Ragtag

Alas, despite best efforts the two shown above were dimensionally off and consequently scrapped. However, a few tweaks and their replacements are looking the business.

They are indeed, possibly with some allover ad versions if the casting goes well. The fletner roof vents are from Mark Hughes, part F24a.

Finished off the Rootes body tonight to go with the Dormobile.

Transit minibuses are doable though - the bodies are relatively straightforward to build and the ABS Mk.2 Transit front has recently become available again whilst Mk.1 fronts can be hacked from John Day models or diecasts. I spliced a John Day diesel snout onto one of the Tiny bodies. One of the owners of Saltire mentioned recently they were still looking at the Mk.2 Transit, so who knows? Perhaps once they've released their Ailsa.

If it helps I added 5mm to the width - cutting the 2nd 'slot' towards the centre from the headlight on each side. I need a few of those too (in the Leyland DAF 400 guise) for my layout - currently torn between scratchbuilding or modifying the HK models version. At around 40 quid a pop though I think scratchbuilding may just win out! Then I need to have a crack at the LDV Pilot and Convoy...

I didn't, couldn't find them anywhere. I started with the Kingfisher models sherpa and widened the front to the correct width based on the number of slots on the grille. I then shrank a photo to match the size of the nose and drew the plans from there, checking againt references as I went e.g. the 1/76 Sunrise Metrorider.

These were quite a common minibus around our way in the early 90s, so I thought I'd have a crack at making one. Quite happy with the results so far. I have a need for several however so this will also be a first attempt at home casting. Fingers crossed!

Hi all, mother in law has the following after a bereavement but it goes well beyond my modelling knowledge. She'd like to know if it's worth trying to sell? Thanks in advance

Hi all, an impending move abroad necessitates a bit of a clearout. I have the following job lot which aren't worth the time and effort to list on ebay etc. but might be of use to a school, youth club, scout group or other community project? 1 x Lima Class 33 (repainted) 1 x Lima Class 121 (repainted - Forestry Commission livery with custom transfers and headboards) 1 x Lima diesel shunter Selection of 14 wagons + brake van - mostly old Hornby stuff Gaugemaster large countryside backscene Wide selection of Woodland Scenics ballast, turf and other scenic materials Buyer just pays postage (likely to be at least £10 as its a sizable box of stuff and quite heavy) + a donation to the RNLI. Local collection welcome from NE63. Would also consider local delivery (within reason) for fuel costs.

The van is looking good - I found they benefit from new wheels the Matchbox ones seem a tad overscale. If you're after more you might try contacting Ryan Birch (Crossways) - @birch4 - I believe he might be considering a rerun of a resin bodyshell version which fit the Oxford LWB chassis.

I've somehow missed this up until this point, but looking good - do love the badger.

Was having a look at some of the boats mentioned above and thought a pic may help. From left to right: -Airfix Severn -Dragon Badger Mersey -Shapeways Atlantic 75 -Majorette D-class -Airfix Y-class All of these are to scale, or close enough. To the right are the Cararama lifeboat and the Siku RIB. As can be seen both of these are too small for the Atlantic and too large for the D-class.

If you're just placing an order I sent one a couple of weeks back with a cheque by post and received the items in about a week.

Thanks, the layout itself is most likely ditched for something larger pending a house move (supposed to be July but who knows now. I can at least work on the stock though

I'm fairly certain no 142 carried any of the early iterations of Northern livery with paler shades as seen on 155s and 156s. Don't think there's any difference in colour between 2004 and 2010 pacers, just the branding as above.

Next across the bench is 47766 which is currently having a lick of filler and yellow on the holes for the RCH jumpers. Resolute seemed to be quite late in getting these so being modelled without, but still with LED lights.

Hi Danny, if memory serves the livery was the same but the branding changed, it didn't originally have the "a serco and Abellio joint venture" strapline. I can't remember now precisely when the change happened but think it may have been around 2010. I'm sure Charlie will be able to confirm though.

So I've spent quite some time looking around for suitable lifeboat models recently and arrived at the following: for a D-class, the Majorette dinghy scales out almost perfectly. It's a little crude in places but is plastic and a good base for detailing. The similar Siku boat doesn't measure up well. for an Atlantic 75, the following also scales our almost perfectly. It's a lovely model but not cheap in OO and doesn't have a full hull version: https://www.shapeways.com/product/AS2CFEACE/rigid-inflatable-boat-1-148?optionId=149358120&li=ostatus. I'll be detailing one to RNLI spec in due course. As mentioned above, Dragon Badger models has some 3D printed lifeboats and accessories in his range. The printing is a little crude and will take some tidying up but they look like the basis of some good models. Note that the RIB is not based on an RNLI boat. I've yet to find a good base model for an Atlantic 21, Atlantic 85 or Arancia, so if anyone does pick up the RNLI land rover set I'd be interested in seeing the dimensions.

After being on the backburner for a while I finally got 47791 to the point of being finished (for now). It's modelled in 1996 condition so will only need a light weathering at some point. Pipes etc. still need fitting to the front. Work so far involved: -renumbering -fitting nameplates -painting RCH leads -painting ETH sockets -painting handrails -fitting depot plaques and BR arrows -moving electrification flashes closer to the headcode panels -modifying tail lights to represent the LED style

Hi all, I know this has come up a few times over the years and most topics seem to point to Heljan or ViTrains spares as the best source for these cables. I know Hurst used to make the plates for the cab fronts but they're long out of stock. Given the scarcity of these spares thesedays I was wondering if anyone has discovered a current solution to sourcing RCH/TDM cables and plates? I know I could use fine wire e.g. fuse wire for the cables but an etched plate would look better than anything I could knock up. Thanks in advance, Stu

Nice one Adam. I took a chance on the Nova and the Polo, will see where I get to with transfers etc.

A quick google gives this link which could be useful for window transfers, although the angle is a little low: https://www.pistonheads.com/news/spotted-ykywt/vauxhall-nova-sr-spotted/38220 These might be usable too: https://www.carsnitch.co.uk/used-cars/vauxhall/nova/used-vauxhall-nova-12-merit-5d-55-middlesbrough-5464432.html Some unfortunate lighting but these may work for the Polo as well: https://www.carandclassic.co.uk/car/C907016 and https://car-from-uk.com/sale.php?id=184444&country=uk

Thanks Grahame, the close-ups are rather cruel but at normal viewing distance they look pretty decent.

I'd been looking at these as well, one way around the solid windows would be to fit transfers. I had some success doing that with the side and rear windows on my Matchbox transits - just a case of finding images from suitable angles (these were done before the resin-cast bodies).