Scalefour Forum

I agree some of these videos could be quite relaxing. I recall one in particular was very informative and instructional but the dialogue was so slow and monotone that I kept nodding off then having to rewind. The 'bastard file' was a term I first came across during the first year of my apprenticeshi...

We started selling these DVD's during my last few years C+L up to 2016. Very few actually sold and they were eventually given away by the then owner. My understanding is that we were allowed to sell existing stock but no further copies could be produced, which I assume was down to a copyright issue....

I remember our first television set was when I was about 4 so that would be 1957. I'm sure we weren't the first to have one. The picture was initially a 'snowstorm' then when it was tuned in properly the only programme on was horse racing, in black and white naturally. Fascinating when you switched ...

Would be even more impressive it was all plugged into a ceiling light fitting :idea: :shock: Ah! Those were the days. I can remember mother ironing with a bayonet plug connected into the light fitting and water running down the flex from the leaky roof. :shock: Obviously it could only be done in da...

Interesting! Wouldn't mind betting that with a quick clean up of the dirt it would all pass muster. The only criticism would be a lack of insulating sleeves on the live and neutral pins. This ensures that the circuit is broken before wandering fingers or foreign objects can get under the body and ma...

I seem to recall a story that in the early days of the Wales & West show at the Victoria Rooms in Bristol it was discovered that the building was supplied with mains at 110 volts. No idea how that was overcome in short order on the day. Can anyone remember that far back? We are probably talking ...

Incredible! And the usual response when you come across one of these is 'I know which end to disconnect first'.

Roy

A great shame as I'm sure Chris would already have put many man hours into preparations for this year's show. For myself it ruins my entertainment during set up on Friday afternoon and evening. As chief PAT tester I marvel at some of the electrical equipment offered up as good examples of safe kit. ...

How old are they? It was a known problem under the previous ownership when I was the track assembler. Track gauge regularly came out at around 18.75 but there wasn't the will to correct it. Whenever I raised concerns I was told that it was 'near enough' which might just about work with straight trac...

Pete

I probably have copies of those in my shed. I'll have a look over the weekend.

Roy

IIRC there was a link to Rocar in the old Comet coach kit catalogue including an address in Scotland. It was definitely on the website which no longer seems to be active. Does anyone have a copy of the catalogue squirrelled away somewhere. I may have one but I cannot get to it at the moment.

Roy

This problem only came to light when the rail was used to make flexitrack. We noticed that it would not lie down flat but we quickly ruled out a problem with the sleeper bases. It was initially thought that once the track was fixed down to a base material the problem would go away but the tendency o...

To the best of my recollections from working at C+L, all of the steel rail sold was that which was handed over to Pete in 2011. There was more than sufficient stock to meet demand over the following 5 - 6 years although much of it had started to corrode in the damp workshop. A batch of HiNi tended t...

Totally agree and well worth the temporary back pain incurred after 5 hours of driving. Poured with rain in both directions and the M4 was a bit of a mare going home due to those who don't know how to drive properly. Many thanks to all those who did the organising, entertaining and educating. :thumb...

Woe betide anyone who falls foul of my PAT tester! I have amassed a bumper crop of books and DVD's for our charity bookstall this year and I might throw in some odds and ends which I haven't been able to sell so far. Might be worth bringing a carrier bag. All proceeds (100%) go to Railway Children s...

Andrew

Has any thought been given as to how the assembly instructions will be available when the transition happens? To the best of my knowledge they are currently only available as downloads from the C+L website under the Knowledge Centre.

Roy

That would have been me! The undergauging problem was with the C+L thin sleeper P4 flexitrack and seemed to vary with each new batch of sleeper bases which arrived. Typically 18.75mm was not unusual towards the end of my involvement. I did discuss this with the new owner and he acknowledged that he ...

Paul, you really missed out there. Barrow Road was a haven for big chunky LMS and Standard locos in the heart of Western Region territory. As a teenager in the early sixties I lived about 6 inches (in 4mm scale) off the southern end of Barrow Road viaduct. I saw the decline including the influx of W...

I agree with Paul. I have used old Contiboard for shelving in garden sheds where it starts to delaminate within a few years due to temperature and humidity variations. So unless you are building in a properly heated room or are prepared to invest in some sort of climate control I would definitely av...

I'm starting to wonder about the role of the guard in all this. One of the guys I worked with in the eighties said he started work as a goods guard but apart from some obvious differences I have no idea how the role differed from that of passenger guard when it came to shunting and brake tests. Roy

John Palmer wrote: So I wonder how far the GA's instructions in this respect were observed in practice.

Reminds me of the expression I was taught in the carriage works at York - Rules for the obedience of fools and the guidance of wise men.

Wise men being supposedly plentiful at this time of year of course.

Roy

When I worked for Pete one of the problems with e-mails was the need to weed out those which related directly to orders and those which were general requests for information and unlikely to result in a sale of any kind.. Some people tended to treat us as an advice bureau which we were just not equip...

The drawings in these books seem to be reproduced in our scale and this is confirmed by measuring the wheelbase of the 8 foot bogies at 32mm. The wheels come out at around 14mm across the treads. Interestingly, wheel sizes are generally quoted on the drawings in volume 1 but not volume 4. I'm not su...

Terry The one we have at Midsomer Norton is from the 1936 batch (diagram 1550) and that has standard coach wheels of 3'7" diameter. I did find a quote saying that these vans were fitted with standard coach bogies. The drawings and photos in "An Illustrated History of Southern Wagons" ...

As a means of proving and demonstrating the principles of automation I think the scale and gauge is largely irrelevant. Probably better to be small and compact so it can all be seen within a narrow field of view. Think about how some DCC traders demonstrate their wares, usually with a very tightly c...