37114

Thanks Richard, Yate looks to be a good show so will be great if you can make it

24081 runs round at Peafore Yard 24081 runs round at Peafore Yard

24081 runs round at Peafore Yard

About time for an update. Alan is helping me out at the Yate show (now only 4 weeks away on Feb 13th) so wanted to practice prior to the show, so I set the layout up for last nights Beer and Modelling evening. I have now finished my section of a Mk1 coach to fill the gap in the back platform road so took the opportunity to glue it in: Also due a test run was the SLW class 24 which has now been weathered, since the photos were taken the buffers now have some black grease on the heads. While Alan played trains I got on with the necessary if not tedious task of cleaning the locos for the show and mending snow ploughs on a couple of the locos: 25185 is likely to become redundant at some point in the next 2 years when SLW announce the inevitable class 25

Nice model Adrian, can you convince them to turn out one of their Enviro200s in NBC green???

I probably won’t get on here again this side of Xmas as the family start arriving imminently so hope my fellow RM web members have a Merry Christmas and Santa brings you some modelling goodies. Thank you for all the input, comments and likes etc over the last year, it is much appreciated. 2015 has been a year of transition from finishing the main build of the layout to actually exhibiting it at shows with 3 great ones at Cheltenham, Barnstaple and Chippenham kicking off proceedings. I have also enjoyed latterly adding further refinements to the layout and working on some stock as things have settled down. The last 3 months have been notable with the completion of the MK1 BSO project, the arrival of the SLW class 24 and the BRM article. So what does 2016 hold for Peafore Yard? Due to other interests and priorities it will be a year of “consolidation”. I have previously toyed with the idea of extending the layout but this has gone very much on the back burner and probably now won’t happen, at least without a major rethink of plans to ensure it compliments rather than detract from the existing layout. I will do minor scenic bits and pieces and will probably increase the size of the scrap mountain but nothing major is planned. Stock wise first task will be to finish the 20% of a MK1 for the gap in the backscene train and weather the SLW class 24. Also In the pipeline are a few more wagons - 20t tanks to represent the Molasses train - 21t Hoppers (although Dave is kindly weathering these for me) - The Malago Vale muck wagon – A different if straightforward project - A crashed Mercedes car on a Lowfit - A Bo plate with 2 Bristol VR Bus chassis although it will probably slip into 2017 Exhibition wise it is another year of 3 excellent shows kicking off with Yate on the 13th February, followed by Trainwest in it’s new home at Corhsam Springfield community campus on 9th/10th April and rounding off the year at the homely Thornbury show at The Chantry in November. I have also started thinking about the next layout which will be quite a bit different from what has gone before. Very early planning stages but during 2016 I will develop the detailed plans, budget etc and hope to commence construction mid to end of 2017.

Thanks Alan, Have a good one and see you in the new year!

Thanks Rob, the BRM team have done a lot of hard work on the mag. Andy's photography skill and equipment are way better than mine hence why the layout came out so well in the magazine! I think it is certainly fair to say the SLW class 24 probably raises the bar above that set by Hornby by the class 60. Just need Shawplan to do some laserglaze for the 24 now....

Give me 2 years and I will consider it Geoff. Mind you Bachmann will have released their version by then...

Santa came early to the 37114 household: This loco is for me a bitter-sweet addition to the fleet. Sweet because it is quite frankly a beautiful piece of work, right from when you start unwrapping it. The shape looks spot on, the livery is well executed and it is quite frankly stunning. I love it. The bitter part comes with the realisation that the RTR world has taken a massive jump forward and that my much slaved over Bachmann model of 24081 has it's in-adequacies highlighted by this model. While I applaud the raising of the baseline of quality, it is another nail in the coffin of real modelling (as opposed to cheque book modelling). I look forward to weathering it in due course but the ready fitment of pipes, and 3 links means rolling out a new item of stock to the layout is now 2 evenings work rather than 2 weeks. The above paragraph is not a negative against SLW, far from it they should be applauded and deserve all the success they get, it is just most of my modelling satisfaction comes from challenging projects like my MK1 BSO, motorail flat and class 25's. Some of that challenge will disappear over the next couple of years without a doubt which means I need to find different prototypes to provide that challenge.

