brian daniels

Hi Richard If you look back through this thread you can see how the CPL Telltails look on these coaches. The vac cylinder and dynomo are spares I had from Westdale projects.Don't know if you can get them from him seperatly though. I know you can get Easybuild ones ok. I don't know why JLTRT keep putting those riveted vac cylinders in their MkI's as they do the correct cylinder in the GUV I think. Laurie did say he will update the parts pdf sheet for the TPO's to include the extra underframe parts as it's not the standard MkI underframe. I have made the truss rods and filled in the lights by the doors on the body as these went after the catching equipment was finished with in 1972. A quick question for anyone, was the toilet window covered up on the plain side of these coaches? I have seen one picture that it is covered up on but were they all? I don't know why but everyone photo's the more interesting side!

The 31 is now in the paintshops, well I might get some primer on it when/if it stops raining! In the mean time I will do a bit on the TPO. Below are some pictures of what came in the box plus a couple of extra bits I have got to hand. First thing to change is the roof vents as the model has a single row but my picture shows 2 rows. Useing a Bachmann OO model for referance I have drilled holes for 2 rows. On the underframe of these everything is doubled up. There are 4 battery boxes, 2 dynamos and 2 regulator boxes, shame the model has the standard underframe contents. But I have ordered the extra bits. Etch Bogies

Dia 720 actually. It's a shame they only do the TPO's with the large windows and not the more numerous smaller style. I have been getting hold of some other bits to finish it off, still need to order the transfers from Fox though.

Hi chaps The local bike shop will be doing the repairs for me as I just like riding them and in 38 years of bikes have never had any inclination to get down and dirty with them. I can't understand it really as I love pulling models to bits! PCM If you drill out the boiler exhaust ther was no mesh in there just the top of the boiler inerds. Recieved a JLTRT TPO this week, more on that later.

Could have been nasty Jeff it had locked like Trevors. Where it's snapped it is covered in a white powdery stuff. I suspect it's good old English salt verses Japanese casting and I think the salt won!

Thankfully Trevor puting the brake on should lock the calliper to the fork leg, I think this is what happens. Don't know how far I have gone on the bike like this!

As Rolf Harris would say "can you tell what it is yet?" Yes I am doing this as an ex High Dyke token fitted one, one recess done so far. I have also done one of the etched steps. The little black blobs in the recess are the Archer water slide rivets, can't wait to see if they show up when it's painted. Forgot to say that the worksplate is from Sevenmill.

Sorry things have been a bit quiet on my thread recently but my computer has had to go into hospital. It started shutting down after about 5mins so I am waiting for the fan to be sorted as the plastic housing was perished and allowed the fan to move. So I am on the laptop for a bit and most of my files are on the other computer. Anyway I recieved a set of 31 etches from Pete Harvey this week to use on the forthcoming Heljan 31. Thought it would be rude not to use them on a pre-production model! So here are some of them. There is around blank to go over the boiler exhaust if you want an NB one, a front corridor blank without the steps and a set of steps to solder up later. There is a nice rad etch in the roof that has a bigger mesh than the supplied one so you can see the fan better. Although I wil have to add the 2 strips under the mesh. I have also got hold of a JLTRT TPO coach so I am just ordering all the other little bits to get that ready for building. Last week I went to see John Talbot and I am glad to see that he is doing well. He said my visit has given him some insperation to get and do a bit now that he's feeling better. I got some transfers and paint off him to do a Skytrex PCA in the Turquoise Albright & Wilson livery. Mind you that will be on the back burner as I found I need a new lower fork leg on my motorbike as a lug has snapped that holds a brake caliper on.

From what I understand the Warwell will be available from Hobby Holidays but with diamond bogies, as built. The bogies under this one are borrowed from one of my Appleby Warflats I have. The Warwell is as built without the extra wide bits welded on the top sections in the eary 80's.

The Clayton has now had a couple of good test runs so I think it's about ready for a coat of BR Blue. In the mean time I am back on some ASAM Military vehicles to go on the Warwell I have aquire recently as a test etch for an up and coming model. I don't know when the warflat will be available but I want a few more of them. I have built a Bedford MK lorry with a radio room on the back. Must admit I am a bit unsure if the lorry is a bit out of guage now so might leave the radio room off. Also built a FV432 which I like a lot, wish I had got a train load of these now. Only problem with these products is they are heavy and when you have a dozen on a train you definatly need a Heljan loco to pull them! I have another Bedford MK to build with a canvas top to it.

Not sure of the exact year but it was around 10 years ago I would guess, not much in the way of pictures of these shunters is there.

There are only a couple of VGA's in EWS maroon the rest are silver with yellow ends these days. A couple of pictures her of the maroon ones and advert livery yellow end ones. http://www.flickr.com/photos/brianews/sets/72157629234443272/?page=2

He did mention about an FNA in our conversation so he hasn't forgot about it.

Jeff I had word with Pete at Reading about Falcon and I was left with impression that he was warming to the idea not so sure about Laurie though.Keep up the pressure. Got to admit Kesrat in 7mm would be awsome and I am sure people would want one as it just looks the dogs dangly's.

