Il Grifone

And we thought our trains were expensive! http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/RARE-DINKY-SUPERTOYS-GIFT-SET-No-990-PULLMORE-CAR-TRANSPORTER-/150678640164?pt=UK_ToysGames_DiecastVehicles_DiecastVehicles_JN&hash=item2315259624 and there are two cars missing...

Just had to share this http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/oo-gauge-locomotives-92220-HAS-BEEN-DIY-FIXED-/200668491274?pt=UK_Trains_Railway_Models&hash=item2eb8c62e0a#ht_500wt_1362 Don't know about 'fixed' more bug messed up!

A mistreated Hornby GWR 101! Might be worth the 99p (+ £ 4.48) for the K's wheels (or maybe not). These beasts go like a scalded cat normally - this must take off!!

I would agree with restore as built . You are likely to meet errors dimensional compromises which make the final result disappointing in any case. More modern models are usually more accurate. I still think that a Dublo Castle is better than the Airfix one and the Dublo A4 and Duchess are superior to the Hornby efforts, with the exception of the very latest models. (I refer to atmosphere rather than dimensional accuracy, which may be higher.)

I'd forgotten this! I have several kits in stock, which still have the plastic wheels. (Thinks - must get around to building them....)

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Cooper-Craft-plastic-GWR-kit-00-gauge-open-wagon-/160653364933?pt=UK_Trains_Railway_Models&hash=item2567afcec5#ht_500wt_1156 or brand new, £5.60 + £1.50 direct from Coopercraft !

Quite possibly, but 1950s Rivarossi cars had both spung bogies (with pinpoint axles) and plastic bodies, and probably were some of the vehicles considered. These run quite welll (possibly a little more weight might improve things further - I haven't tried). Later cars with rigid bogies have 3 point suspension. I suspect the main reason for the weight was the then standard X2f coupling, which requires mass to avoid derailments through the sideways force of the coupling spring. I find these are almost always far stronger than needed to hold the couplings engaged and benefit from weaker springs. They then work quite well.

This works out to 28g - about 1 oz for a standard 17' 6" underframe, which is about right IMHO. I usually weight mine to about this figure, or a bit more (about 1 - 1½ oz - more for longer vehicles*). Really it depends how many white metal vans you have, as ideally all the vehicles should be about the same. (Within reason - the prototype wagon varies from around 5 tons empty to around 20 or more fully loaded.) I don't differentiate between 9' and 10' wheelbase or the length - all 'normal' 4 wheel vehicles get treated the same. Equalised or sprung vehicles may need a bit more perhaps as much as 2 oz. Since this thread is about coaches, this formula gives around 100g for a Mk 1, possibly a bit light. (The NMRA formula gives about 6oz (or the 165g mentioned above)). EDIT I've weighed (to nearest 10g below) a couple of coaches to hand:- Hornby Dublo tinplate D12 (BR(M) composite with metal wheels -160g) These are prone to derailment as the bogies are rivetted quite rigidly to the floor and are not very 'flexible' Airfix GWR 'B set' composite fitted with Jackson metal wheels - 150g I find metal wheels provide weight just where it's needed - low down (apart from giving better running than plastic ones and being less prone to picking up crud).

Check the ability of the bogies to rock relative to the coach body. It is quite easy to have a slight twist in the track over the length of a coach especially if super elevation is used on curves. I arrange almostall* my bogie vehicles for 3 point suspension - one bogie is free to tilt in all directions and the other only fore and aft (ie only along the length of the vehicle and not side to side). This allows the coach to follow uneven track and gives stablity to the vehicle eliminating wobble. *Alternatively the wheels can be sprung..... I have a few of these on trial. The back to back is unlikely to cause derailments on plain track unless seriously incorrect. Note the critical dimension is the check gauge BtB + flange thickness (see the NMRA site for clarification). Note also that NMRA flanges are thicker than most British 'scale' wheels which are usually to the old BRMSB standard of 0.5mm. I think the NMRA weight recommendation (1oz plus ½ oz per inch length IIRC) is a bit heavy, but this is my opinion.

How do they justify even £65 for this?? When she was a 3F back in the fifties she sold for a couple of quid (about £40 today) despite being made in England,and not having yet repaid her tooling?

This problem is caused by impurities (esp. lead) in the mazak alloy. It can't be cured, though mild cases can be repaired (for now) with Araldite or similar. Correct storage (dry and warm) will help delay the decay. Trix wheels were/are very prone to this (possibly worsened by vibration). I needed to replace them on my Compound, though the rest of the castings seem OK.Post war Hornby Dublo (and Dinky Toys seem immune, as do Tri-ang*. However 50s Farish (especially the locomotives, Pullmans and Wagon underframes), Rivarossi and some other makes are prone. This problem then disappeared for decades, resurfacing now, with manufacture in the Far East. * Damp will produce corrosion of mazak even with these.

