John M Upton

Not very exciting but standard fare on the Horsham to Victoria via Dorking circuit seen here at Sutton:

I have always considered the ScotRail livery to be identical to the contemporary InterCity livery but with a blue stripe instead of red. I converted a Farish InterCity inspection saloon to to a ScotRail version by applying a blue stripe transfer over the red which, in such a small scale as N seemed to work.

Needs ploughs though.  It was a spare Dapol Railfreight grey bodyshell with numbers removed from the cab sides, roof repainted rail gray and sides rail blue.  Quite a simple job really.  May do a Class 27 too at some point if I can scrounge together the parts.

A might have been that really should have been. Eastfield large logo blue Class 26, Dapol.N scale example:

Curious how this show which is not for another eight months is generating healthy debate and yet the Ally Pally show (same organisers) which is now less than four weeks away has no thread for it at all.

As someone firmly planted on the south coast, the NEC is just that bit too far a trek so for me the Ally Pally show is my main one.  I do hope that the new Warnley does not replace any of the other shows in Warners line up like Bristol did replacing Peterborough a couple of years back.

N scale Class 29, someone did look at it and then dropped it if I recall.

If you fancy a real challenge, I have cash waiting for an N scale Class 06....

Could have named one after the King but then it would have been nicknamed the Charlie Line which may not be quite the image TfL were looking for...

12 hours ago, 65179 said:

 

This modified one?

 

 

Tom na Faire depot, Fort William - Ernies Railway Archive on Flickr

 

Regards

Simon

Cheers for that.  I shall wade through all my Scottish Highland themed books later and see if it turns up anywhere else.  Either way, some serious work will be required on the model if I get one, a couple of windows in and the enclosing of one verandah for a start!!!

Someone somewhere mention a Dance Hall brake van reaching the West Highlands.  Can anyone point me in the direction of a photo please?

Hello

For a few years now I have been using the excellent grass mats made by Martin Welberg, purchasing them through The Model Tree Shop.  I just went to order some more and it seems they are no longer stocking them.

Does anyone know of another UK stockist please?  This has rather scuppered my plans!!!

Was there any EFE announced?  I don't recall seeing any but then again I skipped rapidly through the video as I had no interest in all the marketing waffle.

Monday/Tuesday were the last two days of the reduced overtime ban timetable which had some odd formations although I am pretty sure there were more trains running this time than the last OT ban week which is good to see.

You think that is underwhelming, you should see the Farish announcement list!!  Basically the LMS twins, a brake van and the reemergence of the ancient Poole era Mk3a tooling.

Well that was a bit underwhelming unless you have been desperately wanting an LMS twin (or two).

Cannot believe they have trotted out the old Poole era Mk3 tooling!!!    

No interest in wading through a video of waffle, rather they just posted a list and got on with it.

Gone 09:30. Well?

I do wonder if a fresh batch of 31's for us N gaugers will be announced tomorrow as a result?  Still somewhat bemused (but not in the least bit surprised) by another duplication announcement.  I like the 31, they have a utilitarian no fuss get on with the job look about them, just a pity they were rarer than hens teeth in Scotland which is my main area of modelling these days.

As for my history with the OO variants, I had the old Triang one which went like stink but had a somewhat worrying tendency to get somewhat warm, the modern tooling Hornby one I had one of, it was a misshapen lump that subsequently self destructed, the best of the lot, the innards not with standing, was the old Lima one!!!

The plan for the West Coast which went out to consultation last year and will probably happen later this year is detailed here:

https://www.southernrailway.com/-/media/goahead/gtr-all-shared-pdfs-and-documents/timetable-consultation-2023/west-coastway-tt-wo-graphics.pdf

The existing Southampton/Victoria via the Arun valley becomes a Portsmouth one instead calling all stops between Barnham and Portsmouth (so a half hourly Portsmouth/Vic service but one very slow!)

The existing Brighton - Portsmouth becomes a second Brighton - Southampton

The twice an hour Littlehampton/Victoria via Hove and all the annoying stops up the main to Haywards Heath remains as is.

New service, half hourly Brighton to Chichester all stops via Littlehampton (essentially extending the old half hourly West Worthing all sheds)

The Littlehampton/Portsmouth hourly all stops is scrapped, replaced by one of the hourly Victoria/Portsmouth trains calling at all stations Barnham to Portsmouth instead.

The main thing is the loss of the direct connections, nothing will run direct between Portsmouth and Brighton and nothing will run direct between Southampton and Gatwick/Victoria so there will be a lot of changing trains at Barnham going on.

Ssshh, they're sleeping....

Two in the morning down Littlehampton shed - Consecutive numbers too!

2 hours ago, Gwiwer said:

Private car traffic along the Sussex coast is sharply up. 

Unfortunately, road works along the Sussex Coast is sharply up as well.  There seem to be days when the entire A27 and A259 coastal trunk roads are just one giant car park from Brighton to Chichester!!

As for those Gatwick Express 387's, they may be headed to the West Coast at some point (in addition to the one out and back 8 car London Bridge/Littlehampton peak City train) which could be interesting...

21 minutes ago, Kellino Rail said:

This train set seems a little suspicious.... 🤔

 

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/335242933090

AI created "description" as well which reads like an automated 1980's estate agent...

Well, my last (slightly unexpected I admit) purchase from Hattons last ever preowned listing update arrived, snugly packed this morning:

An unknown make NBL Class 16 resin body sitting on a Bachmann Chinese made Poole era Class 20 Farish chassis, sold as a non runner.  Took half an hour to diagnose the obligatory cracked gears and replace them and now its a runner.  Okay it is destined to be unprototypically running up and down a Scottish highlands branch line but I like it.

Just need to redo the numerals on one cab side and paint a buffer face, apart from that, it is ready to go.

Hattons really did sell me a nice one to finish thirty plus years of being a customer with them, the bookmark is now deleted and that chapter of history is now closed.

Someone please explain the logic behind this bundle of two completely unrelated items of rolling stock?!?

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/196220079611?

And for the love of God, please don't let anyone put these horrors anywhere near a electrical current of any kind:

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/355427664161?

I did take one last look at the preowned for old times sake before I deleted the shortcut and, blow me down, they only went and managed to persuade me to buy something!!!  Non runner kit built NBL Class 16 in N scale on a reportedly non running Farish chassis.  Even if the body turns out to be beyond rescue, the chassis spares are probably worth it.

Yes, I noticed early on Saturday a couple of layouts, Wimbourne being one of them where there were numerous operators, a lot of nattering and very little actual movement.