66C

Just to let you know that if they are properly adjusted for position - that is relative to the buffer heads - they will work with sprung or unsprung buffers or a combination. For really deep buffer beams that would otherwise interfere with the dropper the vertical section of the dropper can be extended so long as the cranked end is maintained. I did this for a Barclay pug - that in the avatar - by soldering the end of a second dropper at right angles (to form the crank) to the end of the dropper from the loop but without bending it for the crank. This means that the cranked end sits lower with a shorter iron tail. The only real snag I have come across so far is if they are fitted to a vehicle with gangways (corridor connections). The gangway can restrict the amount that the loop can rise and also the working of the latch. The pair I have tried in this situation do not have the latch fitted so that uncoupling can be done but without the ability to propel before releasing the uncoupled vehicle. Regards.

Hi Duncan Instead of modifying the buffer springs, have you considered using the shorter hook and loop provided on the Dingham etch? Regards.

The Historic Carriage Drawings book shows the earlier wooden bodied stock but the basic arrangement would be very similar. The biggest difference would probably be angle girder underframes rather than the truss-rod and queen post of earlier builds. Another possible difference may be the number of battery boxes as some later stock only had one battery per vehicle and a voltage regulator like the LMS coaching stock. Regards.

As John has indicated the instructions are available online here: http://www.kemilway.com/kemilway-manual.html The instructions do cover construction of twin sets - in particular the arrangements for the shared bogie. As to the number of parts - only 4 buffers are needed as there are no buffers at the inner ends of the twin set and there are 3 bogie screws because there are 3 bogies. You may also find the information in the Historic Carriage Drawings Volume One, LNER and Constituents by Nick Campling, Pendragon, ISBN 1-899816-04-6 much more useful than the pictures in the link you have posted. Regards.

Hi Nick Smaller size drill bits are readily available from suppliers such as Squires or Eileen' Emporium. For modelling purposes invest in a set from 0.5mm upwards. For Peco track pins use a 0.6mm or 0.7mm drill bit in a pin vice. Countersink the top of the hole gently with a 1.5mm drill bit twisted in your fingers. The countersink will mean that the head of the Peco track pin will not be noticeable even before any weathering you decide to apply. The main problem with other track pins such as those sold by Hornby is that they are extremely difficult to disguise so, if you are not using thinner pins such as Peco, consider changing to them. Regards.

Hi again The interior is simply painted by the overspray from the exterior body painting. One tip - not painting - make a note of the glazing sizes before assembling the body as it's much easier to measure them at that stage. I did a dry run with each set of side panels and doors to check the overall length before gluing anything. It's not unusual to find the lengths of each side are not quite the same and this gives an opportunity to carefully reduce the width of selected panels to adjust the overall length. When assembling each side I made the reinforcing strip a bit longer than the finished side to help with handling and not have to worry about the exact positioning. This was trimmed back after assembly. The reinforcing strip was placed against the 60thou spacer and for each side I started at one end and worked along to the other. Some solvent was applied to the reinforcing strip, the panel or door put in place and then some solvent was run down the joint between panel and door. The top of the bodyside was checked as I went along and fine adjustments made if necessary, before the join hardened, to keep the top edge in line. If you go for sub-assemblies there is the danger that any mis-alignment within a sub-assembly would be cumulative and consequently be more difficult to rectify later. Looking ahead, before assembling the body sides, ends and floor you need to decide whether to make the roof or the floor removable - there are pros and cons for both so you need to decide which suits you better. I went for removable roofs and I will happily describe my method with some photos if you decide to go that way. One of the reasons for mentioning it at this stage is that it will affect how you go about fitting out the interior. Regards.

