A REVIEW BY MARK THATCHER
Click the logo to read a full review on the new range of laser cut VoR matchboard coaches from IP Engineering.
www.ipengineering.co.uk
DLR News Update - The DLR has aquired new Rolling Stock.
August 2008
By Mark Thatcher
Now the line has been officially opened and passenger numbers are reaching saturation point the Management of the Dovecote Light Railway have entered into discussions with the well-known Glendale Junction Engineering Company to acquire two new rakes of carriages to keep up with customer demand.
"is it economic to build your own kits from scratch anymore"
The first is a rake of four “just released” ready-to-run Isle of Man carriages from Accucraft. These highly detailed models feature excellent moulded & pre-painted bodies with detailed running gear and include metal wheelsets for both 32mm and 45mm gauge – the 45mm ones are fitted when the model comes out of the box. They are available in two versions, and standard class carriage and a guards brake – with 4 different running numbers for each. At around £70.00 each they are excellent value for money, and the Accucraft Baguely Drewery radio-controlled battery loco we have pulls them with ease. This is handy as they come pre-fitted with the chopper coupling as do all Accucraft’s locos carriages and wagons. With prices as keen as this, thanks to the low costs of Far East manufacturing, one has to really ask the question, is it economic to build your own kits from scratch anymore, given the costs of adding couplings, buffers, vac hoses, wheelsets, and all the other embellishments which comes as standard on this models but often are not included in other kits.
"Wood generally looks better"
Well, it probably is still worthwhile doing so, as the second rake of carriages is also the newly released Vale of Rheidol rolling stock from IP Engineering. And these are very comprehensive kits. You can choose from the later metal flush-sided carriages and guards van (although these are wooden kits), or the older matchboard rake as I did. Wood generally looks better representing wood than metal, and thanks to IP Engineering’s new laser cutting technology all the individual slats are picked out with perfection.
"just add a couple of coats of Colron wood dye"
So in effect you get the completed sides and ends, all with this marvellous laser cut detail, which you can either put together as is, or as I did, just add a couple of coats of Colron wood dye and then lightly varnish. These kits are very comprehensive too, and include buffers, white metal bogies, which need to be built up, and wheelsets. The only mods I made was to replace IP’s quite small centre buffers with sprung buffers, vac pipes with flexible hoses and safety chains as per the prototype, from Brandbright Limited.
"this is not quite as detailed as the Resin GRS kit"
The three variants are, the all-third bogie coach & open ‘summer’ coach, competitively priced at £74.95 each and the Guards Brake priced at just £34.95. OK, this is not quite as detailed as the Resin GRS kit of the same brake van, but by the time you have bought all the extras for the latter, you are looking at the best part of £90.00. As for the build, these kits were acquired last Saturday and negotiating overtime with the DLR Engineering Workshop they were on the line and test running on Monday!
"bought for the princely sum of £25.00"
Finally a new signal box has been requested to be sited at Tramways, lest the signalling staff should have to hop a train between here an Dovecote station or walk out of hours – God forbid! This was bought for the princely sum of £25.00 as a pre-built model and is currently undergoing an internal fit-out and a re-roof and re-paint.
To Read about the signal box click here.