SRman

I wouldn't mind a set too. Will check out Shawplan as well, seeing as the other usual producers don't seem to have them.

I got the email from Rails saying there very limited numbers available, showing all of the variations. Being in AUstralia, I was in bed when the email was sent; by the time I read it the next morning and followed a link to order a BR grey one, they were sold out. I followed the link on Rails' site for remaining stock, there was only one variant left, the Southern brown with BR numbering, weathered, so that was duly ordered. I missed out the previous time too, so I just jumped on whatever I could get.

Update: Seeing as the initial installation was a success, and I don't need to allow for a quick decoder swap if one blows up, I have now put in a TCS M1 decoder, which sits comfortably on top of one of the bogie towers, with heaps of room around it. Motor control is also much, much better with the TCS. With the Gaugemaster decoder, I had to put a value of 15 in CV2 to get the loco moving on speed step 1. There was no such problem with the TCS decoder, and the loco inches along on speed step 1 with no extra tweaking needed. It now really needs a good run to get the electrical pickups back to good condition - it was a little hesitant at first but after even a short run it improved considerably. The positions of the LEDs need slight adjustment to get them in optimum positions for the light guides, but in all other respects I am very happy with the results for what was a real bargain purchase.

Last week I received some new models of SBB trains I had acquired second-hand from Ellis Clark Trains. Two of the three locomotives were either DCC-ready (Roco Ae 6/6 Co-Co) or already equipped with a DCC decoder (Lima Re 6/6 Tri-Bo). The third was an older Roco model, also an Ae 6/6 but was not DCC ready. I contemplated the circuit board for some time before working out how to convert the latter to DCC. This involved cutting a few tracks to separate the light circuits, and bypassing the track feeds altogether to go straight into the decoder (red and black wires), with the brush wires (orange and grey) also going directly to the brushes. I removed various redundant components, like the capacitor between the brushes, two chokes leading to the brushes, and the two diodes feeding the light bulbs. The light bulbs were replaced with cool white LEDs (I should have used warm white, but they are easily swapped later). I also soldered the changeover contact solid so it could not be accidentally switched to overhead pickup from the pantographs. I soldered the LEDs and resistors to the remaining appropriate pcb tracks, with the continuous one being connected to the blue positive wire, with the new resistors in circuit to the positive legs (shortened) on the LEDs, and the remaining negative legs (also shortened) soldered separately to the yellow and white wires. I used a 9-pin JST harness so I could try it all out with a cheap Gaugemaster decoder, before swapping it for something better. Unfortunately, I found the Gaugemaster OPTI to be on the large side for the available space and I cannot quite clip the body back on properly, yet. The main thing is, it proved my wiring and modifications were good, and it all worked as it should. More by luck than anything else, I got the lights working the correct way for the direction of travel (that would have been easy to correct if necessary, either with some CV tweaks to reverse them, or simply swapping the white and yellow wires). I may have to desolder the JST harness and solder a much smaller (and better quality) decoder in, but having worked it all out properly to start with, that should be a relatively quick and easy job. The first photo shows the chassis with all the mods and rather messy wiring. The decoder is tucked on its side down the side of one bogie (restricting the swing, but allowing me to get the body on sufficiently to take the remaining photos. This is Ae 6/6 Co-Co locomotive 11494, Schlieren, now available for service. Bear in mind that the body is not quite fully seated, so there is some light bleed at the side from the LED. Anyway, that has been my evening's work with the soldering iron, knife, and drill. P_20200303_234049_vHDR_On by Jeffrey Lynn, on Flickr P_20200303_233952_vHDR_On by Jeffrey Lynn, on Flickr P_20200303_233940_vHDR_On by Jeffrey Lynn, on Flickr The remaining locos were Roco Ae 6/6 11454 Yverdon, and Lima Re 6/6 Bo+Bo+Bo 11637, which has a central can motor and flywheels driving the 8 wheels of the outer bogies, with the centre unpowered bogie floating. The older Roco loco and the Lima one were both less than £60 each. I also bought a set of five SBB coaches as a set for less than £85, so overall I think I got a good bargain, and great service from Ellis Clark Trains (no connection). 11454 had an 8-pin decoder socket, while 11637 had a JST harness hard-wired in, with an ancient Lenz 1025E decoder (still a bonus - currently swapped to a Gaugemaster OPTI one, but that too will be swapped for a DCC Concepts S4SAX decoder, still using the JST connector). P_20200226_150300_vHDR_On by Jeffrey Lynn, on Flickr P_20200226_150247_vHDR_On by Jeffrey Lynn, on Flickr P_20200226_150224_vHDR_On by Jeffrey Lynn, on Flickr P_20200226_150214_vHDR_On by Jeffrey Lynn, on Flickr