Hi John The black plasticard supplied for the floor is 60thou thick. The two white strips are intended as the reinforcing strips behind the side and door panels. Even before the articles in the Gazette I had made myself a jig with a straight edge for the bottom of the side panels and doors. Against the straight edge I glued some 60thou wide plastic strip (thinner than the reinforcing strip) so that the reinforcing strip behind the side panels and doors is spaced the thickness of the floor above the bottom edge. This does make assembling the sides much, much easier. The Gazette articles have some good photographs of such a jig in use. I did not use the white strips supplied for the reinforcing strip. Instead I used 40thou plasticard strip. This was so that I could put infill strips behind the compartment dividers and a strip along the inside top of the side panels and doors. This gives a "flush" inside and makes fitting out the interior easier. You may be able to make them out in this photo: In case you are wondering, the door hinges are 2mm long pieces of plastic rod set in the groove between door and side panel with solvent. The lower hinge is a double layer - the first piece has the surface trimmed vertical and then a second piece is placed on top as the lower hinge is deeper to compensate for the turn-in of the body side. Regards.

Hi again You may find it easier to also drill holes for the grab handles before assembling the body. If you are a Gauge O Guild member, you will find a couple of useful articles about building Ian's kits in the Gazette Archive. Regards.

Hi John This one was at Bo'ness a while back. You may also find the bogie assembly guide on the Kemilway website useful - it can be downloaded from here: http://www.kemilway.com/kemilway-manual.html These files are a very useful resource for building models of Gresley coaches. Regards.

Hi Graham Just rub down with as fine wet and dry as you have - if you need to get in a stock, Halfords do a project pack with a useful selection of grades. Use 600 for the first rub and then 1200 to really smooth off before a new dusting of primer. Use both wet for better results. Cut little pieces of wet and dry from the sheet to get in at the awkward areas. Don't rush the job and let it dry off thoroughly before any further primer or paint - mind you it looks pretty good in the photos! Regards.

Hi Peter I don't have any that I converted at home as they were all done for club stock. I have, however, added a couple of indicators to your picture and hopefully they will help with the following explanation. First of all remove the clip below the coupling - this is indicated by the green ellipse. It can levered off with a small flat bladed screwdriver. Keep this for later. This will release the original coupling if you have not already removed it. The next step is to remove the central pin indicated by the red arrow. This needs to be cut down so that the space between the lugs that secure the clip is flat. This can be done by cutting away as much as possible of the pin with a pair of cutters and then finishing to a level surface with needle files. This will be easier if the wheels are removed. Prepare some epoxy glue and smear some in the space where the new coupler will sit. Also smear epoxy around the shank of a #20 Kadee coupler and place the Kadee in its approximate position. If necessary, add more epoxy to fill the space around the shank of the Kadee and then replace the clip removed in the first step. As the epoxy cures, adjust the position of the Kadee so that it is central and in the correct fore and aft position. Don't worry about any excess epoxy - it can be trimmed away with a craft knife once it has set. It will be Thursday before I will be able to get a photo of a completed conversion and I will try to remember. Regards.

Hi Peter For some unknown reason I had it in my head that you were referring to the Bachmann bogie. The Airfix type can be done in situ without removing the bogie since all the access needed is from below. As far as the wheels are concerned I would recommend changing them to metal. The Airfix style wheels have quite narrow flanges and so may not be happy with some types of pointwork. Have a look at Hornby's replacement wheels - they are good quality and much cheaper than others available. Regards.

Hi Peter It is necessary to remove the bogie - simply unscrew the retaining screw that is in your photograph. My photograph shows a long shank Kadee so that the draft box can be put back so that it is not visible when the coach is on the track. The Kadee should be positioned so that the flat at the rear of the opening in the knuckle is level with the outside of the gangway if it is a corridor coach or level with the buffer faces if the coach is a non-corridor type. In this case the plastic is suitable for fixing the Kadee with solvent so no fixing screw is necessary. The original plastic wheels were replaced with metal wheels for better running - yours appear to be metal so no need to replace them. For the Airfix type I found that the method described by Butler Henderson left too much "slop" in the fitting. The Kadee shank is thinner than the space in the coupler fitting and so the Kadee can droop. The tail of a #20 Kadee is also narrower than the shank of the Airfix type coupler and so can pivot without any means of keeping it in the centre other than the use of packing or glue. Regards.

