John Isherwood

Have you ever tried St. Delia Smith's spag. bol. recipe? It includes chicken livers, which completely break down and thicken the sauce. Talk about unctious - Mmmmmm! John Isherwood.

Please - don't use the HO/OO term; it's nonsense. Model railways are built to either HO (3.5mm. : 1ft.) or OO (4.0mm. : 1ft); they can't be both. What you are proposing clearly seems to be HO scale. Regards, John Isherwood.

That is how I did it for years - it drove me nearly mad! So - I decided to produce my own ready-compiled transfers. Due to my age and the current crisis, I can't supply them at present - but if you can wait, look at Sheets BL124, BL132 (and variants), BL141, BL142, BL143, BL148, BL171 & BL179 at https://www.cctrans.org.uk/products.htm . You will also find all the lining and lettering transfers that you need for BR steam / early diesel era coaches, plus lots, lots more. Regards, John Isherwood, Cambridge Custom Transfers.

Me too - we'll have to see whether we get the IPA or a refund; either way, no loss. Regards, John Isherwood.

I've used these suppliers before, and have just re-ordered; I recalled that my IPA container is getting low. Nothing to lose - if they don't deliver, Paypal will refund me. We'll see !! Regards, John Isherwood.

Try this ..... https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/5-litre-Isopropyl-Alcohol-Isopropanol-99-9-Cleaning-Multipurpose-5L/114154542678?hash=item1a94241656:g:TMsAAOSwPf1ebQKd Regards, John Isherwood.

It's a very useful solvent / degreaser for all kinds of things - and at that price ....... Regards, John Isherwood.

Peco / Parkside sell packs of NEM mounting blocks. https://railsofsheffield.com/products/18791/parkside-dundas-pa34-oo-gauge-mounting-blocks-for-Bachmann-36-027-mk2-couplings-nem-shaft-cranked-with-pocket-x10-?gclid=EAIaIQobChMIg7ul3Ju76AIVR7TtCh2PSQnqEAQYAyABEgLjjvD_BwE John Isherwood.

Nah ! https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/5-Litres-DICHLOROMETHANE-SOLVENT-METHYLENE-CHLORIDE-Actual-Cheapest/323225616825?hash=item4b41bf81b9:g:w2AAAOSwBAxahZMJ This is how I buy mine - exactly the same stuff and a fraction of the price of the little bottles. Regards, John Isherwood.

Definitely a tad too low, and possibly a bit short. Regards, John Isherwood.

Another way of doing this, which results in tapers only at the ends, is to take two units and cut one in half. Assuming that you want to add X mm. to the overall length, cut the second unit at a point X mm. from its centre. Now join the longer piece you have just cut to half of the first unit - hey presto, an extended unit. Take the shorter piece of the second unit and calculate how long a piece you need to add to it to produce the desired overall length - say Y mm. Take a third unit and cut it Y mm. from one end; join the short length from unit two to the longer length that you have just cut from unit three - hey presto, another extended unit. You can keep doing this ad infinitum, using the short offcuts to extend further units. Regards, John Isherwood.

Sorry - a bit beyond my capabilities. Send a PM to AndyY, asking him to move it for you. Regards, John Isherwood.

No - insert the extra piece into the middle of a unit. which you have cut in half. That way, you still have the tapers at each end, and two butt-joints towards the centre.

Surely the remaining centre section can be used to extend further units - by cutting a unit centrally and inserting an additional section? John Isherwood.

All supermarkets are now required to limit the number of shoppers inside at any one time. Queues outside will now be the norm, for the forseeable future. John Isherwood.

I still fail to understand why Rob cannot confine his doctored images to his own thread. No confusion there; those who enjoy them can view them; and I wouldn't have to IGNORE all of Rob's posts, regardless of whether they contain doctored images or not. John Isherwood.

My sentiments entirely! Up until today, I have been trying to keep Cambridge Custom Transfers going for that precise reason. However, pressure from my offspring, concerned that incoming mail and my visits to the post office could put my wife and I at increased risk, has persuaded me, very reluctantly, to close CCT for the duration. I regret the inconvenience to my many customers, but I dare not risk the consequences of contracting Covid-19; especially for my wife who has COPD and sarcoidosis. Regards, John Isherwood.

I'm quite sure that, if the Government felt that the continuance of mail-order business would contribute to the spread of Covid-19, or divert resources needed elsewhere, we would by now have had an official statement banning such operations. Until that time, Hattons can make their own decisions - but seeking to influence their competitors strikes me as being very revealing as to where their true motives lie. For me, and I suspect for many other fellow modellers, this announcement will backfire and significantly influence my purchasing habits in future. John Isherwood.

Since I am unable to be confident that orders mailed to me are uncontaminated, and because my wife and I are classified as vulnerable to Covid-19, I have reluctantly decided to cease processing orders until further notice. (Orders already received will be processed today and posted as circumstances permit). Please do NOT send any orders or payments, whether by e-mail, BACS, Paypal or Royal Mail - they will NOT be processed until the current crisis is over. I regret any inconvenience at a time when modelling is one of the few activities that we can continue to enjoy, but I am sure that you will understand that health issues must take priority. I will, of course, ensure that you are informed when service can recommence. Best wishes - keep safe, John Isherwood, Cambridge Custom Transfers.

Right - before we go any further with this rant - actually read my post, please. Orders and payment arrive principally by e-mail / BACS; a few, (one or two per day), by Royal Mail. I have no control over the Royal Mail orders being sent. Government advice - not the BBC's - is that receiving mail is safe, and I cannot prevent the postman making his delivery. Transfers are posted as and when I have to go out for a permitted purpose - NEVER simply to post packets and NEVER on a made-up excuse. Today I have to collect a prescription item that was not available from the pharmacy yesterday. As to personal gain, I supply transfers because I have designed them for my own purposes, and because they are as good / better than others on offer. The financial return is very small for the time taken, and I would far prefer to have that time for my own modelling. Other modellers seem to value my transfers, and I believe that it would be selfish to keep them to myself. If my transfers are assisting other modellers to pass this time of enforced isolation, and my supplying them complies with government restrictions and does not endanger either my wife or myself, I cannot see any justification for your abusive outburst. John Isherwood.

I think that I could live with that. John Isherwood.

OK - if we are going to split hairs - it started out as a standard, standard gauge Motor Rail; it certainly wasn't / isn't a regauged WD Simplex. Happy? John Isherwood.

It has been officially stated that there is no danger in receiving mail. It has also been officially stated that on-line business may continue. If I have an urgent need for an item that is available on-line, and I am still permitted to do so, I will order it. Safe systems of receiving parcels have been adopted and notified by Royal Mail. Moreover, whilst I remain symptom-free and in self-imposed isolation, I will continue to accept and process orders for transfers, and post them during infrequent essential food shopping trips. Correct me if I am wrong, but I believe this to be wholly within the latest set of restrictions announced by the Prime Minister this evening. John Isherwood.

Yet Lidl has a far more eclectic range of continental products, much loved by the upwardly-mobile and the already-arrived. Around here, (North Cornwall), it is very noticeable that the second-home denizens of Westminster-on-Sea, (Rock and Polzeath), including a certain ex-Prime Minister, have no qualms whatsoever about shopping in the Wadebridge Lidl. John Isherwood.

I didn't hear Boris mention anything about private, or any other kind of, on-line sales. Did I miss something? Regards, John Isherwood.