Red Fox

Hornby First Great Western Mark 3 at the bargain price of £200. Better be quick, only two at the price! https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Hornby-First-Great-Western-Mark-3-Coach/143011024852

Latest unit for the layout is more or less complete. 158959 is a hybrid 3 coach unit as commonly found on Cardiff Central-Portsmouth Harbour services. The model has been resprayed and had the excellent Precision Labels FGW Local Lines transfers applied. Coach C has a mini-plough but A and B do not so the unit is modelled in pre-2015 condition. All 3 cab fronts have had door covers added. The unit will eventually be weathered and the Bachmann lighting replaced with something more prototypical. Next unit in to the spray booth should be a SWT 158.

I wanted to respray a Hornby VEP (and make it look like a VEP!) which have very fragile window frames, so not only do you damage the glazing you damage the body while taking everything apart. I tried masking the windows but it didn't give a very good result. I've seen an idea on Twitter that putting the VEP bodies in the freezer overnight helps weaken the glue so when the time comes to paint the VEP I'll give that a go instead of taking the risk with Superstrip.

After over a year if sitting on my workbench doing nothing the Southampton Tunnel mouth got some attention and is now the right shape. Here it is in its naked form. The lower half has been formed with 0.4mm styrene sheet after some playing around with paper templates to get the right shape. Next I'll construct a short length of tunnel interior and then the whole lot will be clad with suitable embossed plastikard and painted. I also intend to built a suitable signal gantry with working four aspect signals facing the station and dummy signal heads facing the tunnel. So expect the next progress report in 2019

You're welcome! Ampton (v3) still remains a plan on a very long piece of paper and lots of points in boxes as I try to fit in what I want within baseboard limitations. I'm pretty sure I'll be sticking to the current Southampton Central style buildings this time round and various bits and pieces have been bought or made to hopefully bring this version more to life, I've got the basic shape of the tunnel mouth correct along with new signal gantry, the footpath footbridge is awaiting assembly as is the Toys 'R' Us building. I haven't stopped preparing stock for this layout and I have recently completed some FGW units, the Heart of Wessex 150/9 which has recently been disbanded in real life and a Local Lines 153 which will become 153399. A 3 coach 158 will follow at some point which should complete the FGW fleet. On the SWT side of things a 158 have been stripped down for respraying, all the bits for a 442 are ready to go and a pair of 456's are just being finished for added interest as a SWT test train or Southern service in place of an Electrostar (which also maybe forthcoming!). This is the dummy power car of the pair of 456's, the powered version and its trailer will have working head and tail lights. The layout glimpsed in that picture is a smaller roundy-roundy layout slowly under construction which may get it's own thread but there is not much to show at the moment. It's an exercise in improving my modelling skills so features handbuilt track, heavily modified kits and scratch-built buildings plus some 3D printed items from various people. It is set on the same fictional mainline as Ampton, the South Wessex Mainline, a line that looks suspiciously like the South Western Main Line.... Progress with various projects can be followed on https://twitter.com/SWMainLine but I'll still keep RMWeb updated. So lots to keep me busy and out of trouble!

After a long delay in getting started my FGW 153 is now pretty much complete and I can confirm that Revell 52 Gloss Blue and Phoenix Precision First Group Blue are the colours to go for. With an airbrush I applied the gloss blue first from cantrail to about halfway down the body and then carefully sprayed on the First Group Blue allowing less paint through the airbrush as I worked up to make the fade. I just went by eye with reference to some good side on pictures and the result is shown below This is my first proper respray using an airbrush and I am very pleased how it turned out.

<edit 31/05> No interest so they have been disposed of.

The wheels are supported by an inside frame but the top part and bogie side are a one piece moulding so it would have to be a new bogie tooling rather than the factory just not attaching the bogie sides and glueing on the yaw damper in its place. Unfortunately I don't have anything to accurately measure the washer but by eye it looks to be around 0.5mm or less (probably less). I've not dismantled the coach to see of they have done anything to the area where the bogie clips in but the mod certainly looks like something that could be done at home.