Not renumbered but mine will be weathered over the holiday period. It is an beautiful model but it needs to earn its keep and everything else is weathered.

Lovely bit of modelling Kyle. I like your approach to the side grilles, I was planning to detail a Hornby shell to go on a modified Bachmann chassis but the grilles always put me off. In the end the chassis went under the 25/3 which appears in this month's header photo so the project died.

Cracking work Rich, nice to see some proper modelling. Will have a look in the spares box for any spare SP electrical gear, If I have any you can have it.

I now know something I didn't know before I read your post ;-) In that case I spoke to Phil!

Dragging this thread back up, I fancy making a couple of Lister's for my next layout and wondered if the Portram chassis is available separately now?

I agree, to be honest I didn't check the price when I placed the order, and I am not worried if it is £160 or £175 as at either price it is good value. Too many people confuse "good value" with "low cost". I had a good chat with Jamie or Phil on the phone and told them for my perspective they are giving a good value product and that they deserve to do well and look forward placing my orders for the class 25, class 55 and class 37 in due course.... The person didn't bite on the last comment but hopefully food for thought.

Amazed, I got through first time of trying, 24081 duly ordered. Now just need to offload my heavily modified Bachmann version, ideal purchase opportunity for anybody who doesn't like the SLW grilles :-)

B*gger - back to back meetings all day on Wednesday, hope they don't sell out by the time I get on the phone....

Thanks Neil

Thanks Alan, I am really pleased with the article, credit must go to Andy for doing a cracking job with the photos.

Hi Derek, Yate on 13th Feb, then Corsham on 9th/10th April, I will post an up to date list o my thread shortly. It is also in BRM which comes out on Thursday. Thanks

Assuming I can get my hands on 24081 when it is released to non previous customers it is due some weathering, probably pretty quickly so I can use it at the next show I am at.

Thanks Alan, I think if I had read last months article on canal boats before I made the layout I might have gone for a canal rather than a culvert under the bridge.

Finally gave Peafore Yard some attention today, it has been playing second fiddle to the Land Rover rebuild of late with modelling activity limited to regular Ale and Modelling evenings with Alan and Dave. The operation of the upper level point has not been as smooth as I would like it to be since the layout was completed so this required attention which is best done with the back of the layout removed. As I wanted to secure the GBL class 47 and the various Bachmann MK1's that I have been respraying at the same time I have waited until now to do it. The point control rod is over 2ft long and connects to the point by a crank so needs to be free moving. I discovered that the problem was nothing more than the crank screw being over tight so gently slackened it and all seems well: Alan kindly weathered the GBL class 47 last week which now forms part of the backscene. Based on the Lima class 47 but with a solid chassis it is ideal for my needs after a quick respray. The screws that hold the model to its display plinth are also just the right length to secure it to the layout and save me having to box it up each time the layout is packed away. A hole was drilled in the track bed underneath the screw hole and the screws fed up from underneath. Although the class 47 will be forever fixed to the layout (it is only numbered on one side), I only wanted to semi-permanently secure the MK1's so they can be swapped out at some point, especially as one of them is my much laboured MK1 BSO. I therefore use a similar method to that used to secure children's toys in the packaging by using a 75 mm length of wire bent into a U shape and fixed over the axle: 2 holes are then drilled under each bogie and the wire thread through: The wire is then wrapped together underneath the board and the coach is now secured to the layout. Due to the position of the baseboard supports I couldn't quite place the carriages where I would have liked creating this gap at the platform end: A cunning plan was developed. Now you see the gap: Now you don't: The MK1 BSO waste included an end of one of the donor BSK's which was cut to fit. Since the photo was taken it has received the first coat of primer in readiness for a respray in Blue/Grey The completed train in place: I also added some of the newly made details for the scrap yard which included a set of scales and pallet bins for high value scrap Peafore Yard appears in the January copy of BRM which is out this Thursday.

My GBL class 47 is finally finished, it forms part of the backscene of my layout, alongside a cut and shut Bachman MK1 BSO: