298

I don't understand that, surely it'd be better for the manufacturing plant to rip it apart, and the easiest way to transport all of those components back would be in the actual loco, rather than having to individually package them up and put them in containers...?

That'd be the same tramway layouts where the pubs and churches outnumber the houses. Obviously quite a thirsty sanctimonious population...

Not strictly true, but alot do seem to have a stolen car wrapped around a telegraph pole with the necessary Police car in attendance....

There is alot of opposition in Coventry and around Warwickshire, either due to the nearest station being at the airport (which is better located for Coventry's residents than Brummies, and concerns of how the line would damage the fresh water table in Warwickshire. Then there are the inevitable Nimby's whose property will be directly affected, as it would if an airport, motorway or conventional line was being built. Although I can sympathise with them, we don't own this land and are merely custodians of it for future generations, which means serving them well. HS2 is more important in this respect than some farmer's B&B buiness.

Do the Hornby Javelin & Pendolino count...? Perhaps Bachmann figured out the tooling changes and manufacturing procedures required will dictate a 350 is produced before a 450, in the same way the 57 preceeded the 47. It's just a theory.

I prefer it in black, with a more simple livery it is easier to appreciate the elegance of it's design. The problem is tho, if i'd known they would model this variant I wouldn't have brought one of the first releases. The credit card is now looking worried....

Yes. No, I think it was repainted with red frames when resurrected from York museum in the 1950's when it saw alot of use on the Didcot-Southampton route), and carried this livery until this year (apart from the quick BR black relivery in 1985 which doesn't count).

If all you need to do is stick a spare armature in and wire it up then yes, it's a reasonable price.

Looks like someone is planning some 1:1 scale kitbashing...: http://www.preserved-diesels.co.uk/2010c/37372_1.htm

It also says it looks good. To whom, exactly...?

No need to complain, just don't buy it...!! I'm not that familiar with eBay anymore, and am wondering if the "no sale, no fee" listings have anything to do with someone taking chances like this...?

Which shows how the taxation system favours larger vehicles, since they are accountable for the damage caused to our roads yet hardly pay their way. What was the point of this anyway...? Are Cambridge bus drivers generally lazy or so inept they are incapable of properly steering their vehicles...? If it was a guided trolleybus route then a dedicated RoW may be appropriate, otherwise it seems a waste of a good road or light rail alignment.

I'm sure the Milwaukee would have de-electrified anyway, the scrap value of all that copper was far too tempting and who could have foreseen the impending oil crisis....? Another "what if..?" was the Union Pacific's and other RR's plans to electrify their high iron, which could have lead to this: http://www.trains.com/ctr/objects/images/railroad_electrification_1970s.gif Full article at: http://www.trains.com/ctr/default.aspx?c=a&id=43

Except on 86401. That looks quite good.

The Northumbrian coast section of the ECML is at a higher elevation, so you'd have to get some very big waves to cause the same amount of disruption as at Dawlish. I was thinking about the GWR electrification project whilst trawling through page 2....! I seem to recall four different locomotive types were envisaged, the model for which came from electrified US railroads such as the Milwaukee Road and Pacific Electric, so it's more likely 1500V or 3000V DC would be used.

I'm not saying I regard the yellow windscreen surrounds is an issue, as although it's it's a bit of a slip on what is otherwise the best RTR class 86, it's easily corrected. Unless there were any oddities, it's only the Intercity Mainline livery that had that style of front end.

I've had a quick trawl through Fotopic and not found any photos of 86213 as modelled, could someone enlighten me please...? There's a bit of a story as to why it's in unbranded Intercity, it was off lease but painted into Virgin by mistake (along with 86228), and quickly painted back into IC but without the italic lettering or swallow.

You don't need a big hole, surely a ramp could be used for the pan to ride under to clear low obstacles...?

Seems like the cheapest professional service in the country- take a few pounds off for the base wagon, materials and the listing fee and he's earnt £6 for four hours work.... On a similar note, how can I become a professional modeller...? By some definitions, it's a tag you can give yourself for producing models only for sale or offering services for financial reward, regardless of the quality. It seems similar to the much maligned "exhibition standard" tag...

The problem with MTK was it ticked a box on the "done" list, so other manufacturers who could have done a better or easier job weren't tempted to release a duplicate kit of the same prototype for fear of having already lost sales. I did like their ethos of supplying the basic parts and allowing the modeller to use the bits as a scratchbuilding aid, rather than assembling the kit according to the instructions then complaining when the finished model doesn't look like what it's supposed to. Not bad...!!

Don't discount the Hornby class 86 body, it's easy enough to shorten and fill the sides in, and the nose can be bent forward by making a vertical slit on the lower cabside where the yellow end meets the bodyside, and bending it forwards. The article in Practical Model Railways sounds like Graham Clark's, i'm also doing the same with a Triang body and Roco DB110 chassis. You're not modelling a Polish EU06 or something similar, perchance...?

It'd be good to see an 84 at BNS, although it might be a bit before your time period. I have a photo of 86401 sat outside the Power Box, I don't suppose everyone's favourite 86 on your list...?