The Evil Bus Driver

I'm a member of Daventry MRC Graham. Come along if you're local.

Im really glad theyve arrived at Accurascale Towers. I reckon a week to go through them and get them to the shops and then maybe a few days for them to dispatch them to customers. Possibly sooner. I'm really looking forward to seeing them., very close now.

And now in Worcestershire https://www.itv.com/news/central/2024-02-15/dog-walker-pushes-through-barriers-at-level-crossing-as-train-slams-on-brakes

Maybe, although then the dash to the first aid post immediately afterwards.

How about the Full Lavatory Challenge attached to the 50m dash? Or Most Suspicious Sausage Worst Cooked Banger competition?

Now there would be a DCC feature! I reckon shift and function 2.

I've got about 2 months to replenish my wallet, then the 31 or the 37 might be imminent. Will Accurascale be doing a Brake van at some point given the 16 and 21 tonners are coming out/are out? They'd allow an Accurascale locovto haul an Accurascale train with an Accurascale brake on the back. Back on topic, the ship should dock with the mk2s today at (I assume Southampton) some point so it's coming.

An 80 class would definitely be logical. There's one at the East Lancs Railway which I'm sure they'd allow access to for 3D scanning. I think there are only 2 driving trailers left though and (I'm fairly certain) no centre cars so they'd have to cone from drawings. Do you model Irish gauge too? In 4mm that's 21mm iirc

I've got everything crossed (including a few things I didn't know I had) that you can sort it out and you're son can make it into uni. Hopefully you'll be able to claim any costs back when you win and be able to buy back your models. Sorry about the car though. They're getting rare.

I've done this. Can't trust these new fangled computer things, you know

I've just transferred my preorder of a 'Bluebell' so looking forward to that.

Oh man that doesn't sound good.

That's awesome news! Maybe a few days of Accurascale Towers* looking like the interior of a great maze made of nice quality coach boxes, shipping to retailers and pre orders and then maybe another few days to receipt. So maybe 2 weeks to get our grubby mitts on them, give or take a couple of days? *I hope you don't mind me calling your premises that.

I did mention to Hornby that they have the one remaining Sub in their possession. Simon Kohler said Never say never.

Yes it's stopped smoking now. Until the next time mwahahaha

My finger might have slipped and I might have accidentally gone on the website and bought one. 😉

Not the Columbo style filthy flashers mac surely! The end really must be nigh...

To be fair they're watching and filming what they know and what's around them just as there's of us filmed and watched what we knew back in the 60s, 70s and 80s it's not really all that different. I do still consider the railway a poorer place since privatisation, however there will be those who considered it the same after Nationalisation. The model industry can't please everyone at once and thus popularity will come in waves. Especially as each new generation becomes old enough to go spotting. I reckon it might be the same with Bus enthusiasts, probably truck and plane enthusiasts and slot car racers too.

I actually had a conversation with my wife about hobbies and 'nerdy interests' and whg I do railway modelling. She said she doesn't understand the fascination but she also doesn't expect me to understand her interests but it's these things that keep you sane. Probably a good thing as I've got around £500 of preorders coming... But I wouldn't say the hobby is dying off and I don't think anyone is actually trying to kill it off, it's just changing according to circumstances.

I saw a really good mix of younger and older people at GETS and that was so rammed they had to stop entry for a little while on both days. I'll be interested in how this new show at the NEC goes. I'll definitely try and go.

I used to do rail replacement buses right past their door... They own SE Finecast now too so they're a good place to get loco kits as well as handy tools to help build them.

It's either one way or the other. On the one hand we've had a 2 or 3 of good TV shows about model railway, saying how the hobby is becoming 'cool' again (not sure I'd go that far, myself) and those were things like Pete Waterman's series about celebrities who have model railways. There was The Great Model Railway Challenge where teams competed and there were a reassuring number of younger people doing some pretty nice layouts. There were the documentaries about Hornby as well so there was plenty for the public at large to get their teeth into. On the other hand we get sensationalist headlines that don't really tell the whole story. I really enjoy following the Scratch/kitbuilding threads so not exactly mainstream. As to Hattons I don't know what's caused that however their closure will leave a big hole in the market for a little while, which no doubt another retailer or three will fill. It's the staff who have found themselves unexpectedly looking for work who I have sympathy for. I think the changes in the hobby are natural and while the Internet might be an influence I wouldn't say its good or bad on its own, after all we've got YouTube and a good number of model railway channels, Jenny Kirk, Sam's Trains, New Junction Chadwick Model Railway and Everard Junction, Oscar Paisley and 00Bill are some of my favourites. It would seem the interest is there but it might manifest itself in a different way

According to a comment on the video the crossing barriers went in where a road was planned to be built but never got put in. Apparently its an arduous process at Federal level to have it removed and more paperwork than can be healthy for anyone.

A Brighton boy eh? We get everywhere hehe Brighton MRC still meets at London Road Station. I was a member for a few years.

Wow I'm still digesting this piece of news. It's certainly been out of the blue. My sympathies go to the staff and I really hope they all manage to find another job quickly. It does look like it'll be a slower 'winding down' process rather than suddenly finding the shop locked up one cold morning. Even so they were one of the more 'together' businesses that looked strong. I suppose when one element falls down it's like a Jenga tower, that one element causes all sorts if carnage. I've just finished transferring my pre-orders over to Rails of Sheffield. I just hope they don't all come in at once...