaved in a few places) and there was a frequent bus service providing several types of accommodation, we stuck to ADO (Autobuses de Oriente) because they were the ones with the A/C buses. Saw very little rail activity, some switching around Merida station and signs of traffic (palleted cement) at Valladolid. Track was in absolutely parlous condition there.

Cheers NB

On 20/09/2023 at 21:08, Nearholmer said:

If you delve back far enough into US railroad history, you will be able to find termini very much like Minories, an intensive suburban service operated by tank engines on a “turnover” basis.

Newark, N.J., Central of New Jersey station is a good example.

Cheers NB

@Keith Addenbrooke, swap the bogies on the caboose with those on the Burlington boxcar as these are caboose bogies.

Cheers NB

The IRCA locos were C+B+C, i.e., all axles powered. The attached file has some info about them.

Cheers NB

GE Pre-Universal Exports Issue 3 20220224.pdf

Just one correction - both RENFE and IR locos are in fact derived from a batch built in 1949 for the Santos a Jundiai Railway in Brazil. At the time these were being built, Spain was negotiating credits with the UK towards electrifying several sections of railway. A Spanish delegation was sent to the UK and happened to pass through VF's plant at Newton-le-Willows at the time the Brazilian locos were being built. They saw the locos, and after requesting the particulars, saw that the locos fit their bill too. So an order was hammered out and lo and behold, the RENFE 7700 (later 277) class was born. In the Indian case, I'd hazard that IR came round asking if EE had something to offer; EE must have shown the Brazilian and Spanish locos to which IR must have replied, "yes please, with a side order of poppadoms!".

Cheers NB

5 hours ago, 298 said:

 

Now I remember where I've seen it before- as a yard marker in the Cuban photo in this book...

https://morningsunbooks.com/products/electric-railways-of-north-america-in-color

 

That sign indicates the beginning of yard limits. Any moves within this are under the control of the yardmaster or station agent. The sign also indicates how far out a locomotive on switching moves can move out on the main line on a switching move before needing to request block occupancy.

Cheers Nicholas

On 31/05/2023 at 10:00, 298 said:

Steeplecab carrying a P marker

"Patio" - assigned to yard service?

Cheers NB

48 minutes ago, Mike Buckner said:

 

A beginner question, if I may...

 

On some locos in banger blue, there is a small red square somewhere on the side, sometimes a red outline filled with white. What is this for?

I believe this indicates the type of multiple unit connections the locomotive has and with what other other locomotives it can run in multiple with.

Cheers Nicholas

Question, what would be the best scale for modelling Czech railways, HO or TT? I have developed a soft spot for TT scale of lately, especially with PECO's new track range. It seems to be an interesting scale, good for those who are short on space and thus cannot fit an HO layout while being larger than N scale (and thus better for the eyes). Price-wise both scales seem to be the same, however TT seems to be more Mitteleuropa-centric, with some offers (like Soviet/Russian wagons) which are hard to find in HO or simply doesn't exist.

Cheers Nicholas

22 hours ago, bbishop said:

Keith, you may not wish to change to O Gauge.  Your 26.4M coach equates to 2 foot long.  Bill

Rivarossi used to make similar coaches in O scale. I've seen one and despite it's age the coach looked as if it had been made yesterday, such was the quality of the tooling. However it was HUGE, it would be impossible to run it (or a train of such coaches) in a home layout. Stick to the N scale ones...

Cheers NB

Update on the farce - after almost two and one-half months the first package has finally arrived! And like the second package it came with a €4.05 customs charge, just to brighten the day.

Cheers Nicholas

Update - It's moving, after TEN DAYS "in transit". Remarkably customs was very quick (3h).

"Fog in the Channel, Continent cut off". Congratulations... 🤬🤬🤬

Cheers Nicholas

3 hours ago, Enterprisingwestern said:

can only assume Italian customs and the national postal system and as useless and incompetent as ours.

It works well northbound though, and I have ordered goods from the UK in previous occasions (pre-Brexit) with no problems.

