Il Grifone

Panic! Dylan had caught a lizard! (see previous post for species). He was still at the 'playing with the prey' stage, so, since luckily the dogs had just been fed, there was a tin of food handy, A lump of dog food was obviously preferable to lizard, so he was distracted sufficiently for the creature to beat a hasty retreat and hide behind the plant pots. Edit. Kitten 'Tinkerbell' has just high-jacked my lap. The dogs are going to have to wait even longer for 'Walkies'. Kitten 'Gretel' has just arrived too and had to be removed from the keyboard - they seem to delight in walking over the 'Flight mode' button in particular and causing disasters! (Obviously the male kitten is 'Hansel'!)

There shouldn't be any problem as long as the wing rails are also dead (sufficiently to avoid contacy with passing wheels). Personally however, I would arrange switching for the frog, preferably with a separate micro switch to avoid relying on blade contact. Especially with the tight radius, power pickup needs all the help it can get.

Mummy's work is never done! As foster mums to three kittens we have experience. Luckily the cats and dogs all help in their own way, though Raphael didn't appreciate Tinkerbell tying to pinch his breakfast this morning and she received a cuff from his paw. (The kittens all like the adult food and help themselves despite not really being old enough for it.)

Distant memories suggest unpainted woodwork and a concrete plinth and drain under the track. (Concrete posts could be an alternative. The GWR was fond of using old bridge rail for fencing. Some was still in use at Newton Abbot at least until recently. I recall lines of redundant cattle trucks stored at Tavistock Junction marshalling yard. (My maternal grandparents had a house overlooking the yard. Pleasant memories of falling asleep to the sounds of pannier tanks shunting while visiting on holiday.)

I assumed (incorrectly - check first David!) that we were referring to the ealier version of the chassis. This appears to be one of the later Far Eastern products with the SSPP chassis. These are indeed less resistant to usage and need careful adjustment to work properly. The 'use and throw away' motor is definitely a retrograde step.

Checking, I find that Wickham trollies have 16" dia. wheels which is 9.331 mm. in 7mm. scale, according to my calculator. This would suggest something in H0 scale as a source. For example,Rivarossi U.S. freight car wheels? These are quite chunky and suitable for 0 gauge track. The plastic centres would allow reaming out for the inserts.

It looks like an unsuitable lubricant has been used in the past and it has gone hard. Normally these things are near indestructible, without 'enemy action'.

14.2 ± 0.1 mm B2B is correct for Dublo (or other) wheelsets with a 0.8mm flange. Peco Streamline was originally designed when these were still current*, with rather slack tolerances (which have been tightened up since). Is there sufficient side play on the centre axle? Asking anything to negotiate such tight curves requires a fair amount of side play. *Adopted by Tri-ang (later Hornby) of course following the takeover. I adjust back to back with a drill press. Once it's shifted, fine adjustment can usually be done by twisting a wheel on the axle. (Some will shift without the press - others are more recalcitrant!)

00 rolling stock axles are normally 2mm. The 10.5mm wheels might be a problem - most 4mm wheels are larger than this. Possibly Wrenn bogie wheels at around 10mm, though they are spoked?

Today's haul was quite prolific - Two shrews (carefully laid out side by side), one green lizard* and a locust! * This seems to be one of these - https://www.eurolizards.com/lizards/podarcis-tiliguerta/

I have one of those! She came from a boot sale at a Grifone-friendly price (Newton Abbot and £5 IIRC - it was something like 20 years ago!) was ear-marked for a repaint into SP 'Black Widow' livery, but way down the priority list, as I have several other F7As and the almost identical (externally anyway) F9As. I also have one of the Lima U.S.A. Alco 0-4-0T 'starter' locos in BR livery as 41312. I don't think there are any real 0-4-0Ts like this but I have seen a photo (once and I've never found it again) of a similar 0-6-0T.

My post apparently has disappeared into cyberspace (exterminated?), so I'll try again. No Dr. Who, but I do have a Dalek amongst the layout whimsies (along with Herbie, Dick Dastardly (and Mutley of course) in their wacky Racer, Marilyn Monroe* in a Cadillac Convertible and odd dragons and dinosaurs). * Allegedly!, though she seems to be just a generic plastic blonde (or rather half blonde as she lacks a lower half to fit in the Caddy). Any resemblances in the Dalek to a pepper pot and its armaments to a sink plunger and a whisk are not a coincidence.... I'll refrain from comment on the assistants.... (If I were American, I'd plead the Fifth!)

Some Tri-ang wheels (early ones) are zinc alloy, later ones have steel tyres. All the K's wheels I have also have steel tyres. For cleaning I use an ink eraser, but I have seen a YouTube suggestion of the use of a potato for rust removal and as a water repellant on carsand thought I'd try it.

