Rossi

Griff, probably was me that mentioned something about WD 40 a long way back. I only use correct lubricants now. I've taken your advice and... The little people have had the class 47 (Bachmann-quite new) towed into the small shed at Asaph St. station. As advised, they brought the old lifting crane in and shifted the body to an almost unsteady elevation, thus displaying the wheels and other paraphernalia. Bert Sprocket and his foreman seem to have the job well in hand with the removal of the broken drive shaft. So there you have it. No problem! On a serious note, I did obviously get down to stripping the 47. Low and behold...No drive shaft on the front bogie, hence the erratic movement. (There are two drive shafts on this model). It seems Hornby spares can be obtained from model shops whilst Bachmann have to be contacted direct. So, a few days ago I sent my order into them, and they are sending out two drive shafts (50p each). Everything going to plan, except when I saw my delivery address, all correct...Obviously Spanish looking, especially with Islas Canarias at the bottom, but directly underneath was--United Kingdom. What! Not sure now if the package will be doing a round trip in Britain before they realise it should be heading a few thousand miles Southwards.

Well, didn't see this one coming! Back pains for a few days, then excruciating spasms with continual side and back pains like you wouldn't believe. Into hospital (4 days) and then after tests, told it was kidney stones. Continuous drip fed pain killers and told it was not life threatening. What? Sent home eventually and told to drink lots of water. Pain tablets didn't work at home and then...halleluiah. Passed. (No need for expletives in the bathroom, but bliss. )Who would think that something the size of quarter of a grain of rice could do this? So...now up and running, as though nothing had happened. Three weeks without any alcohol, and not missed it. Anyway, back onto the railways. caught up with some of the posts over the last weeks. What a tonic...Yes, the Weekenders! Love those posts. It really is railway bashing at its best (Well said Ian grockle)). Before I got carted away, I forgot about a class 47 left in one of the tunnel areas. Ran it yesterday for a circuit or two and then it gave up the ghost. Shuddered a bit, moved forward a couple of feet and stopped dead giving out a low hum, no wheel movement. Removed body, but couldn't see anything lodged inside. then wheels sped madly with higher than usual noise. Not sure what it is. Maybe a dislodged drive shaft. I'm not too keen on actually stripping down the innards. Any one know of reputable repair shops in England? I can send it over with friends who are returning to blighty over the months. Sent an email to Bachmanns in Leicestershire (out of warranty) to see what they come up with. Nice to see the summer continuing over there. Cricket with no rain? Weird!

Keep trying to get a little perspective with the plants on the railway. Not always easy. Found some "flowering parsley" (perejil) at a Canarian outdoor local market. Put it behind the goods shed alongside the old fir trees. Not too bad.

Thanks IanR, That Modelmasterdecals site seems to be the answer for the truck decals. Seem to remember it being spoken about in one of the trade mags when they were doing an article on Parkside Dundas kits. Griff, Small is beautiful. My favourites are the class 25 diesels. Love them!!!

Cheers Andrew. At the moment it's all running a treat, even had another visit from "Station Master Simon" (see earlier photo blog,page 9 ) who is also a computer whiz kid/chappie luckily, and managed to delve into the innards of my computer systems and pull out gremlins (as well as a mound of dust). A few months back some friends brought over a Parkside Dundas plastic kit. They were due another visit to us this week so Mrs Rossi was given the task of assembling it pretty smartish. Now running on the railway but still awaiting a paint job.

My computers are playing up like mad. Volume missing from both towers at the moment, so playing on a wing and a prayer so to speak. Spent hours trawling through all the bumf, (is that a proper word?) all to no avail. Had enough, so uploaded a few minutes of a viaduct testing from the railway. Things are so bad, I'm now knocking off to watch the Eurovision song contest...I told you things were bad! http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_detailpage&v=Pz8M3W08CPc" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false; Hope that logs in alright. If not, I'll check it out tomorrow. Had enough in this computer room for today.

Mentioned about going on a "Herby" trip for planting alongside the track. Did this last week, as can be seen in the canal photos. Constant watering was the advice from the garden centre man "until they take a firm hold." And so I did. Good grief! They've just shot up. My little three Basil plants and a couple of Corianders have started to manifest like nothing else...not to mention the Mint. Engines were coming from the back of the railway with giant leaves wedged between their wheels. Not sure whether this was a good idea or not. Mrs Rossi says to keep trimming...but I'm not sure I can eat that many greens! (PS. In the top photo of these last three, you can see the foam underlay I experimented with a good few months back. Still in place and actually weathered itself nicely. Jury still out though at the moment)

Progress has been slow, but getting there bit by bit. The view below shows that I've decided to try and put in another canal. Still a little disappointed with the colour, although I know most canals are pretty dirty (near industry etc). Had no sunshine today, which I'm sure would of highlighted the top coat of varnish, but it still looks a bit too murky. Also built a diesel fuelling/stabling line, supposedly (in theory) on the old steam shed tracks which are being lifted in the little scenario. The odd thing is that there is no exit or entrance for the canal! So, some extra thought needed here. If you view the earlier shots of this area, you can see the amount of work which has taken it from rubble to something at least resembling a model.

