BG John

If your layout happens to run between your loo and your modelling bench, you could collect and transport the amber liquid for real! Apparently brass can be chemically blackened by soaking it in warm urine. It's slower than conventional chemicals, but much cheaper. I picked up this possibly useful bit of information from here, but I think you need to be registered to read it.

I can't understand how people in Wales can live with outside shutters. Putting on waterproof clothing to go outside to shut them, then having to dry off when they go back inside. Then having to stay in the dark until the rain eases off enough to go and open them! Inside shutters like this one at St Fagans seem far more practical.

Are you still interested in donkeys? I found it here.

HUH! LAST TIME I TRY TO BE HELPFUL

Here you go for those who don't like shouting. Paste it into OpenOffice, highlight it, and go to Format > Change Case > Sentence Case An old woman walked up and tied her old mule to the hitching post. As she stood there, brushing some of the dust from her face and clothes, a young gunslinger stepped out of the saloon with a gun in one hand and a bottle of whiskey in the other. The young gunslinger looked at the old woman and laughed, "hey old woman, have you ever danced?" The old woman looked up at the gunslinger and said, "no,... I never did dance... Never really wanted to." A crowd had gathered as the gunslinger grinned and said "well, you old bag, you're gonna dance now," and started shooting at the old woman's feet. The old woman prospector -- not wanting to get her toe blown off --started hopping around. Everybody was laughing. When his last bullet had been fired, the young gunslinger, still laughing, holstered his gun and turned around to go back into the saloon. The old woman turned to her pack mule, pulled out a double-barreled shotgun, and cocked both hammers. The loud clicks carried clearly through the desert air, and the crowd stopped laughing immediately. The young gunslinger heard the sounds, too, and he turned around very slowly. The silence was almost deafening. The crowd watched as the young gunman stared at the old woman and the large gaping holes of those twin barrels. The barrels of the shotgun never wavered in the old woman's hands, as she quietly said, "son, have you ever kissed a mule's ass?" The gunslinger swallowed hard and said, "no m'am... But i've always wanted to. There are five lessons here for all of us: 1 - Never be arrogant. 2 - Don't waste ammunition. 3 - Whiskey makes you think you're smarter than you are. 4 - Always make sure you know who has the power. 5 - Don't mess with old women; they didn't get old by being stupid.

That's one of the main things that puts me off upgrades. This one might be free, but not when the potential cost of replacing old hardware that either won't work, or loses functionality, is taken into account. Plus old software that may not work, and all the time and hassle it can cause messing around trying to get other things to work.

Why do we need 1Mb files? It's a real pain on my relatively slow broadband, where picture heavy threads jump around all over the place when loading, and often end up on a post that I originally saw days ago, so I have to scroll through loads of posts I've already seen. I've given up following some interesting topics because of it. I store all my photos in Picasa, and I always export photos I post on RMweb reduced to 800x600, giving a size of around 100-150Kb. No one has ever complained about them being too small, and they look perfectly acceptable to me on my 1920x1080 resolution 23 inch screen.

I've found a program called "I Don't Want Windows 10" that removes that irritating KB3035583 update, and seems to work. https://github.com/rn10950/I-Dont-Want-Windows-10/releases/ It seems that the upgrade is downloaded into C:\Windows\SoftwareDistribution\Downloads, and some advice on fixing the upgrade problem was to delete this and let it try downloading again, so I've deleted it. I've set up a shortcut on my desktop so I can easily check if anything sneakily appears in there. In fact while I've been typing this new files have appeared there! That may well not the the right way to go about it, but if it works it will do. Life's too short to waste it messing about with computers any more than I have to. I've spent too long doing that!

But that's all about people who WANT to install it but can't. Not when it's happening to someone who DOESN'T WANT IT!

Well this is worrying/annoying. It seems that my Upgrade to Windows 10 Home has failed continually. I haven't given Micro$oft the slightest hint that I may even be remotely interested in upgrading to Windows 10. In fact I have absolutely no intention of doing it, but it seems to be trying to install it every morning when I turn on my computer. That's MY computer, not bloody Micro$oft's computer! So what the hell is going on, and how do I stop it?

I'm in a bad enough mood after the DVD I was watching refused to play any more two hours into a three hour film, so there's no way I'm going anywhere near Windows 10!

I was wondering how the latest horror story fitted with the more recent news that they're almost here. It's all very confusing, especially as Hattons reply when I asked if the packaging damage will delay my K&ESR one was that Dapol hadn't given them further updates.

I have to admit I've been a bit naughty as I'm fed up with waiting for the Terrier, but I'm not ready to admit what I've done yet!! My ideas for cheap locos revolve around tram engines with skirts to hide OO wheels, as they can be pretty close to O fine standards, but I'm not organised enough yet to start butchering Hornby chassis and other such dubious acts yet!

I'm on the lookout for a cheap option for a pre modern image loco, but as my definition of modern image is anything after 1914, these newfangled diseasal things are no use!

I don't know if it's any help, as it's too modern and not very detailed, but I've got a copy of the 1938 RCH Official Handbook of Railway Stations, &c.. It lists basic facilities at stations, and private sidings.

I which case, does that mean there's hope that the second batch may arrive in one piece? Or rather each loco in the batch arrive in one piece!

I agree with everything you say Simon. It's just that I wouldn't have started this layout if it was going to cost much. One of the reasons to build it is to practice with my new Silhouette Portrait, so I've got in mind using it to cut the infills. All the track components were drawn up in Inkscape or GIMP for the mockup, so it shouldn't be difficult. I'll probably do temporary infills using printed paper for now though. Much as I'd love a wagon turntable, I think it would end up too cramped if I tried to squeeze one in.

But all of my track cost about the same as two bits of yours without rail! Your salesmanship won't work with me . But I could reuse the rail with some of your track in future. Or use my Silhouette Portrait to cut the cobbles and solder it to widely spaced copper clad sleepers! And this is just somewhere to run my Terrier until the layout that doesn't need paved track is ready for it!

I'm hoping my K&ESR Terrier won't need anything at all done to it, except maybe change the couplings. My plan is that it's the only 7mm RTR loco I ever buy, and I become brilliant at scratchbuilding everything else I want! 7mm rolling stock kits are too expensive, so if I can't get them cheap on eBay, the plan is to scratchbuild that too! Of course what I plan, and what actually happens, may differ .

I'm not sure your 3D printing is compatible with my Low Cost objective!

I almost succumbed to a Hudswell Clarke while I'm waiting, but my self-control is still intact. They may have run on light railways, but not on the Kent & East Sussex, and I'd have to backdate it anyway, adding to my growing to-do list!

Presumably a lot of people do a Google search for "spears repers", as when I tried it it asked "Did you mean: spares repairs". So it may have been a clever bit of marketing. Or maybe not!!

That's only part of it. I inherited quite a variety from my Dad! They've now been removed, and what's underneath is exposed, but it's in a different part of the house to the camera.

The baseboard, with it's new covering of cork underlay, is currently being used to display part of my hammer collection. What's underneath will be revealed when the glue dries. Meanwhile, battle is being waged with a Chinese eBay seller, who sent the wrong linear bearings and only one of the two shafts I ordered for the fiddle yard. He's slowly starting to realise I won't give in without a fight!!!

Dave Jones and Hattons are obviously wasting their time and money