Archie

the idea is to have a couple of rows for coaches and separate rows for the locomotives

I was thinking of a cassette but I dont think it would work too well, the trains have to get up and down the stairs and so a cassette would be unwieldy, and none of my trains are fixed rakes so It would get complicated. Ive made a rough plan to go on a 6x4ft baseboard, the idea is to make it easier to change trains whilst running, bringing the trains downstairs isn't too much of a problem. of course where theres gaps and where parts dont line up I would sue flexitrack.

All the wagon needs is paint couplings (which can be printed I believe) and wheels. I'm honestly surprised how good 3D printers have become, the print quality can be very good for relatively very little setup and cost. I have seen images of the wagons and I believe they have only appeared in network rail yellow as they were only introduced in the late 2000s. I dont think I'm going to paint them yellow for a couple of reasons: They are quite low detail and so I dont think they are distinguishable from an mwa wagon, I think even yellow paint is beyond my skill, theyre going to be out of era anyway so I want to paint them a colour that is more likley to fit in and, I dont have any yellow paint to hand. I'm trying to keep the total cost below 5 pounds so I dont feel like too high a level of accuracy is required. I'm sure there are purists that would cringe at that attitude but I'm just making some stock to look good from afar, I try not to take modelling too seriously as otherwise I'll never be happy with them.

I have printed out the first hopper of a new rake of about 10 that I am going to create. the cost of the plastic of each wagon is less than £1 so there should be a huge saving over the Bachmann model, although they take about 15 hours to print each, and ive already had to redo the bogeys so you pay in time. I'm thinking of painting them red, though I might do a couple in other colours, I still havent decided.

I am hoping to create a removable fiddle yard that attaches at the top loop of the railway to make it easier to run trains. It'll sit on the patio and attach to some tracks off the existing layout. I was wondering what would be the easiest way to line up the baseboard with the spurs off the track?

I got a chance to see the new APT and I have got to say, it looks fantastic. I'm sure it's also very delicate, I'd definatley want it to be on a storage track permanently if I had one.

Today I managed to get the railway running again and, I used my MK1s that I am still yet to finish. It's one of those projects that I've just lost interest in but maybe ill get them done someday.

*he also used rebar to hold it together

yes, I'm guessing he used a homemade flexible (silicone?) mould with plaster poured in

I'm guessing the brick is some kind of plaster by the way its chipping off at the sides

right, I'll see about giving it a go. From my memory it stopped on a strait section, I took it apart and tried running it inside with the body off, and the decoder popped and started smoking, at least I think it came from the decoder, although it could have come from the PCB underneath...

I remember seeing the TAY video and wondering how they made those viaducts, I actually think it was one of Micks video's that inspired me to make my railway, I didnt even discover the forum till about a month after I finished.

my layout is DC, and so the decoder was set to DC mode, that might be what fried it, as its at a lower voltage and so higher current.

Yeah, it would be fine, Ill still go to the model shop (as gives me an excuse to go) but thanks for offering.

Thanks very for offering but I'll pass, I think the problem is with something else that caused the decoder to pop, and I'd rather not give out my address on the internet when I can avoid it for obvious reasons. I'm sure the local model shop will have some spare as they do decoder fitting I agree, theres definatley a fine line between quality and price, and it might be one thats just impossible to hit. Theres definatley high demand thats currently filled by exclusively used models. The problem is none of the budget offerings have really advanced, Hornby is still selling the same ringfield railroad 47s for £70, so I can see why people would buy £50 lima or Hornby diesels from the 80s and 90s. They're effectively the same model...

I'd heard good things about the Hatton's 66 but I have never had one, but its a shame the model is like that (I remember hearing something about axle boxes falling apart but I didn't look too deep into it) my Bachmann 25 died and its made me reluctant to buy anything high detailed and complex, I think the decoder died but id need to get a blanking plate to see if thats the problem... I think ill be sticking to cheap Hornby and Lima locos for now.

I think latter examples were black, I'll tone mine down to suit. Do you recall any 60s running without ploughs? many pictures of 60008 show it with no plough at all... my bad for copying that photo, it should be covered under fair use, but better to be safe. in future I'll just link to the website. I think the hattons 66 (with its shortcomings) is a good example of what can be achieved for a fairly reasonable price, theyre on sale for 120 which I don't think is bad for such a detailed model, ill still stick to old Hornby, Lima and Bachmann stuff though. I've found some files for an IOA wagon, its slightly out of period but I'm more of a collector than a rivet counter so I think they'll look good with my 60, 47 and 37, I might make one to see how it comes out.

60008 seems to not have had the gray ploughs at some point [photo removed due to copyright message] though theyre so covered in grime its hard to tell, it also seems to have been lacking them in a couple of photos, I dont know the procedure on when ploughs are on or off but most photos of other locomotives have ploughs. I could potentially 3d print some suitable wagons and paint them up, its just finding or making a suitable design for a stone hopper, I cant justify the price of a new or even used wagon rake. you must've been lucky to catch it just as it went past. The ploughs definatley look out of place, even in real life. I feel that only 5-10 years ago locomotives were a lot cheaper. I have copious amounts of lima and hornby diesels that I got for around £30 a while ago, maybe its just inflation, or lack of cheap new locos, or maybe its just me.

I managed to pick them up near the end of the show at 55 for both ( so 25 for the Deltic and 30 for 60008), and the 60 is considerably better detailed than a railroad diesel at less than half the price so I'm pretty happy with how it went. As for the ploughs I think thats how they are sold, in factory fresh condition. I believe they were quickly repainted in black, or just turned black from all the grime, so I'll tend to toning it down. I think the Loadhaul livery suits the 60 though I still prefer the sectorisation livery, now I just need a suitable rake of wagons for it to pull, or I could just keep on using mk3s and mixes of big four and early BR wagons and vans. It was nice to get back on the railway today, though it started raining whilst I was cleaning the track so I had to go in for a bit. There are still many jobs to do so hopefully there is a final few warm sunny days to work on the track.

Just thought I'd share some footage of some new models I got at a train show today, both ended up being absolute bargains , especially the 60.

but please correct me if I'm wrong

I think thats the only visible difference, the 45 and 46 had a revised engine over the 44s which gave them 300hp extra, and the 46 had a different generator over the 45 if my memory serves me correctly

you could probably do it with a 5/10L plastic jerry can and some hosepipe...

yup . in terms of expansion nothing will be happening soon, I have some teething troubles to sort around the top loop, where there is a sudden change in gradient, and I want to add some more scenic elements to set it in to the area ( including a viaduct somewhere 😉) the only thing that I'm currently planning is a single track to the shed to make it easier to just run some trains but I'm going to wait till next spring to make sure everything keeps working. the peak I have is a class 46 but theyre so similar even I mix them up 🤣. its definatley my favourite loco but the body catches the bogies by the gradient change at the top loop, which is why it needs sorting. I'm creating a maroon rake of mk1s but ive lost drive to finish them. they look ok but theyre at around £15 each now for what are still triang coaches, ill finish them some day... could anyone share any experience on track cleaning, I currently use a brush then track rubber but its a bit of a chore. I was thinking of using alcohol applied by a wagon but is there something simpler that I'm missing?