Griff, hope I didn't put the mockers on the railway the other week when I thought you'd demolished it! But, this morning you gave me a chuckle when I saw your "underground" set-up. Just keep that sense of humour...and who knows what will come about with the new plans.

Brian, canal is getting near the top of the list. Already have a minny one near the main station (see page one of my blog). Wonderful words from some of our friends yesterday "Are these any use for you? Found them on a car boot sale." Points and a signal box...Fantastic. PIC_1228.JPG[/attachment] Then had a change of ideas with the plants and decided to go all herby. Couldn't resist the smell of mint and oregano at the garden centre. Also got the village station back to normal, as in this view. Update on the railway: Soil in place. Then had a change of ideas with the plants and decided to go all herby. Couldn't resist the smell of mint and oregano at the garden centre. Also got the village station back to normal, as in this view. So, not a bad few hours work, and looking a lot tidier.

Work started in earnest this morning. After the recent upheavals I'd just been running trains for the amusement side of it, leaving chunks of the railway in semi "builders yard" condition. The old tunnel/turn around area before the yuka trees has now been excavated and a bed of rough stone placed in for drainage before the top soil and plants go in. Slate material is now bedded in at the sides, hopefully shielding the track from any overspill.

Mentioned earlier about the probs with this unit. Picked it out of the box this morning for a run and the body came adrift from the chassis, obviously not secured correctly by me. Then had to juggle about for about ten minutes before getting some sort of settlement together. This must be the most frustrating combination of any model regards access and unity. Why, oh why, weren't they designed with a couple of screws at either end? Unlike the old Lima diesels, they do not have any lugs to engage with, which was such a simple idea. Moan over with. Had to come in from the railway as the temp has hit 38 degrees with no breeze and the track is red hot to the touch. As opposed to rain, this is what does the damage to the rails.

Brian, I have made reference to buildings before (page 11 on my layout blog), and found that a lot of the old Airfix plastic kits seem to stand up to the elements pretty well, although over here we don't have the wet stuff like the UK modellers are subjected to. Unfortunately I tend to be on the lazy side when it comes to removing stuff from the layout (except locos) and need material which will stand the test of time, (although I do like the idea of Chris from Amblethorpe Railways who has done some marvellous set pieces that are removable...Oops, nearly forgot, and Sarah). Each to each their own, which is why this diverse railway site is so endearing. Picking up car boot odds and ends can unfold many oddities as this picture below shows.

Now this looks like a project!!! Maybe I'm not viewing it correctly in my head, but have you dismantled the railway? Also...you could be the first on here with an aqueduct. Then we'll all want one!

Griff, it would certainly impede my trains running, as I would be running the opposite way. I've not seen or heard anything in the local papers. It refers to San Sebastian which is the main port on the opposite island to us, (La Gomera). My favourite island.

Well, just cooked yesterdays left over chicken into a huge curry and had the railway running with the DMU. Now had a few beers, to chill out, and it's still running nicely. (2 hours) Fingers crossed. PS. Love these longer light evenings.

Advice taken and used. Stripped the DMU down, cleaned a bit of "gunge" away then lightly used cotton buds with the Isopropil alcohol. Left to its own devices for ten minutes or so, and then I tested the motor on its own. FULL SPEED AHEAD! The most difficult part was separating and rejoining the body and chassis. Absolute nightmare. Why Bachmann don't employ a couple of small screws for holding the two parts together I'll never know. The delicate under- structure is just waiting for weary eyes and clumsy hands to challenge the craftmanship of Bachmanns workforce. However, job done...and Hattons returned my email telling me that there was 6 months warranty from them (obviously run out) and a further 12 months from the manufactures.They gave me contact numbers (for Bachmann) and were, as usual, very polite and helpful. So, all in all, not too bad a day.

Thanks for the reply. Yep, sounds good with the credit cards...might use Mrs' Rossi's...never know what you can sneak through!!! Logical thoughts on the commutator, as we have untold amounts of sand drifting on the winds over here. Can't really see Hattons replacing anything because of the time limit, but will definitely have a go later today on maintenance. I have some cleaning fluid ( Isopropyl alcohol) which might do it.

