John Isherwood

..... or, quite possibly, plain bare wood. That's how I've always interpreted photos of 68222 in that condition, anyway. Regards, John Isherwood.

.... and what's with white axleboxes on some of them? Is it a Dapol company rule that there has to be at least one livery c*ck-up on every model? Regards, John Isherwood.

Your diagnosis is correct, but your prognosis is most decidedly premature. It is correct that Adrian is no longer with us at RMweb - not voluntarily - but he watches over us, and is active on other groups. I receive periodic missives from him commenting, (in his accustomed acerbic manner), on selected postings here at RMweb. Long may he continue to do so !! Regards, John Isherwood.

An interesting livery combination - early crest and yellow First Class line. (Mind you - I know little about Southern Region EMUs) !! Regards, John Isherwood.

Legislation changes. I'd guess that when the W&U was being built, the tramway legislation required steam locomotives to be driven from either end . Remember, steam tramways in the street passenger-carrying context would have been commonplace at that time. By the time that the Drewrys were introduced, the use of tramways for passenger traffic was minimal, and I would have expected the tramway regulations to have been amended accordingly. Regards, John Isherwood.

Gibbo, I had Halfords mix up what I recalled ICI Transport Blue to be - and then found that it was virtually indistinguishable from BR Rail Blue !! If I was doing the exercise again, I'd use Rail Blue and, perhaps, add a smidgen of green - but I doubt anyone could prove Rail Blue to be incorrect. ..... and remember who was Chairman of ICI before he became famous - Beeching !! Regards, John.

Please PM me at cctrans@hotmail.com - I tried to PM you here but got a spurious message that my In-box was full! Regards, John.

If you want a real challenge, you could do what I did when upgrading Lima milk tankers - solder short lengths of 16BA (?) screws onto the end of the straps and tension them with matching nuts! .... but only AFTER you've overdosed on tranquilisers - what little hair I had left was pretty much all torn out during that ill-advised exercise!! Regards, John Isherwood.

Looking more closely, I think that there are three rows of two, plus a single at right-angles across the end, or two / one / two / one. Regards, John Isherwood.

It astounds me that this misinformation is still quoted nearly sixty years after it was (unfortunately) published. A quick check of a diagram of GT3, when compared with those of the BR Standard Classes, will quickly reveal that the axle spacing matches none of them. In fact, when I was trying to find an RTR chassis to put in my own model of GT3, the only chassis that even vaguely matched was a GWR Manor. As requested much earlier in this thread, please can we put this myth to bed once and for all? Regards, John Isherwood.

Thanks for the pointers - I thought that there would be many similarities between the rebuilt 483 Class the Fowler 2P, (though I get the impression that the chimney looks taller on the 2P). I have had an offer to provide drawings of the rebuilt 483 Class, so I'll await those. Thanks again. Regards, John Isherwood.

I acquired, some time ago, an ancient part-built Alan Gibson kit for the Midland / LMS / BR '483 Class' 4-4-0 locomotive, and would like to complete it as BR 40537 as running on the S&DJR. The kit does not include a drawing of the prototype and I, for one, can't build a loco without a drawing of some sort. Does anyone have a drawing of the '483 Class' and would be willing to let me have a copy - an e-mailed scan would be fine? Thank you in anticipation. Regards, John Isherwood.

Not, I think, the same containers as in my original posting, but I have never come across this arrangement of container loading. However, there are clearly eight small open containers loaded on this steel bodied PLATE wagon; my guess would be 'H' / 'HOD' containers to BR Diagram 3/600 or 3/602, often used for building materials. I may well have to have a go at building a small batch of these, as they'd make an interesting load for a PLATE wagon. (The photo caption states "Skipton Station North Junction signal box - 27/09/1963"). Regards, John Isherwood.

Wrong again - Mashima motors became scarce and I looked for an alternative. When I found one, I passed on the knowledge to other modellers - who asked me to supply them. I like to share the benefits of my own discoveries - sometimes to the detriment of my own modelling. It seems that we have totally separate perspectives on life - I merely wish to assist other modellers; you seem to regard all activities as business opportunities which should be exploited to the full. Vive la difference! Regards, John Isherwood.

The point, surely, is that the majority of small suppliers seem not to agree with you - and they speak from experience. Perhaps you could find a niche with which to demonstrate good practice in a small business? As for myself, my efficiency comes from deliberately not encouraging the sector of the potential market that has proved itself not to be cost-efficient. Technology does not have a monopoly on market control and development! Regards, John Isherwood.

You must have the patience of a saint! I'm not a fan of 'a good walk spoiled', but I'd be inclined to 'leave 'em to it' - then when the consequences overwhelm them, come back to save them from themselves. Sometimes, you can't achieve change until the nay-sayers get themselves literally up to their necks in the 'brown and smelly'. In the meantime, enjoy life without the hassle of club politics. Regards, John Isherwood.

