Waverley47708

Interestingly the optimistic pricing of the Lima 5O is not a one of looking at the other items for sale and they do seem to be selling items with 100% positive feedback.

Funnily enough all three of my slightly more realistic offers were declined. I've offered him some constructive comments on the price and wished him all the best.

£105 plus £6.95 p and p for a Lima 50! I've made a realistic offer. Let's see how that goes. https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/369-Lima-L205140-Class-50-50007-BR-Brunswick-Green-Sir-Edward-Elgar-Boxed-Mint-/353308283250?_trksid=p2349624.m46890.l49292

Good advice re checking on RMWEB which is why I'm now in a quandry over which Class 45 to give for. However as far as magazine reviews go I'm a bit skeptical, whilst there were pages and pages on here of views on Oxfords Intercity and ScotRail livery, the reviews I saw in magazines of the Oxford Mk3s glossed over the 50 shades of grey debate.

What a gem to find within this topic, a fascinating read and insight. Thanks for posting.

Perth Model Railway Exhibition 2021 - Cancelled The Committee and members of the Scottish Model Engineering Trust (and Perth MRG within) regret to inform all visitors and exhibitors intending to come to the Perth show in June that we have had to cancel the event. The on-going health crisis has prompted us to respect that health and well-being has to come first and with no certainty that the event can proceed we will instead hope that normality can return as soon as possible to allow us to present our next show at the end of June 2022.

Always two drivers! Oh well guess I am going to have to open them up again as I only put one in.

The detail pack which includes everything except nameplates is good value at £8. I called yesterday to ask if the pack included the brake rods or not. I was told it did and so I've ordered a pack. My maroon one came without any I'd the details.

Thanks, If not fitting a driver I'd agree just try to slip it down by peeling the foam back. I'm intrigued how you managed to avoid light bleed as I ended up with a sitaution as per Phil B's photo on the last page of 5 April. Went for 1A45 on Western Ranger as on the day I was born it was on 1A45, The other end of Ranger is 2B10 (bit of a pain as that combo 2B doesn't come as a set) as when I first experienced a Western (in my mid 30s!, shocking i know) it had that headcode at SVR. For Fusilier i went for 1C50 as I liked a 1C code and found a photo of a maroon one with that code, and IV93 just because I thought I looked ok and I like the look of an IV code.

Since working from home I got a window bird feeder from Home Bargins for the spare room. A great idea to brighten the day. I already had one on the patio doors downstairs. I've noticed some differences in usage. The one on the spare room is on the first floor. It needs to be refilled 3 times a day with nuts and is visited by blue, great and coal tits, (long tailed tits were on a tree 4 metres away yesterday but didn't visit) Sometimes one tit immediately after another, blue being most frequent then great then coal. I have the same bird feeder on the ground floor to the rear of the house. It gets blue tits, great tits, collard doves (bit of a squeeze) and the odd sparrow. It only needs refilled every two days. Interestingly the sparrows and collard doves don't use the first floor one. I got another and put it on the first floor to the rear of the house this time. Observations here rely on no 1 teenage daughter who is not known for her ornathological enthusiasm. From what I can glean so far, same pattern of species but not the same usage as the front first floor feeder. So again tits, but no doves or sparrows. There is a tree in the neighbours garden near the first floor one and my current theory as to why it is used so much relates to the tree. Over many years I've noticed the smaller birds like to go between tree and feeder, tree and feeder. What I've not got a theory on yet is why collard doves and sparrows don't seem to use either first floor feeders when they do use the ground floor one.

Agree worth the faff. I recently got a couple of Westerns, a second hand maroon one Western Fusilier and Western Prince (to become Western Ranger) in the TMC sale. 70s Western Region isn't really my thing but I rather like these locos, and Western Fusilier was in maroon in 1985 after all although I doubt she came to Scotland that year! Anyway I wasnt keen on sticking the headcode on the outside, so I had a look inside. I removed the cab and lighting unit by gently pulling the sides apart where the cab bulkhead touches the loco body. Then gently slid the whole unit, cab and light unit back. Out if the 4, I managed to break 2 of the tiny protruding 8 light bars for the forward white and tail red light. I did this removing the first two lighting units. The good thing is once I realised my error, it is possible to remove them without breaking them. Furthermore you can get spares and as it turns out when I reassembled them you don't need them anyway. Drivers were fitted. Headcodes, using a link Andy Y posted earlier I cut them a little smaller than they come. https://www.world-of-railways.co.uk/techniques/detailing-the-Dapol-western/ Then just kept trimming by small amounts until the fit perfectly. Andy Y link suggest 1mm smaller i wasnt that brave so did it a bit at a time. Unlike that method I had by then removed the lighting unit and found it easy to fit them for most I used a tiny bit if glazing glue round the edge and top edge, remember to fit them the correct way up. Once I put it back together I tested it. The light bleed was awful. Bear in mind it is not designed for this approach so light come round the sides etc. Given I had taken me hours to work out how to do it and to actually fit them i was a bit disappointed initially. However I thought about it and since i run daylight i decided just to cover the centre led which illuminates the headcode with black masking tape to do away with the illumination and just have the white forward and red rear lamp work. Being DC I also deliberately did not reconnect the cab lighting when I put the body back together. You still need the foam plate thing to be in place to prevent light bleed for the tail and head light into the headcode. A faff yes, but it looks much better with the headcodes behind the glass and for me anyway them not being illuminated does not take away the look in daytime running.