Had this shipped over 16 months ago. Had no problems, but now it's started to stall and stutter and then stop after a few circuits. Then runs ok again. It then repeats the cycle. Put it on full speed and let it storm around, but still reverts back to it's wayward movement.

Mick, re the austerity windows. I was on Wakefield shed in the sixties (ref your photos) and came across this rather rough photo of a WD. I think it shows window glazing.

Griff, I don't do it on purpose, but Fat Cat is an out and out nosy cat (like most) and whatever I do, he seems to want to be part of it. Any photo shoot attracts him as a wannabe star attraction. He now goes between the arches of the viaduct and settles behind for numerous slumbers...until the next venture comes along. George, regarding Mt Teide. We only get snow on Teide for a few weeks in the winter usually Feb/March. Last year we didn't have any. You might recall in my blog about the lack of rain last year. Hence, no snow. Height is 3,700 metres, and from the sea floor it measures, I am told, 7,500 metres, making it the third highest volcano in the world. I'm not sure if that is for active volcano's (which Teide is.) Numerous films are made over here (Plant of the Apes, as you mentioned). Last year, parts of "The Wrath of the Titons" was filmed on Tenerife. (Maybe the previous year...Time flies) I even applied to be an "Extra" because I met the criteria of having long hair, but I had to grow a beard (which I still have now...Mmm). Never made the final cut though. Star struck? Bit like Fat Cat I suppose! Strayed a bit from railways. Sorry. Also, nice to see a few more on the site. It seemed to be a very lonely place during the winter and I can only apologise for hogging a lot of the time with my sometimes mundane pictures. I can sense the excitement now, as more of you seem to be venturing into the gardens. Fingers crossed for a good summer over there.

Didn't take long. Back to normality now as the storm has blown itself out. We,ve cleaned up most of the mess. Cyril the Turtle seemingly oblivious to the last few days. Budgies chirping away..and Fat Cat being, well Fat Cat. Village and houses were stored away safely. Track at top end took a bit of hammering and bent.Part of the decking subsided. Might excavate this part and start afresh.(I think, so much water cascaded along the railway that it caused the soil beneath to drop into unknown places making the wood move.) Replacement of track and new rebuild on the village station in the next few weeks. One picturesque outcome is the view of "our volcano" at the rear of the house. The snow will last a few days and the mountain roads will be full of families going up for snowball fights, then later in the day back down and sunbathing on the beach. Funny old climate over here!

Yes, when we get hit we get hit good and proper. Still going on at the moment. Winds at 140 kph. The sealant on the top balcony put in last year (or before) and mentioned in earlier posts was to stop leakage into spare room. Absolute waste of time. Buckets (and pans)back in place catching rain water. And this is the stuff I had complete faith in and used on the railway. (logged way back in pages). I was going to move the village station anyway...just didn't think it would happen that fast! New protective sheets standing firm at the moment. Budgies clinging to the inside corners of the aviary, whilst Fat Cat wont even consider putting a paw outside. Also, Cyril the turtle is somewhere hidden in his tank beneath the new sheets. Hibernation sound good for him. We'll laugh at this in a couple of days. More tea, I think!

"Rossi Railway in the Sun." Well, not at the moment. Checked the weather forecast, did all that I thought was needed in lieu of the oncoming bad storm and headed into the village for an hour or so. Returned to find mayhem. Maybe they (weather forecasters) were right about mentioning a "Yellow Alert." Unperturbed, I quickly went to the local DIY store and purchased a couple of more sheets to protect the railway. Drilling extra plugs and screws into the wall amongst rain is not the safest thing to do, but needs be. Retired to the kitchen for tea and biscuits only to hear a ginormous howling of wind and rain. Then... A thunderous crashing at the bottom of the terrace, as the wind came in from the sea and lifted all the old palm leaves off the roof of the bar area scattering them across all boundaries of our neighbours, plus uprooting various parts of the railway as it burst through the new sheets. "You win some, you loose some" is the saying I think. Retrieved the scattered remnants of the railway and returned to tea and biscuits. Well, I might have been wrong about the beverage. Looking on the bright side is not quite apt at the moment!

Many, many years ago I actually lived and worked for a short while on this beautiful island. (Something about islands with me, having done the same with the Isle of Man and now the Canary Islands.) Unfortunately I never managed to see the original steam network that was running, but I came across an intriguing nostalgic video of the Island in its hey day of steam. It occurred to me that this system would make an ideal model railway. I don't know of anyone who has actually done this, unlike the many facsimiles of the Manx system. Below is a link to the video from YouTube and a selection of photo's. I have tried to establish credits for them where possible, some taken by Nick Catford, John Hulse and Colin Reeves. YouTube: http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_detailpage&v=npJKBl_pdsA