Harry Lime

The crane is a Kibri kit (12022 if I remember rightly) which sits on the site of what originally was going to be Kensington Cemetery. When we looked at that corner, we realised that there was the opportunity to add some extra height and a crane was a simple way of doing this. Of course, once Crossrail ends, then we'll have to think about how we use that corner again - HS2, any proposed north-south rail route, a new mega-sewer project... As for a track plan, there was one published in the June 2012 copy of BRM. However, by a stroke of luck, a "very soon to be published issue" of a rival magazine will feature LR, so there may be a track plan there for you as well.

Funnily enough, the one thing we have never tried to do is water - don't know why but there is not a great deal near Kenny O. I suppose that the nearest would either be the Round Pond in Kensington Park or the Thames at Hammersmith.

Thanks for this 159220. Having already got the car wagons, this gives me a reason to buy one of the Caledonian 92's. With an element of modeller's licence, I can justify running this on Loftus Road!

Not sure if this will work as I am posting during the rebuild but here goes... Our next outing with LR is to our Worthing show at the end of September. We then have a date in Taunton for RailEx (26th and 27th October 2019). After that, we have a few shows in 2020 - Basingstoke and Corsham (Wilts). At the moment, the nearest to 'the north' would be Spalding at the end of 2020...

If anyone has any doubts about the ability of model railways to make people smile, here is a link to some footage we shot at Southampton's Show on Sunday (27th January) before the public came in. Ian Bishop (Legomanbiffo of this parish) loaned us his HST set, fitted with sound and Earthmover speakers. The sheer joy on James Makin's face was like a small child getting everything they ever wanted for Christmas - forever. The video doesn't do Ian's work justice. Suffice it to say that we are seriously looking at learning how to mill out our chassis on our stock to fit suitable speakers as the sound was simply awesome!

We get the same occasionally as well!

Come and say hello, you'll be more than welcome!

Off to the club room shortly so that we can load up LR ready for the Southampton Show this weekend

Hopefully you mean 2019, Simon!

Came across the very same problem with two class 66's with TOPS number 66709. My first one was numbered 6609 (the same as with the OP's numbering policy) so when I acquired a 'Sorrento' GBRf 66, this had to be numbered as 6670.

Usually when the neighbours turn up on the doorstep with a large brown box under their arm...then how do you explain that to SWMBO who is looking over your shoulder!

Got an email/newsletter late yesterday saying that the remaining 20% of the orders will be sent out in the next couple of weeks - with a caveat of "hopefully"!

Even more of a thought is the value of what I have ordered, but has yet to be paid for in the coming twelve months...and then there's the layout I'm building as well. SWMBO is not to know under any circumstances - I am just grateful she can't operate my laptop!

Can I ask whether anyone who has now got their tankers received an email letting them know that their parcel(s) was going to be delivered?

An interesting thought. As someone who mainly runs their stock on a club layout, I tend to keep to specific items for Loftus Road, which means that much of my remaining stock stays in the boxes, therefore limiting what I see and use. This is compounded also by only having a few shows per year with LR, so I suppose that most of my stock rarely sees daylight. Although all my stock is relevant to LR, we tend to share out the fiddleyard between us, so we tend to keep to 'known runners' - i.e. ones that will entertain the public at shows AND which are in good running order. Naturally, this is not thought to be financially sensible by other members of the household...but there lies another line of domestic argument!

Having read the comments above about the detailing and look of LR, it set me thinking that it is nigh on sixteen years (Pete and/or James will correct me if I am wrong) since we first took three bare-ish baseboards to a very small show in East Preston (West Sussex). I seem to recall Pete and I spending a long while underneath LR, trying to get the wires on the Lenz unit to make James' EWS 37s run. I think that the amount of time we have had with the layout has meant that we have been able to develop ideas and look at what is happening around the Earl's Court area in order to make it as realistic as possible. Before we even started, Pete had taken many photos so that we could get the track, station buildings and even positioning of point motors accurate. Further pictures of other buildings nearby have been used over the years in order to build a wider picture of the local area - we lost James for about three months somewhere in Google maps when he was coming up with what is now Spanker's Row (don't ask why that name)... As many followers will be aware, LR is now in its second version, having undergone major surgery, moving from a twelve-road fiddleyard to an upgraded version which gives us eighteen roads now, as well as the scenic side boards. Without Pete, Mark, Martin and Mike, it would never have been possible to do this as seamlessly as it was. Over the years, we have had a very generous level of input (usually helpful) from other club members, not just the core Loftus Road group; past (and sadly, late) members Alan and Rex at the beginning, Gordon Forrester and all the others who have been willing to teach us techniques and theory of electronics - all these have helped to make LR what it is. Therefore, the comments from SouthernBlue80s, pantrogla, Wibble and njee20 are very much appreciated: they help us to want to continue with the layout. After all, we're just ordinary railway modellers who enjoy LR and from a personal perspective, I think that as long as we continue to do so, then running and improving LR in small ways will be what we are about. Looking forward to Southampton in a few weeks time - come and say hello and feel free to ask us any questions!

That's what I feared...

No reply - and no Class 73's either... A pity as I am after one of the Southern versions.

Only another thirty odd to go before Southampton James! Really good work that though...

Alternatively, if you can't stand the smell of IPA, you could use GooGone (other sources are available). Not my idea - Mark B from the Loftus Road crew first suggested it to us and we've stuck(!) with it ever since.

Thank you BR(S) and also to Mr Jones. A very Happy New Year to all who are still on board.

Forgive me if I am going off topic here, but I do wonder about councils who choose to charge for parking on Christmas Day? Or is it simply another day for making money, even though most businesses will be shut and allowing their employees to have a day of rest?

My kit-built one will still appear on Loftus Road after these arrivistas come into stock. This is a pity in some ways as it will hit the maker of the kits quite hard, unless, and I doubt this very much, these become limited editions. If Hattons produces the 14t twin bogie version as well, then I'll probably give up buying kits altogether!

The Southampton Show is January 26th and 27th.