Monday Variety

Looking at Lumo

Lumo has made a name for itself as a low cost inter city operator between King's Cross and Edinburgh. From the late May tinetable change, we were told, trains would be extended to Glasgow.

Two trains arrive in Glasgow early evening but only one returns later in the evening.

Arriving back in London at midnight does not seem an attractive proposition! It may be cheap, but becomes very expensive if you need an overnight stay before completing your journey.

That is the trouble with these low cost companies. They are absolutely fine if you can travel when they want you to.

Also on-line is the new Stirling to Euston timetable.

Calls at Larbert, Greenfaulds'(for Cumbernauld) and Whifflet will all be useful for folk from areas to the east of Glasgow.

But the web site seems to back-track on what is actually running (none of it at the moment) and when the service will start. The website does list several journeys that will not start until near the end of July.

There is little point in publishing times of the trains are not running.

Neither is it clear what rolling stock you will get for your money. It won't look like this, however.

Remember when you could squeeze you face out of those opening carriage windows and spot what was coming in the opposite direction. Armed with that generic information a skilled loco spotter could just spot the number for his Ian Allan "Combine" book as the train roared past!

At least Lumo will have air-con!

Lumo Look-Alike

The above train is run by Dutch low cost operator GoVolta.

It has recently started services from Amsterdam to Berlin and from Amsterdam to Hamburg.

Don't look for high frequency; indeed, don't look for frequency at all! Each service currently operates three days a week!

The company promises a once daily service later in the year with Amsterdam to Paris to follow.

It's timetables are totally secret. At least, fbb has not found one yet. Presumably you only get times when you book! 

There are web sites in Dutch ...

... and German, with the latter changing to English when you open it.

There has been a launch ...

.. and pictures are available of the carriages, outside ...

... and in.

Opening windows? And more room in 'Comfort' class.

An NS compatible loco will haul the train in the Netherlands, replaced by a DB suitable loco at the border. These machines will come from 'spot hire' companies.

The web site does admit that the trains will be slower than the current DB services on similar routes - due to a speed restriction on the old coaches which are from Belgian Railways!

The ambiance looks somewhat tired even if the outside is pretty.

Peachy's Batty?

No, that is not an adverse comment on the sanity of Peachy, whom we met yesterday. It refers to his latest model railway in the new TT120 scale.

It's  official name is Batty Moss, but he calls it, simply, Batty; so it really is "Peachy's Batty"!

Wikipedia, which knows everything almost to a divine level of omniscience, tells fbb that Batty Moss is an alternative name given to Ribblehead Viaduct on the Settle and Carlisle line.

But Ordnance Survey knows nothing of such a name.

Some maps offer Batty Green ...

... and areas of Shake Holes. 

No, neither did fbb!

They occur when areas of top soil etc are washed through gaps in the rock into water courses below. They are different from sink holes, apparently!

Anyway here is Ribblehead Viaduct for real ...

... and here it is with a steam special crossing.

Here it is photographed from Peachy's private Gyrocopter.

Big, innit?

And fbb never knew that the viaduct had been made single track in 1984.

Peachy's Batty is also single track and far from being finished.

It is a "representation" and not built to exact scale. Compare the model with the steam train picture!

Or here us a Northern two car diesel unit for real ...

... and Batty Peachy's  Heljan 'Bubble Car" on his model.

Peachy's first name is Chris, he says so in his video.

The interwebnet (from whom no secrets are hid!) reveals that he is really Chris Hobbs and is a very good modeller - one of those that makes fbb weep at his own inability.

Thanks for your helpful and entertaining YouTubings, Chris, Peachy or Mr Hobbs!

=====================

Yesterday's picture ...

... showed Jesus arriving in the Temple after his Palm Sunday parade. The missing words could be either ...

DOVES

or

BIRDS

If you wanted to offer a sacrifice, you had to buy an official dove at a much inflated price. This was ostensibly to ensure,that the bird-to-be-excised was pure enough for God. It was a rip-off and had no basis in Biblical teaching.

Likewise the collecting box. 

MONEY

or

COINS

Ordinary specie was not good enough for the Temple - it might be "unclean", so you changed your cash into official Temple coinage. Rip-off the second!

Jesus was right to condemn this corruption of Bible Faith. As the Old Testament tells us, what God hates is religion.

What God loves is a repentant soul.

But "the authorities" did not like his arrogant attack on their profitable and 'essential' enterprises!

Tomorrow's Puzzle

Find the missing item.

