Author Archives: Andy

Slate wagon kit roundup

A quick look at the slate wagons kits available in 16mm/ft at the moment (Autumn 2021)… ‘uss_Raven74656’ on ebay – £8 – https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/194296426551 3D printed model of the steel slate wagon The Lineside hut – £9 – https://www.thelinesidehut.co.uk/quarry-slate-wagons.html Laser cut … Continue reading

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Lego Brackets

I got a new LEGO set recently. I love discovering new pieces. I go all “Ooh, I’ve never seen one of those before”. Brackets are particularly interesting because they give you options for building things “sideways” In this set, there … Continue reading

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Model Railway scales

Left to Right: 16mm/ft (1:19) Baguley-Drewry Diesel loco (Accucraft) O Gauge (1:32) Ruston (Triang Big-train) OO Gauge (1:76.2) Duchess of Sutherland N Gauge (1:148) 0-6-0 Steam loco (Fleischmann ?) more detail here: https://www.wis.co.uk/andy/16mm/scale-and-gauge.html

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My Commute Carbon Footprint

(A quick back-of-the-envelope calculation) I’d like to know how much CO2 I’m putting into the atmosphere from my commute. I recall that I fill up about twice a month, and the petrol tank usually takes about 40 litres each time. … Continue reading

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Vintage plastic toy train

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Cygwin and the unreadable files

I have a PC which has been upgraded from Windows 7 to Windows 10. At some point during one of the upgrades, some accounts have been “upgraded”. It all looks seamless until you take a look with Cygwin, which I … Continue reading

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A visitor to my line

My brother came to visit. He brought a loco, and thus it became the first visiting loco on my line This is a Regner Konrad, kit-built loco. It’s a geared, oscillating-cylinder loco. The revering lever is on top of the … Continue reading

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Steam, at last

I finally got a steam train running in my garden. My wife took these photos A short while later, my wonderful wife used this photo (below) for my birthday card.

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Progress on my railway — 17th May 2015

More good weather has meant more progress on the railway, which is excellent news. Actually, to tell the truth, there’s another garden project which should be commanding my attention, but it was such a sunny day that I had to … Continue reading

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10 years of ballasting experience

by Andy on behalf of SteamOil Today, we have a Special Guest appearance by “SteamOil”, owner of the Tryfon Vale Light Railway. He shares his experiences of how different ways of ballasting have fared over the life of his garden … Continue reading

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