81F

Latest Acquisition is yet another Dean Standard Goods I seemed to have ruined one by trying to put the DCC chip in the body - it seems to just stop due to very poor current collection especially on curves. Tried replacing the chassis twice but to no avail so I am wondering if it is the lack of weight in the body that is causing the problem. Before I ruin the latest one has anyone got any tips - I am thinking of getting a GM very small chip and trying to fit it in the tender after hacking a lump off the tender weight.

Sorry - the relevance of my story to this tread is that I think the wagons may have been railway (GWR) owned rather than PO wagons

I seem to recall my late Grandmother telling me how my Great Grandfather would buy a wagon load of coal direct from the colliery in a wagon "hired" from the railway (GWR) just before winter and distribute it to other members of the extended family to see them through the winter. From what she said I do not think it was via a coal merchant because I think she said it was cheaper to go direct. I must admit I'd be interested to know if anyone would know how this arrangement worked. The only thing I do know is that he did run a shop and later a haulage business (never more than one cart/lorry!) so he could probably do this through his business rather than as an individual.

the ferret said: Look I really am very sorry about this but I just cannot stand it any longer!!! What is this mystic "aquistion". Do you all mean an "A-C-Q-U-I-S-I-T-I-O-N"??? Not allowed to mention the sources involved but I have just made up two kits. One is a very smart GWR 'Mink A' van while the other is a conflat. I have painted the flat wagon in S.R. light grey while the container is in navy blue and our friends MABEX (who are still in business albeit a very sad little story) are supplying me with Pickford's Transfers. If I cannot get the 'Oxford' Pickford's Mechanical Horse, the GWR Mechanical Gee-Gee with Flat truck trailer will have to suffice. I will also have to make up a yard crane from which to dangle the container as transhipment proceeds!! When a schoolboy (it is a long time ago) I watched this process actually taking place in the GWR Vastern Road goods yard at Reading, in 12 inches to the foot scale. (Sighs deeply) We had a REAL railway then. I am also making up a train of coal wagons but am using all kits to do it with some notable exceptions. Hornby do both "C & G Ayres" of Reading and "Porter and Sons" of Marlow. However, apart from Isleworth Coal (in a blue box) I have to resort entirely to kits for Southern Railway private owners. I fancy "Woking Co-operative", "Meakins of Dorking", Stephens of Basingstoke but most especially (and I have two of these already) Fear Bros of Staines. I watched Fear's coal deliveries being fly-shunted into their siding in the UP yard at Staines from the age of three. It is so wonderful to recreate such events in model form. So, come on Mr. Hornby, let's have some Southern Private Owner wagons. I feel that there are far too many private owner coal wagons from the Midlands, the North and Wales. Hornby have done Oxfordshire based coal merchant as have Dapol - not sure if this would be a little to far away though.

Just bought another two corridor Midland Clerestories. I will soon be polishing away the "Midland" and the class designations (which I have already done for anther 3) and fixing GWR and Garter transfers as per the 1908 Olympic GWR clerestories. Once re-varnished these make quite a passable representation of the 1912-1922 GWR maroon and looks quite presentable alongside the 1908 coaches. The only tip I have is don't polish away (with Brasso)the old markings too hard otherwise you'll go through to the black plastic.

81F said: Not really a new acquisition but I've just taken delivery of a Blue B12 body and tender. I am now combining these with an old Triang Hall chassis with some other B12 bits in my bit box to make a whole loco.- just need to find some short crank pins screws to finish the job before servicing. Typical - Just ordered some new body screws (about 10! only to find the now surplus one holding the Halls plastic cylinders to the frame extension is the same!

Not really a new acquisition but I've just taken delivery of a Blue B12 body and tender. I am now combining these with an old Triang Hall chassis with some other B12 bits in my bit box to make a whole loco.- just need to find some short crank pins screws to finish the job before servicing.

Just got the new Star lovely runner but I nearly dropped it. Caught it but managed to break the rear of the Cylinder and slide bars off. I stuck them back together and all works well but have damaged some of the lining. hmmmm Now if I were to graft a front buffer beam from my spare County 4-4-0body and het some Grange cylinders,piston rod and pony truck I might end up with a decent Saint!

