Hi,

Looking at the Graham Farish Diesel Locos we seem stuck between the Class 47/0  D1601 for around £152  or one of the LMS1000/1 twins which are just under £100, in Black or Green livery.

Interested to know what others think of these two diesels, is either any better than the other and why are the LMS ones so much cheaper  ?

TIA.


https://railsofsheffield.com/products/graham-farish-371-825e-class-47-0-d1601-br-green-small-yellow-panels-diesel-locomotive?_pos=113&_fid=0c2be8d97&_ss=c


https://railsofsheffield.com/products/lms-10001-br-lined-green-late-crest-diesel-locomotive?_pos=14&_fid=4ce70a8a8&_ss=c

Quote from: scottmitchell74 on January 25, 2026, 03:13:41 PMI'd love to know what that cost but don't want to be told to mind my own beeswax. 

And, I wish there was something like that near me.

I'm assuming you meant someone who builds baseboards?

If we just deal with the ones who do it for a living (and answer emails), there are several baseboard manufacturers in the UK who design in laser cut ply. I'm sure you could find a laser cutting service in Aus.

You get what you pay for, looks and quality wise. Five boards rather than three would have been potentially easier to carry but how often would I move them, and it added about £200 more, because of the additional materials. I could have cut the price a little using 6mm ply rather than 9mm, or cheaper ply rather than premium birch ply, but it was really the number of boards that made the biggest difference cost wise.

I looked at these three manufacturers before choosing:
White Rose https://www.whiterosemodelworks.co.uk/department/online-product-range/
Grainge and Hodder https://www.graingeandhodder.co.uk/shop
Model Railway Solutions https://www.modelrailwaysolutions.co.uk/collections/modular-baseboards

I costed up comparable baseboards and backscenes (which can also come in cheaper MDF)
Prices came in at between £400 - £700. What you see, including 6mm ply backscenes, all screws, alignment dowels and bolts, was ~ £500 plus £80 shipping. I chose MRS because their website was easiest to use to achieve custom sizes, i.e. sizes that fitted my room.

Some people swear by their preferred supplier. I didn't want a canopy but I wanted an attractive raw finish. And yes the mallet was used to interlock the ply because laser cut material can be a really snug fit.

The woodwork is possibly the bit I enjoy most. Laying and wiring points is probably the least enjoyable bit, and that's next!

Cheers
Bob G

 

Quote from: Bob G on January 20, 2026, 06:28:27 PMMy new retirement project - Baymouth Town and Baymouth Quay.

A Southern Region late 1960s-mid 70s pastiche of the south coast. Lots of worms - EMUs, DEMUs, WR DMUs and cross country services, SR locos on parcels, short cement trains (Tunnel cement, Southampton) and even short Boat Trains, WR locos on Yeoman aggregate traffic. Think anywhere between Weymouth and Littlehampton, but stealing ideas from Fareham (aggregate siding), Gosport (lifted quay lines), Crewkerne (station overbridge), Swanage (seaside town), Weymouth (quay), Lymington Harbour (quay), etc.

There is a main line to London, a coastway line to Brighton, and a diesel only line to the Quay. There is a bridge where the model railway line terminates, which historically would have gone down to another quay (think Gosport). This leaves it open for extension if I ever got a bigger room. Rationalisation means the main lines are bidirectional now (I didn't have room for a double track main line into the fiddle yard).

It's just down the line from Bishopstoke, my N gauge roundy roundy, which is somewhere near Eastleigh, and is mainly Era 5-6, plus Rule 1 era 7 and 8, whereas Baymouth is more fixed in Era 6-7.

Stage 1: Baseboards

The baseboards arrived today, from Model Railway Solutions in Poole. These are 9mm Premium Birch Ply, laser cut, plus backscenes, supplied with all fixtures, fittings and even glue.

These are so beautiful, I had to post these photos of the pristine parts. Don't worry, they will be assembled ASAP so they don't warp. I hope they go together well!

There are 3 baseboards: 5' x 2' plus 6' x 2' make the long length and then 5'10" x 2' make the L shaped fiddle yard and town quay.

The layout is DCC sound (so that I can learn all about DCC and DCC sound, which is 100% new to me). There is only one problem for you, my readers. It's in OO. But what I learn with this build, and hopefully from my new membership of Syston  MRC, will help me finish my N gauge project, which has somewhat stalled.

More photos of the build will follow, as these things cross between all scales.

Bob G

I'd love to know what that cost but don't want to be told to mind my own beeswax.   

And, I wish there was something like that near me.

Quote from: Newportnobby on January 25, 2026, 01:33:28 PM

Quote from: Bob G on January 25, 2026, 11:49:32 AMI can just about separate each board from the others to get underneath!

At least you don't have to stoop 

When Star Wars was at its height in the 1980s, I used to be called Luke Groundcrawler (amongst other less printable nicknames)

Quote from: Bob G on January 25, 2026, 11:49:32 AMI can just about separate each board from the others to get underneath!

At least you don't have to stoop 

Quote from: EtchedPixels on January 25, 2026, 12:58:22 PM

Quote from: cmason on January 25, 2026, 12:10:51 PMtennis racket ). I think I can lay thin strips of that within the underframes, in between the trusses. For other printed vehicles I have used Deluxe Materials liquid gravity but correct fitting of that on these vehicles is harder as there are no real cavities...

Be very careful with the glue if using anything lead based. Apart from needing to remove it to resell the item there's a nasty set of reactions between some glues (notably PVA) and lead based items that causes the stuff to expand.

I've seen a few too many models where lead and glue expanded and literally tore the model apart from the inside - even white metal boilers, or warped it.

Thanks - and noted.

Although this particular lead basically comes as a roll of "sticky tape" with its own backing glue.

On top of that in regard of selling - I cannot really see anyone ever wanting to buy the models that I have built myself....

Quote from: cmason on January 25, 2026, 12:10:51 PMtennis racket ). I think I can lay thin strips of that within the underframes, in between the trusses. For other printed vehicles I have used Deluxe Materials liquid gravity but correct fitting of that on these vehicles is harder as there are no real cavities...

Be very careful with the glue if using anything lead based. Apart from needing to remove it to resell the item there's a nasty set of reactions between some glues (notably PVA) and lead based items that causes the stuff to expand.

I've seen a few too many models where lead and glue expanded and literally tore the model apart from the inside - even white metal boilers, or warped it.

Further evidence, then, of domestic black holes of which I have writ elsewhere. Lost items always re-emerge from the black hole in exactly the place where they should be and have looked ten times before. Good that it has restored your faith in your fellow man, though.

Cheers,

Chris

Quote from: joe cassidy on January 25, 2026, 11:51:34 AMFor pipes I use the fake straw used in the packaging of certain types of cheese here in France.

These are thin-walled, about 5mm diameter, but very light so won't add much weight to the wagon.

Yes - for normal weight wagons plastic in one form or another is good however for these 3-D print jobbies I need more ballast.

Anyhoo, I actually had another idea and have just bought some sticky back lead of the sort sold in rolls to golfers and tennis players (used to adjust the balance of golf sticks and tennis racket ). I think I can lay thin strips of that within the underframes, in between the trusses. For other printed vehicles I have used Deluxe Materials liquid gravity but correct fitting of that on these vehicles is harder as there are no real cavities...

For pipes I use the fake straw used in the packaging of certain types of cheese here in France.

These are thin-walled, about 5mm diameter, but very light so won't add much weight to the wagon.