Andrew Young

Evening Tom, only just found your thread and enjoyed reading through it this evening. Simply stunning modelling, difficult to believe this is 4mm scale and not larger. Instantly recognisable from a damp autumnal day on the extension heading for Nant Gwernol. Will there be any space to include the ‘Road to Adventure’ gate? Cheers, Andrew

Dad dropped off some handbills with me yesterday which I’ll put in the mess room at work. Looking forward to the show, my first one since the last Nottingham one last year. All being well I will be over to the show on the Saturday. Andrew

Really enjoying the horticultural tips, certainly adding some colour to your layout.

Your Jubilee looks stunning! And well done on persevering with the wagons. I like the look of the Russian boat you bought. Don’t suppose you could point me in the direction of where you got it from could you please? Thanks, Andrew

Ah yes, I’m the other Panda, the Southern Snowdonian variety who occasionally turns up at Port with Mr Martin. Btw, It was Mr Ribbands who pointed me in the direction of your modelling. It’s a small world.

Five months since an update... oh dear! The pandemic has meant that work wise I’ve been left with less time for modeling but as a plus, working anti social hours less often and spending more time with the family so not all bad. Plus, once we were allowed to travel, we’ve used plenty of leave going to Tywyn, playing steam engines and seeing my in-laws plus doing touristy things and generally not being locked down at home! That’s accounted for four out of the last nine weeks. But back home for a reasonable amount of time now and the modeling mojo has returned. Some photos of my recent Welsh shenanigans can be found on my Flickr page: https://www.flickr.com/gp/pandaonetwofive/cyQF72 Back to the modeling... last time I was trialling Dingham couplers. Sadly, they proved to not be suitable. Whilst they look great and I would use them if I could, they require a reasonably constant coupling hook height to work reliably. Sadly, the range of height on my stock is quite sizeable. The difference in height between the lowest (Dapol Terriers) and the highest (GW Syphon) is too great to find a common height allowing for each vehicle within the constraints of the headstock/buffer beam. Current thinking is to use steel links and make a couple of magnets on sticks attached to torches in the same vein as those made by the late DLO Smith and see how I get on with those once I’m operating the layout regularly. On Thursday night at our regular 7mmNGA Trent Valley Group zoom meeting, one of our members Alex said he’d designed some form of magnetic coupling that uses standard drawhooks and he would send me a sample to try so will await them and see. He currently resides in Barry (the place, he’s young, not a borrower) so will await the post and see. Layoit wise, I’ve added plywood track bases to the three station boards on which to lay the narrow gauge track. Going from standard gauge track level up to the wharf level. I’d hoped to include a line up to a granite tipping point but the gradient proved to be too steep for reliable running. So it’s now just a slate and timber wharf and I’ll have to find somewhere else for the granite in another module. The other mojo killer was building some test track pieces for making my own narrow gauge track. However, after two attempts failed to result in a point that I could run anything reliably through the track parts have been put in a track drawer out of the way. One piece of advice I received a while ago was that as modellers, we improve with time and practice and it’s not necessarily going to be perfect first time. That’s why you build more than one layout. You do things on your second that you can’t do on your first. Currently weighing up my options and it could be that this module has more ready to plonk track laid so as to move me forwards rather than continually stalling. Get this set up running nicely, electrified and start the scenic work so that I can run trains if I want to. Then, when I move onto the next stage of the line, then take the time to hammer out (literally) the faults in my track laying and making it work properly. Hopefully the weather will cool down soon and I will progress the layout more in the attic and be able to give an update of some real progress. In the meantime, I’ve been stock building in the relative comfort of our study. One of the Mannin Models LSWR brake third coaches has taken shape and I’m rather pleased with it. I’ve changed the buffers and door handles for something more robust, but otherwise the kit is as intended and very nice it is too for a 3D print. Plus, very reasonably priced. Seen here recreating an Easingwold train as captured by Casserley who’s photos of which I find particularly inspiring. if this hot weather carries on. The SER kits first class saloon might get finished off at the same time and then I’ll have a complete passenger train which really will need somewhere to run! Andrew