Was just going to ask the same question, I had been thinking of a Heljan one as they do unnamed ones which is what I'd prefer. If the nameplates come off the Bachmann ones I may plump for one of these. I've always found Bachmann numbers easy enough to remove so am assuming these will be the same. However there was a photo earlier with a regiment version and a mark for want of a better expression for where the Crest went. I'm guessing Lytham Saint Anne's may be the easiest to rename as there was no Crest.

Is my memory failing me or did I used to log on at midnight on 24 December or New Years day to get the Hornby announcements in the past, 1000 on 6th December far more civilised especially as I'll be working g from home that day. Mind there was something exciting about a midnight launch. As others have said I tend to go to RMWEB as I find it easier to see the announcements that way. The two missing DMUs for my mid 80s Scottish layout were 104s and 120s. I just bought an already built excellent kit version of a 104 a month or so before Heljan announced their 104, (to be fair the seller did say there was a rumour Heljan may be doing one) so a 120 DMU in blue grey but only if it comes with a 101 middle car for my wishlist (very 1980 ScotRail) surely that's not too much to ask for!

Excellent, just like the game we play with the wee ones on a long car journey when the had to guess the animal.

I'm going to need some help here, large carnivorous mammal and an old chestnut?

The line side cabinets look good and would have worked out much cheaper than 10 packs of Wills I bought last year. You live and learn.

According to British Rail At Work ScotRail, the MGR to Longannet had over 40 HAA at one time (as others have said already) and it was that extra load that resulted in the need for the third loco. Clearly it would also have had the advantage for trains from the Inverkeithing direction not having to go to Townhill Jn to run round as they could just change direction at Charleston Jn instead as mentioned above. The book says the cost of the extra crew required for the third loco meant it increased the direct cost per ton payload and was discounted in 1983. I've seen comments on Flickr that horn signals were used to communicate between the locos on either end when three were used. When referring to the use of 2 x Class 20s generally in Scotland it also refers to a new proposal to use radio control and have a loco at either end. The book is dated 1986 and I don't ever recall seeing that arrangement being used on Longannet trains anyway. The book also says it was the modification to add an emergency brake valve in the cab that allowed the guard to travel in the rear loco's cab and dispense with the need for a brake van. No date is given for this change.

I had a look in my May 1985 to May 1986 WTT, Longannet PS is listed, however there are no services against them. Westfield doesn't feature at all. The 1984/85 miners strike ended in March 1985. I have no idea how far in advance they are prepared and whether or not the miners strike had a bearing on no timings for Longannet PS. My memory is that they didn't run during the strike. I'd assume post strike they would have been busy rebuilding the stock piles. The WTT doesn't list Kincardine PS which was still operational at that time. It being located a couple of miles further up the line from Longannet. I've had a bit of a look on Flickr and found photos of MGR in Fife at the time. Some say they were heading to Kincardine, I am not sure if that was based on local knowledge or whether given the proximity of Longannet PS to Kincardine it was used to mean Longannet. I assume it is ok to copy links from Flickr into RMWEB. Looking at rail maps on line whilst Longannet had that classic MGR loop, it looks like Kincardine PS which was built in the 1950s didn't have a loop.

Do you know the provide code or have a link to them as I say I can't find the glazing on the website. I am keen to flushglaze my Lima Mk 2b or c, not sure which. I was aware of the frames but wasn't sure how to fit glazing.