It could also be that the model manufacturer has not replicated the chromatic blue (or the BR monastral blue, for that matter) correctly. Different model manufacturers have produced quite a few different shades of BR blue, with some manufacturers (pay attention, Dapol) using different shades on different models within their ranges. That makes it unsafe to assess the differences apparent on the real things using models as the examples. I do recall seeing a DMU in blue with small yellow panels, and the blue had a distinctly metallic hint to it. I always believed that to be chromatic blue, and it was different to the 'proper' BR (monastral) blue.

The Crellin-Duplex bodies, mostly built by Mann Egerton.

The connections in the Hornby blanking plug are simply push-in ones with a small tag of springy plastic that engages with a slot in the metal contacts to stop them pulling out again. Lift that plastic tag and pull on the wire for each of them in turn and the whole metal connector will pull out, allowing you to solder the decoder wires to each of them. When done, just push them back in until the plastic tab engages again. You can see the tabs in the photo above, just where the shiny metal shows.

Yes!!!! The vinyls can be a bit of a pain to put on because they are not always quite perfectly aligned with the windows and doors. This particular set for SWT was a bespoke job Adam did for me (still at his standard price, thankfully), but the vinyl can stretch slightly even during the printing process, and depending on the ambient temperature. There are bits that need me to touch them up with paint, but that is still a much easier job than sourcing all the lettering and numbering and adding separate lines for the livery elements. I have tended to manually paint the Stagecoach swirls around the fronts of units like this one and the class 450 units I did. The 455 fronts as seen in the photo are only on their first coats of painting, and I will be matching the blue a bit better for the final coats. For the sides of the 455, I actually split the overlays into three, to get better alignments with the windows, then trimmed the bits over and under the doorways. For the end wrap-arounds, I cut slits diagonally to allow for the multiple angles where cant rail meets coach end and side taper. Otherwise, the technique Adam recommends is to use a hair dryer to get the vinyl to soften and settle properly over details and changes of angle. The 2nd gen EMUs like the 455 have relatively smooth sides and it is mainly the raised window frames and changes of angle at the ends, plus the lifting points over the bogies that need working out, but when I used the class 153 overlays on the Hornby units, it took hours to get the vinyl to settle over all those raised rivets. I will also be drilling out the lights on the 455 and adding 'light tower' LEDs. Those will eventually be wired up to decoders and electrical pickups, but even when not connected, will look better than painted lights. P_20190108_221208_vHDR_On cropped by Jeffrey Lynn, on Flickr

I got the hair dryer out today, and set the last of the Electra Railway Graphics SouthWest Trains vinyl overlays on the remaining coach of my Bratchell Models class 455/9 unit. For the first time ever, I can see all four coaches together in the same livery. This and the Thameslink class 319/3 still have no underframe equipment fitted, but both are fully runnable on the layout. I will have to apply the closer coupling arrangements to this unit, having worked it all out on the two class 319 units already. P_20200229_125116_vHDR_On by Jeffrey Lynn, on Flickr