Yet another example of overpriced 'collector's items'. Basically a very costly repaint/relettering job.

I seem to remember seeing something like the bogie steam loco in Continental Modeller in the past (An African layout IIRC). in the meantime, another optimist - http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/KIRK-OO-GAUGE-8842-PLASTIC-LNER-FULL-BRAKE-COACH-KIT-MT-/220826835766?pt=UK_Trains_Railway_Models&hash=item336a4e1b36 Apparently it's powered by 12V DC ??? Coopercraft list this at £13.50 on their website!

A livery query, should the ends be black or body colour? On the old web there is a picture of one of these boxes, which shows a definite difference in shade between the body and headstock. Contemporary R-T-R horse boxes also did not have black ends (not 100% reliable I will admit!). http://www.rmweb.co.....php?f=4&t=8629

Not really railway, though it is roughly H0 scale, but have I missed something with this? http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Matchbox-Major-Pack-M9-Tractor-Front-Trailer-/270777618154?pt=UK_ToysGames_DiecastVehicles_DiecastVehicles_JN&hash=item3f0b9a8eea That is one of the cheaper ones! (up to well over £200!!!), but I loved the "....very good condition with paint loss all over"! Trailers without doors are usually about 50p, or less, at a boot sale.

Just Cut and Paste the url of the Bay item (or whatever) into your reply. The computer does the rest. Note - 1 : 160 is smaller than 1: 148 I have a rather attractive Del Prado DSB class P 4-4-2 on my computer desk. I didn't pay anything like £20 (or even £9) for her!

It would appear that vans started to be painted brown during the thirties along with the more decrepit passenger stock. It is probable that these vehicles received less care during painting*, which could have resulted in a different final shade and would also have affected how the paintwork weathered. Photos of single coloured vehicles taken during the twenties would presumably be still in the 1912-22 crimson lake, or even WW I livery, which appears to have included khaki and black. Windsor brown was the pre-1908 'chocolate', which may? have been the same as the 1908-12 brown lake and I believe is the same as the later, 1922 onwards, shade. It is possible that a change in varnish took place, which would also affect the shade. * Possibly less coats of primer/topcoat /varnish were applied? During WW II (and for some time afterwards), paint supplies (and quality!) were precarious and it is likely these colours would have been still in evidence on vans into the BR period. Fresh paint, when available, was given to new and mainline stock in preference. BR livery was crimson and cream for corridor stock and all crimson for non corridor, but again it is likely that paint work in good condition would have had just the new lettering applied. (After all the Southern managed to keep their green going for several years.) The BR chocolate and cream colours were not quite the same as the GWR ones.

I was amazed by this trash even being offered for sale (let alone the exorbitant postage/packing charge!). http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Hornby-Triang-OO-Gauge-3-Hole-Coach-Wheels-C-x1-Spares-/260749363127?pt=UK_Trains_Railway_Models&hash=item3cb5df87b7 Then I realised someone had actually bought one!

I would assume this is the new Hornby model, but............... http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/GWR-Horse-Box-/270790521477?pt=UK_Trains_Railway_Models&hash=item3f0c5f7285 Since others have it for less and also can be bothered to post a picture, I doubt it will sell.

Does anyone know what (apart from the price!) is "special" about this? http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/Wrenn-Southern-Railway-Utility-Van-W4323-Special-/260631289767?pt=UK_Trains_Railway_Models&hash=item3caed5dfa7#ht_500wt_922

!! Perhaps the apparent lack of interest says something? But then, the ridiculous prices 'collectors' are prepared to pay for junk unique items never ceases to amaze me. In any case, I would be very wary of spending that much money (or even considerably less!) on something without seeing it first.

Any further news on this project?

I believe Peco made one, but it appears they only list narrow gauge ones now. They are quite straightforward to build however, especially if they don't have to work. There is a thread here. http://www.rmweb.co.uk/community/index.php?/topic/19478-wagon-turntable/

Maybe 1969, certainly not 1959. Not really expensive though, as there are several pieces of rolling stock and the relatively rare M7 plus a diesel (appears to be the class 31). At £3 each for the "carriages and carts" , £10 for the diesel and £20 for the M7, we are about at his starting price. However seeing it's been relisted, it would appear not to be in great demand.

Perhaps we should take up the repaint business... http://www.ebay.co.u...=item19c6b68d2b and this is a bit OTT, even if it were a Dublo coupling and not Jouef/Playcraft. http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Hornby-Dublo-00-Gauge-Replacement-Metal-Coupling-/150625626887?pt=UK_Trains_Railway_Models&hash=item2311fcab07