I'm off to sunny Donny today, for The Festival of British Railway Modelling.
I'll be loitering on the World of Railways stand most of the time, with a few old projects on a table to talk about.
Please drop in for a chat. If you want to say something nice about my Dad, then that's lovely, but not too much. While I'm not china, and handling it very well (I think), I'm there to talk about model railways and making things.
And that is what I like to do.
Looking forward to seeing you at the show!
On Wednesday night, my dad, Brian Parker, passed away peacefully.
It's very difficult to know what to write in this blog post. He was my father, friend, helper and the person, who more than anyone else, made me who I am today (well, it had to be someone's fault).
Some of my earliest memories are of him building a balsa and tissue aeroplane. He would also help me with my more complicated Lego - there is a photo somewhere of him putting together an oil rig I'd received for Christmas.
Dad supplied me with my first train - a Tri-ang 3F he'd repainted into maroon with a golden dome. He didn't think I'd like a plain black engine! Sadly, in a fit of realism, I repainted it black again years later.
I'd always been a kid who enjoyed making things, and one day, he presented me with a bag of balswood offcuts, a knife, and some glue. And that was it, I was allowed to get on with it, hacking away at the wood. The idea was that I would learn about sharp knives, and to be fair, I still have a full complement of fingers.
There were also many plastic kits from his stash that I was allowed to build, not always brilliantly, but I learned a lot in the process. Some of those have become collectables, but this didn't bother him. I was taught that plastic kits were for building.
Dad had an interest in aircraft, and assisted at the local air cadets. Somehow, this involved us in visiting an air museum, where I saw a Sunderland Flying Boat. I was smitten by this, and so a few months later, I came downstairs to find he had assembled and painted an Airfix model. Sadly, this didn't survive, but I still have a couple of figures from it. I've promised myself that I will one day build another, and include these people in it.
Years later, he accompanied me to the Leamington & Warwick MRS every Thursday evening. Trains were my thing, but he was happy to come along and help out. On our first night, he saw track being made using SMP parts. "I'll never be able to do that.", he said. Three layouts later, he seemed to have the hang of it.
Of course, we exhibited layouts together for many years. Dad never learned to drive, so this side fell to me, but he was always happy with his supporting role. I made the rolling stock, he, the buildings and boats. We trekked up and down the country with Melbridge, Flockburgh and Hellingly and really enjoyed ourselves.
We also visited a lot of shows. Much of this was by train, and we enjoyed many lovely days out.
Back at the L&WMRS, he took on organising the annual show for several years, successful events that helped boost club funds, leading to the success the club undoubtedly is now - something Brian was always very proud of.
There is so much I should write, and maybe I'll continue with a few stories in the future, but right now, I'm not in the best place to put together a complete history.
Suffice to say, I'm going to miss my Dad. Of course, like any good modeller, he has bequeathed a pile of unbuilt kits, and half finished project to add to my own collection.
Thanks for everything Dad.
Note: There will be a brief hiatus in blogging for a few days.
To be fair, I bought a replacement some time ago, and this has just been kicking around on a shelf and gradually degrading. The foam has gone brittle, and bits keep falling off. As you can see, it's more pancake than U-shape. It just goes to show that some things simply fall apart over time.
And before someone shouts "inbuilt obselecance" - I think that well over a decade (possibly two) of use isn't bad for a foam cradle. I know, in the old days, we had cradles made from granite...
Tidying up on my computer, I found this photo of a tunnel mouth on the Heath Park Miniature Railways and Tramway in Cardiff, operated by the Cardiff Model Engineering Society.
I was there to shoot a OO gauge layout, but couldn't resist a stroll around the very attractive Heath Park site. During the sunny months, the group operate regular trains around the 5 and 7 1/4 inch tracks.
We are giving away the Planet diesel I have been building in recent issues of Garden Rail, to someone who has bought advanced tickets to the April show.
Since I was in the studio, I recruited Steven to help me make a quick video of the little beast. And for this, I needed some track. We have some 5ft lengths of LGB, but these are costly and a pain to move around. Instead, I dug out some of the Playmobil plastic track I bought on impulse at the Llangollen show a year ago.
This stuff is lovely and chunky, comes in 268mm lengths (no idea why) and clips together. For more permanent setups, there are some clips that fit in the square holes at the ends, to really hold things together. For my purposes, the simple clipping seems pretty solid.
I have straights and curves, plus four points. Again, nice and chunky, with good, positive motion when you twist the knob beside the switchblades.
In the video, the little shunter ran happily along it. Making it ideal for temporary lines. No steam though, the plastic wouldn't take kindly to dropped hot fluids!