For Jamie (7APT7) in particular, but anyone else who may be interested, there is a YouTube video of the voltage changeover occurring at Farringdon and City Thameslink stations. It includes classes 319, 377 and 700. It amazes me how quickly the pantographs drop on the newer units - no finesse, just a solid clunk as they drop like stones! On my models, I have used pantographs taken from two Bachmann class 350/1 units that I converted to class 450 units, which don't have pantos, only the recess where one could be fitted. As my class 319s are only expected to work on (imaginary) third rail, the pantographs are fixed down semi-permanently. The video is not mine, but here is the link: https://youtu.be/Icn7fujDDV4

Hi Jamie, The class 319 is a British unit. They started off in Network South East livery and were used on cross-Thames duties from places like Bedord and Luton to the north of London, to Sevenoaks and Brighton in the south (there were other destinations too). They are dual voltage units, switching from 25kV AC overhead pickup in the north to 750 V DC third rail in the south. In very recent times they have been displaced from Thameslink services and are in the north of England, with some being converted to dual mode units with diesel electric mode as well as straight electric working. Here's a photo of the earlier one I built in the earlier NSE livery as a class 319/1. These were refurbished later to become class 319/3 as in the Thameslink model. P_20190105_192234_vHDR_On (1) by Jeffrey Lynn, on Flickr

Thanks for the compliments, John. The paint job is all brush painted, except for the middle stripe and the raised numbers, where paint pens have come in very useful. Fortunately for me, both of those features are raised mouldings, so easier to pick out, with only a few slip-ups to retouch later. The photo shows a small slip on the stripe that I missed on my visual inspection at the front where I need just a touch of black to straighten it. I agree with you that simply renumbering with those raised numbers would be a nightmare. I think you would have to shave the lot off and add new raised (etched?) numbers, with the altered spacing to suit. Not a job I would contemplate.

A while ago I bought a Bachmann Ivatt 10000 (ex-LMS) diesel locomotive in green, lined orange and black. This was the only livery easily available (and not at ridiculous asking prices), but I really wanted it in the earlier black and silver livery as running on the Southern Region, and to go with my existing weathered 10001 in that livery. 10001 had to have the extra lamp irons and (dummy) marker lights added, whereas the green 10000 already had those, seeing as it kept them after the Southern stint (10001, as bought, was modelled as she was prior to going to the SR). I bit the bullet and started repainting 10000 into black and silver a few days ago, and have just about completed the transformation now. I have added the BR crests, based on a photo taken at Bournemouth on the Internet. Once that has properly set, I will varnish the locomotive to protect the transfers and the silver paint, which can be a little less hard-wearing than some of the other colours. I also need to replace the missing horn at one end. I'll probably give it a very light weathering after all that. Both of these locos have been fitted with Soundtraxx Econami BR Diesel sound decoders, using class 37 sounds but with different horns selected, but they need better speakers fitted to complete that side of things. The photos show 10000 as bought, then after the transformation to an earlier time, together with 10001. P_20181226_132459_vHDR_On by Jeffrey Lynn, on Flickr P_20200227_232650_vHDR_On by Jeffrey Lynn, on Flickr P_20200227_232708_vHDR_On by Jeffrey Lynn, on Flickr

While I don't know any true facts and figures, it would seem to me that the 10% needed to fully finance the free public transport would be recouped in not having to pay for and maintain ticket issuing machines, validators, and enforcement staff. The authorities concerned may have worked out that it was cheaper in the longer term to not have fares. P.s. It may be obvious, but I have not yet watched the video, so this may have been covered in that already.

The John Day car kits are nice and simple, but, as you have proved, benefit greatly from careful paint jobs and finishing. The Austin looks great.

