DiveController

That's a good point, John. I was looking at the 33" and it didn't occur to me that that was actually the size of the prototypical wheel on the wagon. Which reminded me of something else, on another thread I seem to recall that there are different lengths for the axles, that is to say the width of the axle from tip to tip where it fits into the wagon. I think limas were a little shorter or longer than Hornby or Bachman. I'm going to search for that other thread too. EDIT: John & David had some input on the other thread here: http://irishrailwaymodeller.com/showthread.php/3484-Old-Dapol-amp-Lima-CIE-Wagons-on-Peco-Code-75-track?p=54291&highlight=lima+axle#post54291 If rewheeling, it is worth remembering that Lima vehicles use a shorter, approx 24.5mm axle, as opposed to the normal approx 25.75mm axle that everyone else uses, although I believe some smaller manufacturers offer their wheels with different length axles. I personally just reuse the original Lima axles with new wheels, although it can sometimes be a challenge to remove the Lima wheels from the axles.

That's what I thought, but I'm sure Dave will put up some photos at some point. Looks like this is from his 2010 photo bucket which might explain that. Notable, by its absence, is a generator van again. There was some chatter previously that these would come again in Supertrain which is my main modeling era.

Not quite in time for Christmas for most of us but it looks like they're on the way! Dave, would you mind posting a photo or two in the next couple of days when you're sobered up from your festivities so we might see how they look? Merry Christmas to everyone from the Lone Star State!

I did not know the history of this but I knew somebody on here would having asked the question about what these things are valued at before. I'm pretty sure it's not worth that. The interesting thing is, I think I saw it advertised for about £6000 before…. now suddenly it's £1 million! So the next question would be if you were to purchase this item would actually be yours….Assuming you had a spare on £1m or similar offer=))

BARGAIN BUS!! http://m.ebay.co.uk/itm/221643132783?_mwBanner=1

GD, that's good value at under a dollar an axle. Like the fine thread idea, so the flange would be thinner (to avoid issues with electrofrog points) and not as high (to prevent riding on the sleepers)? Resell the old ones? People need OEM spares?... or was that a joke about Hornby/lima older wheel sets Sorry if we're getting a little off thread here

That's what I thought. I just haven't been on this scene long enough to know if there were any opportunities to save a few shekels

Just to update all of you on dealing with Hornby! I purchased several items in their Black Friday sale in November. Here we are on Christmas Eve and they have not replied to several emails nor are they contactable on their helpline. It's pretty obvious they are not working to make time on my order today (despite the nice email from "noreply@wereabigcompanyandyoudontreallymatter.com" to say they are working on it. When I called earlier they had all left for the day. Just as well none of it is a Christmas present for anyone (other than me)

I was wondering if the model shops ever have sales after Christmas like other retailers? Is there anything to be picked up at these or just end of line products that they really want to get rid of?

Pleasure doing business with you, Seamus! Unlikely, I was wishing for an A class;) Merry Christmas!!

Yes, that's what I'm thinking. Good advice. If there are any problems I might try code 83. It may be a fair compromise between the two. Anything with plastic wheels (and there are some) would be re-wheeled anyway so I guess the replacements out there would be compatible with Code 75?

Do I understand the comments on the thread correctly that the Bachmann early tankers with the cables round the filler are more prototypical than the Hornby design (which I still like)? I haven't come across any reasonably priced Fina donors but I think any Bachmann of this type would do as they differ only by livery as far as I can see e.g. Bachmann Burmah and Black Esso tankers seem to be the same wagon to me?

Fran, are you referring to Lima 201s or everything Lima i.e. coaches an wagons etc.? I have a fair number of older Hornby wagons and Lima wagons, Mk IIs and, unexpectedly some Mark IIIs now.

Yes, I think Peco have good trackwork. I think that's where my money's going to be going. Thanks for your comment on Code 75, Stephen! Kevin

Glad to hear it, Stephen. I am thinking of a layout in Code 75 or 83 (I'm located in the US and that's the 'standard' for north American modelers, and would probably be more readily available for me). I have 141s, 181s, 071s, a Jinty, several N class steam. If you have any experience with these on a finescale rail such as Code 75, I 'd be happy to hear of your experience ot thoughts. Kevin

It seems like there are different LEDS that run within different voltage ranges, 9-12V and 12-16V. DCC track voltage is nearer 16V usually, whereas DC more like 12V. So you'd need to decide if you were going with DCC in advance unless you run them from a separate supply?

Beauty, and the Eye of the Beholder, Noel...

We discussed this model when it was on there. Look at this thread starting about page 54 with some links on TPO and nice pictures from Glenderg on subsequent pages http://irishrailwaymodeller.com/showthread.php/58-eBay-Watch/page54

Hi Noel, If you're doing an internal makeover on one, I think a few of the newbies in this area would appreciate a few photos.

Tom, if you're not finished would you post a couple of photos of the guts of the 141 service when you do the next one please? I have over a dozen of them and it would be better if I became familiar with doing it myself. Or a woolie if you're servicing any... Thanks, Kevin

Any thoughts on knowing when a service is needed or do the ailments above qualify?

I don't think we've have had a stupid question in a while so rather than y'all nod off with celebratory Christmas grog and nosh, I thought I'd post. I have bought several of my 141/181s secondhand and although some of them are 'new', they have probably been lying in a box or on display for several years. I noticed that some of my locomotives do not run as smoothly as others. Some are really quiet, begin to crawl at a lower setting and have a greater top speed than the others. I suspect that some need servicing but other than saying that they are a little noisy or something I do not really know why exactly qualifies them for needing a service. More to the point, I do not really know how to do 'a service'. I know things need to be oiled sparingly but that's about it! I 'ran in' several of my locomotives and then noticed an eBay listing where the seller had test run the locomotive for only half a circuit of an oval to test "to prevent burning out the motor" as it obviously needed a service. I hope I've not done any damage to my locomotives when running them in if they needed a service and I did not realize! I also have several Woolies that are obviously noisier than my baby GMs, likely a product of different motors etc. Any advice on how to optimize my fleet would be appreciated so that I don't have a slow-mo in consist with a hard working engine or derailments in a push-pull setting. Thanks, Kevin

Nothing in the closets, but several items located from BosKonay's ATTIC:-bd and on their way to me! Thanks

Ger, I have no idea what they're worth but this is on eBay as a BIN with 4 watchers http://www.ebay.com/itm/Hornby-Thomas-R9750-Stepney-No-55-Locomotive-Limited-Edition-OO-Scale-New-/231409143853?pt=UK_Trains_Railway_Models&hash=item35e10f502d I'm not even sure if it's what you're after for certain EDIT: Last one, less than eBay, 10% off http://www.petersspares.com/hornby-r9750-stepney-thomas-and-friends-060-steam-loco.ir RE-EDIT: IN STOCK http://www.bourtonmodelrailway.co.uk/hornby-r9750-stepney-limited-production.ir?cName=railways-hornby-thomas-friends Can add to cart, seems to be in stock http://www.ttcdiecast.com/hornby-r9750-stepney---limited-production-27427-p.asp

Scahalane, that's seriously good stuff. Really, really impressed by the buildings! God almighty, if you wanna come over here and do a few for me, there's good weather, water sports, barbecue, ...