Pete, it weighs 827g. I suppose it pulls near enough what the prototype did. There's room in the hoods for some weight if needed. Jeff, I will mention the way it's been thought out to Pete Waterman tomorrow! And I will go down on bended knee to ask for a Falcon

Done just about all I can do on this now until I get the few remaining castings to finish it, life guards, windy wipers, res &control air pipes, compressor front, underframe fillers, cooker, thinks that's about it. Looks the part. Front bufferbeam still needs control air and res pipe on left hand side. Two conduits added from cab to bufferbeam. To remove the body you have to pull these out (only a push fit) and slide the body off the front pipe as well. Sppedo cable added. Don't know what these two air pipes do? Cab interior one end still needs a cooker. Other end interior. Bogie pivot now has the retaining screw at the bottom. Just about make out the extra pick-up I managed to fit next to the gearbox.

Have you seen my pictures of Warflats and Warwells in my collection of Flat wagons? http://www.flickr.com/photos/brianews/sets/72157627008284776/

Be interesting to see your build Richard, do what I did or learn from my mistakes and make a better job! Jeff, I use a Canon G10 to video the trains which I just followed around, handheld. I keep thinking about getting a proper digital camera as the picture cameras with a video function don't keep the model in focus as you follow it they just pre-focus once and that's it so you have to try and keep everthing at a set distance. The test track is the Hurley Groups track that gets put up at Bourne End. The Guys in the background are building a new one for the club.

Well David it is a test track and it's doing exactly that isn't it! I know what you mean though it does look rough from on board your own train. I have now modified the bogie fixing so instead of the nut on the bogie pivot being in the hood and requiring the bogies to be fitted first I have turned the pivot upside down so the bogie can now go on after the body has been screwed to the chassis. I have also added the 4th pick- up whilst I had it all apart. To be honest it ran fine with 3 axles picking up just like an 0-6-0 really but the more the merrier. Someone at JLTRT has put a couple together, I wonder what they thought of it?

Took the Clayton for it's first run this weekend. It worked fine apart from the screw on wheels wanting to unscrew themselves After a bit of loctight on them all was fine. I took a video clip of it today as proof. Must admit I was nicely surprised that it pulled 33 wagons ok. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=37eUY4nIBXo&list=UUXGIxY_z3Y5_oQlvYp7gqaw&index=1&feature=plcp

Well if you insist Ozzyo If I have got your request right Andy it's a water gauge and is included in the kit as a lost wax casting. Claytons were not built with this and by the looks of it 8598 that I am doing did not get it, so I will have to fill the holes.

Well I think I have made the bogies swing a bit more. Taking it for a run on Holiday Haunts on Sunday so we will see. I do have a cutting tool for my handheld Minicraft drill so made good use of it cutting away the inside of the hood on the side where the motor is closest. Also cut away a bit around the chassis pivot and where the cast brake gear goes up into. I thought it wise to file a bit off the cast brake gear as well. I cut the step bracket off so the sandbox goes past now but don't know whether to remove it completly or leave it as is? I am not sure how to gat the body screwed on as the bogies are in the way? The bogie has to be fixed in place in first with a nut on the inside of the hood. Trouble is the 4 screw holes are covered up now. They might be uncovered with the sideframes off I think.

David, like the idea of copper tape across the floor, shame I havn't got any though. I trust who ever does one next will have learnt by my mistakes/ideas and produce the purfect model Antony, I do remove the delrin chain! Only bit that comes off. I can remove the motor and hold it whilst painting. But the rest gets a coating of primer and black and is non the worse for it.

Good question Pete. Although I am not going to put sound in it there is no where to put an XL decoder. I would think you might get away with a OO decoder as I am using the shorter 18:24 motors. But the only place is forward of the motors in the hood, chip one end and speaker the other?, or in the cab but that would be a real shame with the big greenhouse cab on these locos. Ideally you need to remove a lot of material from the fuel tank and maybe get something in under there.

Cliff, there is no natural slot through the underframe fuel tank and batteryboxes you would have to create a channel to take a couple of wires from one end to the other and I do not have a milling machine to do this. I think once the roof is on and the floor area painted a dark colour you will not notice the 2 wires tucked down there. Ozzyo, I have used Roxey wheels in this and they are already live to one side hence why I only have pickups on one side and a wire coming off the wheel bearing for the other side pickup. If it needs it a small bit of PCB and a wire will go onto the top right wheel. The major problem that I think it will have though is the lack of bogie turning as the motor is off centre to accomodate the delrin cog and the bogie pivot arrangement for this loco does not help. But Clayton did not think of us modellers when they designed these as the front sandbox hits the step brackets and the brake gear ontop of the rear of the bogie frames is tight up under the bottom of the frames. I feel a compromise will have to be done here and there with the file! At the end of the day it has to go round corners so if something has to go, it has to go. I have used the old body in the pictures so it does not sit down fully due to the wires over the floor getting in the way, the new body is ok.