BG John

If my planned little dabble in modelling a Colonel Stephens railway was going to be set in the 1920s or later, colour photos like that would be very useful!!!

Rather a lot saying "Southern", "LMS" and "LNER" on the tender. I thought this was a modern image free zone .

When I was living and wandering aimlessly around the UK (and building a broad gauge layout!) in this, I used to be fascinated by the antics of following cars. The second one in the queue would often be pulling out to overtake, just as the first in the queue pulled out! Sometimes one from further down the queue would be on the opposite side of the road with nowhere to go as the first in the queue pulled out in front of him! I was limited to 50mph because of the trailer, but the van likes to amble along at 45ish, and if I'm going faster and take my eye off the speedo, it sneakily slows down to the speed it's happy at! But there seems to be an obsession with having to rush everywhere, and that those round signs with numbers indicate the minimum speed you must travel at, so everyone gets frustrated and needs to get ahead. Even if the reason I'm crawling along is because of the little old lady in a Morris Minor that no one behind me can see!!! Everyone needs to sell their house and go travelling for a couple of years, as it teaches you to stop rushing about. Five years after buying another house, I still haven't speeded up much!

Here are a few links that show examples of the older short 4 wheel GWR coaches. They seem to be a bit elusive online, and it's a period I'm rusty on: One at Hemyock that has some similarities, but with flat sides and a different roof profile: http://www.disused-stations.org.uk/h/hemyock/index3.shtml A clearer version of the one linked to earlier, that I think helps to show how different they were: http://hemyock.org/mediagallery/media.php?f=0&sort=0&s=2007012517101376 Another example hiding behind Hemyock station building: http://hemyock.org/mediagallery/media.php?f=0&sort=0&s=20080520150357495 And one of Mikkel's models that is what I've been looking for, but couldn't find a real example of: https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-KAAwVirL-Fw/T0lQGvSE38I/AAAAAAAAA6g/IZ8y6fs8RvM/s600/blogentry-738-018315500%2525201286651569_thumb.jpg From here: http://farthinglayouts.blogspot.co.uk/2010/10/supposed-to-be-cleaning-basement-today.html Some of these may be a shorter wheelbase that the Hornby thing, but I think are more typical of anything that would have existed with that short a wheelbase. So I suppose you could scratchbuild new sides for it, and narrow the ends to removes the tumblehome!

No. They're nothing like them. Flat sides and a totally different style of windows and panelling. See my comment earlier about the only thing they have in common is the number of wheels, and my link to an LNWR coach (as I couldn't find a GWR photo online)!

Of course it would be even better if you actually start modelling the broad gauge!

Airbags! Surely the safest car is one with a spike in the middle of the steering wheel, to encourage you to drive carefully! I've never had a vehicle with an airbag, but survived a head-on collision where before any slamming on of brakes that happened, we must have been heading towards each other at a combined speed of at least a ton (I know I was doing 50), with just a broken collarbone and a few minor scratches. A bit of extra padding on the seat belt may well have been the best way to reduce the damage to me, rather than all these expensive to buy and maintain gadgets that everyone seems to "need" nowadays.

They certainly aren't of the best quality, but probably helped by my incompetence several decades ago! It's not a quiz, so I've no idea I've actually got enough bogies, assuming I don't break any, to put under all my Tri-ang Clerestories, but I'd prefer chopping them about to produce fewer more accurate ones. On gwr.org.uk, it's suggested that two brakes can produce a C22 all 3rd bogie and V5 4 wheel full break, but I've already got a Colin Waite etched V5 body kit, so further investigation may be needed. I've been sorting out my unbuilt/part built kit collection today, and find I have the potential to create a couple of quite varied branch passenger trains.

If it's any help in tracking some 8' 6" Dean bogies down, I've got three different makes. I've no idea who produced two of them, as I've had them a very long time! The first two are whitemetal, one with footboard and one without: These are Mallard Models etched with whitemetal castings. £5.10 from Cove Models!

You've got a PM.

