Sunday Variety

Go-Op Gone? Not Yet!!

NOT Co-Op but Go-Op

Remember the name?

The company was hot news a while back as it had won access rights to run trains between Weston-super-Mud ...

... Taunton and Swindon.

The plan is that Go-Op would be a Co-Op with "members" providing the cash and reaping the profits in the form of a huge "divi".

But it looks as if the profitable potential of the proposal has not propelled people into proffering sufficient pennies!

Here is what the company web site has to say.

Go-Op is not saying how much the company still needs.

Wikipedia reports a long list of proposals which might contribute to the unease of potential investors.

It would be sad to see this scheme die because it represents true innovation; the service would be the first bit of 'open access" that did not form a variant on existing inter-city operation.

But that is exactly why people do not want to risk their cash. But if you do have the odd million to spare, Go-Op would just love to hear from you.

Who Are Q R?

And does it make these?

Actually no. The letters stand for ...

... which, surprisingly, operates trains in Queensland, Australia. It once operated that gorgeous Beyer-Garratt steam loco illustrated  at the head of this article.

The steam loco is pictured at ...

... Rockhampton station, which now looks like this ...

... but once looked like this. 

Here is a full map of the current QR long distance network.

Brisbane is bottom right. Also of interest is the label "Tilt Train" which represents a service of, surprise, surprise, tilting trains.

They can go as fast as 100mph!

Wowsers!

In 1906 ...

... trains were somewhat slower.

A chum of Mrs fbb emigrated, with hubby, from the Isle of Wight to Cairns, at the northern extremity of the QR network.

The map provokes a further investigation into Q R - so a few more thoughts in tomorrow's  blog.

A1A A1A Eh?

Some of the model railway developments which fbb experienced in his youth were, for their time, exciting. In 1965, the Triang catalogue had this front cover painting.

It featured the first Triang "Rocket", later reintroduced and retooled in Hornby days. But up on the viaduct was Triang's first UK diesel.

The full sized version, later designated Class 31, was used for passenger and goods trains and appeared in a standard BR green, but with white stripes.

Locos we're built between 1957 and 1962.

The stripes did not stay white for very long.

One loco (here in model form) appeared in an experimental ochre livery ...

... an experiment not pursued. Equally experimental was a blue shade with stripes (also a model) ...

... which predated all over rail blue. It was, however, a brighter shade of blue.

Triang's model ...

... was considered the bees knees in 1965! fbb has such a model, given to him by Buffers model shop because "it wasn't working". But he bought new brushes for the motor and undertook a good clean of the commutator and it now runs well.

But its wheels are to Triang's old coarse scale and it doesn't run well on modern track. One day fbb will replace the wheels. (Really?)

Modern day modellers have a more detailed version from Accurascale ...

... at a much more detailed price.

From a distance you could not see the difference, but close up you can see why a simple-looking box shaped model is now expensive.

It's All On-Line No 257

Apparently, according to Wales On-line ...

The sign means "Pass Either Side" with the caveat that whichever side you "pass", you get to the same place. 

As is usual the author of the article could not be bothered to do his/her research properly. The sign is WRONG. In the UK the arrows are not that shape.

They look like this:

Pedantic old codgers unite!!

Furthermore, (Grumpy, grumpy!) Some local authorities install it incorrectly, meaning "traffic splits an goes in two different directions". WRONG!!

Here is the sign misused.

The right hand arrow points to a lane which will carry right hand turn traffic controlled by a traffic light phase. 

The left arrow is for straight ahead and left turning traffic.

There could be a very nasty ac cdent if you ploughed straight on after following the right hand arrow. 

In such cases the correct display is a white blank.

  Next QR blog : Monday 2nd March 

Saturday Variety

Helping Hornby’s  Horrors

Model Railway lovers were aghast at those losses. But in the corporate world dealings often involve sums of money that will scare the average bloke or bloke-ess beyond measure.

But if, domestically, you are a bit short of the readies, you can always sell something!

So Hornby have sold something.

£20 million should help a bit!

Easy peasy.

The snag comes when you have nothing left to sell and those who are bankrolling your struggling business want their money back!

There may be a few directorial fingers crossed in the Hornby boardroom! 

Hornby bought Scalextric in 1968; although Hornby then and Hornby now are very different beasts, corporately speaking.

Here, for the old people, are the Scalextric racing cars of 1957.

And today, things have changed somewhat.

Elderly Man Remembers

But not quite everything below!

Sheffield's last tram can on 8th October 1960 and fbb arrived in the city to pursue his studies just three years later. By then there was little to seen of the trams. A short section of reserved trackbed still lay unadopted on Abbeydale Road between Millhouses and Beauchief but, generally, the city was very quick to expunge tracked urban transport from history.

Here is the Harley Hotel at the bottom of Hounsfield Road.

It is still there today, but now trendy and called "The Harley",

In the old picture above you can just see the overhead which powered the trams up the hill to the University. Here you see it better.

,

Well actually you don't, because in the above shot track is still in situ but overhead has been 'recovered'. We will meet the premises on the right again in a jiffy.

