Scottish Modeller

Hi all, Ref to the Modelmaster decals.... From Jim - these are the 'next generation of decals'. Apparently they are much finer than all previous decals he has produced. Will wait and see how they go onto the model before saying anything else about them. Thanks

Hi Phil, Your comments about steel/ply confirm my own findings. For Ply - I look for rows of screw heads that have sunk into the ply. For steel/metal - I look for rows of flush rivet heads or proud screw heads. Thanks

Hi Dave, Thats good information to have... Will mark upo my list accordingly! Thanks

Hi all, That last pair of photos would certainly give you a different looking Shark! DB993875 is one of the Sharks I wanted a look at to see what had been done to it. ie repaired/replaced planking/panels with a view to trying to tie down a date for the repairs. However, I've been told that all this changed since it became a preserved Shark. Can Lochty no more confirm this? Thanks

Hi all, I popped in twice over the weekend and the shop was busy both times.... Spoke about various things with Simon and his colleague. Some bargains to be had.... I bought a 'shop return' Devon Belle Observation coach that needed a bit of TLC. Open it up, stick the seats back in, replace broken buffers. Total time = 40 minutes. Anyone gues how much I paid for it? Thanks

Hi Phil, The devil is in the detail! Each of the Sharks in the photos you have is different. First - EWS livery, no rainstrips, covered chimney hole, Air fitted, unbraked. Second - Loadhaul livery, 2 piece rainstips (BOTH ANGLED SAME), covered chimney hole, partial sheet material ends and sides with additional end bracing, Air fitted, unbraked. Third - Dutch livery, 2 rainstrips (Opposite angle), covered chimney hole, lookoout ducket removed, looks like end is sheet material, Air fitted, unbraked. Fourth - EWS livery, 3 piece rainstrips, covered chimney hole, partial sheet material sides and ends, Air fitted, unbraked. In addition appears to have replacement or replacement supports for the end further away! All in all... An interesting quartet! Unable to tell if the flat sheeting is ply or metal. Thanks

Hi Russ, Foir 'Raison d'etre'.... You also need to think about the British Government thinking of the subject of rail access to ports serving the North Atlantic. Chacking back there were real concerns about how Britain would exist without additional rail access and deep water ports on the Atlantinc coast in the event of a European War. Looking back at the various sooureces for reports the Irish situation was also a concern. This caused the government to be interested in routes to the North Atlantic to areas where the Irish situation was minimalised. Amazing what you can find in the documents - once you can actually get to read them! Thanks

Hi James, Rannoch has not been booked for Modelrail Scotland - YET! Won't be for 2012 as Mark's completion target is Ayr MRG Exhibition in September 2012. Keep watching the space though! Thanks

Sorry..... A bit of clarity... Tit = Tolerance In Thanks What I said was..... You edited it already! Never mind. Save the contents of your Cauldron for paint stripper.... The longer you save it - the stronger it is! Works wonders on enamal paints once it's more than 60 days old. Thanks

Tit........

(Phil - I edited your post rather than mine by mistake. My apologies, didn't mean to moderate what you'd said! Sorry, Pix)

Hi Martin, Pick from 2 coaches, 3 coaches, 4 coaches for train length and add suitable loco (steam or diesel) according to preferance. It depends on the service - and the region/area/location you are modelling...... ps - Just because it's a short train doesn't mean it has a small engine!

Hi Dave, That will be arranged as sets of 4 caoches I presume! 3 sets minimum then.... Thanks

Hi Max, Bring a long a bit of layout to work on at the next DEMU Scottish Area outing.... Ayr MRG Exhibition Even if it sits there and looks good whilst you play with St Annes - that will be fine! Thanks

Hi Mark, I think I said at the time... The more pictures - the easier it is to make an accurate model! Thanks for some more useful photos.... Will try and remember to take some photos of models on Mikes Layout at Ayr Exhibition! Thanks ps - Thanks for the continued supprt - It's much appreciated.

Hi Mark, I was trying to avoid loading this with lots of pictures! Yes - I still have the photo cd and will be adding/filling in the gaps as I go. Now that I have time to model - this should be fairly quickly accomplished. I intend to post real and model photos as things develop. Thanks

