Waverley West

Yes, thanks tried that but to no avail. I can get it to loosen a little but not actually remove it.

This question has been asked a couple of times on this thread, but I can't see that it's been answered, so here goes... How on earth do you get the cab insert out in order to fit a driver? As far as I can see it's screwed to the PCB in the cab roof, but I can't see how or whether that is secured to the cab roof itself in turn, or whether it's just secured to the cab insert which is a very snug fit in the cab. All manner of jiggling, wriggling, twisting and pulling has so far proved fruitless. Very frustrating. I really don't want a 110mph loco running round my layout without a driver. The only other alternative I can see at the moment is to put some glue on the base of the driver and attempt to squeeze it in somehow, but that risks getting glue on the cab windows. Anyone have any ideas? Thanks! Dave

So sorry to read this, David. You have done such a fantastic job so far and made so much progress over the years. Obviously, I don't model the same period as you, but I certainly recognise the depot and all its buildings from my various books on Haymarket MPD. I too hope it finds a new owner where it can continue to be developed and enjoyed Regards Dave

First post from me on this thread for some time... 47716 "The Duke" at speed...

Still there, Kev. In fact, there's a Series II version on my workbench which will eventually replace it when I get round to it. There's a livestock trailer on the project list too.

The miscreant arrives in Waverley... Another service from Aberdeen passed through Princes St Gardens a little while later... Happy modelling! Dave

Hi folks, Managed a couple of operating sessions over the weekend, alongside working on the fourth and (probably) final 3-car class 101 cut-and-shut project, which has now progressed to the primer stage. Spraying of Strathclyde Orange is the next step, along with painting of the interiors and underframe. Here are some shots taken during the operating sessions: 47716 "The Duke" gets into his/her stride on a G-E pushpull service... An HST arrives from Aberdeen on a Kings Cross service... ...as another G-E pushpull service departs Platform 14... There was a headache for the train controllers though when the Highland Chieftain service from Inverness failed on the Highland mainline. Railfreight Distribution 47280 Pedigree was summoned to assist, dragging the set as far as Waverley. To be continued...

Re. derailing Accurascale Deltics, here is my explanation (cut-and-pasted from the AC Deltic thread) of the causes and modifications I found solved my issues with my 55018: My Ballymoss kept derailing at two particular points on the layout, both on curves where there was a slight "hump" in the track at two baseboard joints. I eventually realised that, at these points, the trailing bogie was pitching (moving in the plane of the loco) and then pivoting and then "unpitching" and straightening again. As the bogie pivoted around the curve with the front of the trailing bogie pitching upwards and the rear pitching down (i.e. the loco was going over a slight hump in the track), this caused the top of the rear of the bogie to move directly below the coupling block on the chassis. If the bogie remained in this position as the loco came out of the curve and off the hump in the track, it ended up lodged beneath the coupling block. As the loco moved out of the curve, the bogie then became jammed against the coupling block and unable to straighten, causing the derailment. The eventual fix proved to be filing a bevel of a couple of mm's on the top edge of the coupling block and the V in the end of the bogie. This stops the interlocking between the bogie and coupling block and prevents the bogie from becoming lodged on top of the coupling block as the loco comes out of the curve. Not sure how well I've explained that, but I hope it helps someone! There may well be other reasons for these locos derailing, but this has completely eradicated the problems with my Ballymoss and I don't have any derailment issues with it now. I have 4 Accurascale Deltics and test runs have indicated that two of the others are fine and one suffers from the same derailment issue, so that one will also have to undergo minor surgery. As regards the infamous rattle, it really is just a question of opening the loco up and checking for possible sources. The main source of the rattle in my Ballymoss was one of the two circuit boards under the loco's roof. This couldn't be tightened using the screws, so I eventually ended up unscrewing it and attaching it to the loco using Bluetac. I also unscrewed the speaker and did the same with that. These two steps seemed to eliminate the rattle completely. Result: a fantastic loco but quite a lot of working out what was wrong and then solving the problem to get there! Fortunately, the other three locos do not seem to suffer from the same rattle. I have now sold all my Bachmann Deltics and am enjoying my Accurascale ones. I came to realise just how far out the nose of the Bachmann Deltic is when I opened the box containing my first Accurascale one. I hadn't really worked out what was wrong with the Bachmann Deltic until that moment. The Accurascale one looks spot on for shape. Hope that helps!

It was interesting that not all my Deltics suffered from the same derailment problems, suggesting that it's a marginal issue with fine tolerances as to whether or not there's a problem. Good suggestion about Black Tack. I've recently bought some to use for sound-fitting projects, so I might try using that instead of Blue Tack.