Hi Peter Based on my previous experience with a variety of OO stock: First photo - Airfix type coupling - remove the coupling but not the mounting bracket. Within the mounting bracket cut away the central pin only. With the cover clip in place glue (roughen the plastic and use epoxy as the plastic is nylon based and solvents will not work) a #20 Kadee in the slot. Adjust the position of the coupler before the glue sets solid. Second photo - early Bachmann coupling integral with coach bogies - cut away the coupling from the hook pivot outwards to leave a flat platform. On top of the platform mount a #5 Kadee or #26 Kadee (if the shank of the #5 is not long enough) and secure in place with a small self tapping screw. Glue may not be effective because of the plastic used for the bogies but may be worth a try. Third photo - small Tri-Ang compatible coupler - remove coupler and keep the fixing screw. Hold a #20 Kadee over the location for the coupler to determine the position of the hole to drill in the shank of the #20. Drill the shank of the #20 to accommodate the original fixing screw of the coupler. Fix the #20 in place using the screw. If you need pictures to supplement my words - let me know. Regards.

Hi again It has only just occurred to me - is your kit 4mm scale? If so, that probably accounts for the angle underframe. Mine is 7mm scale. If you click on the photo you will see it full size. Regards.

Hi Steve "Historic Carriage Drawings Volume One" by Nick Campling, ISBN 1-899816-04-6 has drawings and a picture of this type of coach. It is likely that the angle underframe is incorrect as the LNER used truss rod underframes until well into the 1930s. The examples listed in the above volume date from 1925 to 1929. As far as I know, and certainly with the kits I have purchased from Ian Kirk, he supplies truss type mouldings. When you come to do the underframe bear in mind that there should be battery boxes on both sides. My effort should give you some idea of the arrangements: I have also added cross beams and coil springs to the bogies. One of the nice things about Ian's kits is that it is easy to add detail and improve on things like the door handles. Regards.

Post #249 in this topic: http://www.rmweb.co.uk/community/index.php?/topic/75748-peco-o-gauge-set-track/page-10 Pay attention at the back!

Hi again I have just been pointed to this on the RMweb archive: http://www.rmweb.co.uk/forum/viewtopic.php?f=5&t=1973 Regards.

Hi David I have been informed that Beulah was at Dalmore about 1921 prior to being purchased by Colonel Stephens for the Shropshire and Montgomery Railway. Regards.

Hi Ed Once upon a time Triang-Hornby as they were then published the details of the curved points as part of the information in their track plans book. The inside curve is equivalent to one and a half second radius curves - that is 33.75 degrees. The outer track is a short straight section approximately equivalent to the standard track spacing - that is 67mm, followed by a standard second radius curve - that is 22.5 degrees. If you compare sizes from the Hornby diagram you should be able to see this. It does not help, however, that the half second radius curve used in the curved crossover is not labelled - this does not help a prospective purchaser. As far as I know Peco have made their set track to the same dimensions so as to be compatible with Hornby - I suspect, if I remember correctly, that this was to sell nickel-silver rail into the set track market when the Hornby rail was still steel. Regards.

In that case the Hornby web site has drawings of all their track available here: http://www.Hornby.com/media/pdf/Track-Geometry-PDF.pdf Regards.

First of all - which curved point? For OO gauge: The setrack version is a combination of a short straight and second radius curves. The streamline version is a fairly good combination of the two different radius curves. Bear in mind that drawings are available from the Peco website if you need to see if they fit your track layout. Regards.

Hi Jamie I have been following progress of this fascinating project and it's great to see the photos posted today. In the last photo the entrance to the fiddle yard / storage area can be seen very clearly - so may I make a suggestion. Instead of the view blocking strips being attached to the rear of the backscene, construct a short box tunnel with its interior painted matt black and put the view blocking strips at the end of that. The short tunnel will reduce the light showing through the backscene and make the transition less obvious. Best wishes.

Please bear in mind that the track plan posted on the previous page is much compressed compared with the original and some changes were made to fit the space available. You can see the 25 inch Ordnance Survey map that covers most of the station area here: http://maps.nls.uk/view/82887444 Unfortunately the 25 inch mapping does not include all of the engine shed area. Google Earth will be useful as the basic layout has not changed all that much over the years. The main omissions are the bay platform sidings (now shops) and the loops and sidings where the Strathspey plaform is now. Regards.