Finally had a chance to have a look at my modified IEP after being away for a couple of weeks. The bogies on the centre coaches have all received a thin clear plastic washer and a bit of lubricant. I've not seen a pic of the mod on here yet so here you go:- I'm not sure if there has been some light filing of the clip as well or if that is just wear and tear. The troublesome 812004 coach is now click free and stays on the rails. I've given all the centre coaches a push test across my Hornby radius 3 S-shape as before and they all perform well. Subjected the coaches to a gradient and they didn't derail. I have yet to try them out as a full coupled up 5 coach unit but I am hopeful that I will encounter no problems.

I'd think it would be quite an easy project if you are happy with repainting and you can get hold of the parts required. I think PH Designs have done a window etching for the 172 but it's not listed on there site, maybe it was a commission? Bachmann Voyager bogies would be an acceptable replacement for the Turbostar ones. Phoenix Precision do TFL Blue paint but don't appear to do Overground Orange.

My 800 was sent away to Hornby for the bogie modification last week. It arrived with them on Monday and today I have received a notification that it's on its way back. Pretty quick turnaround from Hornby. Hopefully all will now be well with the model.

Was surprised to received a letter from Precision Labels yesterday containing amendments to the First Great Western Local Lines 153 pack which I purchased from them in December. This is the latest example of excellent customer service I have received from John at Precision Labels.

A chap on the Dapol stand at Ally Pally yesterday said the next batch of 73's would have a redesigned circuit board and there might be a scheme to swap old circuit boards from the original batch but but they hadn't decided yet.

Since my last message I've taken the body off my troublesome centre coach 812004 and made sure everything is sitting correctly, I've loosened the coupling screws and I've test run it on perfectly flat track, I'm still experiencing a derailing issue with the bogie that has the lighting pick-ups. It's not every time but it is happening regularly. Subject the coach to any sort of gradient and both bogies derail every time. The coaches with the factory applied filing of damper anchor point don't seem to have an issue with a slight gradient, they don't appear to have any other factory applied modifications but do have a very slight amount of lubrication on the bogie clip and pivot.. Lift coach 812004 off the track and move the bogies by hand and they more often than not catch and force the body out. This was apparent straight from the box as it was the first thing I checked after reading about the problems with the model. I'm reluctant to perform any modifications to coach 812004, such as filing the damper anchor point, until I hear what Hornby are doing to the models that have been sent back, I may send back my model, I haven't decided yet.

It's all gone quiet regarding the new liveries, nothing on the Dapol Digest but Hattons have them listed as due between April and June. Speaking of Hattons they have taken on stock of the Olivias Trains Limited Edition 73's and have them at a reasonable price (£99), does anyone know if the Gatwick Express livery is correct on 73207? EDIT - looking back at this thread it looks like the answer is no!

I used T-Cut soaked cotton bud on my power cars and coaches, it worked really well and didn't leave any marks.

I've had my 800 for about a week and I'm experiencing the derailing problem with centre coach 812004. The other two centre coaches came with the factory applied filling of the damper anchor point so don't seem to have a problem. I set up an S shape of Hornby R3 curves and pushed 812004 along it on its own. The first few times it derailed, the yaw damper on one bogie jamming on the anchor point and forcing the body side out as other have experienced, but after two or three times it seemed to correct itself and not derail. Lifted coach off the track and put it back on and the pattern repeated, derailed a few times and then corrects itself. Most odd!

The new ferry terminal was built around the time some new concept for a large fast ferry, the BGV, was being talked about in the mid 2000's and also involved Sheerness and if I remember correctly a company that wanted to operate has never managed to operate a ship but was very successful at getting the local papers to write about them and the main man did a runner..... The new port was intended to be the Hub for a network of these BGV's so that's why it is called 'Hub port de Boulogne-sur-Mer'. Anyway, the Hub port opened in 2009 and was used by LD Lines for their service to Dover using the large high speed catamaran Norman Arrow. LD Lines had run for a few months before from the old Gare Maritime with the Cote D'Albatre from the Newhaven-Dieppe service. The fast ferry service was replaced later that year with a conventional service first using LD Lines Norman Spirit, now DFDS's Calais Seaways, and then a pair of chartered vessels. The service closed in September 2010. The port is still occasionally used by P&O Ferries as a diversion port during periods of long term disruption in Calais. It has to be long term disruption to get UK Border staff to move there as they don't seem to bother for one day strikes or port closures.

