John Isherwood

No, it assumes nothing - other than that this is not a spoof. If Hattons are serious, it suggests that sufficient orders have been received for Hattons to decide to get involved. They may have decided to commission tooling themselves, based on research / design work already undertaken. Regards, John Isherwood.

As posted by My Lord, the Bishop of Welchester - Sheet C89 (GWR period) will have what you require. Regards, John Isherwood, Cambridge Custom Transfers. https://www.cctrans.org.uk/products.htm

Correct me if I'm wrong, but - didn't W&H go bust not long after that? Not sure that that fact enhances the wisdom of the speaker! Regards, John Isherwood.

Two and a half months before the date of my birth ! Regards, John Isherwood.

It would seem to be quite obvious; dreamlist = subject to successful negotiation with tooling owners. I think that we can be fairly certain that someone has approached someone about selling / buying models made from tooling which formerly had a connection with DJM. I have no inside information, but it is a reasonable conclusion to draw. Regards, John Isherwood.

Well - probably not; but clearly the intention to use a suffix had been announced. The painter was, strictly, correct - if the container had been built after BR was inaugurated. (Assuming that the suffix was originally intended to indicate the building railway origin). Subsequently, the suffix seems to have indicated the ordering railway origin, and so Lots ordered by the pre-Nat. companies carried the appropriate suffix - in which case this container should have become FM625E. We have something of a conundrum, though. According to Tatlow 4B, the highest numbered LNER-built FM container, (to Diagram 25), was 560; built at Darlington in 1940. The first BR Diagram for FM containers was 3/200, (built at Wolverton), and the number series bears no relationship to FM625B. Tatlow 4B lists LNER-designed wagons built by BR, but not LNER-designed containers built by BR. In the absence of evidence to the contrary, I am guessing that FM625B was an unrecorded LNER-designed container, (to Diagram 25?), built at Darlington in the very first days of BR. Fascinating! Regards, John Isherwood.

Definitely an incorrect suffix - it should be 'E'; BR container 625 was a diagram 3/001 'A' container; (A625B). The CONFLAT S has been repainted very much in the former LNER style rather than the (yet to be issued?) new BR style, so I suspect that the painter in question hadn't quite grasped the regional / BR suffix concept! Such faux pas were not uncommon. Regards, John Isherwood.

They're both wrong then! The subjective part is whether either looks glaringly wrong - IMHO opinion both are acceptable, and I have purchased both. Regards, John Isherwood.

Don't start with a mini drill. File the tiniest of flats; take a sharp scriber and 'dimple' the spot to be drilled; put your smallest drill in a pin chuck and start the hole in the 'dimple'; once properly started, finish the hole with the correct sized drill for the handrail wire. A good magnifier helps!! Regards, John Isherwood.

It has to be said, though, that your Lima DELTIC / DP2 has more than a hint of 10100 about the bonnet area - a little too rectangular / boxy? The Heljan DP2 looks sufficiently like the prototype for me - until something better is forthcoming, at least. Regards, John Isherwood.

I take it that you mean a handrail knob that has holes at 90 degrees, for handrails that change from vertical to horizontal ? The answer, though, is 'No'. Regards, John Isherwood.

They are what I used - with the central hole filled, painted, and my own transfers applied. They are supplied with the etched chassis kit. Regards, John Isherwood.

Grilles (or not) - some representation of the exhaust ducting would need to modelled. Crankpin bearings - clip-on cover would seem to be easiest - it needs to clip onto the rod, not the crankpin, as the covers were integral with the rods and did not rotate. They had raised SKF markings. Regards, John Isherwood.

The CAD seems to indicate exhaust grilles - the balance of evidence appears to be that these did not exist; just open ports. At some point, presumably, the enclosed roller bearings on the crankpins will be added? Regards, John Isherwood.

You beat me to it ! I would be particularly interested to learn of any authentic liveries that can be applied to this model. I will, of course, produce transfer sheets for such liveries as can be positively identified, if the sources are quoted. Would Paul Bartlett be kind enough to comment? Regards, John Isherwood, Cambridge Custom Transfers. https://www.cctrans.org.uk/products.htm

Me too - I now have to find four projects in which to use them ! They seem to be quite high-revving in comparison to the Mitsumis. Regards, John Isherwood.

It has been made abundantly clear from the outset that all on-line activity remains based at Cambourne - to expect everything listed on-line to be available off-the-shelf at Guildford is unrealistic. A phone call or e-mail to Kernow would have established what could be supplied at Guildford - any shortfall could have been supplied by post; within a day, judging by my experience. It makes no sense for two outlets of a business to have independent web-sites - you pay for them, in the long run. Regards, John Isherwood.

I suppose it is all about self-esteem - something that I can relate to. Our marriage has always been one of complete openess, to the point of having a joint bank account. No chance of hiding (or needing to hide) hobby expenditure, and we are both supportive of each other's hobbies. However, I do understand the damage done by constant criticism and belittling - though from the perspective of work; we both suffered from that. There is no doubt that it can totally destroy self-esteem and motivation. As has been said, what we choose to do in our leisure time is an intrinsic part of who we are, and any attempt to suppress this can be devastating. To those who endure hostility to their interests from their partners I say - think long and hard about the value you place on placating them. If the outcome is to be detrimental to your mental state, find the courage to challenge your current situation; it will be for the best in the long run. Regards, John Isherwood.

How do these guys get into this situation?? Is it physical or mental domination? The whole scenario is totally beyond me!! Regards, John Isherwood.

Be assured - such is the fanaticism of GWR fans in the UK - if a model GWR coach had been issued in anything resembling green you would have heard the howls of protest in Western North Carolina, without the benefit of any form of electronic transmission !!! Regards, John Isherwood.

The RH coach definitely looks to be dark brown to me. If GWR coaches had been produced in dark green, there would have been an outcry amongst the numerous GWR fans in the UK. They may look to be dark green to you - but everyone else sees them as dark brown. Regards, John Isherwood.

Yes - you're right - Impetus / Kalgarin. Regards, John Isherwood.

I'm afraid that I don't see green - just a slightly different, darker shade of chocolate brown. Be assured that these coaches never, ever had any shade of green on them! Regards, John Isherwood.

I couldn't agree more ! The aim, surely, is to transmit the power from the motor to the driven axle as simply, (and thereby as efficiently), as possible. The easiest way to do this is to mount the motor low, and use the minimum number of gears to connect the motor to the axle, and reduce the high motor revs to a desirable axle rotation. High Level Models have been demonstrating how to do this for some time now, with their comprehensive gearbox range. Why do we need high-mounted motors? Why do we need prop shafts and universal joints? Why do we need multi-gear transmissions? The principles of a simple, compact reduction gearbox can be easily incorporated into a cast mazak chassis block - model manufacturers have been doing it for some years now. It strikes me that the contracting company in China are, for some inexplicable reason, wedded to a design concept that is way over-engineered. Each spinning spur gear absorbs energy, introduces slop and degrades smooth running. What is needed here is the KISS factor - Keep It Simple, Stupid! Regards, John Isherwood.