My Ballymoss kept derailing at two particular points on the layout, both on curves where there was a slight "hump" in the track at two baseboard joints. I eventually realised that, at these points, the trailing bogie was pitching (moving in the plane of the loco) and then pivoting and then "unpitching" and straightening again. As the bogie pivoted around the curve with the front of the trailing bogie pitching upwards and the rear pitching down (i.e. the loco was going over a slight hump in the track), this caused the top of the rear of the bogie to move directly below the coupling block on the chassis. If the bogie remained in this position as the loco came out of the curve and off the hump in the track, it ended up lodged beneath the coupling block. As the loco moved out of the curve, the bogie then became jammed against the coupling block and unable to straighten, causing the derailment. The eventual fix proved to be filing a bevel of a couple of mm's on the top edge of the coupling block and the V in the end of the bogie. This stops the interlocking between the bogie and coupling block and prevents the bogie from becoming lodged on top of the coupling block as the loco comes out of the curve. Not sure how well I've explained that, but I hope it helps someone! There may well be other reasons for these locos derailing, but this has completely eradicated the problems with my Ballymoss and I don't have any derailment issues with it now. I have 4 Accurascale Deltics and test runs have indicated that two of the others are fine and one suffers from the same derailment issue, so that one will also have to undergo minor surgery. As regards the infamous rattle, it really is just a question of opening the loco up and checking for possible sources. The main source of the rattle in my Ballymoss was one of the two circuit boards under the loco's roof. This couldn't be tightened using the screws, so I eventually ended up unscrewing it and attaching it to the loco using Bluetac. I also unscrewed the speaker and did the same with that. These two steps seemed to eliminate the rattle completely. Result: a fantastic loco but quite a lot of working out what was wrong and then solving the problem to get there! Fortunately, the other three locos do not seem to suffer from the same rattle. I have now sold all my Bachmann Deltics and am enjoying my Accurascale ones. I came to realise just how far out the nose of the Bachmann Deltic is when I opened the box containing my first Accurascale one. I hadn't really worked out what was wrong with the Bachmann Deltic until that moment. The Accurascale one looks spot on for shape. Hope that helps!

Cheers Ian. You're right about Waverley, I'm afraid. It seems to be packed full of units of various lengths and shapes these days. Hardly a loco in sight. The spoon was reworked from Bachmann 47832 Tamar. It was a fairly straightforward process, apart from the need to replace the battery boxes/fuel tanks with the correct type. The yellow around the cab windscreens had to be painted over, but that was it really, apart from the actual renumbering/naming. The Mk 2 roofs were done by painting the areas a paler colour where the roof was to be peeling. These areas were then painted with Maskol. The roof was then completely resprayed and the Maskol removed to reveal the peeled areas. The entire roof was then covered with weathering powder in a suitable shade of grey. Hope that helps! Hope to be back soon with an update about my (ultimately successful) trials and tribulations with the new Accurascale Deltic. Happy Modelling, Dave

Will do!

Thanks Colin, I'm afraid not. The layout was never built to be exhibited and it wouldn't stand up to the rigours of the exhibition circuit, I'm afraid. It is portable though, so it could be moved if necessary (house moves in other words). Cheers Dave

37401 then passes through Waverley on a Speedlink service... Finally, just a few more piccies to use up the allowance for this post... I've also just completed the weathering of my first Accurascale Deltic, in the form of 55018 Ballymoss, so hope to post some pics of that soon. Bit of a saga to get it running without any derailments, but I got there in the end with some relatively minor modifications, once I'd worked out why it was derailing. I think it looks very nice now though, so the hassle was worth it and I'll know what to do next time. I have now test-run the other three and only one derails at the same places as Ballymoss, so it's all a bit strange. Two of them also had the dreaded rattle, but I seem to have managed to fix that on Ballymoss too and it now sounds superb. Watch this space for the trials and tribulations of preparing an Accurascale Deltic for the layout! Next on the list is another 3-car class 101, this time in Strathclyde livery, along with Bachmann's new early Mk 2s in ScotRail livery, which will be used to make up the rake which often ran on the Perth service. They will need fitting with lights and weathering, but it's good to see the interiors already painted, so that will save some time. Cheers for now. Happy modelling, Dave

27034 then arrives on a service from Kirkcaldy, closely watched by a keen gricer as it ran through Princes St Gardens and on into Platform 17... There's no rest for the push pull set, as it returns from Glasgow QS in the early evening, as the sun lowers over the horizon... Meanwhile, 47444 has a nice long layoff between duties...

Hi folks, Just thought I'd post a few pics to let you know I haven't disappeared off the face of the Earth. Modelling time has been at a premium recently, as Mrs WW managed to break her wrist back in early March. As a result, my domestic duties have increased manifold, squeezing already precious modelling time still further. She has a few weeks to go yet before the cast comes off, so I guess I will just have to make the most of whatever modelling time comes my way. Anyway, without further ado, on to the pics... First up are some shots of the arrival of 47492 The Enterprising Scot in early InterCity livery... This last shot shows her pulling into Platform 16 with new kid on the block 47562 Sir William Burrell, in Mainline livery... Shortly after, 47562 departed for Inverness... 47714 then arrived with a mixed livery push pull rake from Glasgow QS... A 3-car Class 101 then departed from Platform 18, heading for Fife... The Glasgow QS push pull set then departed soon after... Well, that's my upload limit reached, so on to the next post...

