John Isherwood

Below is a photo of one of a pair of Keyser B-set coaches that I have just completed, finished in early BR lined crimson livery. Regards, John Isherwood.

As promised, the photos; (which are not flattering to my modelling or photographic skills)! Regards, John Isherwood.

Adrian, The bogies on my two (now one) TRESTROL have moulded fixings for pick-ups - presumably for the searchlight version. So it may be that the moulds, if they still exist, could still produce the TRESTROL. Finishing off my cut-and-shut TRESTROL, I found that the model sat way too high with 12mm. wheels fitted, but was much better when non-authentic LOWMAC wheels were substituted. (This 'fix' is not obvious because of the heavy outside frames). It suddenly occurred to me that the reason for the 'shortie' length of the Tri-ang TRESTROL was nothing to do with track radii; rather the limiting factor was track gradient changes. The flyover bridges and gradient piers were a much-vaunted feature of the Tri-ang railway system at the time that the TRESTROL was introduced. The transition from level to gradient was quite abrupt and a long, low wagon such as the TRESTROL would 'ground' at the top of the gradient, or lift its wheels at the bottom, if it was scale length. I've now fitted the buffers and, after a dab of black paint on them, photos will be taken. Off to scrape at the prototype of the Airfix meat wagon now !! Regards, John Isherwood.

Actually, it's a doddle if you cut 1mm. off-centre on both of the transverse braces. OK, you waste one wagon but you can pick them up for next to nothing on Ebay. The model is nearly finished now - it's painted and I'm just about to apply the transfers. I just need the buffers to be delivered now. Regards, John Isherwood.

The concrete beam wagons were given new BR diagrams 2/800 - 804, (see http://www.barrowmoremrg.co.uk/BRBDocuments/SpecialVehiclesIssue.pdf ); the original identity of the various component wagons are given. Regards, John Isherwood.

Inspired by this thread, I am in the process of cutting & shutting two Tri-ang TRESTROLs to match the BR 2/681 diagram, in as-built condition. The two bodies were cut 12.5 mm. off-centre and the two longer sections were combined. The bogies were cut into three parts, 1 mm. off-centre of the two transverse bracing bars, and the longer outer sections were combined with the longer central pivot section. This gives a model that matches the BR diagram and is much more impressive than the original Tri-ang shortie wagon. I also fitted brass pin-point bearings; in my case spaced 0.5 mm. off the sideframes with plastic card to match the axle length of the wheels that I am using. When the buffers arrive, these will be fitted along with cosmetic coupling hooks and HD / Peco functional couplers. Trialled on my test track, the wagon glides through Peco medium radius crossovers even without additional ballast, and without undue overhang. In the meantime, I'll get on with the painting and lettering - photos here when completed. Regards, John Isherwood.

I seem to recall that the assessment of more knowledgeable wagon experts than myself was that it is underlength - whereas the more recent Mainline / Bachmann model is overlength. Regards, John Isherwood.

Astonishing - I had scanned that page numerous times - a case of 'can't see for looking'! Sorry, John Isherwood.

Nope - just the H2 announcement. Perhaps you could give a link directly to the USA announcement, or quote the relevant text, please? Thanks, John Isherwood.

As far as I can see, the link refers to the H2 Class 4-4-2 .......... or am I missing something? Regards, John Isherwood.

It's 42859; Google will provide details. Sounds like a lost cause from what I've just read. Regards, John Isherwood.

Precisely my point - we cannot extrapolate the postings here to be representative of the situation as a whole. I was pointing out that, just because there has been a certain amount of negativity here, we cannot conclude that there is problem with a significant proportion of the Westerns produced by Dapol. It was because some posters were drawing this conclusion, and being reticent to purchase, that I felt obliged to comment. Regards, John Isherwood.

Don't be put off !! Remember - you haven't heard from the overwhelming silent majority who are perfectly happy with their Westerns and other Dapol models - amongst whom I number myself. Just because there's a lot of 'noise' doesn't mean that the majority of models are defective - far from it! Have a head count of those posters who report problems, and then compare that to the hundreds / thousands of models sold. Regards, John Isherwood.

I thought that I'd read that this wagon had a black Rubberoid covering to the entire body. Regards, John Isherwood.

Another vote here for Dapol locos! Regards, John Isherwood.

Regards, John Isherwood.

I think that what you're looking at is the wiring. Regards, John Isherwood.

.... and the lesson that I draw is - don't rely on the briefest of Googling !! So, if the factory has been at Duxford since 1934, then the tank wagons in the photo could well have originated there. Trouble is, it doesn't get us any nearer to knowing more about what they looked like. Regards, John Isherwood.

That's it - a resin-based adhesive, isn't it. The plant was / is Ciba - Geigy, I think. However, the briefest of Googling suggests that the history of C-G at Duxford only goes back to 1963. Regards, John Isherwood.

Well, in the more recent past, ferry chemical tankers ran to the works at Duxford south of Cambridge. Whether that facility existed so far back, I couldn't say - but it has the appearance of being of WW2 origin. The core product was, I think, synthetic glue, so a connection with wartime airframe construction is a possibility. Just idle speculation ..... Regards, John Isherwood.

DON'T try lighter petrol as I did - it crazes the clear plastic. One replacement headcode unit later, my solution was to VERY gently scrape the black off the face of the headcode panels, and then restore the finish with a non-yellowing gloss varnish; (Klear in my case). Regards, John Isherwood.

77450 is missing from the 1949 ABC Combined Volume, and a bit of Googling lists it as a Cowloon - Canton Railway loco. Was it exported after the 1948 photo, or is the photograph actually 77453 or 77458 - both of which are listed as being allocated to the ER in 1949? Regards, John Isherwood.

Now it seems nit-picky to mention it, but I have to agree that the buffers are pretty much the only area that lets down Dapol models. Dave - any chance of some improvements in this area on future productions? A close look at the prototype will reveal the deficiencies of the current rendition. Regards, John Isherwood.

Hardly! .... it's just the light catching the upper panels, the lower ones not doing so due to the tumblehome. Regards, John Isherwood.

See http://www.cctrans.freeserve.co.uk/ Not the ESSO ones - but the FINA and REGENT ones look like this. Regards, John Isherwood, Cambridge Custom Transfers.