Parkside Dundas Coach

I've had these coaches around for a while. They're a nice size and relatively easy to put together. I have built them pretty much as per the original kit. the one modification I made was to the bogie fixings. I literally screwed a bolt into the underside of the coach. It holds well and can be unscrewed for maintenance.

One strange point is that the far bogie has a brake wheel stanchion fited to the bogie itself. Unfortunately it is so close to the body of the coach that the bogie can't turn so well in one direction. It's not a problem for running on Mospick Halt. I just have to make sure which way round I put the coach on the track.

The door handles are not painted. I just used a gold pen that Jill normally uses for writing cards. It comes off after a while but is easily replaced. A coat of varnish would help the colour remain.

I have two more coaches just waiting for some people to go in them before the roof is put on.

Opening an account

Okay, it had to be done. I've got a website, I've just started on Facebook, now I really am going to have to have a blog. Spent Sunday morning, before the Grand Prix, at the Banbury show and chatted to Phil Parker for a while about a wide range of subjects and decided I really must get off my backside and start a blog.

What's the aim of this blog, well it's a shameless promotion of my modelling activities. With a following wind it will also be another spur to do more modelling, something very necessary with a full time job. I suspect it won't be completely railways related. With 'her indoors' having a doll's house there are sometimes modelling tasks there that might be worth reporting on.

So, what is my current modelling like. Strictly speaking I have 2 layouts on the go and 2 further ideas being experimented with.

• First, Chorminster is a bit of 3mm. It's just one board and was designed to trial 3mm modelling. A great scale but I confess to finding making a working chassis a tad difficult. Others appear to have mastered the art a bit easier. For myself it's clearly going to take longer
• Second, Mospick Halt was a quickie layout in OO9. To a large extent finished, but with 2 exhibition invites in the next 6 months I need to finish building some stock so expect a few articles soon.
• Third, I want to play with DCC. consequently I got myself an NCE PowerCab and a Bachmann Ivatt 2-6-0 and now I need somewhere to try them together :-)
• Fourth, I frittered away some dosh on a T gauge loop and trains. Watch this space for what my wife wants to do with it!
• Lastly I am the layout steward for Chertonwell, Oxford MRC's flagship N gauge layout.

There it is, everything carried out in a room 7ft by 5ft 6in. Did I say that small layouts tend to be the order of the day!