Very nice, Will. That really looks the part. Have yet to take the plunge with a new Bachmann 37, mainly being put off by the price and the apparent difficulty of fitting snowploughs to them. That certainly looks worth the effort you've put into it though. It's the wrong colour though of course. It should be Large Logo. 😜 Hope all is well. Cheers Dave

Now there's a fine sight I'd thought I'd never see again. What a fantastic job. Well done to everyone involved! Just need a CO tucked in behind the DBSO and the FOs dressed up as SOs (some people are never happy).

Yes, I must admit I have so far chickened out on the idea of surgery and opted to do 20132 as my second Railfreight 20 (as per your photo, but with BR era electrification flashes), even though it didn't run in that form/livery in BR days. I did look high and low for an alternative number but drew a complete blank. I'd already bought it by then and couldn't believe it was unique. I think only around 20 Class 20s were painted in Railfreight livery, many of which were disc-fitted as well, narrowing the possibilities down further. I would have much preferred a non-headlight version. Maybe one day I'll get round to removing the headlight or sell the loco on. In the meantime, I have it running as the train loco in a pair, to hide the issue a little...

Ditto, but as far as I know 20227 was the only headcode-fitted Railfreight-liveried 20 to be fitted with a high-intensity headlight in BR days, making it unique and meaning that surgery is required to renumber it authentically. That makes it a very strange choice to me, given that so many other Railfreight-liveried alternatives without a headlight were available. Unless anyone knows different? I upgraded to the new version after selling off my old Bachmann 20s and don't regret it at all, as they are lovely models especially when fitted with Legomanbiffo sound, but I was hoping Bachmann would have produced a disc-fitted Railfreight version and a headcode-fitted BR Blue version by now.

Thanks Bill! I use a Canon EOS 6D. I used to use a Canon EOS 500D, which I actually preferred. The field of depth seemed to be deeper for some reason. Unfortunately, it eventually gave up the ghost after too many beach holidays with the family, leading to sand getting into the shutter mechanism! Dave

Thanks Will! I'm hoping to make it to MRS, yes. I've normally gone on a Saturday, but I think it will have to be the Friday this year, as I'm away at the weekend. Looking forward to seeing you all and catching up again, Dave

Hi folks, Just a quick fly-by update. Accurascale 55018 is now nearing completion and, with new Bachmann 47711 now in service on a blue/grey push-pull rake and Haymarket-based BR Blue 47012 also in service, not to mention several blue/grey 101s now, Waverley West has a slightly retro late 70s/early 80s feel at the moment. In the absence of any new piccies for the moment, I thought I would just post a few from previous years, seeing as these are no longer visible in this thread. A long-range telephoto shot of Haymarket depot, with various large logo 47s in evidence, along with a surprising visitor in the shape of an 03 in the East Yard. Shortly after, a 150 scuttled by, heading for Waverley... InterCity-liveried 47492 The Enterprising Scot, with a very grubby cab roof, looks like it's about to be fired up... Meanwhile, 24081 basks in the sunshine in the East Yard... I have also been having a clear-out of locos recently, mainly those which I have decided I'm unlikely to get round to putting on the layout, including my fleet of Hornby 50s. In the dim and distant past, I did consider doing Bodmin Parkway in the 80s, my "local" station in my formative years. I would still like at least one 50 for railtour use on Waverley West, but with Accurascale's recent announcement, it's likely to be one of theirs anyway. I think I've made good progress with my project to either sell or get locos ready for the layout, and the shelf with locos still in their boxes is looking quite a bit barer now. Hope to be back soon with some shots of 47711 and 55018. Happy Modelling! Cheers for now, Dave

Lovely as always Peter. I actually find the alternating liveries in a rake quite attractive and run a few rakes like that myself. It's amazing how often different liveried coaches seemed to be placed alternately. I presume coach livery wasn't taken into account at all when forming up rakes and that this was just down to chance?

Thanks lms. I wanted to include those offices as they often seem to be prominent in general views of the depot. They were quite tricky to make, as the glazing is very extensive, so keeping the structure square and rigid was a challenge. I was lucky enough to just catch the Deltics before their withdrawal. I never saw St Paddy or Nimbus, but I did manage to see the rest before they met their end. The problem I have is that, in terms of era, Waverley West has drifted towards the second half of the 80s over the years, so my Bachmann Deltics gradually saw less and less use. My plan to overcome this issue is to use the preserved KOYLI and Tulyar in particular on specials comprising Mk 1 stock, which will give me a legitimate reason to run them (besides the good old Rule 1 of course).