I've got no idea what make the ones I have are. I bought them many years ago, and they may well not be available any more. In this article on gwr.org.uk, Mikkel suggests using the bogies off the modern Hornby version. http://gwr.org.uk/proc22.html

Avonside seems familiar, but I can't remember it! If you've been involved with the BGS we've probably bumped into each other, as I was on the committee for some years, and stirred up trouble by setting up the first web site and starting the eGroup! I was parked outside the cafe once, and the woman running it saw my dog in the car and demanded that I bring him in! She told me how she'd asked the hygiene inspector about dogs, and his reply was that he didn't have the slightest concern about them. It was baby's nappies being changed on the tables that got him wound up! It used to be a handy place to stop off when I was passing through on business, but it's a bit far from Wales since I moved here!

I've just found my collection of Tri-ang ones. All were new when I had them, and conversions were started decades ago, but not finished - yet!!! OO Brake with no windows and underframe "detail" missing OO 3rd with badly removed clerestory! EM 3rd in 1908 brown livery with whitemetal Dean bogies Brake body only in 1912 lake livery I seem to have a few sets of Dean bogies around, and a few Ratio 4-wheel chassis, so maybe one day something might happen!!!

A visit to the paint shop one of these days then, as I expected before I bought it.

Where did all those houses come from? They weren't there last time I was there! Is the dog friendly cafe still open in the station building?

Thanks Steve. So it's not likely to have appeared in that colour on a sleepy light railway on the Sussex/Kent border, delivering some high value goods from a factory up north then!

Does it work? I spotted someone lighting up in the bus shelter down the road from me the other day, despite the sign.

I've just won these two Slaters wagons on eBay (from different sources), to start off my little dabble in O gauge, but with my limited knowledge of the Midland, there seems to be something a bit wrong with one of them! Do I need to put it the queue for the paint shop, or did the builder know more than me?

I reckon that several small layouts is more achievable than one big one, and adds variety. Four different gauges/wheel standards and two scales is the current plan! Each needs 2 locos, between 1 and 4 coaches, and maybe 10-15 wagons, and I need to build 11 points in total. Pretty much what one bigger layout would need, and it wouldn't be really usable until all that lot was ready. I'm aiming to build whatever is quickest/easiest first, and when I've got enough for one of the layouts I'll concentrate on that one. Small, Broad and Totally Pointless is currently second on the list, as it exists, and I have to walk past it quite a few times each day. So even if I've nothing to run on it, looking presentable would be useful! I'm currently sorting out all my modelling materials, unbuilt/part built kits and other junk stuff, into separate boxes for each planned layout, and for each type of material. I'm also hoping to get rid of some of my locos and rolling stock that is the wrong period for what I'm planning. Then I need to get a proper modelling workbench set up, with all my tools properly organised. I just hope that procrastination doesn't set in before I get it all done .

I starting to realise that I'm no spring chicken either! It's about attitude, not age

If I had the time and energy, I'd be tempted to model Crediton. The Exeter and Crediton Railway was originally operated by the Bristol & Exeter, who became part of the GWR, so standards would be maintained, and the LSWR operated from Crediton to Bideford. So lots of scope for trains terminating, swapping locos etc.

And to save any other sad people who had to go searching for it the trouble, here's a link!!! https://goo.gl/maps/rahUj

The problem with the building is that it's unique to the Minehead Railway, and isn't quite like anything else I can think of on the GWR. The buildings on the first part of the line as far as the original terminus at Watchet are pretty typical of a style found everywhere, so it's not actually a very good choice for a popular kit/RTP product. Is your Kilve set in the real place? If so, I assume the line would have either followed the coast from a junction at Doniford, or from Bridgwater way, so could have been constructed by the same builders. In which case, I'd be inclined to use the same canopy, as it would give it an attachment to the area. Otherwise you're creating something totally unique that didn't exist anywhere in real life.

Thanks Dan. The next step is yet another trip to the workshop, hopefully the very final one. I've found the materials to join the two boards permanently, and will hopefully get to work pretty soon. I'm going to add a couple of sidings, so it will no longer be pointless, and I suppose that means I need to find a name for it! It's not my top priority though, as I have very little stock to run on it. I just want to do a few bits to it gradually, so I know it's heading in the right direction. I've spent too much of my life having layouts without enough stock to operate them, so my current priority is to get my OO gauge Ingletyme running, as I have all the stock I need for that. I've been making a plan to achieve modelling ambitions going back around 40-45 years, that involves several small layouts on different themes, and this is one of them. As long as I achieve it sometime between now and just before I push up the daisies, that will do!!!!

I might be able to buy one, but could I get inside it?