According to the post office tracking system my blue box company pannier was delivered and signed for by GK at 12:45 yesterday, I even got an email to confirm this. However, despite being in all day and signing for another package I haven't got the pannier and no one here has the initials GK! This is also the second parcel to go missing, the first was around this time last month (a red Hornby LT pannier body), when I took the card to the local delivery office 24 hours later they had already given it to another customer! Fortunately the seller sent me another. As this is also the third package to go missing this year do people think this is odd (note I am lodging a complaint) but I am now worried about my pre-ordered star and other items.

walkingthedog said: Which one is it 81F?36-558A.

poliss said: Have you got time to un-order it? There are a lot of things you can't do with it. Ordered it new on ebay so I don't think I can un-order it. However, I only want it to go backwards and forwards, program it with the locos number and hopefully switch off any acceleration settings, so I hope it will be OK. It is also of the direct plug in type.

poliss said: Don't use the 6 pin decoder from the B Team. Why? - You have me worried, I've just ordered one!

PS probably should have said this I think this was a special from On Tracks - I placed a pre order for it probably around a year ago!

Just taken delivery of an Electrotren Great Western 0-6-0 saddle tank, based on an ex Taff Vale loco. see http://www.modelrailforum.com/images/OnTracks/GV2005.jpg It is a really smooth runner and I hope will be easy to convert to DCC. The only trouble is I couldn't see if it was DCC ready. However, when I took the body off there is a six pin plug that pulls out at the front of the chassis which I assume is for the decoders usually used in n gauge. Looking at the chassis I wonder if Hornby could use it to make proper British outline models - The small outside cylindered panniers for example or even a Pecket 0-6-0ST

I had the same problem with my Midland Compound and County, These tender bodies are really stiff

An alternative might be to do what I have done with my Railroad Flying Scotsman and County 4-6-0 and that is buy a detailing pack off eb@y (assuming one becomes available)

On the old Hornby Triang pannier GWR 8751 (and probably the red L90) the body screw is definitely on the left hand side (looking to the front of the chimney just behind the front splasher. Sorry but I do not know where it is on the jinty as I never had one that old.

As mentioned elsewhere the 52XX and 42XX

Just had to get the Scaledale City Dry Cleaners - it is so like a building I was trying to scratch build it will save me the difficulty (particularly as its on the far side of the layout with another house in front! All I have to do is add a window, a chimney, repaint the roof Change the shop type and possibly render the walls!

Last thing was the Hornby L&Y pug and a blue boxed Ivatt class4 260 sometime last month. Am not buying much at the moment as I have the 42, 52 and 72XX on pre-order as well as the Star. As I am having to save my spending limit each month any delay in the release date is somewhat beneficial!

Sorry should have said my post was about the Arthur Askey Ghost Train

Just been looking at the DVD to try and identify the locos. In the opening credits there are 3 of what I am sure are Kings. The first exiting the tunnel looks like 60?2, Could be 6002 or 6022 the ? figure looks too rounded for a 1. Then I'm almost certain it's 6004 on the sea front followed by the GWR streamliner King Henry VII (I don't think its the castle as the name plate seems to be made up of three shortish words. There is also a shot of dean Goods 2441. The only other one I can be positive about since there is a good shot of the locos bufferbeam just before the switch to the model going off the bridge. How about a limited edition with a loco powered dean standard goods and a few toplights!

Just looked at the item on this website and I wonder what you actually get? The illustration shows a GWR 14XX not the one in the film and a GWR brake van (not a BR(W) liveried one. However the illustration on the box looks right. This dicrepancy certainly outs me off ordering one. As an aside I think a resin coach body more akin to the "stagecoach" style one in the film would have been better than the horrible hornby four wheeler - could they have used a Liverpool and Manchester (ex Rocket) coach body instead? Having said that it is good to see Hornby commemorating this film - Funny thing is I was actually walking along one of the Streets the stolen loco was driven through lastweek!

I would like to see the old LIMA GWR siphon G re released, but possibly on a new underframe either using the old Airfix GWR bogies or the new Hawkesworth ones. This would be a very nice model as the lima body diesn't look too bad. The only drawback with the original was the BR Mark 1 Bogies with their moulded plastic couplings.

List a smokebox dart from one of my granges - spent ages fabricating one from handrail wire and part of a broken screw link coupling. Although it looks OK from a distance I would have liked a proper replacement.