Mike 84C

The Ikea flatpack dining table is very heavy, the great joy was you can only click and collect, a quick and painless process . You could buy food but not use the toilets!! How does that work?

My copy arrived today, only eight days to get to Lincolnshire! I totally agree with JHB's comments my only disappointment was the flat finish paper instead of gloss which takes photos better. But what a book unseen before photos, dimensions and well reasoned comments. Top marks to the Authors and I shall dive into it as soon as I've built a flatpack dining table from Ikea.!

The biggest PITB would be regauging steam engines. My fleet so far 3 Woolich's 850, Bandon tank , GSWR 0-6-0t, J15, NCC Jinty, and a couple in gestation. Plus five diesels and about 50 items of rolling stock! Just looking at that list suggests I need to build some real estate pronto!

Level crossing gates? maybe an early point indicator but I doubt it.

If I had started with no 16.5 gauge locos and stock. It would be far to expensive to convert, sadly.

I too have joined the club of order placers. " The Grand Order of Book Buyers" Only 1000 printed? I hope they do twice that 'cos there's many book browsers here on the big island.

Gentlemen thanks for your replies, I shall order a copy.

Is this a revision of the 2008 book? I do not do facebook so have seen no comments. If it is a major improvement on the earlier edition , which I have, I would be tempted but at the moment its a but ?? Mick

Looking seriously good David, you used your time far more productivly than I did. Happy New year and lets hope 2021 is much better than 2020 and No pushing in the Vaccination queue!

Deffo; worth a look I bought the the locoshed + extension so it holds 4 loco's. it came with & unasked for the water tower building and a crofters cottage. Very well packed and a pleasure to deal with . You really have to look at them as the start of a journey and put some work into them. Ben Alder on RM Web has a Far North line thread plus a blog which shows what can be done with them and they are all based on real buildings. I'll post mine when I've started them BUT don't hold your breath! Mick

To both humble scribes! many thanks. The Festival train and coaches I knew little about but we all must know about the Jeeps last years. It was the detail that interested me, like how few Jeeps there were to work that volume of traffic and fill in for failed railcars and specials. With very little maintenance or backup, for me that speaks volumes about the men that crewed them and the basic design of the locomotive.

I wonder what the weight and range of battery powered 40/44tonne trucks will be by 2050? Also how much field work an electric tractor will do? All things I'm sure our politicos will have considered and planned for when declaring a carbon free future by 2050. Me? long gone.

Thanks for taking the time to shoot those historic photographs, the end of an era and lets hope the 1400 redundant employees all find jobs soon. No time is good to be put out of work but at Christmas, as often happens, just seems worse.

brassnut, I pick up the springs with a scaple blade then slip one end on the peg on the coupler and compress the spring to fit on the knuckle. I have used kaydee springs on the bachmann couplers. Easier to doo than write about.

Hey! Robert, that's enough of the mucky stuff, maybe a few runs/dribbles from the tops of the tanks on the principle of gravity works! You are really churning them out now helping keep the hobby afloat! My production has been stymied by a bout of decorating which has made me remember dark days in BF and other places painting by the light of halogens. And how you have to be good at things you detest! Need a WP!

Just look at the paintwork, maybe freshly applied? Even gives a look of pride in the place.

That looks very good John. Makes me wish I was 15yrs younger so I could get some worth out of all these lovely kits that are becoming available to modellers of Irish railways.

Andy, if we all pester Mike Edge perhaps he would do a Bandon Baldwin kit. Hopefully whilst I still have steady hands to solder it!

What a lovely sequence of photo's The red and white lining on the J15 looks rather fine and very different. I wonder when we shall see Belmullet in the flesh? Begone!! dull covid!

Application of Rule 1 for running No 22 on any layout. So far I have resisted the temptation. I did give Mike Edge a copy of the only drawing for a Bandon Baldwin 0-6-2, "a new one on me" or words to that effect were said. I thought it fitted in rather well with his range of obscure and rather different loco kits. And I should love one or maybe two!

That looks rather tasty! The Blue Pullman livery always looked very attractive.

Westcorkrailway, thank you for posting the photos of No 90 that looks as if it could have potential. Robert, you have confirmed what I thought I had remembered viz; the Kaydees. 22 road? sounds like you were working at Waterloo or simla!

Ballybeg viaduct is rather good! I did notice the different scenes under each arch. Really sets the whole thing up, excellent.

Hi Westcorkrailway, understand your idea both being 4-6-0's but the B12 is by comparison with a Bandon tank quite a large loco. Full marks for lateral thinking! The large wheels and longer wheelbase will be the problem. The chassis is the hardest part but the SSM kit goes together very well; hand on heart I struggled to work out how to make the brake hangers removeable, when I sussed it I kicked myself! What you need is a Poppys Loco Builder Box to help put the chassis together. Its an adjustable jig that comes flat pack in the post, dead easy to assemble, will help you with any future chassis you buy and is not expensive! Just as usefull as a soldering iron. I bought the one for 3 axles and wish I had bought the 4 axle one. I have no connection with Poppys woodcraft just a happy customer. But which ever route you take, happy modelling. Mick

Somebody said there is a 3d printed model of No 90, I trawled 48 pages of Shapeways but maybe missed it? Or is on another printers site? Also somebody posted which Kaydee's they used on the MM 121, which are they please? Thanks for any pointers.