Nick Gough

Hope you had a good day at GETS, Paul. I'm not able to get there this year due to another commitment.

Reminds me of the 'Danger UXB' series that I've just re-watched on Talking Pictures TV.

There is a photo of composite 7908, in Hawksworth livery, in 'A Pictorial Record of Great Western Coaches' part 2. It is in chocolate/cream with double waist lining, 'GREAT WESTERN' at the centre, but no sign of the twin shield.

There was a turntable at Birmingham Snow Hill.

Another challenge with modelling this side of the bridge is its proximity to the wall: I can't build it up in situ easily. Why bother though, when it's not going to be easily viewed? Well, I know its there and I would have to make the parapet and wing walls anyway. Here I do have the advantage of Brunel's plan drawings which are downloadable from the Network Rail archive website - free of charge, for personal/non-commercial use. Using my Silhouette programme, scaled to 4mm: Making a start, with the assistance of Mr Kellogs: This will probably be a bit of a 'trial & error' venture.

Turning my attention to the other end/side of this bridge it has a much different appearance: This side is what remains of the original Brunel bridge built to carry the two broad gauge tracks at the opening of the line. At some point it has been altered to remove the brick arch and replace it with a girder deck. In its original state it would have looked similar to this one at nearby South Stoke: The Brunel bridge must have been widened a couple of times. First in the 1860s to carry a third track - the Wallingford branch line. Then again, in the 1890s, when the main line was quadrupled, and three more tracks were added - the two relief lines and a refuge siding for the Up Main. This photo shews where the extended, arched bridge meets the now altered, girders: I am going to try using different methods to model the older side of the bridge with its interesting curved brickwork:

Much like your own track, John.

Back in the 1980s Higham Ferrers was part of my working area. The branch had long been closed and dismantled by then. The terminus station area was just derelict with little trace of a railway. Apparently, in its MR heyday there was a walnut tree next to the station. It was one of the stationmaster's tasks to collect the walnuts and put them on a train for the Midland Hotel at St Pancras. In the adjacent town of Rushden the station building survived, but was shut up and empty until the local historical transport society https://www.rhts.co.uk/ took it over, converting it to a museum and real ale bar. In due course they have re-instated about half a mile of track, from Rushden station towards Higham Ferrers, and run occasional trains. For many years the nearby goods shed and yard were in use as a council highways depot. More recently a modern relief road has bisected the site with the depot moving elsewhere and the goods shed handed over to the transport society as well. This is a massive building for a small town since this used to be an important facility for the extensive local boot and show industry. It's ideal for housing some of their larger exhibits and for events like their recent model weekend.

Just brilliant!

Obviously I won't be replicating all the rampant greenery of today!

I find it very satisfying to create something like this from scratch. Even though it would be a lot quicker to use a kit it wouldn't be the same and, of course, when modelling a real place you're less likely to find one to match the prototype structure. It's nice that this bridge is still in railway use, both for the main line railway and the preserved Wallingford branch:

Next the pilasters, from 3mm MDF: Plastikard added: And loosely in place: On the real bridge the wing walls end in low, curved walls, opening out towards the junction with the adjacent road that runs alongside the railway: I have tried to replicate these: Though it was difficult to establish how curved these parts should be, since they don't shew up on the 25" OS maps or any drawings I have found. I have used part of a common household item to support the curves: From trackside the bridge looks like this: (taken from the station platform) Since I don't have a drawing of this side of the bridge (and it would be foolhardy/illegal to climb all over it with a tape measure) I have estimated most of the dimensions from photos and counting bricks. Still a bit to do and painting of course.

Thanks for all the supportive responses to my last post. On a lighter note - one thing I have been doing recently is attempting to recreate this bridge, on the Didcot side of the station: Starting with a hole in the side of the trackbed: I started by adding the lower, brick sections from embossed plasticard. Then added the arch ring (Silhouette) and upper brick portion: Wing walls, attached to 5mm ply sections: The steel girder parapet is mounted outward from the brick face of the arch: With the pilasters on and behind the wing walls. The girder is made up from plastikard: With webbing and 'stiffeners' added:

It's suggested that the general population were smaller in stature those days. Probably not enough to make a full compartment a comfortable experience though!

Doesn't life get in the way sometimes?🤔 I haven't posted on this thread for a couple of months since various events have conspired to slow visible progress, on the layout, to a crawl. Amongst these, back in July, I found out, from a blood test, that I have a high PSA level. This subsequently resulted in ten hospital visits (so far) for various tests, body scans, biopsy and consultations. I have been diagnosed with early prostate cancer, which doesn't appear to have spread. However, my PSA is quite high so I'm currently waiting a further scan, at Leicester, to confirm that there are no other problems. It was unexpected but I'm not surprised since my father survived prostate cancer when he was in his 70s. I've got no obvious symptoms and am carrying on my active lifestyle as normal. I can't say that I've been worried or upset at any point and feel positive. I'm just looking forward to getting all the tests finished and a treatment plan set.

Despite all the media hype, it's probably nothing more than a slightly bent buffer.

Get well soon John. Looking forward to seeing the rest of your photo session while you recover.

Sadly I wasn't there myself. The photos were taken by my daughter, from the coach, on the way back home from an outward bound week, with her junior school class, up the coast. You were lucky - they visited Harlech the day before you! Castle and ice cream shop.

Would you like a jelly baby?

Who needs a Tardis?

Seen yesterday: Preparing to replace the main steel girder sections of the bridge.

For a C10 there's always the old option of cutting two Triang brake thirds in half, and gluing together, with replacement bogies.

A 'four candles' wagon would be nice.

Though not all. There is a photo of a brown K15, still with lookouts, in "The Great Western Railway in the 1930s", volume 2. According to the caption it is likely to be one of three numbered 1082-1084, allocated to a Trowbridge-Manchester working between 1923 and 1928. In the photo the van is at the head of the 7:45am Penzance -Crewe train, which it had joined at Bristol Temple Meads. The book has a second photo of this train, on another date. In this one the K15 is also brown, but the lookouts have been removed.

The lookouts had generally been removed, on these, by the time they had been painted brown.