Testing the Mayflower

First job: Clean the battery compartment terminals in the very 80s looking handset. Drop some new AA's into this and the holder under the loco. Swithc on, enjoy the lights coming on, and beeping noise. Waggle the sticks and be pleased all appears well. 

Off down to the garage for some gas and water. Then:

Phil is a very happy boy. The loco lights easily and steams well. Maybe the O-ring under the safety valve could do with replacement, and I'm not sure how much use the presure gauge is, but this is a very, very nice model. 

Speed control is good, it will run at a very modest pace, unlike many chuffers at shows as far as I can tell. Even on a short length of track, it's controlable. When warm, the burner can be turned to silent. 

Next, I need to find a track to run it on properly. Ideally a 45mm gauge one so I can put a train behind it using those LGB couplings. On this list are some replacement buffer beams with centre buffers, or even choppers. 

This loco is a keeper.

Merlin Mayflower

I'm not a steam man. I'm really not. Cheap battery electric propulsion suits me fine for the garden. I'm even looking at converting some of the track power locos to battery. 

So how come I own 4 1/2 steam locos?*

The latest addition to the fleet was spotted on the Anoraks Anonymous stand at Stafford. Sitting right at the back, on a shelf was a very attractive black steam loco. The price, £625, was just as nice to look at. I wasn't planning to drop a significant amount of cash at the event on anything, but I felt this was a bargain, I'm also nosey (I have the name), and so asked to take a look. 

Oily. That was my first impression. The whole model was greasy. There was a gentle chuff when I (easily) turned the wheels too, which is a good thing. There were some instructions that said it was a Merlin - and I wondered how much pain a relatively early steam model would be. Years of reading Throwback Modeller had made me wonder if a vintage loco would be interesting to own.

I handed the model back, cleaned my hands and went off to look at other things. But it stayed in my mind all day. 

Around 4pm, the stand was looking a bit emptier, but the loco was still there. I took another look. It was still nice. I took a deep breath and handed over my credit card. 

Fate smiled on me, and the box the loco and it's radio control unit were packed in, perfectly fitted my recently aquired, and free, Staffordshire Railway Building Society bag. Was this a sign? 

To be fair, I know the AA people a little and we agreed that I was probably the safest person to seel this to. If there was a problem, I wasn't likely to be on the 'phone shouting. I know enough people who can tinker and fix things, with a bit of luck.

Back home and I sent out a couple of e-mails, and Tag quickly responded that this was a Mayflower, a loco he felt was the best of the Merlin range. 

Google brough up a bit more information, including someone who had bought a second-hand example and had a bit of a nightmare dealing with niggling problems. Generally though, the limited feedback was good, although I had to hope my model had a copper boiler, not the brass of earlier examples. Since the paperwork suggests this loco dates from 1992 (30 years old!) I was hopeful. As it turned out, talking to Ian Pearse (who designed the model), all Mayflowers were fitted with copper, but some earlier Merlins had brass, and you need to be careful what you leave in there. 

So, I have a very nice loco. I paid a bargain price for it - suggestions are that I could nearly double my money just by selling. The bit question is, would it work? 

*The 1/2 being a part assembled Peckett being built in Garden Rail.

Stafford 2022

First show visited as a punter, for longer than I can remember, and I'm pleased to say that Stafford at its new time of year, and in it's new hall was as good as ever. 

OK, they had booked the same number of exhibits as in the past, but in a bigger hall they were well spaced out. This is a typical first year in a new venue problem and will be solved in the future by adding more exhibits, or at least this is what I'm told the plan is. 

Before heading to a show, I usually work out with Andy if there is anything it would be worth pointing a camera at. The answer was yes, but we'd already featured many of the layouts in the past - that's how high the quality was. 

Andy bagged a shoot with "Copper Wort", and I was jealous as it's a stunning roundy-roundy based in a brewery. The small circular layout format is one I'd considered for the never (yet) built follow up to "Melbridge Dock". The idea works really well, especially with the high level of detail. It's definitly the layout I'd like to build from the event.

I didn't bag that many photos on my phone as I was too busy chatting and shopping (more of that next week) and generally enjoying myself.

There are a few more photos over on Flickr. 