Another Bratchell kit lobbed in yesterday in the post. This is another class 319 4-car EMU, this time in a livery I have been waiting to pounce on as soon as it was produced, that of Thameslink (the previous one is in Network South East livery). Such is the construction of the Bratchell kits that one can get something incomplete but runnable in a short amount of time. The body shells and windows go together very easily with minimal filing, while the unpowered bogies take a little longer. I already had the Replica Railways motorised chassis waiting in the wings, and previous exerience with Bratchells class 455 and 319 units meant I knew what to do to get a quick force fit in the Motor Pantograph coach. This involves cutting off the running boards along the sides of the chassis, and then filing/sanding the sides down slightly until the whole chassis just fits between the sides of the body shell. So, here is unit 319 388 posed after a short test run on Newton Broadway. It is still minus all the underframe equipment, and the motor bogie sideframes need to be shortened by 1mm each side to match the Replica wheelbase. I modified and shortened the coupling extension arms and fitted much finer Bachmann couplings to close up the inter-coach gaps. This was successful but needs just a couple of minor adjustments to even up the gaps, after which I will have to apply the same mods to the other four Bratchell units I have built. P_20200219_182129_vHDR_On by Jeffrey Lynn, on Flickr P_20200219_182207_vHDR_On by Jeffrey Lynn, on Flickr

On my old layout (now defunct and gone to layout heaven), I had a Minories based double track branch line. I built the terminus as if it had been a through station but the branch had been truncated at that point (not unlike many real branch termini in later years). I added buffer stops and then some sleepers set in ballast beyond those. I did have in mind that I could have built an extension later on, but that never happened. This is a very old photo so not as crisp as lmy later cameras and phones could be, but it gives some idea of what I did. This was the outer track that would have formed a loop, rejoining the double track some distance beyond the buffer stop (and off the edge of my baseboard!), and this platform would have historically been an island platform. DSCN5192 by Jeffrey Lynn, on Flickr

The holes are all different shapes to match up with the correct pipes. It took me a while to work that out, though.

Having worked out what was needed, I have lowered the backscene by 4cm. The bubbles in the paper still annoy me, but the effect is much better than before. P_20200215_161857_vHDR_cropped by Jeffrey Lynn, on Flickr P_20200215_161830_vHDR_cropped by Jeffrey Lynn, on Flickr

First go with a backscene. I tried a technique that seals the board as well as the paper, but it didn't entirely work, so there are a few ripples in the paper that I will try to deal with later. The whole lot needs to go a bit lower, but the overall effect is not bad. It certainly gives more depth to that end of the layout. P_20200215_141711_vHDR_On by Jeffrey Lynn, on Flickr P_20200215_141723_vHDR_cropped by Jeffrey Lynn, on Flickr

Steps added at each end. None of this work has been painted yet, but it is taking shape. I also need to replace the pavement on the bank corner, after cutting away some of the polystyrene to match the slope past the hotel. I need to add a little infill at the sides of the steps at the right-hand end. Must come up with a name for the hotel too. P_20200214_123056_vHDR_On by Jeffrey Lynn, on Flickr P_20200214_123106_vHDR_On by Jeffrey Lynn, on Flickr P_20200214_123046_vHDR_On by Jeffrey Lynn, on Flickr

I have replaced the somewhat European-looking fencing around the lower verandah of the Tudor hotel with some stone and wrought iron style walling, which I think makes it look slightly more British. I intend to replace the diagonal tiles on the roof eventually too. P_20200213_221059_vHDR_Cropped by Jeffrey Lynn, on Flickr P_20200213_221151_vHDR_On by Jeffrey Lynn, on Flickr And this is what it looked like before: Corner Shop Improvements - 2 by Jeffrey Lynn, on Flickr

Hi Terry, I can't remember off-hand what size the labels were. It is possible to fit the headcodes internally, but the thickness of the plastic glazing means you could not use the full-height characters. I did add some thin clear glazing cut to fit the aperture, on top of the newly added characters. I did fit internal headcodes to my Dapol Western diesel using Heljan figures, but the results weren't entirely satisfactory to me. The class 22 effect is better, I think, but not perfect by any means. P_20190101_173500_vHDR_On by Jeffrey Lynn, on Flickr

I want one, but that's going to hurt!

I hope Bachmann don't announce a 319 too soon: I have just lashed out a lot of moolah to buy the Bratchell Thameslink version!