Bachmann CLASS 108 DMU

Weekday stock arrived today thanks to a Lottery grant. Pix Valley seems to get quite a lot of hand outs.

Stripping the trailer car first. A fairly straightforward process using strips of card to slip over the lugs on the sides. Then its one screw to remove the cab end bogie revealing access to the last fixing screw. Securing the chip with a sticky pad carefully route the wires to the socket. The power car is the same process however there is a ledge to place the chip on the motor housing. In my case there was no need to reprogram the trailer car chip for directional lighting. That’s it job done.

Dapol J94 v DJ Models J94

Dapol slow running is superb using a Hatton’s 10 quid chip However after an hour of running in on the rolling road fitting the recommended chip the DJ models J94 ran terrible, juddering and stopping on corners. I think the root cause is the lack of side play on the driving wheels together with the narrow flanged wheels. Needless to say after along wait for this loco I am gutted.  On the plus side the mouldings are crisp and finish and lettering first class let down by a poor performing mechanism. So it’s on it way back to Hatton’s for a refund.
I may be unlucky and got a "Friday" job it will be interesting to see if this is a one off or a trend! 

Keeping fit.

Ok we all would like to shed those few extra pounds, so I came up with this cunning plan! Let’s take a camera and walk around Pix Valley railway. One must take care not to trespass on the railway with this thought in mind I set off on my trek.

First a wander though the empty MPD shed

lights are on but no one is at home 

Outside once more facing the diesel storage tank

still nobody about 

Ah perhaps they are supervising the departure of the old 4F 

onward past the old pillbox

What no kids around the ice cream van most strange

Down the main road past Lofty Rise

Along Rushmoor platform, what does the sign say? 

Across the tracks to get a better look it the Gronk.

Walking down the sleepers towards Arlesworth I spot Tornado
Very surreal I covered 7 miles and never saw another person and never lost a pound in weight!