Silver Sidelines

I am reading on RMweb that there could be a shortage of Hornby models. When I saw this truck for sale a little under £100, I would snap it up. £100 Truck By chance I had stumbled upon a video on YouTube which had been made using the Branor Systems Cam Truck . I was impressed and I thought that I would investigate further. In fact I have purchased truck No. 230. Branor Systems Cam Truck I have swapped the standard Hornby couplings for the older Mainline type with a shorter hook. I think this gives better control when being pushed up and down the gradients on my layout. All my rolling stock has metal wheels so I have also fitted turned brass wheels. This may have enhanced the ‘ride’ – it has certainly changed the track noises being recorded. The Cam Truck is equipped with a 120 degree wide angle (fish eye) lens which is coupled to a sensor which gives full HD 1280 by 720 pixel definition and 30 frames per second MOV file video. The truck is completely self contained and th...

I have been busy buying some more ‘excellent’ items, you know, the ones that drop through the letter box with broken parts or bits missing. The cab wind deflectors which are featured on a lot of Hornby’s newer models seem to be particular problem. Hens Teeth – Genuine Hornby cab wind deflectors Note that the spacing of the fixing spikes is greater than length of the protruding deflector When I spoke recently with the Customer Service Department at Hornby I was informed that the cab deflectors were not spare parts and that replacements are not available. I would have to make my own. Some I made earlier - homemade replacement deflectors I guess the orthodox approach is to buy plastic strip or to use clear plastic packaging. I must have been doing a lot of thinking because whilst shaving I suddenly realised that the clear plastic shield on my disposable razor looked about the right sort of thickness for a Hornby deflector. Wilkinson Disposable Razor ...

Matters have moved on since my recent Post detailing the arrival of the Diamond Jubilee Britannia (R3094). The donor – Hornby William Wordsworth R2563 Firstly a view of the model that was to provide the tender with the Late Crest. At the time of writing my last post there were issues with William Wordsworth. I would give it a new identity with a tender with an early emblem and at a suitable time I would sell it After recovering the white roof, R2563 Left R3094 Right   Perhaps I should have attempted to strip the white paint off the roof of Britannia R3094? My first attempts at repainting were not altogether successful. As the paint dried the rivet detail began to appear through the new paint as a pattern of white dots. I would start again. This time I over coated the whole of the white roof area with Humbrol matt black paint. When this had dried the central area was given a second coat of matt black and the sides above the windows were coated with Humbrol GWR green. Now near...

This week saw the arrival of Bachmann 32-451, otherwise known as D369. The ‘Bible’ in 1960 The introduction of the English Electric Type 4 took place back in 1958. This was some 56 years ago towards the end of my ‘train spotting’ career. More like class of sixty than class of forty. Despite being a diesel locomotive as opposed to steam, the Type 4s made a lasting impression and I bought my first Bachmann model, D325 (32-477) in May 2007. This was the ‘custard dip’ version and it was soon followed in the June by D210 (32-478) new from Hattons, a BR (LMR) engine. After some searching it was followed by D368 (32-475) with small yellow pane new from Scalerail, which seemed to fit better with my north east memories. The Bachmann Type 4s were super smooth and powerful runners compared to the split chassis steam outline models of the period and I was fortunate to find a fine example of D396 to make a set of four. I was never happy with the all yellow front of D325 and it was so...

I would say that the newly tooled Hornby Britannia is one of the best models of all time.   I would buy one of the Diamond Jubilee sets that have been recently advertised.   I already had a couple of ‘Britannias’ with the modified smoke deflectors.   With R3094 there was the opportunity to acquire a model fitted with the original ‘dangerous deflectors’ with handrails. Hornby R3094 Diamond Jubilee Train Pack What is in the train pack?   I can confirm that you get a model that is supposed to be representative of preserved 70000 ‘Britannia’ as running in 2012.   The locomotive comes with the latest overhead warning symbols, a speed recorder is fitted but the coupling rods are fluted.   There is no air compressor. The tender has an Early Emblem and the axle boxes are picked out in yellow to indicate roller bearings.   Oh yes, the model comes with the cab roof painted white as applied historically to engines hauling the British monarch.   At...

There seems to be some confusion as to what constitutes ‘etched plates’. My understanding is that they are made from thin metal sheet, usually copper or steel, which have been dipped in an acid solution. Printing an image of the name or number onto the metal plate ensures that only the exposed or non printed areas of the plate are etched by the acid, leaving the original letters or numbers standing out in relief. Some early Jackson Evans Etched Plates I have been fitting etched plates to my model engines for quite some time. Dapol 14xx with I think Kings X Plates The picture above of the Dapol 14xx illustrates clearly how the numbers on the etched metal plate stand proud from the background of the plate. In the early 1980s I used to buy Kings X plates - these came on one sheet of metal and required the use of nail scissors and files to cut them to shape. Cutting the ‘reverse’ curves beneath the curved name plate was always a challenge. Airfix Pendennis Cas...