big jim

Not had ‘Biffa’ on the cement yet but did get 66789 on it earlier in the year, actually the first time I’ve worked a train with the 4 wheel cement wagons

Mmmmm, aero wing, I’d love one of them! thats a later model than mine but almost identical its currently running a superchip bluefin stage 2 chip that is flashed to the ecu via the OBD port, it’s a modified program that Superchips don’t market to allow for the fast road cam I’ve got in it the tuning I’m going for is a ‘real time’ ECU remap on the rollers done by 1320 mini in Cambridgeshire as for handling I’ve just had a set of bilstein B14s fitted, in the last hour I’ve had the call to say I can collect it, be interesting to see how it handles with the new set up, of course I need it properly aligning, ABP motorsport is my nearest specialist followed by demon tweeks and lohen so I have a good choice of places to go the only downside I have at the moment is it’s got winter tyres on the front so it isn’t the most surefooted of vehicles round the bends, I’m going to actually treat myself to some decent tyres at some point

Both the phaeton I had have gone, quite fancy another one though! got a couple of older BMW mini’s now, both modded, plenty of pics elsewhere in the thread of them one is a mini one convertible superchipped and putting out 140bhp the other is a cooper s which at the last dyno was 218bhp but had had a new smaller supercharger pulley and stainless exhaust fitted, ive also got bigger injectors to go on once lockdown is over and I can get it to the tuners in Cambridgeshire for a custom map, I’m hoping for around 230bhp out if it after that

just watched the top gear episode with the colin McRae tribute, Watched it with a tear in my eye, especially when it cut to jimmy McRae in the audience who was also welling up, as was Chris Harris well worth a watch, very informative, especially the bit where Toyota got found cheating, never knew about that

ive just weighed myself and thanks to not having access to McDonalds and greggs ive lost 2.5Lb

My god that sounds good! layout is a cracker too

Fixed a some more of the top boards down this morning as well as thinking about exactly how I want to set things up when it comes to scenery, as I’ve mentioned before i thought having a town one side and the station the other looks odd so I thought, how about moving the town over to the other side, I’ve just laid the low relief buildings out to get the feel for it How about replacing the mill area with the castle and moving the mill to the new wider bit I have fitted where the castle mock up was, the narrow gauge line could skirt the outer walls? Along the back wall I’ve opened out the hidden lines into a cutting , the high level line also drops down to ground level, I have looked at putting the yard on the high level but there is only one way in to it from the right hand side of the layout so I think I’m going to drop it onto the lower level board where I can get an entrance/exit each end, I have put the fuel terminal on the high level which I’ll most likely keep there as well as branch line running past it that will start from the current mill area and finish where I mocked up a station on that side a few months back

1. No idea 2. A lot of work is cut back at the moment so no not been asked to work extra, Still possible to get a call last minute though 3. Again no idea how they are staff wise, I suppose one advantage of ‘super boxes, or ROCs is they cover vast areas so if a few go sick then there should be enough other staff to cover other panels in the box 4. currently still going ahead as best as it can but things may change 5. As far as I know most are happening, as it happens I’m rest day all weekend so will dodge them that’s about it, just keeping on working, keeping myself safe

my wife works for a car rescue and the lockdown means we can’t rehome any of the cats we have here, luckily a pair of kittens went the morning of lockdown but we have ‘clooney’ with us at the moment, he was left to fend for himself by his druggie owners who also found it funny to inject him with heroin, he had a problem with his mouth so didn’t clean himself and became all matted, he’s had all but 2 teeth out and he had to be shaved but now he’s started cleaning himself again, for a while had to wear a jumper to keep warm he’s been a to try and litter train, he’s about 7 years old and never been trained, were getting there but we are having to shut him in the bathroom for a few hours a day when he’s ready to go!

im on the fence as given the current situation worldwide i simply can’t afford to frit away £150 on a toy when I may need it for bartering for fuel and medical supplies when the apocalypse comes!

