Jon020

Update: The postman's been. Well... when I think of all the praise this model's received, I feel that it seems to have been deserved. I've not tried to undo the screws, and the yellow paint will need some tidying up around the edges (not a problem as I have some work I want to do in that area anyway), but : - the loco was packaged in what was possibly the most protective and "safe" packaging I've yet seen.... much better even that the new Bachmann boxes; - straight out of the box, it looks the part. Pipes fitted at one already, a nice touch - it feels solid and weighty... in the right places. - it ran on my boys 8'x4' roundy negotiating tight curves (some just sub 2nd) and all the points without bother. - no wheel wobble.... although there's a P4 ultrascale set waiting for it - some light scratches on some of the transparencies... but nothing that a dob of tee cut won't cure.... and these will be Klear'd at some point too. So yes... this east-coast diesel enthusiast is pleased. Really nice to see some of Brian's etches included .... well done that man - what a noble man ;-) Happy - Jon

An excellent idea - my interest would have been for a 4-digit train reporting box version with serck rad shutters (one of the early Green FYE was like this)... and there's a current one too... but I'm not sure what the tank combinations are ... other than just wholly awfully wrong on the early ones. Still... nothing that a bit of modelling, sharp knives, saws, plasticard and wire cant sort ;-)

Thanks for posting the 40 images Lee. There are still things that I wish were better, but it is an improvement on what we had before... just a shame that it's not of the same calibre as their LMS Diesel Twins... which are cracking models and set the standard to be followed. Shame it wasn't achieved in house.. but yes better than before.

It looks like they've sorted the roof fan walkway which always looked odd on some previous models... here it looks better. We'll see if the postmann knocks today.

Do they Geoff... hmmm, couldn't find that! Picture seems to be awaited on the page I looked at. However.... thanks for the info as I was hoping for Talisman clips... otherwise I'd add them. Cheers J

Just notified that my Nobleman has been shipped. Early birthday present perhaps... Will be interesting to see what can be done to it. U/scale wheels in for a start - now that I'll have something to put them in.

Now that is really worrying!

These products have been on sale in Lidl before. Last time I didn't bother as I couldn't determine how big they'd be (about 6 months or so ago I guess); this time, all on here mentioned how good they were (well, most did... there's always those of the Andy Parsons view "Lidl, because life didn't go they way you planned)... so I bought one of the small ones. It's doing a fine job of displaying my modified stock, along with three Star Trek models and a 1:72 Eagle Transporter on its top.... The point is, they'll be back in stores sooner or later; give it a few months and there will undoubtedly be a second chance for those who feel they've missed out. J

Apologies for the image quality - poor lighting and a phone-grab. I'm quite pleased although I uprated the hinges to something a bit more sturdy - B&Q £2 jobbies did the trick. After all that work, this is all the stock I have to show. About time I pulled my finger out and got on with some of the other locos still sat in their boxes! A few of the trek models have been acquired too... just need NCC1864 now and I'll be happy. Jon

... if you're talking about my Nimbus per my signature then I made them... if it's the 47, then they're Shawplan - cast white metal.., delicate but very very nice ;-) Edit - actually the Vac pipe is Bachmann but with a microstrip piece added for the bracket.

It's such a lovely looking layout and some grand stock there too... it must give you many hours of pleasure just watching the trains go by. Jon

Mine's up. I added a batton underneath the lower face to provide a little more support but it seems quite secure... yes, £30approx well spent I'd say.

Judging from the bits (not assembled yet) 54.5cm wide, 42cm tall (approx) and 14.5cm deep. Jon

I think that you posting this image has been very useful... it's given the small cabinet "a scale" we can understand. Thanks for that. On measuring mine, I'll just get the Cravens DMU across one shelf with a little room at either end... which is nice.

hmmm time to pop to Lidl then! EDIT: I've just "popped" there ... and now opened to check the contents which all look very sound and solid. I went for the smaller one; I didn;t think I'd be able to carry the larger one or, more importantly, justify it's existance at home. The boss seems to have accepted the small one (phew)... so I'll pop it togther tonight and see how it looks then. I'd just built a top extension to a book case to display some stuff on it, but now this can perch on that and attach to the wall... fingers crossed. Jon

Thanks to Coombe Barton for posting the link to this thread ... now we've found it we can enjoy it even more... and I think I'll be drawing some basic plans. This could be the most inspiring article ... in terms of bringing folk out of their armchairs... for quite some time. Not surprising I suppose. It was you Phil after all that convinced me to have a go at weathering locos myself ... ooh ... just a few years ago at my first Warley... so this should come as no surprise I suppose . This could be a fun journey. Thanks for producing it and this thread. Gratefully.... Jon

They are absolutely cracking models Matthew and I actually think that whilst the darker shade (Darlington?) is more rich, that the lighter shade (Doncaster?) is the more striking in the sunshine. I recall Tornado when new (pre naming) looked startling in the lighter shade and it suited it wonderfully... but they're both lovely. I wonder if the re-privatised East Coast could adopt a similar scheme ;-) I'm guessing that the workshop grey below the others on the shelf will appear suitably turned out at some point... it'll be quite a fleet.

Streuth... when did those adverts pop up; I'm sure I've been checking every week or so. Ok, anyone any ideas as to whether these are the same with different numbers or are there differences elsewhere in the models. I'll renumber to something that suits so I'm not fussed, but it'd be interesting to know of any detail difference. Cheers.... pre-ordering (again) soon Jon EDIT - whether there are differences or not is of little issue; I could see no difference in pics of these two locos in a book I had... so Nobleman pre-ordered. Now, where's that P4 wheelset I bought ?

It all sounds quite simple really; unfortunately it was this issue with the blue ones that worried me, and I was quite surprised to see D'Dave suggest that if the gluing of these by mistake concerned me then I should cancel my pre-order and hopefully wait for the next batch (it was actually in this thread somewhere). So I did... and I'm still waiting for that next batch. One day maybe eh!

I'd loved to have a go at a blue one... and sort the headcodes out to give a similar effect to what I achieved with my 47, which I'm still quite pleased with ... and do this along with all the other details ... but they're the proverbial hen's teeth; come on Dapol , let's have some more please!

To be honest, knowing several commuters that use this line, it's more farce than force ... I've had little trouble but then I don't have to use it every day... but I remember when I did and I guess it's no worse than any other parts of the network tbh.

A Southern 377 operating an Eastbourne and Hastings service departs Wivelsfield to divert off the Brighton main line at about 5.50pm this evening. Taken on a 1 sec exposure from the overbridge, handheld, on my old Canon SX10... and it was cold too.

It looks stunning Matthew; I'll await the invite for the inaugural passenger run around the garden ;-)

Nice bit of work, nicely summed up... always a Duff fan... and this one looks the part.