RedgateModels

just tested it round my home layout - it handles 1st rad at the moment

There's some grass now The Scooby is one of Georges toy cars, right scale though. I have an 02 spec Airfix kit WRX to build to go on the layout sometime ......

It will be with me at the Member's Day if you want a look - it makes a guest appearance on Summat Colliery sometimes

After a short spell with a hacksaw and 8BA tap we have the following arrangement I've lost the whole section of chassis from underneath where the body fixing sticks out, so the drawbar pin and it's carrying plate plus the whole lump that supported the flangeless pony wheel has gone to make room for the swinging rear pony. The exisiting pony fixing hole was drilled out 1.8mm and tapped 8BA to take a triang/Hornby bogie screw. A conventional 8BA cheesehead screwed into the tapped hole in the pony and Robert is your Father's brother, as they say The photo shows the drawbar set with the largest gap, the close coupled option is still workable for layouts with very gentle curves/display purposes .....

Thought I'd check the tender to loco coupling as the extra 4mm length at the back was concerning me. Glad I did before going any further. For those who do not know, the current spec Brit chassis connects to the tender via a pin under the cab fixed to the chassis not the pony as in earlier variants. Here's the result on the widest setting of the drawbar and this one shows how it all connects Fine if I don't expect the loco to go round curves! The plan is to lose the chassis pin and fit a new one to the pony truck that is approx 3.5mm further back than the current item. This should give me the clearance I need for 2nd radius curves and still give me the option of close coupling for display/straight track

I'll probably be using HMRS as I did on the Clan, tricky but do-able. I do possess a Bob Moore lining pen though, never used it before .....

I'm told that Chris' body is correct, he has lengthened the firebox by 4mm and left the boiler alone - it certainly looks long! The new rear pony has a throw that is approx 4mm longer, indicating to me that the whole of the loco is 4mm further back

Yes Simon, se previous blog entry - there's a couple of air bubble holes in the chimney - a 247 Devts 9F one might be pressed into service if it won't fill properly. All of Chris' castings are great on this kit, ok, maybe the deflectors are a bit wayward, but he is really at the limit of the technology trying to get a nice even thin flat section in resin. I recon this build will cost about £125 excluding paint, transfers etc, but I have them already from previous builds.

I'm still doing prep work and planning with this build. Chris' instructions suggest you start with the chassis so I've stripped the brit chassis down to it's drive wheels and coupling rods. Here's a quick snap of the first trial fit of the body on the chassis - it fits! As I'm not using the recommended chassis there will be a few deviations from the instructions. I will not be using the resin front motion support bracket (part 3) as the cast lubricator supports will do nicely. The Hornby motion support bracket mentioned does not really exist in this later version of the Brit so I will be fabricating a suitable support for the rear of the Caprotti gear from plasticard. The rear pony needs modification as the Hornby one is the gastly fixed effort with a flangeless wheelset. I either Modify the Duke pony to fit as per the Hornby one and use Ben Alder's technique for providing a swinging wheelset so I can have flanged wheels Resort to a more conventional arrangement with a swinging rear pony - which will be more prototypical Either way I'll have to secure a wheelset from somewhere and modify the Duke pony casting So that's about it for complications caused by my desire for a loco drive DoG, the rest should be as per kit instructions

almost certainly, I've cut one out and it's a bit variable in thickness to say the least - a phone call to Classic Train and Motor Bus is in order methinks

OK, Golden Arrow Duke of Gloucester build starts now. Opening the box we have: I've cleaned the loco body of the small amount of flash, needs a final fettle with some fine files to finish. There are a couple of air bubble holes in the chimney and a w/m replacement might be in the offing. Similarly I might use some ex-JE etched deflctors now I've got the hang of them with the Clan and 2-8-2. Tender is Chris' new BR1J and a fine moulding it is too - should match up to the Hornby chassis without much fuss. I have a DCC ready loco drive Brit chassis from eBay ready to match up to the body which means a bit more faffing getting it to fit as the kit is designed for a tender drive chassis. Updates will follow EDIT: the following image shows how much longer the throw is on the GA rear pony

nooooooo! - I've just bought a Golden Arrow DoG conversion kit, current spec Brit chassis and tender chassis parts

For once I've managed to make better progress than the big boys! - My platforms are finished and fixed down Here's a few snaps of the layout as it stands with some temporary trees to show roughly how it's going to look. Keen eyes will see that I messed up the measurements for the overbridge - got to extend it by 30mm or maybe make a new one Might get some more ground cover done over the weekend - area where the Scooby is will be cinders and good old hanging basket liner will form the basis of the scrub for the trees.

Been a while since I did some work on Fourgig as I've been concerntrating on the 2-8-2. Now that's with Roomey for a final light weathering I have started looking up a scale again. The scalescenes platforms are well under way, 3.5mm card produced from two layers of #1 son's Christmas Lego boxes. Here's a snap of the shorter of the two I had to redo the surface as I left it in the back of the car in the hot sun yesterday and the surface bubbled. The print in between the edge stones was razored with a new #10a blade and scraped off. All is well now with a new section let in. As I was visiting the Mickeover MRG last night to drop the 2-8-2 off I took the opportunity to take Fourgig and the platform to check clearances with some of their O gauge stock. A new pencil line was drawn meaning a little more ballasting needed between the current shoulder and the platform base. There will be a few weeds etc in this area too. Once the other platform is complete I can start fixing things down and getting some gound cover done.

Well, as the owner of a 232 U1 I should join shouldn't I?