leslie10646

Hi @David Holman (to differentiate between the two Clever Davids) That wheel cleaner of yours is "insanely brilliant" - (did I quote right from The Great Escape? Gordon Jackson exclaimed this on being shown David McCallum's solution to getting rid of the soil from the tunnels!). I've just had a happy, smelly couple of hours running the insanely dear CMX Rail Cleaning tank wagon (thanks again @WRENNEIRE) around the railway. The loco wheels are next - I must try and concoct a 4mm version of your invention - if I may!

See you at Aldershot! Can I bring my "toys"? I was worried that it clashed with the steam tour of the year - celebrating the Classic German "01" Pacifics - the first six days of October. As I told you nine months ago - the layout which replaced you was equally excellent, is a smaller scale! Keep it up!

Thanks for the GN Fest @Galteemore. It shows that the plain black livery which the GN used works and presents a handsome loco (well, two in this case!). Do David H's ex MGWR six wheelers have photographs on the compartment walls like the ones you made for me? @David Holman, as @Mol_PMB says above, your attention to little details is terrific. Loved the lobster pots and the well-posed figures. The whole layout is a delight and shows what you can do in a small space - even in 7mm!

And, I suspect, making a mint for himself and his cronies. I think that the bit about serving the people got lost when he took the Presidential Oath. Was I the only one to notice that he didn't appear to put his hand on the Bible during the Oath?

Surely a typical Sunday view? I was once entertained in the very early morning watching a garage-full of LT's short-lived "Bendy Buses" being extracted from a similarly packed position. Buses are amazingly manouevrable.

David, apologies for not putting in an appearance at an exhibition where you were exhibiting - just an hour's drive away. I'm sure that the Quay will be much admired and even more so (dare I say it?) when @Galteemore 's stock is added to your own super rolling stock tomorrow. I'm off Interrailing in a few days and this was my last day to pack, other than at the last moment and sanity prevailed! It also meant that I didn't have a nasty, stand-up row with a "supplier" who promised the earth and two months on hasn't even acknowledged receipt of samples from me! That's a few more wagons etc which won't ever see the light of day. Retirement seems sensible .......

There you are @Past-Avenue -a 30 ton would be different to everyone else's! @jhb171achill - you might confirm that they were identical to the 20ton, except for more concrete in the base? And slightly different lettering?

Well, I can offer you another "brown van" for your 70s train. Pick one (or two!) up at Blackrock in October - €22 each. On a separate note, delighted to hear that Enda is working on a brake van. While John's were super, it was a pain paying a mint in duties getting them into "Europe". Enda, have you found a slightly different brake van to make? I suspect that John covered most of the varieties. @jhb171achill can tell us if there was a 25 ton variant which appart from the lettering looks the same? Which reminds me that I should get a set of decals made for my GN Brake which suggests that it is a 25 ton brake,rather than boring old 20ton .......

I'll just mention that I have about a dozen copies of the "Irish Industrial and Contractors Locomotives". If anyone would like a copy, I'll bring it to you at Blackrock for say a couple of Euros? Income goes directly to Irish railway Record Society as they were part of a bequest. UK buyers can have it by post! Just PM me. Thanks Leslie

I've got back to work on the South end of "my" Portadown. The platforms need "planting" - ie a bit of ballast (a Black Art totally beyond me as you will see in a moment!), weedy grass round the back of the buildings, the barrow walk, water cranes and signals. First, I decided that the barrow walk needed fencing in, so I used a new toy to get bits of Ratio fencing together at right angles. I KNEW that these expensive magnet things would find a use! This where I was starting from. Last week, I did a part-barrow way and "sunk" the water crane in place - there should be one at the end of Platform One as well, but I think the slope of the roof will mean it will not be on my layout! Oh, a future job is to box the point motor in. ALL of mine are above board (unlike me!) because I found lying under the board to fix "invisible" ones just too much of a fag. Then I added the fence which you saw in the magnets, completed the barrow way, placed a concrete "pan" where the water crane should be on Platform one. Loads more to do like planting grass around that fence, finishing Platform One, then back to doubling the length of the water tower which appears earlier in this thread.

Thanks, Eoin. I send a query to John at Silver Fox as well and he replied impressively quickly. More recent BUTs from him come DCC-ready! He told me where to find the "ready" thingy and Lo and Behold - it was there ( under the "floor" in the centre of the power car). The nice man at Kernow selected a chip and had it DCC'd before you could say "Great Northern Railway" and a happy customer was in the car back to "Portadown Junction". I'll put up a video of the BUT set on the Dublin-based "Enterprise" when I've finished some "scenic" work (or my apology for it) at Portadown. Don't hold your breath! Thanks again!

Hi Darius Tongue firmly in cheek - TWO Lima motor bogies? That should pull twelve at 100mph .......

Yes, Darius, a nice model. As ever, well done. Sorry @Mike 84C but I don't have your enthusiasm for them. In 1967/1968 when returning to Belfast on holidays (or RPSI tours to be more precise), I would travel North from Euston on the Ulster Express (Class 40-hauled) but at Preston would detrain, walk over to one of the outer platforms to catch the Belfast Boat Express which had up fro Manchester and was waiting for the "Ulster" to overtake. Why? The "Boat Express" was hauled by a Carnforth Black Five and was a class act. It had an insanely fast schedule to Lancaster and the "Five" would roar out after the "Ulster" and fire would fill the night as it roared its seven coach train up into the high seventies, which it then held until braking for the Lancaster stop. One night, it was a Class 25 and it couldn't come close to the Black Five's level of performance. Mind you, the "Black Fives" were "something else" to use a modern term - one of the most brilliant designs ever.

Well done @mphoey. I would barely sell ONE Stevenson's container for €20, so you got the the second one AND the conflat for free! Very decent price for a built GN bus as well.

Thanks, @Broithe, for the piccies - you've reminded me that my Leek and Manifold history was £50 when I bought it - a beautiful volume. It's on ABE at £200 plus these days. Time I sold it! It HAS been read