Cheers Nicholas

13 hours ago, J. S. Bach said:

I suspect that any problems are on your (Italian) end.

I wouldn't be surprised...

Cheers Nicholas

Hello,

I live in Italy and a few weeks ago I ordered a package of Greenwich couplings from Dundas Models (formerly Parkside Dundas), which were duly shipped via Standard Postage. Two weeks later, no parcel... wrote to Andrew Hastie who very kindly posted another package, this time with tracking. Parcel was posted, but so far roughly two weeks later no sign of parcel. Royal Mail tracking goes as far as acknowledging the departure of the parcel from the UK, however there is no sign of any tracking from Poste Italiane (Italian Post). If one presses the "Continue Tracking" on the Royal Mail tracking result, this leads to the Poste site, meaning that at least the parcel has been electronically acknowledged. But, still no parcel... anyone knows what's up, is Royal Mail having problems with sending parcels to the Continent?

Cheers Nicholas

21 hours ago, chb2488 said:

In the early nineties they could still be found in parcel trains, or in normal goods trains on rare occasions.

By then wouldn't these wagons be in use as departmental vehicles? To this day SBB Cargo has E type 2-axle opens in their fleet, however these are departmental vehicles, painted in a rather garish red and blue scheme.

Cheers Nicholas

Hello,

The K2 vans were once the workhorse of the Swiss railways - the first were built for the pre-SBB private railways and construction went on for a very long time. They were also very long-lived, herein my question, when were these vans finally withdrawn from revenue service?

Cheers Nicholas

28 minutes ago, brossard said:

If you can find it, Badger DM&IR Maroon is a dead ringer for Crimson Lake.  It is acrylic.

 

https://tinyurl.com/5n827phk

 

John

Thanks, I'll keep it mind. However I live in Italy an need something a bit closer...

Cheers Nicholas

Could anyone point me to a Crimson Lake paint or something similar from the big model paint makers (Tamiya, Vallejo, etc...)? I'm looking for something preferably water-based.

Cheers Nicholas

9 hours ago, adb968008 said:

Fuggerth produced an M41 and some MAV commuter stock.

Deak custom made M44, V43, V46 and V63 in brass, for £100 each.

Sachsenmodelle produced the y type sleepers in an Eastern Europe set for Ukraine (blue, and green sleepers, plus a Russian one)

Roco made OBB and MAV long distance airconn stock

Concor made JZ passenger stock.

Sachsenmodelle made CD, ZSK Y type stock also.

Piko make the Chem2 Ukrainian diesel, and also S499 electric seen in Ukraine.

Roco, Heljan make the famous M61 Nohab

Piko, Gutzold, Roco all make the M62 diesel.

Piko are planning to release the V43 electric.

Roco made 109.109

Fuggerth sadly went under several years ago, however I believe that the forthcoming Piko V43 is made using former Fuggerth tooling.

Cheers Nicholas

38 minutes ago, The Stationmaster said:

I think the main shouts from the South Wales companies came from the shareholders of some and the LNWR in respect of one of them (the Rhymney which the LNWR definitely had its eye at one time and which, of course, it used for access to Cardiff).  As far as the ordinary working staff were concerned I think - from what I mentioned about - that many were more than happy to finish up in the GWR because that, if nothing else, meant they would receive an ex-gratia pension on retirement.

Yes, I wanted to expand on that but was rather in a hurry. From what I understand of the several South Wales lines, there was much shareholder protesting over the Grouping as they would find their position degraded from being major/main shareholders in the company(ies) they held to being just ordinary shareholders in a much larger concern - ergo little or no voice at the boardroom once inside the GWR (except, of course, if you were the Marquis of Bute...). The railwaymen must have been happy to join the GWR not only because of the pensions, but also because many of the South Wales lines were extremely mean to their staff and the GWR regime must have been a relief by comparison. As for the mine owners I'd hazard thy did not care provided the coal arrived at the docks promptly.

Cheers NB

Not a colliery, but Seaham Harbour used chauldrons to retried spilled coal from under the staithes. They lasted until the staithes closed.

Cheers NB