Oops! those GCR corridors are on this thread, not 51L.....I'm loosin' it.
Sincere thanks Bill B. for your GCR listing. I am not familiar with GCR diagram numbers so i need your assistance here. The coach I'm looking for is the 6-compartment non-corridor brake third. The matchboard sided coach outline is contemporary with the corridor stock shown in this thread posted August 4th 2009.
I've been otherwise occupied for a while, but I am trying to get a few things ready for York. Mainly these:
The underframes are a mixture: Bill's sprung W irons; brake levers, air cylinder and V hangers from Wizard/51L as are the axleboxes. Springs are Dart Castings (and I'm waiting for more - I wish their mail order service was as quick as Wizard Models.
This isn't LNER but is also in the final stages for York. It's also here for anyone not familiar with Roger Chivers kits. They are as near as you can get to kits which assemble themselves and highly recommended. This one is the LMS Long Low.
If anyone is coming to York, please come over to Thurston and say hello.
Last edited by jwealleans on Tue Oct 30, 2018 8:13 pm, edited 3 times in total.
Some shots from York on Saturday afternoon: only our layout as I was a bit busy to get round anywhere else.
A prewar survivor looking rather clean - must have been stored during the war.
Some slightly more modern equivalents, in postwar colours:
The GE compo built earlier in the thread, again looking a bit too clean. It'll be rather more dirty by the next show.
Finally some other people's work which I thought you might like to see:
B2 61614 Castle Hedingham. Built and painted by Graham Varley from the DMR kit.
WD 90566, not sure what shed (probably Immingham). The Bachmann model, detailed and weathered by Craig Thompson. Craig and loco guested with us for the day on Saturday, for which we thank him.
Last edited by jwealleans on Tue Oct 30, 2018 8:13 pm, edited 3 times in total.
I'm glad you put up the ferry van pictures. I watched Thurston for a couple of periods on saturday, but they stayed resolutely in the fiddle yard both times.
It's quite a display, layout, lighting fascias, extensive printed information, video player. Most impressive. DVDs for sale too I see, never miss an opportunity!
Castle Hedingham looks very nicely built too.
Most subjects, models and techniques covered in this thread are now listed in various categories on page1
Dec. 2018: Almost all images that disappeared from my own thread following loss of free remote hosting are now restored.
Graeme, I didn't see you in front of the layout - if you'd attracted my attention I'd have made sure they came round, or you could have come round the back for a look. Thanks for the compliments about the presentation as well; I'll pass those on to the parties responsible. The DVDs are remarkably successful. I was quite unimpressed by the idea when it was floated but I've been proved completely wrong.
Castle Hedingham is a lovely thing - Graham is a very talented builder - but proved a bit light on its feet and has been recommended for extra weighting.
Rob, I have two more of these resin vans to complete, when I create the appropriate transfers, then I may build some French ones. I seem to have run out of fiddle yard space, so at the next show they may have to be spread across more than one train.
This had a spin before opening on Monday as well:
Last edited by jwealleans on Tue Oct 30, 2018 8:12 pm, edited 3 times in total.
Cheers, Mick. It's got a hell of a lot of pulling power. I'm really taken with it.
I did see that about the birdcage vehicle - however it was restricted to the Dover ferry services and I don't believe they ever came into East Anglia, especially not in our period. I suspect the other reissued Chivers kits will be costing me enough as it is without that particular one.
Your associate might like to know that if Castle Hedingham proves to be at all like the DMR B2 that I finished off from a nearly-built auction purchase last autumn then it will need a LOT of lead in it to make it even pull as well as the B2 I converted from the Bachmann B1. I also found that balancing of the weight within the loco was critically important, and I was glad that I had arranged my motor to sit forward of the middle-axle-hung gearbox rather than behind (as received) since not only could I then actually fit the backhead, but I was able to put ballast in the firebox (and between the rear of the frames) to balance weight put in the nose of the boiler. I do not think that I couold otherwise have attained sufficient weight without creating a hopelessly nose-heavy loco - in fact I had that scenario at one stage and whilst it would pull going forwards there was so little pressure on the rear coupled wheels that it regularly derailed when setting back through pointwork!
Most subjects, models and techniques covered in this thread are now listed in various categories on page1
Dec. 2018: Almost all images that disappeared from my own thread following loss of free remote hosting are now restored.
As jwealleans and others on this thread have a wide experience of coach kits, I wonder if you have ever come across a CooperCraft (MC18 Mailcoach) LNER Tourist Stock Brake Open 3rd Coach? I'm after such a coach but it is useful to know of other peoples' experiences beforehand.
Coach
I have built the Tourist set in my opinion very poor quality very dated moulds. Sides are clear plastic the idea being you paint the sides giving you flush glazing . Sadly the plastic is far from crystal clear and a pain to paint aound the windows apertures. Roof , bogies and underframe are poor fit and detail.
I didn't expect transparent plastic sides thats for sure so thanks for your input Mick. It is strange no one else apart from BSL/Phoenix has thought to etch them in 4mm. (I have a suitable interior going spare that's why I want a brake).
I don't think I'm quite as 'down' on them as Mick, but they'd be nowhere near the standard of the rest of your stock, Larry. I think Bill does sides for them - if not, someone else does, I'm sure. You'd be better off starting from etched components.
I have built one, though it was a number of years ago - if you don't mind waiting until I get home from Wales, I'll post some pictures.
jwealleans wrote:
The main project now is these Belgian ferry vans which I hope to complete for York. Here the body casting is shown with the floor mounting arrangement. The body shells aren't quite square - I'm not sure whether this is a casting flaw or the resin working slightly. I have seen the master and it looked square to me. Anyway, the floor is mounted on two large plastruct angles secured to the sides. They're set slightly further up the interior than the top of the solebars; this is to help set the ride height of the vehicles, as it's easy to pack the W iron assemblies down, but would be very hard to move the whole gubbins up if they rode too high.
It's only one step in the process, but getting them rolling feels like a huge step. I now have three mobile and three more to go. They're mounted on Bill B's springing units with brake shoes from the LNER fitted etch from Mainly Trains attached.
Are these resin bodies available to purchase ?
My layout under construction is a bit further north than Thurston, but the ones that went through there nearly all went down the GN&GE Joint Line and the thought of having to scratch build a few ferry vans has caused me to select the part of the timetable when they were unlikely to have been passing !
Hopefully, I'll get to see Thurston one of these days (probably at Warley as I think I am operating there)
