Dagworth

Yes it's scratch, there are two scratch diamonds on the layout, the other is in the NCB. I'm not sure how prototypical the curved one is but it seems to flow with the rest of the junction so I'm happy. Andi

Do you mean plans as in drawings or as in a method of how to make them? Andi

Loose and Lose? Andi

No modelling for me today, I'm on my way from Edgbaston back to New Street after a pint to celebrate. Well done England, best test team in the world! Andi

704 for 6!!!

Which is what I said four days ago, see post no 76 (Beast, would you like your invisible ink back ) Andi

Hmmm, Bachmann Sprinter, 85, flask wagon... When will Barwell announce Clacton units I wonder? Andi

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-14405734 Video report from the route Andi

That will cause problems for back emf decoders. Andi

I got 125, I couldn't see any patterns in two of the number sequences. I'm also using IE8 and Vista... Andi

Looks like Micheal Portillo! Andi

Gents? This is a one man project... but thanks Andi

A few more general views of 'Barbara' and 'Caroline' There is still a lot to do with the overhead on this board too, though I am very pleased with the way the switching portal came out. Andi

I dug out the previous board as well, again the first time it has seen daylight for 18 months. I realised that I hadn't put up any photos of it since the bridge was white and it had progressed quite a bit past that. Bolting the two together makes more sense of the sloping wall against the backscene on the current board. Andi

Decentish weather and an opportunity to get the board outside. A coat of matt black makes a big difference to the wall. Andi

What was yesterday a piece of 3mm plywood has now become a retaining wall with blind arches. This has taken me all day to do, cutting the arches out of the ply by hand with a craft knife wasn't easy. Then batten was fixed behind to give the arches depth and a layer of plasticard added behind the arch cut outs. The arches had to have all their brick plasticard added before the ply was fixed back into place, then once in place the main front piece of brick plasticard could be added as it then covers up the fixing screws. The arches are different sizes as the bottoms of the incomplete ones will be hidden behind embankment and I couldn't be bothered to cut curves that wouldn't be seen. Tomorrow I'll paint this lot, then I can get down to the messy bits with the paper mache for the embankment. Andi

As I said in the OP, this guy is an aquaintance not a friend, he's someone we see once a month at a club we go to and even then he doesn't actually speak to us, he got added on FB a year or so back when we all travelled to a club in Bristol together. I write as an ex train driver, I've had to put up with the other side of these idiots too many times. Andi

His comment that someone was upset to see someone "make a decision" would tell me that he had crossed the line. The blacking out was to protect identities, and to remove bad language. Andi

I have reported it, the crossing would be Alstone Lane in Cheltenham, the only other crossing in 'Nam is half barriers as far as I am aware. Best bit with Alstone Lane is it's right next to the signal box! Andi

The guy who posted this is a vague aquaintance of my wife and I, last night he posted of how someone had called him names because he didn't want to wait for the level crossing and so jumped over the barriers. Should I report him, and if so to who? This is a screen capture of his posting. Andi

Finally I've got round to doing some more work on the layout...this is the first time I've seen this board in 18 months! Each board has a name, this is Caroline. So far it is one of the least sceniced of them all, scenery on this one is not easy as there is no room available at the back, there is a hidden road immediately behind the backscene that is part of the MGR loading loop. Apart from a backscene there isn't really a lot I can do with it. The board that connects to the right hand side of this one has a dirty great viaduct across the tracks from front to back of the board which acts as a scenic break allowing the MGR loop to go off-scene, there is one less arch visible on this side of the viaduct than the other. The track that disappears is at a higher level than the yard roads and is carried on a retaining walled embankment. (See the photos in post no4 of this thread). As the retaining wall is visible through the arches I thought that it should carry on on this side of the viaduct too, but decided to make it slope down to ground level, this is what I've been doing today. The biggest problem I've faced today has been not knowing where anything is, as I say it's been a very long time since I did any work on the layout and all my glues and such like had vanished! One quick trip into town for some more and I'm back in business. I still forgot the superglue though, went into the model shop and couldn't remember what I'd gone in for Next step will be to finish the retaining wall on the cutting for the low level tracks and complete the paper mache embankment, then build and add the ground signals for the reception roads before I can move onto the overhead equipment. Watch this space... Andi