Downendian

In my quest for more info I went to the Hornby magazine website and then purchased the iPad app to download a free copy of the magazine. Details for the brake tender are in the December issue, and I promptly bought 6 back copies for £14.99 as I was very impressed with the newsstand app used to read the electronic copies of the magazine. I'm definately going to use this method to read my magazines in future - my bookshelves are groaning with back copies of railway modeller, model rail and BRM and I don't have space for more. I've let my subscriptions lapse as a result. Neil

Two broad diagrams of diesel brake tender were built crudely "straight" (earlier batches) or "rounded" body. They are available RTR already from Britannia Pacific models, or as previously mentioned genesis kits. http://www.britannia...uk/DieselBT.htm But at £50 each or £90 for a pair, a tad pricey - but then they are custom built. I'm guessing the later rounded body batch which were most numerous will be the subject of the Hornby magazine commission, but the square ones look particularly nice behind hydraulics. Here's D1036 with one and a nice rake of 21T hoppers, which although I've posted before I don't think on this iteration of the forum - must get on with my Parkside kits now. Neil

Not willing to waste any more acorns (see post 190) a much more aggressive pose was adopted less than 10 feet away. Geddorf Moi Laaannnd! Neil

Excellent Dave - will be definitely getting one of these. I wonder Which diagram will it be? Neil Edit : Dave has a NDA in place- sorry!

Whilst fishing the Ottawa river in Ontario with my Canadian friend Greg, this little critter made me smile. He took particular exception to me fishing below his dray, and was hurling acorns at me until I moved. A squirrel with attitude. Neil

Mark excellent photo -I assume this is the Heljan O Western-( there's a dedicated thread for that, could it be posted there too?) - confirms the observation made there that the headcode box is too low giving it a "long in the mouth" look. Neil

Class 40s I think a few know of my fondness for the oil swillers, but English Electric is a close second, and especially the 40s. Sure they were underpowered, but when introduced in the late 1950s they were among the most powerful locos in Europe. For someone growing up on the WR the sight of these beasts was exotic "Northernness" we hardly ever saw them on the WR, save for the occasional one that ventured down the Hereford line to Severn Tunnel Junction where they were relatively frequent (that's my excuse for my fleet of them anyway). Much has been written about the shortcomings of the Bachmann 40 which i hope will be addressed in the forthcoming retooling. In the meantime I have amassed a number of projects on the backburner which include Bachmann chassis units and Shawplan detailed Lima bodies. I'm a fan of the Lima bodyshell- although being a shade too tall, and having a vertical nose (the prototype is slightly angled) its still the best RTR can offer. Lima 40s were dirt cheap a few years ago, but they aren't now- I was picking them up for £5-7 about the time the Bachmann model was released, OK the power units were shot but I wasn't really interested in that half of the model. These bodies go over a suitably fettled Bachmann chassis- the leading edge is filed gently until a perfect fit is obtained. The ride height obtained is extremely good (another defect of the Bachmann) 40). In fact its a bit too good- the slight lip to the nose fouls the chassis on bends (caused by welding up the doors when this ScR centre headcode panel version was produced (D260-D266), adjustment will be necessary. The Lima models were let down by the headcodes (too small) so I've opened this one up to fit new ones, and the fact that they all have mouldings for the Stone-Vapour boiler hatches- D260-D266 had Clayton ones (Shawplan do an etch, to be fitted here), as did D287-D304 and D325-D399. Usefully the Bachmann bodies all have the correct boiler hatch tooling and can be used as templates for fitting the Shawplan etches. These Scottish beasts also lost their MU cables at some point in their lives so I'll be whipping these off. This one will become 40 066 - my first 40 haulage from Carstairs to Waverley on 8th November 1975 - we window hung the whole way. I've amassed a number of these Lima Scottish variants (with square edges to the headcode box, and the "lip' mentioned previously) because they were cheap! I'm hoping that with the new retooled Bachmann 40s coming, ebay will be awash with old Bachmann chassis or 40s which I can complete my BachLima hybrid fleet. I bought 2 Limby 40s for repowering projects - the least said of that the better- they are gutless and fail to haul the light headed loco up my helix, where my Heljan and Bachmann diesels fly up with 20-30 wagon trains. Another one on the to do list -will show you a completed model one day! Neil