The Peco ineriors are nicely printed, but need careful folding (and curving of the seats - the real things weren't flat). The colours are a bit too light for BR Mk Is and unlikely to be the right colour for the GWR period. (I'm away from my library and can't check.) . Carefully scoring the fold lines help them to be formed correctly. I leave off the luggage racks as the real thing was mad of netting and thus transparent. They are invisible from normal viewing angles anyway. I never could get the toilet fittings to fold properly and leave them out too. The card is about 1/3rd of a millimetre thick (postcard thickness) which is a bit thin for the comparment walls. A sheet of transparent plastic to glaze the corridor windows helps here. For some unknown reason, the Kitmaster composite has the large windows incorrectly sited - the compartments should be equal in size for each class - and the Peco interior reflects this (and also in height to accommodate the weight in the floor. The coach sides and bogie centres are two millimetres too short. Unfortunately the millimetres are lost at the extreme ends of the coach side and the reduced distance between door and end makes it obvious. Lastly there shouldn't be a flange at the bottom of the solebar and this requires removal. The moulding lines for the lining benefit from removal too. The low price (I've paid a couple of quid for one in the past) and the excellent flush windows make all this hassle worthwhile. They are my first choice for BR MkI coaches. A full brake (easy) and brake/composite more difficult are worthwhile 'cut and shuts'. The restaurant car is more use as a full first (OK for the first batch - later batches had a central door)

Our three all love doing that! They seem to take a particular delight in walking on the "aircraft mode" key and turning off the internet!

Marina's other two kittens left for their new homes today. We will miss them! Marina is still with us but is not very friendly.... (Food helps!) That leaves us with the three foundlings. They are about four or five weeks old and still on milk, but it is time to start weaning them.... I took the dogs for their evening walk last night. No sign of outdoor cats though their bowls were empty. Once around the corner, Arran started barking and there were Sophia and Blanco. The dogs started pulling like mad to get to them and had to be restrained. They usually get on well with them, so it was probably friendly, but they are about ten times their size*. In fact as soon as we returned home the cats appeared at full speed for their supper. We have invited them in as house cats, but they prefer the outdoor life. We'll see when the cold weather returns (not that it's really gone away yet!). *The other morning the cats were waiting by the gate when we set out on the walk and the dogs carefully walked around them, taking care to not step on them. They are good boys!

Make that three kittens!!! (see cat thread). Deacon, on the other hand, has settled well into his new home and has a new name - Maki. He has learnt to walk on a lead and now loves walks. He didn't want to know with us, though he did love running around the garden with Arran.

Not impossible, but the first problem would be the totally different cab designs. Also the Castle has a larger boiler than a Star and the Saint larger driving wheels than a Hall

That could well be the material I used on my Wills wagon, rather than fag filters. It's around 1000 miles away at the moment so checking is a tad difficult....

We have a dog like that (Lewis)!

The latest in our cat saga is yet another kitten!*. On the morning check-up,Felix our black and white visitor was expectly waiting, Hasty retreat into the house for food! Reopened the door and there was Felix and a tiny grey tabby kitten, Fed Felix and scooped up the kitten and took it indoors. She soon settled in with the other two. We suspect they are siblings as they are all friendly with each other and us and seem about the same age. Photos to follow ASAP.... * That makes five kittens plus Marina, the mother of the elder pair. The kittens are fine with us and the dogs and other cats. Marina still runs and hides. She is more friendly at meal times....

IIRC a complete X.04 motor cost 12/10d in the early '60s and a brush cost around 6d. The Tri-ang dealer in Birmingham (I forget their name, but they were right next to New Street Station) had a complete Tri-ang chassis on display allegedly assembled from spare parts.

From what I recall (often faulty these days!), cars started going negative earth with the introduction of alternators. The other horrors I remember too. Add on cable operated brakes to the list! Remember conventional current flows the wrong way because electrons have negative charge.

I understand the cleaning pads were cigarette filters. I have used something similar on my Wills track cleaning wagons (they use the same principle and it's probable that Meccano Ltd. copied the idea from these. The instructions are on the box, so I doubt there was a separate printed sheet.* I don't know for certain, but would assume they were all zinc alloy like the first mineral wagons. Possibly they modified the original tools? Pointless really, as they could have left it as a mineral wagon. *These actually state cotton wool plugs - likely to leave fibres in the rail joints. What I used I can't recall but IIRC it came from the smokers area at the supermarket. Normally I use an ink eraser for track cleaning.

As stated already, the convention is that the locomotives run forward with the RH rail positive. (For Dublo 3 rail it's forward with the running rails positive - this requires reversed magnets between the two series. Trix and Märrklin, being AC, didn't have this problem.) I can't say I've noticed any difference wth the TC series. Presumably the steam locomotives run the same way, as they have the same chassis with only minor modifications (CPR Pacific, 4-6-4T (both use the Princess chassis) and the 'Davy Crockett' Mogul (the 0-6-0 chassis with minor additions - cylinders and pony truck). Incidently, I've seen the later accused of not looking like a 19th century American locomotive. Granted that the Mogul came late (when someone thought of making the pony truck swivel to negoiate the curves), but... https://www.alamy.com/louisville-and-nashville-rail-road-2-6-0-mogul-steam-locomotive-photographed-image66020894.html The sand dome and bell have swopped places and there is a difference in the design of spark arrestor on the chimney, but otherwise? She even has flangeless centre drivers!