TheSignalEngineer

We have three bins. Green is for garden waste and food waste. It goes to a specialist facility for composting. Brown bin for mixed dry recycling of paper, glass, cans and certain plastics Black bin for general household rubbish. Collections are fortnightly. Since we have had the recycling bins our black bin is only about half full after two weeks instead of being nearly full every week. At least three local shops collect small batteries. Electrical appliances go to the local recycling centre, as do a number of other things like metal and timber. You can also dump a couple of sacks of rubble there on each visit.

About 35 years ago we had some double glazing fitted and it was rubbish. We eventually had to take the company to court as they seemed incapable of getting them wind and watertight. Although that was a bit of a nightmare they made a settlement offer the day before we were due to go before the judge. They ended up paying for Everest to take out their windows and redo the job. In the end I had the pleasure of getting them to come along in a company van and take the remains of their windows away. They went bankrupt a couple of years later when the local council claimed against them for not complying with the specification for fitting replacement windows to 500 houses. Ouch!

Just think what fun we could have if OVS Bulleid was still around. I'm sure he could devise some weird and wonderful Fa*t-burning haulage machine.

I was looking at one of those for my Cravens DPU, but even with a couple of vans for tail traffic they seemed overkill. Nowadays lots of technology seems to have features added 'because we can', not that many are of use to more than a handful of end users.

That's going to need its own framework to hold it at baseboard height. I make it 2 metres diameter by about 2.7 metres high.

Reminds me of a Meal Deal I had at Newcastle station buffet when my son lived up there. Chip Stottie with tomato ketchup and a pint of Newcastle Brown.

Last train on the Vinegar Branch crossing Pheadant Street on this page http://www.miac.org.uk/hillevans.html More history of the branch including lots of pictures of old remnants http://www.miac.org.uk/vinegarmap.html

I don't think so. IIRC they had them all the way along except over doors.

They are just price comparison sites, all lead to the same ebay seller.

I've had a couple of bargains from him for run of the mill items. He obviously finances his Studebaker from the things he describes as 'rare kit built'

I picked up a damaged kit built LNER one in a job lot, 5 for a tenner, all with metal wheels so got my money's worth. So far I have resurrected a SR LWB 8-plank, and an LNER rivetted 16T Mineral and there was a complete 7-plank just missing couplings. The brake gear on the LNER van is partly missing so I thought I would give it some BR brake rigging in the manner of a BR conversion from the LMS unfitted version.

Yes, They had changed to corrugated steel ends when the change to steel underframes was made, but the problems of getting materials during the war led to a reversion to planked ends with a ventilator hood. This lot had LNER clasp brakes. There is a picture in Tatlow's 'A Pictorial Record of LNER Wagons' (Plate 69)

In the same way that there are Ashford vans in GWR and LMS number series there were 250 vans, numbered 521290 - 521539 built by the LNER under lot number 1335 for the LMS in 1942. They were the standard LNER van but with horizontal planked ends in place of the corrugated ends due to wartime shortages. Originally built unfitted they were allocated LMS diagram 2079 and survivors were vacuum fitted by BR. There are pictures in Essery's 'An Illustrated History of LMS Wagons Volume 1', Figure 38 and Plates 104 / 105. Apart from the brake rigging they seem to be identical right down to the LNER axle boxes. At first glance there are also a lot of similarities between post-war LMS and LNER vans but the body strapping details as well as the brakes and axle boxes give away their origins.

A much more enjoyable ride today in the same area as yesterday. This time the youngsters were coming so we were descended upon at the crack of doom, got parked easily in our favourite spot and started the ride an hour earlier. The main collection of the great unwashed with their inbred ugly dogs didn't start to appear until we were threequarters of the way round and those going the same way as us were quickly overtaken. When we arrived back at the cars people were queueing to get into our places when we left. We got finished before lunch and a few minutes after arriving back home it started chukkinit darn so the latecomers would have had a nice soaking getting back to their transport. The rain finally stopped after lunch in time to get the gear cleaned up and stowed away before dark. I see that there is the usual enthralling evening of TV on offer so I have two choices, either hide in the Railway room and try to reduce the Strategic Kit Reserve or spend a couple of hours editing some videos.

It's like a chutney or relish depending on whether you put it through a food processor.. Made from bacon, onions, brown sugar and cider vinegar although can also include other ingredients such as maple syrup.

