Garden Rail July 2025

How many kinds of sweet steam engine run, in an English country garden? Mark Nixon will tell us of some that he knows, as he describes his line. 

We've a busy workbench this month: 

• Building a laser-cut kit for a 16mm scale WHR coach
• A removable viaduct
• 16mm scale Ruston 20DL ‘Susan’
• Gauge 1 tram engine for beginners
• Private owner 16mm scale covered van

There is the first, in-depth look at Garden Railway Specialists new NGG11 Garratt locomotive, as well as all the latest product news for modellers in larger scales. 

Available from all good newsagents, or online: https://www.world-of-railways.co.uk/ 

Warehouse Wednesday: 16 ton mineral wagon

OK, it's not actually a warehouse, but you can store coal in it. 

Spotting this 16t mineral wagon at Rothley station, I was taken by how battered the thing is. Sides bowing outwards, and the section above the end door being distinctly wobbly. 

Even with the somewhat over-restored paint job*, this is a wagon that has seen a lot of life. Trying to model all the dents and dings would be a nightmare, and incredibly difficult to get looking right. I've seen people's attempts to miniaturise the wobbly sides of a diesel locomotive, and that looks odd to my eye. 

Maybe some things simply can't be modelled? 

*no criticism intended for the excellent work of the Great Central Windcutter team. People restoring the rolling stock that actually made the railways work. 

 

The future, is orange

 

I've spent a lot of time pondering my Sand Scorcher's final colour. The only thing I was certain of, was that I wouldn't be using the colourscheme on the box lid. For a start, it's very common, but more importantly, I race in orange. And I like orange cars. 

After much perusing through Instagram, I found the photo above. This is a good-looking paint job. Lots of life, and very much not the same as Tamiya's box art. 

Unlike more modern Tamiya kits, the Sand Scorcher body, is a single-piece massive moulding, in white plastic. So, unlike those made in clear plastic (lexican?) you paint it the same way as any other plastic kit. None of this working inside out. 

On RMweb, several people have discovered that Halford's has changed their paint supplier, and the new cans are a bit rubbish. They also found that the original range, had moved to The Range shops - so that's where I headed for paint. 

After much deliberation, I've gone for Ford Carnival Red (913A). A strong, deep orange colour that on the model, looks great. It sprays really well too. Wings have been masked to keep them white - I'll apply some vinyls later, and I don't want the orange, showing through. I have used most of the 150ml can on this job, and the shop only had one of them, so let's hope I finish all the ancileries too!

Time to fit the wheels

 

Fitting the Sand Scorcher wheels should be simple. Put them on the stub axle, do up a retaining nut, and job done. 

At the back, that's how things works. Yes, you have to juggle a metal hub in place, but this doesn't quite require three hands. 

At the front, on when the first wheel, and when I spun it, it was catching. 

Investigation revealed that I'd used the wrong bolts when assembling the wheels, and the once I'd fitted were just long enough to stick out of the back of the hub, and catch on the steering arms. No problem, just a bit of grumbling at my own stupidity, and these were changed for fractionally shorter ones, that don't quite reach the end of the nut now. 

But this still didn't solve the problem entirely. Something was still catching. Running the wheel inside out (wheel front facing into the car) fixed it, but that would just look odd. Moving the wheel around a little, allowing a little slack on the axle sorted it, but that's not an engineering solution. A 2mm thick plastic washer is though, in my mind at least, so I made some up, and not everything is tightened up as it should be. 

Obviously, I'm worried I've done something wrong. Tamiya don't make this sort of mistake, do they? 

Anyway, the car is now up on its wheels, and has been test run up and down our hall. Happy days! 

Cars in the Spa 2025

The weather might have been a bit mixed - although it stayed dry - but there was an excellent turnout for the classic car show held by the Rotary Club, in the middle of Leamington. Over 300 vehicles were reputed to be on show for this fantastic, free event. 

I wandered around taking photos, and enjoying the fruits of other people's labours. 

At an event like this, it's difficult to pick a favourite. OK, as a VeeDub fan, I'm a little biased toward the products of Wolfsburg, and there were a few to enjoy, but I'm not blinkered enough to ignore all the rest. 

Numbers-wise, I think the best-represented car had to be the E-Type Jaguar. I don't know if it's the location, not far from Jag's Coventry factories, or that if you've spent that much money on a car, you want to get out and show it off. I still think they are stunning, but decided to stick with other vehicles for my photos. 

If I am pushed to pick one car, I rather like this Morgan three-wheeler.  

Although I suspect it's challenging to drive, and not exactly practical!

But then, this is a hobby. As long as you mostly (struggling to free bolts off, or discovering rust excepted) enjoy it, that's all that matters!

My full set of photos is on Flickr. Which one is your favourite?