You'll want to know about the cake of course - I started with the in-hall cafe where Little Phil enjoyed some Victoria Sponge. I'd give it a 5/10 as it was a bit dry. However, for lunch I left the hall and headed to the old cafe, where as well as more spectaclar cakes, which I didn't try, I enjoyed a delicious beef lasagne. It seems that a lot of visitors didn't get a pass-out to do this, but I'd certainly recomend it. For a start, even though there's plenty of seating in the hall, this was quieter. 

So, all in all, a good day out. Nice train. Nice bus each way. Good show with lots to see and buy. Second hand stall up to standard, extracting £25 off me for stuff that I'll need help identifying in some cases. I hear that the show broke even, providing a springboard for a bigger event next year. That and some good feedback online bodes well...

Saturday Film Club: A Steam Train Passes

Made by Film Australia 1974. Directed by David Haythornthwaite. Generally regarded as Australia’s finest railway film and winner of many awards the world over, A Steam Train Passes is a nostalgic, imaginative essay on one of the majestic C38 class steam locomotives.

GWR Towns, Villages etc.

 

The trouble with being interested in things, is that you often find yourself aquiring objects that no-one else wants. Handily, this keeps the costs down, but I do own a lot of "stuff". 

Spotting this book on a second-hand stall, where you could just drop of dontation in the box, I was the only person to pick it up. Odd really, as most of the rest of the books were those generic titles that appear in every charity shop and under the tree from well meaning relatives keen to buy the enthusiast something. 

It is a list, from 1939, or every town and village in Great Western Railway territory. Alongside, it tells the clerk which station goods should be sent to, and how they should be conveyed to their final destination. 

Click on the image to enlarge. 

Possibly the most useful information in here is the distance for each town from the station. Some of the methods of conveyance are fun too. When sending goods to Overton, they should go to Marlborough station, and then finish their journey via the Birstol Tramways & Carriage Co. Ltd. 

I'm not sure what possible use this information can be to me as a modeller, but I feared this book would end up in the bin if no-one else wanted it, and for something that has survived 83 years, that would be a great shame. 

For the moment, it can sit on the shelf. Unless a reader can think of a good reason they should own it. Postage wouldn't be cheap, it's a heafty tomb, but I'd be happy to find it a better home.

How would I do this?

 

I always say that it's possible to learn something, or pick up an idea from any model railway you see at a show. No matter what the prototype, scale or level of finescaleness, the builder will have done something that should catch your eye. 

A lot of people will have walked past this Harry Potter themed layout at TINGs a few weeks ago, dismissing it as a novelty unworthy of a "serious modeller's" time when there were "proper" layouts to look at and trade stalls to be scoured. 

IMHO, they would be wrong. There's a lot of work, and a considerable amount of imagination involved with this project. And it's one that Potter fans will both love, and pick holes in when they see it. 

The part that impressed me most, was the roof of this house. 

I understand it's Hagrid's house. This doesn't help me much as I have no idea who Hagrid is. I've read none of the books, and only seen the first Potter film, because I was projecting it. Since our booth didn't have a speaker in it, that also means I didn't hear the first and last five minutes of the film. 

Anyway, the question I ask myself is, "How would I make that roof?" 

It's pointy, and curves at the bottom of the slope. My best guess is there is a former underneath, but quite a complicated one as there needs (in my mind) to be support under each ridge tile. Assuming this is in the book, they must have been cursing JK Rowling. A flat roof would have been just as nice, and a lot easier to build a model of!

Sadly, I was too busy at the show to ask the question, so it will remain a pleasent mystery. 

If you'd like to see more of the builders work, they can be found on Instagram.

Waterborne Wednesday: MV Pioneer

The day I find myself rich enough to own a super-yacht, I think I want it to look like the MV Pioneer. 

I spotted this stunning vessel in Grenwich last week, and what a beauty she is. Built in 1996 and 46m long, I would think she'll be big enough to rise large waves at sea, although I'll probably stick to the coast where one of the two smaller boats on deck can be used for landing when port fascilities are not available. 

Mind you, MarineTraffic shows she's been around - quite a lot of time in the USA as well as Europe. And in every location, she looks right at home. 

How much does one of these things cost? Probably some sort of unimaginable figure to someone like me, but what a floating home to have. 

Whose track?