It has happened. CrossCountry hired in 221108 and 221109 in August 2017 to operate a Manchester-Bournemouth round trip. Pictures found on Flickr Southampton Central https://flic.kr/p/Y6NHir https://flic.kr/p/WWYC3X Eastleigh https://flic.kr/p/WQbSQm Millbrook (scroll down) http://www.47soton.co.uk/2017/08/21st-26th-august-2017.html It had to be double crewed by Virgin and CrossCountry drivers as, for the reason stated in the previous reply, the CrossCountry 221's cabs are not identical to the Virgin ones anymore and the Virgin staff don't have the route knowledge.

450111 is the first 450 to receive the new livery and internal refresh. Seems to have dark grey fabric with grey plastic headrest in standard and faux leather seats in first, also in grey. Carpet is grey too. Only bit of colour is the orange grab handles in standard.

Coach C has had all its transfers added and the window blank in the matt stripe dulled down I dry brushed some matt white on to the window blank and further rubbed it down with a dry cotton bud until it looked right. In most lights and that picture it looks pretty much spot on but from certain angles you tell its not quite right. My FGW set is half way through receiving brake disks and I think they really do add to the look of the bogies, gWr set will have them installed after weathering.

I don't have the R numbers but an EC HST is 9 coaches long instead of 8, the sets have an extra TS which was added in GNER days.

Coach C has just received its coat of gloss varnish to protect the new transfers. Luckily I managed to locate the transfer pack after carefully putting them somewhere safe and then forgetting where that somewhere was! Fun fact for TSD 42299 which is coach C in set LA15 - the coach C signs are only accompanied by a wheelchair logo at one door as seen here https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Bristol_Temple_Meads_-_GWR_Mk3_42299.JPG The rest of doors just have a 'C'. It seems that the wheelchair logo was on the other door on the side shown in the picture when the set first returned to service in gWr livery but it was removed pretty quickly, I've found no pictures or video showing the logo being present on the other side at either door. Also it appears one of the toilet windows on TS 42579 coach E is a single piece of glazing not split like the rest, I may add that to my model in the future. I wish the window on my coach C had come out so easily! Whenever I have tried to remove Hornby glazing recently I've found they have used super strong glue, I tried removing the windows on a VEP but they wouldn't budge without taking part of the frame with them. I did see a tip that putting the bodyshell in a freezer over night loosens the grip of the glue. QC is definitely an issue, that's why we have 2+1 red interiors in the standard class coaches (except the TGS). I'm using Kadee 18's. The method I used for installing the Symoba sliders on the HST power cars and mk3's is described in a post on my old layout thread click here The NEM pocket can be moved up and down the pin of the slider so you can have it at any height you want. With Kadee 18 the rake can still go round a Hornby r3 curve, 17's would probably look better though. They are on their way from Stenson Models which I believe sell the old Colin Craig range of parts.

Christmas, New Year, work and ill health got in the way of doing much work on my various projects though funnily enough I restarted work on coach C yesterday. I'm in the process of tidying up the moulding for the now clear former toilet window. I used T-Cut to remove the paint and some of it had lingered between the body and window glazing giving the window a bit of a halo effect. That's all been cleaned up now and will be refitted shortly. I seemed to have temporarily mislaid the coach C transfers but once I relocate them they will be applied and the coach varnished and receive its new couplings. My FGW Neon HST is a full formation weathered by Road and Rails a few years ago. It has Symoba NEM pockets and Kadee couplings, same as being fitted to the gWr set, and will soon be getting etched disk brakes. I currently don't have an operational layout but I'll try and get some pics of the HST's

The original release of FGW neon HST stock back in 2010 had FGW purple that was a bit on the light side, it's got lighter and lighter since!