Don't worry Horsetan its on my renumbering list - to become a S&DJR stalwart. Neil

Heljan Western Mods with the imminent release of the 4mm Dapol model, the value of the Heljan model seems to have diminished (at least in my eyes). I have quite a large Heljan fleet, and it has been decision time either to put them all on ebay to generate some funds for a fleet of Dapol engines, or to keep them I declined to put them on ebay, perhaps foolishly, but have decided to use one of my several models of D1013 as a guinea pig. I picked them up for as little as £52 a few years back. I have just two Dapol Westerns on preorder- and will use these beauties as templates for the Heljan mods. So today I plucked up courage and filed away the prominent (and incorrect) "peaked cap look" to the cab roof profile. On the Kier Hardy site it has stated that the horn cowls were removed by razor saw- I couldn't see how this could be done without major disruption to them so left as is. The profile still isn't 100% accurate, but is a hell of a lot better - this is compounded by the fact that the windscreen dimensions are wrong in the first place- the central pillar should be slightly higher. All detract from the "face' of the model. However, I'm pretty happy after 45 minutes or so attention with the finest wet and dry paper I have. So I will generate a production line of these to do. I've carved off the headboard clips as this one will become D1026 Western Centurion that was built at Swindon without them. She will be in her final Laira repaint guise when I get to the end of this project, complete with silver cab footrests. Next job is to get rid of the roof scavenger fans with Shawplan bits on order. Neil Original cab roof 1 Altered roof profile original cab roof profile - side view Altered cab roof profile - side view

Alan It's the tiny attention to details which make all the difference. The replacement planks on the leading wagon for example, and of course the mix of hydraulic and steam in some brilliant scenic work. I spend most of my week in glorious South Devon, and you have captured the beautiful countryside so perfectly. Keep the pics flowing - I always check for your updates. Neil

http://m.youtube.com/#/watch?v=cJNn1FwjOQQ&desktop_uri=%2Fwatch%3Fv%3DcJNn1FwjOQQ Wildly amusing to a young student when I lived in North Carolina in the early 80s. A style of dancing to US beach music. One of the more interesting language differences between us and North America. Was amusing that you could quite legitimately ask a girl in a nightclub "do you fancy a sh*g" Neil

Thanks Dave for this measured response. But like many things in life I am challenged by the question why? Life- how does it work? If we understand we may live much longer and have long happy retirements. Cancer- why? How - when we suss it we will nail it. The Universe - why? How? There is life out there somewhere. Subatomic particles - why? how? Can we make an unlimited supply of energy? Railways - why has it dominated most of my life? What motivates me to divert so much energy to it, I don't understand why, and I'd like to know why. Neil

I'm afraid this is quite a common misconception on how Universities operate (I'm head of a University department). Many PhDs are self funded, funded from industry, overseas and not therefore the public purse. My school accrues £1 million per year from overseas PhD students - a huge boost for the University and local economy. Naturally it benefits the students own countries to which almost all return after their studies. This small army of students massively underpin our research budget, and they produce a huge number of papers per year. Rob has not revealed his funding source, and besides his work will have a fundamental impact on understanding why we spend hours and hours (and ££) on our chosen pursuit. We have discussed this issue previously. Who is to say research on the leisure industry is "pointless". For goodness sake I intend to spend a huge chunk of my retirement on this and it has of course a lot of support from industry, model shops and cottage industry. It is certainly not a "waste of time". The work may lead to companies having a better understanding of their customer base, and if were Hornby Bachmann et al I'd be watching this project like a hawk and even fund it. My research is entirely biomedical, and I think has a direct impact on saving lives. For most people this would be recognised as the "type of research that Universities should be doing" .But I am I part of a University the definition of which is to study a range of subject areas of broad relevance to mankind. I would defend the type of project Rob is proposing to the hilt. In relevance to Daves earlier point re our economy - the knowledge economy (Universities and education) is what may just save us from economic oblivion. So Rob- welcome on board and best of luck in your academic endeavours. PhD study is a huge commitment and I'm happy to input into this study. Best Neil