Time for a mystery. I have a short length of 32mm gauge track fitted to a piece of plywood. 

Steel bullhead rail, 6mm tall and 2.8mm wide is fitted into individual chairs, complete with representations of keys, are spiked to wooden sleppers with brass pins. 

The look is vintage, so I'm wondering if it could be Bonds components? But I'm not familair enough with these to make a postive identification. 

Any ideas out there?

 

Hornby watch

 

I've been too busy for any personal modelling for the last few days, so this week's blog posts are going to be a bit of a catch-up of other stuff. Mostly weird things I've aquired recently, some of which are a bit of a mystery. 

Let's start with an item that fits into two of my collections - a Hornby watch. 

The 30mm diameter faux gold face is attractive, adorned as it is with a picture of a steam train from a 1990s clipart CD. Despite this, it looks a little classy in black and gold. The numerals are nice and clear, and a genuine leather strap is fitted. You could wear this every day and it would do its job. 

OK, the battery was flat, but an AG4 from the pound shop pack solved that. The plastic face-cover is even present, although I removed it for the photo. Don't worry, I put it back. There's a nice fabric wallet to keep the watch in when not wearing it too. This probably explains the excellent condition.

Best of all though, on the back is a Beatties label! It came from my favourite chain of model shops - and so can sit in this collection too. 

Sadly, the label doesn't indicate the price, or give me an idea of the age (1998?, surely too late) of the watch. I'd guess at early 1990s, possibly even a bit before. 

The internet is a bit light on details, although one forum has an idential watch sharing space with Rolex's! I suspect that the fiver I paid is about its true value, but if someone wants to tell me it's super-rare and worth the price of a house, I'm all ears!

Living the high life in London

 

You are probably wondering why I am drinking champagne in front of the Millemium Dome. 

To be honest, I'm not entirely sure myself. A couple of weeks ago, out of the blue, and invite came to visit the garden at the top of the Landmark Pinnacle, the highest residential tower in London. 

My guess is that someone did a web search for "garden" and my job title came up. After a bit of soul-searching, I decided to take a days holiday and go. A train down to London, bus across town to Mile End, and a stroll to the city. 

On arrival, I was greeted by a PR person and directed to the garden on the 75th floor. There was champagne, non-alcoholic mojito (smells odd, tastes OK) and tiny bits of food about the size of a 50p piece proffered on trays. A jazz band played in the corner, and I gawped at the view. 

 

Click on the photo for the full-size version. 

Around 30 journalists, and me, all admited the 1400 plants on the living wall and made small-talk, but the selling point is that view. One side you look along the curve of the Thames, on the other down a waterway, through the Thames barrier and out to sea. Canary Wharf is to your left, and we look down on it. 

Watching the sun set of the capital, I realised that I'll never have a better view of the city.  Sadly, the apartments are a bit out of my price range. 1 beds start at £580k and the three bed I'd like (space for model railways) is £1.5m. 

Things that strike you from this high up:

• London is green. Really green. Masses of trees and parks all over the place.
• Despite sitting on some very valuable land, there are a couple of housing estates that wouldn't look out of place in towns near me. It's a very mixed city. 
• The docks must have been amazing judging by the number of wharfs and basins still around. I'd love to have been this high up in the 1950s when they were still in operation. 

Before the main event, I took a stroll around dockland. The photos from this will be appearing on this blog in the future.

Saturday Film Club: Welshpool and Llanfair Railway in the 1950s

If I'm honest, this wasn't the Welshpool video I was planning to bring you today, but I lost the link to the intended film, and found this instead. Fantastic old footage, OK, the quality isn't great, of the line in the 1950s when it was really running. A scene that even with the best preservation we can't recreate.

Lewin

All done. A little tickle from the weathering powders, especially on the outer edges of the buffer beam where photos show rusty patches. 

The drive was a fiddle to fit, eventually he found a happy position himself, so I'll live with that. 

I'm a little disapointed that photos don't show coal piled up in front of the cab - it would be a nice detail but I assume the harbour was small enough that running back to the shed for fuel wasn't a problem. 

OK, I'm not responsible for most of the work on this model, but I'm pleased to take it from a box of bits to a nicely running locomotive which can now join the fleet in my display case. One project ticked off!

I hope the original builder would approve of what I've done anyway.