.... from whose perspective, though? A business can fulfil innumerable objectives, profit being only one - and not necessarily the greatest. I would be willing to wager a very large sum that profit and gross volume potential are way down the list of most model railway small suppliers. Many (most) will be akin to me. I was motivated to find an alternative supply of transfers by the trading demise of Woodhead Transfers - in its time the epitome of model railway transfers. I researched the possibilities of home production, and found that there was a range of printers that were within the budget of many modellers, and that could print white - a prerequisite of transfer printing in order to obtain white lettering and opaque colours. I went ahead and bought one of these printers; (Alps Microdry - now extinct); and produced my own transfers. Being somewhat elated, I wrote to the editor of MRJ and recommended these printers to other modellers, and the letter was duly published. Coinciding with the publication of my letter was the demise in the UK of the Alps Microdry printer range. Needless to say, I was inundated with requests to supply transfers to the wider modelling fraternity - hence Cambridge Custom Transfers ( https://www.cctrans.org.uk/ ). I have supplied transfers that I need myself to other modellers for twenty years now, but at no time did I intend to do so; I simply produced something for my own use that other modellers were willing to buy. Being a small supplier is a two-edged sword. It seriously eats into your own modelling time, but it generates funds which allow one to obtain models and tools which might otherwise be beyond one's budget. Above all, it is a delicate balancing act between developing the range and customer base, against the impact that would have on what was always intended to be a model railway hobby. The primary mistake many potential customers make is to assume that all suppliers wish to maximise sales - that is far from being the case in many niche businesses. Regards, John Isherwood.

Now I know that this isn't a K's Kirtley, but it does illustrate that High Level gearboxes can be set up to invisibly power virtually any loco. Scratchbuilt, solid brass gearboxes with custom-made UJs are all very well for those with an engineering background, but for us lesser mortals, High Level products are the answer to our prayers. I have just built three of these to fit in Airfix 4Fs and they run like Swiss watches. The same design has been fitted to three 3Fs, and a version is scheduled for three Airfix 2Ps. Regards, John Isherwood.

I have just received the following e-mail from a customer who will not, I am sure, object to it's anonymous quotation :- I have just completed an RT Models chassis for a J94 with a High Level 54:1 Roadrunner gearbox and your Mitsumi motor. I would say it is the smoothest running loco I have ever built and it doesn't have a flywheel. Without doubt all of this is due to the combination of three excellent products. Although I did have to reverse fold the gearbox mount to suit the diagonal fixing holes in the Mitsumi motor which are opposite to the Mashima for which it is designed - but no problem. Thank you for supplying such a good quality and economical motor. I think that no further comment on the quality of High Level gearboxes is required, and the sentiments accord entirely with my own. Regards, John Isherwood, Cambridge Custom Transfers (and Motors). https://www.cctrans.org.uk/

If the current website and trading practices generate the level of trading that the owner can handle, and there is no aspiration to generate more trade volume, what possible incentive is there for the owner " to market it effectively"? As I have said before - as a small supplier myself - just because the customer would find it easier if websites and trading practices were 'all-singing, all dancing', is not a reason to condemn the business. Customers who seek out these niche products, and are prepared to incur a bit of inconvenience to obtain them, are generally capable of using them without support. Sadly, the same cannot always be said of those of the 'I want it yesterday' persuasion! The correspondence which ensues with such types - both before and after the purchase - is simply too time-consuming to be viable. So - unsophisticated trading practices are not always the product of indolence; they can serve a useful function in 'sorting the wheat from the chaff'. The voice of experience speaks! Regards, John Isherwood.

Wouldn't it be easier to drill 0.5mm. right through first, and then drill 1mm. to a depth of 6mm.? That way, the smaller hole would act as a pilot for the larger drill, thereby improving accuracy and making drilling the larger hole much easier. Regards, John Isherwood.

Nice idea - but with an endless supply of superannuated passenger stock available, I can't see new build being adopted even by a better-funded BR - no extra revenue possibilities! Regards, John Isherwood.

Would it be possible to scan the kit 'in the flat', and then use photo manipulation software to change the brick colour? When satisfied, print the result onto paper, and you would have an overlay that would exactly match the kit. Just an idea ..... Regards, John Isherwood.

To date, my researches indicate that, at some point as yet undefined, the ex-GWR cranes were repainted black. If anyone can help to pin down that date, I would be most grateful. Regards, John Isherwood.

If you read back a little, you will see that Tony's comment was with reference to purchasers of models who commission others to change the markings, or who complain that their chosen loco is not available direct from the manufacturer. Therefore, by definition, they NOT "quite happy to run the item as it is" . Regards, John Isherwood.