Today's view is unrecognisable.

At the top of Hounsfield Road was a junction. Trams to Walkley went straight across Western Bank as below ...

... whilst trams for Crookes turned left. Because the pointwork in the overhead (called a 'frog' in tram-speak) was actuated for a left turn by the tram driver's notching up the power, trams would never be able to fork right to go to Walkley.

They needed all the power to climb the hill.

That's  why that man on the left has a little hut.  The frog had to be worked manually!

Here is the junction today, now with no exit to Western Bank.

Back to the old. 

fbb attended lectures in those terraced houses. By the time the picture below was taken, trams to Walkley had been withdrawn (see bollards far right) ...

... as the University had annexed Winter Street for its expansion. Here is a similar shot today. 

Following the former tracks to Walkley (right) ...

... we see what blocked the route for ever! fbb was part of the first cadre of students to "study" in that tower, now largely bereft of Uni teaching departments and replete with burgeoning admin offices.

If we cross the road and turn through 180 degrees we look back to the top of Hounsfieild Road.

Over there is the University bookshop, visited just once by fbb in his keen first year; and a greasy spoon caff (possibly known as Violet May's), cheaper than the Uni eateries and coffee emporia, thus very popular with the lucky few who could bag a seat.

Oddly, although there is now a wide walkway under the road, a crossing has re-appeared in recent years ...

... because those confounded students often crossed the busy Western Bank 'at grade', eschewing the diversion via ramps and colonised underpass, for the quick but death defying dash across four lanes of speeding traffic!

The bookshop and caff are long gone, but buses to Crookes still pass by whilst much diverted buses to Walkley now stop far beyond that tower.

Open Street Map shows the route today ...

... from the Harley (Hotel) bottom right to the (Arts) Tower top left, a microcosm ot the removal of trams and the domination of the ever expanding University over the last sixty years.

But as Welsh entrtainer Max Boyce was wont to say ...

... and fbb loudly echoes,

I Was There!

The Lego Play Area ...

... is already taking shape.

The "hut" will be repainted.

The wheels have been removed as has the black Lego underframe "plank". This now allows the bus to sit flat on the ground. Wheel arches are panelled over and cosmetic wheels will replace thise that came with the kit.

 Next Variety blog : Sunday 1st March 

Delightful Danish Delivery

 

Yesterday was a busy day with a glorious funeral at church followed by the somewhat less glorious eyeball check-up. Any funeral of a committed Christian is such a positive recognition of the strength and joy for the departed as he is welcomed into eternity. There is human sadness, of course, but Stan (aged 90+) has now moved from death to life!

The eyeballs have not deteriorated since the last check-up over six months ago which equates to two years of stability.

But the overall consequence is a weariness not conducive to detailed blog work.

But fbb has built his first ever Lego kit. It is of a red double deck front engine rear entrance bus, vaguely akin to those that once graced the streets of London Town.

The box contained two bags of Lego "bricks" plus an instruction booklet which wasn't even in English. It began with an instruction to sort the components into piles of the same colour.

The whole booklet was in pictures only, so easy for fbb to understand.

In theory!

Each stage of construction had a picture of the finished section, plus pictures of the parts needed.

Readers may remember Lego sets of yore which came as a pack of parts plus a booklet showing all the various models you could make with part of those parts.

But never no more!

Most Lego sets are now of one model, some simple (like the bus) ...

In theory!

... and some fiendishly complicated. Here is Hogwarts Castle at £409 ...

... and Gustave's Parisian excrescence ...

... at a modest £630!

fbb's birthday bus is available on-line at prices ranging from £6.79 to £11.99.

So let the construction begin. Here is stage 5 ...

... but fbb pressed on at a cracking pace.

... and was soon getting ready for the top deck. To make the model resemble some sort of bus, there were many pieces apparently specific to this one model. Below, a set of wheel arches ...

... and a radiator grille in two parts.

When fbb was just a little tot, pushing the pieces together was easy peasy. The consequence was that bits fell off, equally easy peasy!

Now it needs the power of a multi-ton steam hammer to get them to click firmly together!

See the flat red strip politely declining to adhere to the white advertising panel.

But after a significant morning chunk of effort, fbb was at the roof line.

There was a flat red two piece gap ...

... top deck offside front; but, alas and alack, only a right angled three piece flat to fill it.

There was no alternative but to rip bits off until the mistake was found.

Of course it was fbb's bludner! He had proceeded apace and not bothered with what he felt were trivial instructions.

They weren't and the old bloke got it wrong! A seven year old assembler might struggle likewise; but knowing the nous of the average seven year old, such a Lego builder would probably teach your bodging blogger a thing or two. 

And look at this model specific piece, four off!

They formed shaped corner panels for the roof.

But, after much perspiration and inadequate concentration, the bus was finished.

It matched the picture on the box perfectly ...

... BUT ...

... there were nine bits left over!

??????????

It's embarrassing to see an old man cry! 

Coming soon : more  Internet stuff!

  Next Variety blog : Saturday 28 Feb