Getting grubby

 

It's a long while since I broke out and airbrush and made a locomotive dirty!

So long, that my Iwata has long since gone and been replaced by a Sparmax. And more importantly, the cat food boxes I used to pearch models on have changed, and are now too large (OK, we might just be buying bigger quantities of cat grub) for the job, forcing me to to use an old jam jar to raise the model up a bit so I can shoot paint under the footplate. 

The recipie is the same though. First, a dry-brush with dark grey, then out to the garage for s blow over with rust, then some earth colour on the lower reaches, followed by a light clean with a turps filed cotton bud. Then a little more earth followed by a dose of Track Colour everywhere and finishing up with some Revell Anthracite along the top to represent the soot. 

OK, it's not Martyn Welch, but I think gives me 80% of the look for about 20% of the effort. This is a mucky loco, and the dirt has certainly reduced the impact of those buffer beams. Maybe I was working fast because Jacob-Rees Mog was staring out at me from an old copy of the Daily Express too.

Now to let the paint harden, tickle with weathering powders and a bit of glazing.

Waterborne Wednesday: SD Bovisand

My parents have just returned from a holiday in Cornwall, and as well as bringing me back several bottles of cider, they also have some interesting photos of boats. 

First up, is the SD Bovisand. This 23m long supply vessel was built in 1997 for the Navy, but has since passed into private hands. 

You can track her here. And here.

 

 

As a modelling prospect, she'd be quite a challenge. Two hulls, lots of detail. And you are going to have to scratchbuild as I'm not aware of anything remotely similar in the kit world. 

Crew

 

Bit of a crisis with the Lewin build - I went to my box of good figures for a crew, and the cupboard was bare! I don't know when I used the last set, but obviously didn't think to re-order. 

Loco crew figures will always come in handy, so I spent some time replenishing the stash from the Dart Castings website. I know 3D printed people are more fashionable, but I've always liked the Monty's Models range. At the time they first appeared, they were a revolution compared to some of the badly proportioned horrors of the time. These are a lot cheaper too, always a bonus. 

Anyway, a few days later a Jiffy bag arrived with my order, and I set to to decide which person would fit in the cab. Answer, very few of them. In the end, I think that MSV71 Industrial or Narrow gauge loco driver will just about squeeze in. The cab is very low and the others are just too tall. IT's a job for some HO scale people really. 

A bit of paint flipped over him, followed by a wash of Nulin Oil, and he will look the part. The photo close-up is cruel, he looks much more refined in real life!

Rest in Peace

 

Watching trains at Elsecar

A few minutes watching trains at the Yorkshire Garden Railway Show last weekend. Apologies for the background music, but it dorwns out the noise of the halls at this busy show. While the locos do chuff, most of them anyway, their sound doesn't carry that far, and the basic audio setup I'm using can't make the most of it. Nor can I tell everyone to shut up!

Saturday Film Club: Night Mail 2

An updated version of the classic GPO Film Unit production from 1986, showing how the modern transport system still carries the mail to the masses. It all looks so vintage, and makes me feel old...

Cardboard loco kit

 

Spotted at The International N Gauge Show last weekend, the Kato STEAM Starter Kit Narrow Gauge Diesel Locomotive 'Billy'. 

It's a cardboard kit that fits on a supplied RTR motor bogie. At £96, it's a long way from cheap, but despite the material, the model feels really solid. I'd assumed it was freelance, but apparenlty the design is based on a DL3 theme park diesel locomotive. 

It's a nice looking 009 model, well if you like yellow diesels that is. And I'm not sure the wasp stripes make for a beginner kit unless you use transfers. At least the builder is assured of a working model at the end of it, which makes the kit much better value for money than many. 

There's a handy construction video too.

October Garden Rail on the shelves

 

As the Gauge 1 Model Railway Association celebrates its 75^th birthday, we visit the president's own line, with a show of many of the locos he has designed.

We're getting technical with a look at gearboxes for battery powered models, building a 4WD Simplex with plenty of grunt, a mine and concrete huts, suggesting the top 10 tools for your workbench – and starting our biggest project yet, building a live steam locomotive from a kit. Can a novice put together something that works? We'll find out.

All this and the latest Product News for the large scale model railway enthusiast.