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Virtual show thoughts
A couple of weeks ago, I was up to my eyes in the World of Railways Virtual Show. Normally, I'd report back straight away, but decided to leave it a week as I was knackered!First - the show was a...
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Santa Tank complete
Job done - I'm ready for the festive season. It's difficult to fault the Meng kit. Despite the comedy subject, it's an enjoyable build that is pleasantly involving. Taking care to clean up (not much...
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Decal fixing
Old plastic kits come with old transfers, or decals as our American cousins call them. The big H bands on the funnel looks like that have suffered over the years with some big cracks at one end....
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Waterborne Wednesday: Juan
I don't know anything about Juan other than the photo was taken in London in 2008. The wood/white stuff (probably fibreglass) mix is attractive. My main thought though, is that it would be a nice radio...
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Gaugemaster wheel cleaner
I didn't know what this was when I bought it, and neither did the stallholder who sold it to me. However, I was curious enough to splash out 8 quid to have a look. The Gaugemaster badge at the bottom...
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Book Review: The Crowsnest Chronicles by Roy C Link
I've followed Roy C Link and his Crowsnest Tramway for many years. As a fan of interesting, small space layouts, especially those in larger gauges, it's very much my sort of thing. While I only have a...
View ArticleSaturday Film Club: Matchbox in 1970
A relaxing walk through the 1970 Matchbox cars catalogue. For those of us who grew up in the 70s and played with toy cars, there's a lot of "I had one of those" recognition to be enjoyed. Quite a bit...
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When shows come back, do I want to go?
This week, there have been the first flutterings of the return of the model railway show. A couple of sizable events have said they plan to go ahead this year - and I'm not sure how I feel about that....
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Red lines
Lindberg's box art suggests the lower portion of the superstructure should be painted red. If I was any good at masking things, this would be fairly easy to apply - tape over the white to stay and...
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Bachmann K6 telephone box
I hadn't intended Furness Quay to feature a telephone box, but browsing in my first post-lockdown visit to my local model shop, I spotted this Bachmann model handing on the wall. Those who know the...
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Tin shed Wednesday
Driving through Selly Oak recently, I spotted this fantastic tin shed in use as a playgroup. Luckily, as it was a Sunday, there were no children around so I could grab a photo. During the week it would...
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Dual-flush cistern bodging
Is there anything more annoying to not work at home than the toilet cistern? Most bits of house equipment can be worked around, but we all need to poo! So, when our dual-flush cistern decided that it...
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Croc boat
Laurie Calvert can be blamed for many things. Hornby's Steampunk range for example. And now, me being £17.75 poorer and the owner of a radio controlled crocodile head. He posted a photo on Facebook and...
View ArticleSaturday Film Club: Emett special
We start with a well-made documentary on Rowland Emett's "A Quiet Afternoon in the Cloud Cuckoo Valley" - which is now owned by the National Railway Museum and currently on display at Shildon. Then we...
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A close up the “Snaefell Mountaineer”
One of the least spotted vehicles on the Isle of Man is the National Air Traffic Services (NATS) railcar. Normally hidden away, it come into its own transporting personnel up the mountain when the...
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Boat crew
I don't like putting photos of model figures on the blog - they never look as good as in real life. However, they are part of the build, so here we go. Three nicely moulded 3cm tall figures are...
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The perils of a 2nd hand kit
"Bollards", I said as I scrabbled in the bottom of the box looking for the the final parts to complete the model. The trouble with a second-hand kit is that you can't be sure all the parts are present....
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Waterborne Wednesday: St Mawes ferry
Let's get things straight, even if I built a model of the May Queen, there's no way I'd be tacking the dazzle camouflage!To be honest, while the paint job is striking, I don't think it suits the boat....
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Garden Rail September 2020
One of the joys of garden railways is that they develop over time, so we revisit The Peckforton Light Railway, built by regular Garden Rail contributor Rik Bennett. The last few years have seen station...
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Getting animated in September's BRM
I'm getting mobile in the latest issue of BRM. My big build is a working chair-o-plane kit in Ho scale. Now, I could have just stuck the bits together, but that wouldn't be me at all. I wanted to make...
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