Good afternoon all. Not too noisy here last night, a few fireworks early on, probably not used previously as Bonfire night weather was dire. A quick flurry then from midnight for about 5 minutes then all quiet. Set out early for a bike ride round Ladybower. Big mistake, got there at 10 and our preferred parking area was already full. Ride took about 25% longer than normal due to numpties walking down road six abrest and totally oblivious to the sound of the bell. Think I will have to get a good old fashioned klaxon, otherwise install a DCC chip with various machine gun and artillery effects. Besides the aforementioned numpties there were those with loose dogs, those incapable of steering their new bikes and those incapable of controlling their offspring. On top of that we were going up a narrow stony track when two total eejits came racing down the other way. One had a child about 3 years old balanced on the crossbar and the other was carrying a young girl in a backpack. We don't usually do weekends and holidays there and today was a demonstration of why. Next week it will be back to the Tuesday morning ride. They are much more pleasant as the great unwashed don't feel obliged to get off the sofa then as it is a working day.

Nah, there's at least two kinds, bald and grey.

My purchases in the last year have been quite small except for detailing stuff, and I have spent much less time on Ebay so those were two good achievements. Youngest grandson has proved to by a wizard at railways through Brio, Lego and TTTE. He is currently learning to drive the BedPan line on a train simulator having already cracked the Bakerloo. We set up shunting puzzles together on my layout and he is starting to talk about having a proper one of his own so that has to be No.1 on the list. From my working life I learned that it was always good to have a succession plan and stocking it from my surflus will be no problem. From my own point of view the aims in no particular order will be Build a Hornby Dublo 3-rail demonstration layout for my collection Build a control panel for the big layout. Build the buildings Finish the ballasting. Finish the rolling stock projects in progress Reduce the kit mountain Sort out what stock is surplus to requirements If I manage that lot I will actually be able to get into the railway room to play trains properly.

Oh well, the end of another year. I've got to the stage where No.1 on my New Year Resolutions is to still be here to see in 2023. Beyond that it's to catch up on some of the lost time of the past two years in visiting places. Fortunately a large part of my hobbies can be done from home, but I miss being able to take the bikes and tent a bit further afield for a few nights I don't usually do much on NYE these days, just a chat and a quiet drink. Having done Hogmanay with ex-pat Scots in Birmingham in the 60s and 70s, getting back home at 05:00 before 1st Jan was a Bank Holiday and being due at work at 07:00, another year arrived in the centre of Sydney at 23:30 31st December local time anything since 2000 has seemed a bit tame. I would like to thank ERs for putting up with my sporadic visits, fluctuations in family responsibilities and mood on the day often dictate when I will appear, but I have found during lockdown and restrictions that RMweb has been a link to our more normal times of the hobby. My opinions may not suit everyone but they are all my own and apologies to anyone who may have been offended by them. With that I'll sign off for 2021 in the hope that 2022 will bring us better times and wish all ERs the best for next year. Hopefully we will all be able to see some old friends soon. Goodnight all

Boxing of numbers was announced IIRC 1963. Started to appear on new wagons and repairs c1964. Some never seemed to get it and a lot only had it partially applied to the XP or when the tare weight was moved from the right hand side to the left. You could still find a whole jumble of them as long as unbraked and vac braked stock lasted.

Those with LNER brake rigging had 4 ribs on the side, although there are photos of them with 7 ribs, possibly later repairs using spares from other wagons?. The ones with RCH brake rigging had 4 ribs on the earlier ones and 7 ribs on the later ones. As far as I can see all of the late ones with BR Clasp brakes had 7 ribs

Interesting shot showing not only the barrel joints common on round rodding but also a GWR two-bolt scarf joint on the nearest rod

On 26th December 2021 I had an email from Hornby reminding me to pre-order my Christmas 2022 Santa Express train set.

Very much "what happened in France stayed in France". My grandfather told very little about it having joined up at 16 and being wounded and back in England before he was 17. By the time he reached 19 he was fully recovered, was sent back to the regiment and ended the war near Armentieres. His eldest brother Ernie was killed at Delville Wood. I never knew much about that but research when the youngest of the brothers died revealed that one of Ernie's friends was posthumously awarded the VC for his actions on the same day. As far as Dad was concerned, although he had spent nine months active service in Europe the worst experiences were probably his period in India when he was a sergeant in the Military Police attached to the Indian Army in Calcutta during the Direct Action Day riots in 1946 which left over 4000 dead.

BR Lowfits are a bit of a minefield. Diagram 1/001 were B450000 - 399 built to lot 2107 at Wolverton and Derby. They had an LNER wooden body on and LMS underframe with J-hangers and 8-shoe LMS Clasp brakes. These were followed Diagram 1/002 built at Shildon. These had a steel body. The brakes on the first lot were 8-shoe LNER Clasp, changing in 1952 to 4-shoe Morton, then again for the last lot built in 1959 to 8-shoe BR Clasp. The Mainline/Bachmann model was a mixture of a Diagram 1/001 body on the underframe of the middle period of Diagram 1/002.