Superb Adrian. You've applied the numbers Glasgow style when she was allocated North of the border. Mine will be in Derby style when she was allocated to Tinsley and I saw her in January 1975 at Severn Tunnel junction. Brassmasters do the necessary tanks, but I may do a home butcher job. Neil

Interesting choice of Brand name for white goods manufacturer from Kurdistan Neil

Had an email from Hattons earlier. My engineers olive green version is on its way- so that livery is now here. Neil

Thanks for the kind comments Jack. I don't feel that my modelling skills are "Professional" but I certainly take time and care, and thoroughly research the prototype.i particularly like the quirky details that identifies a particular loco or subclass, maybe borderline OCD but much stems from memories of the originals. I stand in awe of some of the modelling I've seen on here, and can fully appreciate the skills required for brass kit or scratch built steam engines which have been painted and lined beautifully. What I do need to do is finish just as many projects as I start, something I've completely failed on to date! Neil

Further to the Hornby 24/1 conversion project, I have at least three more in the workshops. one I purchased from ebay had already the Brassmasters 24/1 "Mohican" headcode boxes fitted, although in need of a bit of cosmetic attention (weathering) was a pretty reasonable job. The other machine I have in the workshop is a complete build by me - using again Brassmasters resin headcode boxes. I did a very careful slow cut using my biggest razor saw making sure that there was some excess plastic to adjust the final box position. Then with some filing and sanding very carefully almost a perfect fit was obtained. Some lights will need filling, and of course removal of the gangway doors but early Bachmann 24 models are quite easy to come by on ebay. This one is to become a 25/0 which will need attention to the water tanks- I have yet to buy the Brassmasters bits for the chassis but will do so shortly. It will be 25 001 which was at the time I first saw her a Tinsley based machine that had wandered onto the WR at the wonderful Severn Tunnel Junction. I don't have the space for anything approaching a marshalling yard but I do have a "tunnel" leading to my helix and eventually my storage roads underneath the main layout so this provides similar operational conditions. My type 2 fleet will assist in "banking duties" up the helix more of which in due course. Neil

Hi John Many thanks, yes it was fiddly but worth the time. I've still got a lot to do though. What I would say though is I would only consider using epoxy adhesives, and as slow setting as possible. Cyano sets too fast and would leave a residue if you used the slightest amount too much. I needed the time to poke and prod the numbers into place. The other numbered Hymek I have is BSYP D7052, awaiting some severe weathering, I would also add to do them in batches to relieve the boredom factor, I did these 2x2. Neil

Hi Jim Yes I know this should be done - there should be raised bodyside vents on all the 24s. I'm doing a couple more 24/1s and a 25/0 using Brassmasters bits and using Bachy 24s as donors, and despite the cab shape they don't look too bad. I intend doing your solebar removal work on my 25/2 fleet as well so the type 2 fleet is in all quite bit of work. I'll add the 25/0 conversion next I think as a side by side comparison. Neil

Ok back to peaks. Before Bachmann introduced their new tooling for the split-box peak I'd decided that I just had to have one. Before I could complete my model guess what, 45 053 appeared on the scene. My split box model had started life as 46 053 and I'd followed George Dent's article in Model Rail 100 describing how to produce a splitter. So I'd reinstated the bonnet seam line, located hand rail grabs and installed suitably downsized Craftsman class 37/40 whitemetal split boxes after filling the existing centre headcode in. Unfortunately the boxes are still a tad too deep, and I am now wondering what to do with this model. A couple of peaks had a split box at one end, and due to accident damage a central headcode the other in the mid-1970s. I will have a go at one of these- I've mentioned which locos in another thread but can't find it at the moment. The model still has evidence of its class 46 heritage, which will be erased eventually - it has class 46 battery box covers and the triangular bodyside grille. Work in progress sits outside the confined developing diesel depot which has had a concrete apron and inspection pits installed. Neil

Good point - but my preorders from Hattons still say the original price. Hattons haven't, as far as I know, changed any preorder pricing despite extended periods of development. Neil