≈≈≈====================

  Next 'bus replacement' blog : Tues 31 Mar 

Sunday Variety

Crisis In The Model Railway Industry

The above picture shows a selection of models of UK diesel prototypes retailed by the company Heljan. The company is based in Denmark, at Rebslagervej, Somderso, Copemhagen. And Google maps takes you to its "factory".

"Factory" is in quotes because very few model railway "manufacturers" make anything. Mostly models are made in China. A recent "Facebook" visit to the "factory" showed no pictures of production and packing!

Heljan used to make plastic kits ...

... road vehicles ...

... and some Danish (?) locos and rolling stock. But their catalogue is now mostly UK models including a very recent entry into the TT120 market.

Then there is Accurascale, a "manufacturer" of short-run OO models, notably locomotives ...

... but with a good range of goods and passenger stock as well.

fbb does not have their tank wagon in his now incomplete collection, because they are only sold in packs of THREE. fbb will NOT be persuaded to buy three when he only wants one!

Accirascale give their business address at 71-75 Shelton Street, Covent Garden, London.

Looks very posh although it is a back street near Drury Lane. The two directors of the company give the same address.

fbb doubts you would find them at their desks - in fact he doubts whether you would find anything there.

But, in a surprise announcement ...

... Accutascale has taken over Heljan!

There is some sense in this. Both companies "manufacture" lots of locomotives and a small barrage of rolling stock, but folk are not happy at all.

The grief is caused by the fact that Heljan products will, in future, only be available from their new web site! To rub salt into various wounds, any pre-orders of Heljan products from model shops have been cancelled. Only on-line orders are on offer.

Modellers are unhappy and model shop owners are VERY unhappy.

Peachy 120, a keen YouTuber actively promoting TT120 (who works for retailer TMC),  is certainly miffed. He "celebrated" the news on-line by drinking  a substantial tot of whisky and smoking a cigar.

Sams Trains (he is universally critical of Heljan products) implies goodbye to Heljan ...

... but doesn't seem to be aware that the Danish company will still exist.

But modellers can expect big changes.

By selling direct, Heljan (and possiibly Accirascale in the future) can either make more money without the need to give the retailers a margin; OR they can sell cheaper!

But, if this direct selling trend continues, there will be no retailers.

Would you buy an expensive OO gauge model locomotive from a back street in Covent Garden with no obvious contact with a real person?

Hmmmm?

Puzzle Picture

The mysterious vehicles in the distance are Derby Corporation trolleybuses, but the artist has forgotten the wiring under the bridge itself. fbb will redress that balance!

Derby Friargate Station was originally operated by the Great Northern Railway on a branch from Nottingham Victoria, as seen below in BR days with an excursion special.

The bridge still stands ...

... but much of the line is now a footpath and cycleway.

Here is a map of the line.

You can see, watching from you chartered helicopter, where Friargate station was - but not much else.

Please note - this item on Friargate was written  BEFORE today's news of an 'incident' on the same road.

Watford By-Pass Mystery

fbb was struggling to identify this junction on the Watford by-pass. But eventually he came across two vital facts.

The by-pass was built in the 1920s, so it would be reasonable to expect things to be more built up today.

Secondly, fbb was able to identify that stretch of water as Aldenham reservoir, slightly clearer in the aerial view below.

Of course, Aldenham is well known as the site of London Transport's huge bus maintenance depot ...

... closed in 1986. The works just peeps in at the bottom right of the aerial view below.

The site was to have been the depot for the extension of the Underground line to Bushey Heath.

So here is todays map.

The former Watford by-pass is now re-purposed as the A41: the A411 crosses the end of the reservoir and Aldenham Works has also been repurposed and includes a 'hotel" bottom centre.

The A41 has been joined by the M1 at this point and the former squareabout is now round!

But at l;east fbb found it!

==========================

The picture is missing. ...

... the word ...

PALM

... 'cos today is Palm Sunday in the traditional Christian calendar. The live action 'picture' prepared by and acted out by Jesus, his disciples and hangers on who liked a good parade, was of a King coming in peace to claim his throne.

The leaves were thrown on the path, as were cloaks as a sign of welcome, commitment and obeissance to the peoples' Lord and Master.

Then, less than a week later, the authorities called for, and engineered, his death on a cross. The people chose a terrorist, Barabbas, to be released!

Which was the bigger surprise?

It gets worse.

A King coming in peace?

Gentle Jesus, meek and mild?

Apparently not!

Choose the appropriate missing words.

=======================

  Next Variety blog : Monday 30 March