Just found some old scanned pics while looking for something else in photobucket 50017 old oak common I think this is 50049 not long after it was converted back from a freight engine Waterloo New st, always exciting to see a 50 there!

to me they look odd without the centre headlight too

And 2 for coming last

I’ve got 30+ Bachmann 66s I’ve no intention of parting with but a Hattons one with sound was going to be a one off treat! do I risk not getting 66789 if they didnt rerun them after this batch is sold or risk getting a potential dodgy one so I at least have one

Gilbert, without knowing the location how is the track set up there, trains seem to be coming from all directions!

much as I’m in Very much the ‘I’m not getting one until the faults are sorted’ gang since watching your video I’m tempted to bite the bullet and get 66789 and a separate sound chip off legoman as I don’t want to miss out on getting that particular livery, I know I could wait for the Bachmann one but I did promise myself at least one hattons 66 and had decided on that livery if I have issues at least I can now see what to do to remedy it thanks to your video, the only other downside now is how long will lockdown last and can I afford one with not knowing what’s around the corner!

Saw a cracker the other day, going to work through the roadworks on the M6 between J15 and j13 i was trundling along in part of the 2 lane section of the 17 mile long 50 mph average speed check area, cruise control set, quiet roads due to lockdown, mainly wagons saw a car hurtling up the outside lane doing way over 70mph I recon, An older 05 plate Vauxhall vectra, in the distance wagons in the inside lane with a few cars overtaking, the vectra comes flying up to the back of the line of slower cars, I could see he was pretty close to the car in front, a nice shiny black Audi, after passing the trucks the Audi pulls in to the inside lane, let’s the vectra pass then pulls back out to the outside lane where after a short distance the Audi driver promptly switched on his blue lights, overtook him and illuminated his ‘follow me’ sign pulling him in at stafford services, oh how I laughed!

I have a strange situation with our pair, the eldest is leaving school this year so he is one of those who has had his GCSEs cancelled, basically leaving high school with no exams, he is still getting work daily through the ‘ClassCharts’ app which after a bit of a battle he is sitting down and doing during the day as it goes back to the school and is used towards his grades he will get in his ‘non exams’ fair dos to him, yesterday he went to Morrison’s to apply for a part time job As he is fed up of being stuck in the house, daft thing is when he was in school he rarely went out and spoke to his mates on line! It was very strange the day the schools shut down as we stood there with the pair of them saying, well that’s you done with school completely forever and you will never come back to this primary school again (thank god!!) its the youngest I feel for, As I say he is leaving primary school this year and due to some issues at the school he is in special measures as he fell way behind everyone in maths and English, we applied for the same school is big brother is leaving this year (we couldn’t tick the ‘sibling at the school’ box as he is leaving) as their ‘learning hub’ set up is superb in helping those who need it when we got the confirmation of his high school place we didn’t get any of the schools we chose and he has been placed in a school we didn’t view, didn’t consider, indeed didn’t even know about! we tried to get a viewing a few weeks before the cornonavirus lockdown kicked in and were fobbed off and told they had lots of people wanting to do the same and they would get back to us, 2 weeks later got a date only for it to be cancelled due to the virus then obviously the school closed so come September he will be starting in a school he’s never seen the inside of where none of his friends are going, we have put an appeal in to see if he can get in his preferred school so we will have to see how that goes it’s laughable because when the eldest chose to go there from primary school he was the only pupil from his school who chose that particular school and a lot of the fellow playground parents scoffed at us for letting him pick that school as at the time it was seen as a bit rough and failing, 5 years down the line it’s now one of the top schools in the town and Unfortunately for us is now over subscribed hence why we didn’t get a place

Agreed about the purchase bit, never thought about that but I remember at the time a few saw it as possibly causing a divide between the elite and the plebs, I think it’s calmed down now! anyway sorry to go a bit off topic with my comparison

i don’t think that would work personally what if you were one of those willing to step up to the plate only to have to self isolate or catch the virus so we’re unable to help, in years to come your lack of badge could give the wrong impression, or what if you decide to join the key worker sector as an aftermath of the virus missing out on the medal We have something similar on here, a badge of honour as it were, it’s called RMWeb gold, look at the divides that caused when it was announced, those who didn’t want gold status, those who feared it was for the elite, those who didn’t want visual recognition of being a gold member, the same issues could arise from dishing out plaudits to all and sundry, some want them and will shout from the rooftops, others are happy to get on with it quietly in the background without fuss

I genuinely had to check my diary then!

wouldn’t it be embarrassing if you tripped over seconds before everyone started clapping on the concourse!

what, it’s Easter this weekend!

wonder what other GM lump you could get in one? failing that put my mini engine in, 220bhp

A Proper shape one too! have you seen the latest top gear mag where Chris Harris drives Colin McRae’s old rally car, nice read