Far too hot for that kind of thing at the moment. My last Talyllyn turn of my fortnight was a week ago today, too hot for me, it was high twenties then and it’s even hotter now! This week, driving tin rockets with air conditioned cabs has for once been more enjoyable than driving antique kettles. Andrew

Despite you mentioning your Penmaenpool layout quite a while ago, this is the first time I’ve found your thread and it’s great to see the progress. Remember visiting the old signal box as a kid on holiday when the RSPB had it as a hide. Andrew

Over recent months I’ve rather neglected RMWeb whilst life got in the way of model making so had missed your threads on here until a friend put me on to them last week whilst discussing model matters in Tywyn. Your modelling is superb and I particularly like your nettles and RBWH, your keeping the layout simple and getting on with it is something that I should really take heed of in my own modelling.

D’oh! The perils of browsing RMWeb when our little dictator wakes me up at 05:30! Same here with the RM subs. cheers, Andrew

Interesting that you don’t mention Railway Magazine, which I believe has a bigger circulation than those you mention. I long ago gave up on Steam Railway and Heritage Railway mags and haven’t bought either for years. Even the article on the Talyllyn in the latest issue of SR couldn’t tempt me. I usually read Railway Mag for its mix of preservation and big railway articles and Narrow Gauge World but will take a look at the new mag and see. Andrew

just need the fire alarm to go off to achieve that!

As @Supaned has said, it’s 40mph round Westerleigh. With a decent Voyager, 100mph is easily attainable before putting the brake in for Parkway (the motorway for me on a dry rail). 100mph is even possible with an HST, just.

As well as bits falling off and killing people. If the lifting points are cracked, you can’t lift the body up to maintain the equipment underneath. Andrew

XC have tweeted the timetable, if you follow the link from the link. GWR can be thankful that XC are currently only running a 50ish percent service south west of Birmingham due to Covid and so have the spare crews. As for spare units, strange how there weren’t any spare when we were trying to get one for route knowledge retention... but nevertheless, good to see inter company cooperation.

The WCML west from Bristol as well as the ECML north of York!

Shame their traction competency will have lapsed then... that lot at Ely are only good for the scrapyard!

Two reasons why that wouldn’t work. 1) not enough HST sets to make up much more than a token service. Which would just lead to huge overcrowding and arguments as people tried to fight to get on them. Not helpful and not Covid friendly. 2) traction knowledge expires after 12 months. So Traincrew knowledge on HSTs will have lapsed.

Two 50s and a Western aren’t exactly going to put much of a dint in covering a days worth of GWR services between Paddington, Penzance and Swansea....

It wouldn’t. But why replace HSTs with 222s when there will be more 221s available than you would need to just replace the HSTs? If you can rid yourself of the non-compatibility this easily then why go for the difficult option?

Can see XC having a complete 220 & 221 (plus 170) fleet rather than a mixed 220/221/222 fleet. The lack of coupling compatibility between the 222s and the 220/221 fleet creates more headaches operationally than it solves.

I agree except with the fact of replacing 170s with Voyagers. Due to their weight, Voyagers have many speed restrictions on the Birmingham to Stansted route which don’t affect 170s. Any replacement would need to be light enough to be able to run at 15x/17x weight associated speeds.

Well, XC fleet management are well aware of my keenness to drive the first Voyager into Kingsbury! They’re starting to show their age and the phenomenal mileages that they’re racking up. Until some form of long term management/franchise type deal is signed then nothing will change for the fleet I reckon. A succession of short term management contracts means that long term stock requirements are not on anyone’s minds. Suspect that the only change in the short to medium term is that the rest of the 221s from West Coast will replace the HSTs. Further down the line, suspect that fume emissions will drive the fleet choices (a particular problem at New St). Whilst there is nothing that I know of planned currently, the Bi-mode IET spec for the Midland Mainline fleet being developed currently does look like it would suit the XC operation and I wouldn’t bet against that happening. Will see how close to the mark I am in about a decade’s time. Andrew

We couldn’t wait for the Azumas either. The 91’s were painfully slow getting away from Durham/Darlington/Northallerton/York southbound when you were following one with a Voyager. The Azumas are much better at getting out of the way!

Not overly ‘lucky’ if you were one of those killed at Heck or Hatfield! Don’t think anyone will mourn the passing of 91023/132!