Shark Attack! A short story on how to get your revenge on Jaws. Having built too many standard Cambrian Sharks to retain my sanity, this started out as a simple exercise to improve the model and bring it into the 21st Century. Little did I realise the amount of work that this would entail! The recipe for success(hopefully):- 1 Cambrian Shark Kit. (Note 1) 2 Wheels to suit standard you model in. 3 Assorted plain plastic strip and sheet. 4 Assorted sizes steel handrail wire. 5 Buffers to suit your chosen prototype. 6 Decals/Transfers to your chosen prototype. 7 The usual assortment of modellers tools. A copy of Alan Monk's guide from DEMU - 'Wagonry 101’ (Note 2) Additional ingrediants may be required! (Your favourite drink to hand may be a good start) OK, the most difficult aspect of any conversion is getting started. To aid you in this you need to decide which of the current variants of Shark you are going to model. This will be influenced by the period and location or area you are modelling. Having decided on your prototype, get as many photos of it as you can. Not just in its current state, but in its various guises over the years. The reasons for this will become clearer as you progress with the modelling. As your photos will show, Sharks have been subject to a lot of modifications over the years. I'm not going to quote chunks of info from 'The Bible' for the Shark. Just tell you to go out and, if you don't buy the book, at least borrow a copy! (Note 3) So, pause for reading and refreshment over – It’s bback to work….. Have you decided on a Shark that is planked, or one that is plated, either with steel or ply? First thing is to check your photos, notice any differences between the kit and the photos? No? Look again, there are usually several differences. A word of warning though - It can be hard to tell the difference between the plywood repannelled and steel replated Sharks. Some tell tale signs do show though! Look closely at the plating, are there tell-tale weld tacks at the edges? If the answer is Yes - Its a steel replate one. Are there rows of indentations where the screws are put through the plywood to the body frame? If the answer is Yes - Its a plywood repanneled one. This can make a big difference in how you decide to tackle the job in hand. So before you start, a quick examination of the Cambrian kit parts comparing them to the real thing is essential. First of all, check the ends. Do the photos show the same ends as on the Kit? There are three different types of end that I have found. 1 Original, with planking. 2 Replated, with plywood. 3 Replated with steel. Do the photos show the same planking above the veranda openings as on the kit? There are two different planking arrangments. 1 Two planks, wide to top, narrow to bottom. 2 Single plank. Do the photos have the same bracing around the balcony as on the kit? There are at least three different types of bracing on the ends. 1 Angle Bracing as on the kit. 2 No angle bracing, no other bracing on crosspiece and central roof support. 3 No angle bracing, inverted T section bracing on crosspiece and centre roof support. 4 No angle bracing, simple metal plate bracing on crosspiece under centre roof support, this can be different lengths. Do the photos have Vacuum Brake Pipes, Air Brake Pipes or both? There are at least five variations for position and shape for Vacuum Pipes. The variations for Air Brake Pipe Shark, gives you even more possibilities. How about Sharks with Dual Brakes? That adds another few variations to keep you checking! 1 Original shape and position vacuum pipe, left hand side of coupling. 2 Original shape, reversed and right hand side of coupling 3 High level 'cranked', central position vacuum pipe. 4 Headstock level vacuum pipe. 5 Headstock level 'cranked' vacuum pipe. 6 Original shape and position vacuum pipe, air pipe to right of coupling on headstcok. 7 High level 'cranked', central position vacuum pipe, air pipe to right of coupling on headstock 8 Headstock level vacuum pipe, air pipe to right of coupling on headstock. 9 Headstock level 'cranked' vacuum pipe, air pipe to right of coupling on headstock. 10 Air pipes only. Do the photos have the same buffers as on the kit? There are two different types of buffer on the Shark. 1 Original. 2 Oleo Hydraulic 18" Buffers. Do the photos show the same lamp iron arrangement as on the kit? Probably not! There are at least four variations in lamp iron number and position. 1 Original. 2 Single, left or right in original position. 3 Double, wider apart than original position. 4 Double, narrower than original position. Do the photos show the same couplings as on the kit? There are two varieties of coupling used on the Sharks. 1 Screw Couplings 2 Instanter Couplings. On to the roof! Do the photos show the roof, is it the same as the kit? There are several varieties on the Sharks. 1 Rainstrips and chinmey as on the kit roof. 2 Rainstrips as on kit the kit roof, square patch covering old chimney position. 3 Long straight rainstrips from veranda ending just past doorway, chimney as on the kit roof. 4 Long straight rainstrips from veranda ending just past doorway, square patch covering old chimney position. 5 Short straight rainstrips, only over the doorways, chimney as on the kit roof. 6 Short straight rainstrips, only over the doorways, square patch covering old chimney position. 7 Reroofed/refelted, any of above rainstrip variations, no chimney, no patch. Now for the sides! Do the photos show the same sides as on the Kit? There are several different versions of the sides. 1 Original, with planking. 2 Replated, with plywood. 3 Replated with steel. 4 Partial replating with plywood. 5 Partial replating with Steel. See - Not all wagons are the same! Some further info to get you started! On CENet - Yahoo! group we have been collaborating to try and produce a list of known repanelled/replated Sharks. So far the list is as below:- DB993668 - Both veranda ends, LHS veranda side 1/2 panelled - vertical. DB993706 - Both veranda ends. DB993714 - Both veranda ends. DB993727 - RHS veranda side @ stove end. DB993742 - Veranda end @ stove end 1/2 panelled - vertical.*** DB993748 - All over except doors. DB993753 - Veranda ends and sides, both ends. DB993768 - Veranda end and RHS veranda side @ Stove end. DB993771 - Both veranda ends 1/2 panelled - horizontal. DB993784 - Both veranda ends. DB993791 - Veranda end and RHS veranda side @ Non stove end. DB993807 - Veranda ends and sides, both ends. DB993819 - Both veranda ends. DB993826 - All over except doors. DB993826 - Sides, TBC. DB993829 - Cabin Sides DB993836 - Veranda ends and sides, both ends.* DB993839 - Half panelled veranda side @ stove end. DB993842 - All over except doors. DB993843 - Both veranda ends. DB993859 - Veranda ends and sides, both ends. DB993882 - All over except doors. DB993895 - Both veranda ends and veranda side @ stove end.** DB993902 - Both veranda ends. DB993902 - Both veranda ends, lower cab body both sides - horizontal. DB993928 - Both veranda ends, sides @ non stove end. DB993933 - Veranda end @ stove end. DB993796 - Both veranda ends and sides. * May have been done since preservation ** May now have both veranda ends and all veranda sides done. *** Very crudely done! If you know any more - Tell us about them...... Photo sources and references Paul Bartlett - http://paulbartlett.zenfolio.com/ Martyn Read – http://ukrailwaypics.smugmug.com/ Gareth Bayer – Wagons on the Web - http://www.garethbayer.co.uk/wotw/ Note 1 – It is possible to use the Hornby Shark as a basis. The same work is required but is a lot harder to carry out. Note 2 – Available to DEMU Members via the DEMU Forum. Note 3 - British Railways Brake Vans and Ballast Ploughs - Eric Gent - HMRS Publications - ISBN 0-902835-16-5 Hope you enjoyed the story and it inspires you to have a go at a 'Shark of your own'. Do tell us about it if you do.....