Peter Beckett

Tony, I always get emails stating who processed the order then a follow up with who packed it. You could follow up on the packaging quality. I quite often send Hatton's an email quoting the packer, with complimentary comments on a job well done as there are many hurdles to cross before reaching Down-Under Peter

Checked with Live chat and its the extra weight of the Metcalfe kits (I forgot I ordered 5) Peter

I have been overseas recently and wondering if there had been any notice of increase in overseas parcels? I placed an order for some Metcalfe kits and the postage to OZ was GBP14 which I thought was a bit expensive as the last 3 orders were GBP 3, 4 and 7 (not for Metcalfe kits) Peter

Hi Dave, Fantastic photos again. As obviously not a local, I am interested in how long it takes for the train to clear the main line and does it cause delays to other timetables? The reason I am asking is that I am modelling a small colliery but due to space, I have to "block" the main line when entering and exiting the colliery sidings. Cheers Peter

I did a quick google check and Peter's Spares is listed has having a set for 12.64 GBP Peter (No relation)

Hi Rick, I mainly use IE11 and no problems as currency still in pounds, same with Chrome Peter

That is good news as my wife and I are booked on the Waverley 10th July from York to Carlisle return and really looking forward to the trip Peter

Hi Jamie, That looks great and a much improved model. With that modified front bogie, do you intend to fit a coupler? I use Kadee's and wondering if a NEM socket can be fitted. Cheers Peter

Rick, If there is a problem with the gorse spreading then just import some Dartmoor ponies and they will eat the problem for you Peter

I lost a front step on mine (the small step on pins on the driving chassis) so I contacted Hatton's and on proof of purchase ( I just had to give the invoice number or my postcode) and they are sending me free replacements, including free post to OZ. Great Service!! On enquiring about spares, they don't have a list and only have left overs from replacement, change-overs, etc Peter

Mine arrived from Hatton's today (5 days delivery to OZ) but was hardly out of the package when her indoors swooped and declared I was not getting my Christmas present early. Peter

Taken on Sunday at Lark Quarry, Outback Queensland, home of the Dinosaur Stampede. Peter

Hi Jeff, Looks great and certainly a lot neater and "fool proof" BTW, apologies for next Saturday as I am in Charleville, Qld and still chasing the sun. (very nice 18 d today and not a cloud in sight) Cheers Peter

Looking at the track and track equipment I get the feeling that is not a permanent feature. Peter

Hi Ian, I live in Hastings and dabble in the dark side. I have been running my layout with Digitrax for the last 8 years. For reverse loops and live frogs I use a mixture of switching via Tortoise/Cobalt point motors and a few Tam Valley Frog juicers in hard to get to points. Cheers Peter

Dave, I "love" the way the cables have been run over the sections of rail instead of having the rails moved and the cables laid more correctly. Peter

There was a suggestion that 4x went to Queensland because banana benders did not know how to spell beer.

Hi Rick, I thought you might be interested in these 2 pics. I have been touring the goldfields over the last week and stopped at Fryerstown today Peter

I took mine to the Model Railway Exhibition at Sandown Park on Labour Day week-end (8-9 March) where it shunted without any problems for the 2 days. Since then it has been working hard on coal trains on the outer loop of my layout with about 40 wagons and again no problems. So I am more than happy with it. Peter

Following on from original post I will now comment on the Class 40 TTS sound. I accept that the chip is not a Loksound or Zimo or even a Digitrax SF6. But I found the sounds good after listening to clips of actual Class 40's. The initial sound level is far to high so I adjusted the sound to 1 which is a lot better. I also observed that the speaker mounted upwards into the body acted as an echo chamber so I inverted the speaker facing into the fuel tank and sealed the gap where the speaker wires came out with some of the models original black tack which noticeably improved the sound and enabled me to hear the secondary sounds like the air compressor. I am quite impressed with this Railroad model. The lights are on order and I have a set of Bachy cabin lights from a Class 37 spare so will look at fitting them and adding some cabin details and crew. Peter

John, That's not a problem as I have some 4 function decoders so I will fit one of those for the lights Peter

I purchased the Hornby Class 40 for several reasons. 1. Checkout the TTS sound system 2. Obtain a Class 40 for my layout 3. See how much "grunt" compared to other brands of similar locomotives. 4. See for myself how the Railroad series stacks up. I will now deal with item 3. I found the pulling power (unit fitted with traction tyres) adequate for 8 Hornby or Bachmann coaches or 30 assorted wagons on the flat. However when going up the 4% incline to the high level station, slippage occurred and a push was required via another locomotive. The one good thing I discovered about the chassis design compared to Lima or Mainline, was that the Hornby chassis was designed with two similar sized drive units, one being driven and the other just electrical pick-up. I obtained a Class 40 chassis only with drive unit and pick-up unit. It was a simple task to remove the dummy unit and replace with the drive unit. You have to check polarity of motor and pick-ups to make sure no shorts or motors fighting each other. I then tested the unit and it ran up the slope with out slipping. I have never been a fan of traction tyres so I removed the traction tyre wheels from both drive units and replaced them with the metal wheels from the dummy units ensuring back to back was correct. The unit now had electrical pick-up on all drive wheels and again ascended the incline superbly. I use a Ramp meter in series with the main feed to the layout and the load having 2 motors increased by 0.25 amps which the decoder handled without any problems and not even getting warm after a long run of about 1 hour. I am very pleased with the result and the next task will be to get LED lights fitted probably via Express Models. Peter

Hi Chris, I have been following this topic with great interest, especially the Colliery buildings, etc. Where did you get the steps for the winding structures? (Way back in 2011) Cheers Peter

Jeff, As an ex electrician who did his time with the SEC at Hazelwood and Morwell power stations and spent most of his apprenticeship wiring up conveyor panels that fed Hazelwood PS from the Morwell Open Cut, I was schooled in colour coding and neat wiring. So I can appreciate what you and Rick are trying to achieve. I am proud to say that my wiring resembles a coloured rats nest but old timers has not set in yet so when a fault appears, a multimeter and memory lane helps me fix the problem. I still have half a reel of the multi coloured ribbon wire and use it for my points (Tortoises and cobalts) so I guess some of the old training is still used. But I use cable ties to keep everything tidy which were not invented when I was a lad, we used waxed string for all the looms. Peter

Hi Jeff, I see a ballast spreader on the track in the first pic. Are you using it and if so what are the results? Any good? Santa got me one and I am not sure whether to use it. Peter