41 HAAs, that would have been great to hear and see the 20s hauling that up Touch Bank towards Townhill Jn!

Thanks Bill. Some interesting points there, wasn't aware of some running round at Charleston Junction rather than Townhill Jn. That would make sense for the 2 locos on one end and 1 on the other and would save a bit of time compared to the extra 2 to 3 miles and run round at Townhill Jn. According to Wikipedia Longannet started generating in 1970 and was fully operational by 1973. I never actually saw the 3 loco formations myself. Being born in 1973 I wonder if it ceased by the time I would have been aware of them. On the basis that deep mining was still common in the 70s 'd always assumed Westfield Open Cast was a relatively new location, mid 80s rather than 70s. What route did the Westfield to Longannet services go via Inverkeithing or Cowdenbeath in the 1970 WTT? For those not familiar with the locations, Townhill Jn is at Halbeath area of Dunfermline rather than at Townhill itself. Confusingly there was also a junction there to Dunfermline Upper, Oaklay and Comrie. This was also the location of the wagon works. Growing up there I was aware of the junction to Dunfermline Upper but not to Townhill. There were loops on both sides of the running lines. The depot was on the South side of the loops. Assuming the track layout didn't change between the 70s and 90s, the loops to the North side would have been used for MGR run round. I say this on the basis of my memory of the crossover arrangement at the West end of the loops. Trains heading South from Kirkaldy on the ECML could take a single line connection just North of where the ECML and branch from Dunfermline met to the North of the station. The single line connection was the third side of a triangle which connected the ECML to the branch.

A great photo, just how I remember them, thanks. It was only when I got back into the hobby I realised that lots of 20s had discs rather than head code boxes and yet I could not remember seeing any disc fitted 20s on these MGRs. Read elsewhere that this was due to a batch of head code fitted 20s getting a slow speed conversion or dual brakes and think this is why they have the rectangular box to the side of the head code box.

Have been following your updates for a while with interest. Wonder if you could clarify a few things for me. What coach have you added the windows to, it looks like an Airfix mk2d rather than a Hornby or Lima mk2 a,b or c. I was aware Brian had produced frames for Hornby Mk2as, which I once lined up to my Lima Mk2c and the looked a fit. Are those the frames you have used I've just had a look at the website and could see the glazing for them.

I have been meaning to start a new discussion topic for a while on 1980s MGR traffic in Fife, Scotland. The issue has come up a few times in other topics but I thought I’d start a topic dedicated to it. Wasn't sure if it should be under Railways of Scotland or UK Protype Discussions not Questions I was brought up in Dunfermline and pairs of Class 20s heading to and from Longannet Power Station with rakes of HAA were a significant part of my early interest in railways. The bonus of living in Dunfermline was that you got to see them twice as they arrived from the South ran past Charlestown Junction just South of Dunfermline Lower (now Dunfermline Town) to Halbeath. The locos would run round the train, it would then return down the track to Charlestown Junction and then head of the branch line towards Longannet. They repeated to run up to Halbeath on their return journey. Another benefit of living in Dunfermline was that the climb up Touch Bank meant that pairs of 20s had to work hard and were therefore very noisy as they climbed towards Halbeath especially when loaded. Both my Primary and Secondary Schools had views of them going up the bank. I can also remember on certain nights hearing them over a mile from my house climbing up the bank. Other memories are of them passing within inches of you at Culross as you walked along the path next to the railway and the ground shook. As a youngster I had always assumed that they all went from the mine the South of Kirkcaldy and headed to Dunfermline via Thornton, it was not until I got back into the hobby I found out that some/all/most (?) went via Inverkeithing and ran round at Halbeath as described above. There were other workings, I've seen photos of them at Cardenden and Cowdenbeath therefore some did use that part of the Fife Circle as it became known. There were some from Westfield. I am pretty sure some came from South of the Forth. Rightly or wrongly I tended to associate these with the HAAs with the extra covers on top. I’ve seen a magazine article (possibly Traction) on them which included a photo of a 26 at Liggers bridge on an MGR just beyond Charlestown Junction. This is the thing with such articles, they always include the different, the unusual which I understand, but up until the late 80s, my memory of 12 years of schooling overlooking the line was of pairs of Class 20s. I’ve seen photos but never remember seeing them myself of a pair of 20s on one end with or without a brake van and a single 20 at the other, I think this practice had gone by the mid 80s. I do remember the 37s taking over the services in the then new Coal Subsector and I remember getting a bit of a shock to see Class 56s on them, up to that point I’d never expected to see them north of the border. By that time my interest in railways was waning and my favourite time was definitely the period when these trains were exclusively in the hands of pairs of Class 20s with a rake of HAAs. Lots of memories but no photos of my own unfortunately. If you have information, memories or photos of these or other East Scotland MGR workings especially from the 70s and 80s would be great to read and see them.