LNER A4 info needed.

Colm

This is you and me both Though I've got the Hornby Golden Plover version with Pullmans

I'm not too bothered about being prototypical when it comes to track layout but have you considered how large you want your layout???

Doncaster and Newark spring to mind as useful places Donnie for a big one and Newark for a smaller one though with more than one company running tracks

-- Merry Christmas

From Gray The Madcaravanner from Chesterfield

You don't have to be mad but it helps

Hi Gray,

I'll have a space of about 20' x 7' with a wall on one long and two short sides, when the workshop actually gets it's roof that is. LOL. I wanted a location with some decent changes of level out in the countryside, perhaps just outside london? But reading some of the posts here maybe I should think about nearer to the city, perhaps Hanwell or Southall? Although since I'm in Ireland I'm not sure if that's the same line? And of course, I want to set the whole thing in the late 30's when the A4's first ran.

Don't suppose you know of anywhere on the net I could get a decent look at the LNER route?

Colm

In article , CJ writes

Right Colm, can you track down Model Railway Journal number 121. It has a model of Stoke summit which shows what can be produced in 30ft by 10ft: you will need to scale down but it might give you ideas. But if you need a station, you could consider Welwyn North which is on a restricted site. You might wish to "relocate" it a bit further north, between the two tunnels. As a bonus, a kit has been produced of the Welwyn North station building.

Stock - oh dear. Well there are the Hornby Pullmans. Otherwise Hornby produce a very few Gresleys but I believe they are not much cop. Bachmann produce Thompson stock, but they will be out of period for your A4 (it would have lost it's skirts). Folks, I'm struggling (well I do model the Southern Railway in 7mm) but are there 4mm Gresleys from Mailcoach or do Comet produce etched overlays? Someone else help Colm, please!

Hornby Do a set "The Queen of Scots" which is A4 and three Pullmans Cars in Earlyish BR Guise

Will need a bit of work for really detailed but out of the box runs OK EXCEPT don't use full power Even with a train of six coaches and a long curve-flexible track ( IF Hornby did one it would be 5th radius) it will overturn

-- Regards Gray

snipped-for-privacy@madcaravanner.uk

Hornby have done the same Gresley 57ft teak 1st/3rd composite, brake composite and sleeping car for many years (also in BR Blood&custard). IIRC I read on here that they plan to produce upgraded versions (as with the Pullmans) in 2004, so it might be worth waiting a while.

...

Whilst I still haven't finished the correct project - "The Dormouse Line Mk2" (now in it's 4th incarnation) I'm thinking about my next project - for when I get my hands on the garage.

One of the ideas I was toying with was something based on Orpington in the early 50s or thereabouts. Even in it's modern state you can get a pretty good idea of what it must have been like. Can you recommend any good reading matter, trackplans, photos, traffic etc.?

Cheers,

Chris

Thanks for all the help and I will try to track down that journal but since I'm in Ireland it could be difficult. Is it a US or UK publication?

And I have seen the teak coaches produced by Hornby but didn't know if they were suitable for the "Golden Eagle". I have bought a set of the blood and custard ones on ebay because I was told by the local model shop that they were the ones for that particular engine but it looks like he was just trying to flog the ones he had LOL! Anyway, it doesn't matter as they were about 1/4 of what he was asking for his. Are these the same mouldings as the teak ones and, if so, is it possible to get replacement decals so that I could repaint them in a teak effect? If not, I will probably wait and see what 2004 brings....

Colm

I believe they are the same mouldings, and Fox does the transfers, but they are not cheap. With the cost and the work of painting and lining out, I would be inclined to either look for some second-hand teak ones or wait for the new ones.

With my teak ones I have painted the interiors, replaced the white printed interior handrails with 20 thou brass wire (the white comes off with isopropyl alcohol), and fitted Keen end plates and Kadee couplers.

Colm been doing a little research between work and found this webring you could started here and go round

-- Merry Christmas

From Gray The Madcaravanner from Chesterfield

You don't have to be mad but it helps

Colm,

If, as I'm assuming, you have the green liveried Golden Eagle, You'd be correct in running it with Gresley teak finished coaches.

In the green livery, the enigine probably wouldn't have hauled any named services. Furthermore, it carried the green livery from construction on 22/12/36 untill 29/1/1938 when it was painted blue.

also, I think that I'm right in saying that this was before the named service boards on coaches appeared anyway.

I have a set of the hornby teaks from about 1980, they seem to be rather lighter in colour than photographs I've seen, or indeed models of the same coaches by any other modellers.

You can pick up a rake of these cheaply on ebay.

Craig

I tried spraying mine with clear varnish (Krylon Crystal Clear) to give a glossier effect, but it darkened the colour somewhat and covered the woodgrain "detail" moulded into the plastic. It didn't come out very glossy, either. However, the darker colour is probably more realistic.

I have also painted the interiors, removed the white printed interior handrails with IPA and installed 0.5mm brass wire rails.

I don't think I'd repaint any of my rtr stock, but I'm looking into articulated coach sets (kits) recently to run with my N2 Tank.

From my games workshop painting background I'll probably pain these a light tan then wash with a mixture of brown / orange ink.....

unfortunately this tends to look dramatic rather than realistic!

Furthermore, I'd loose the detail, unless I scratched some pattern into the sides. If I did this then the ink would pick out this detail.........though I don't know how good this would turn out to be.

I've picked out a few sites that may be of interest, regarding gresley coaches:

Ian Kirk coach kits portray a wide range of LNER stock, particularly delving into the articualted coach sets which Gresley pioneered.

Craig

Thanks for the links Craig, It's amazing how hard it is to find decent pics of the real coaches on the net.

Colm

Colm,

There is a register of preserved rolling stock that was put together:

Vintage Carriages Trust

search for 'lner' or 'gresley'

It's the best picture resource I've found thus far on lner coaches.

Craig

It does look as if (as rumoured) Hornby are producing upgraded gresley stock this year. See

suppose it could be another re-release, but looks promising!

Justin

"Justin Colson" wrote

It was never a rumour - I saw advance art work some weeks ago.

John.

I notice that there is no "Full brake" among the five coaches on the site.

I'm disapointed by that as it appears frequently in photographs - next to the engine and there are quite a number in preservation.

for example:

Craig

The website shows only photos of prototypes, so I guess they don't even have pre-production models of the Gresleys.

It looks as though the LMS compo and brake coaches will be only minor upgrades of exisiting ones, which are based on the Dublo tinplate ones!