Clik here to view.
Millimetres are here to stay, get over it.
Catching up with the May issue of Model Boats magazine, there is an expanded letters page where the newish editor gives space to all the worst moaners. Since taking up the post, she has shaken up the...
View ArticleClik here to view.
Vote Cakebox!
It's the last day of voting in the latest BRM Cake Box challenge competition. All the entries are terrific, and the result of some serious hard work on the part of those builders responsible. If I'm...
View ArticleClik here to view.
Rocket waggons in the Hornby Collectors Club magazine
No, not wagons with rockets on them. Not even a train for the Battlespace Turbo car, but loads for the waggons (note the extra g) sold to compliment the Hornby Stephenson's "Rocket". The pack of three...
View ArticleClik here to view.
Book Review: Phone Kiosks of the Isle of Man
Let's not beat around the bush - there are few books more calculated to get me to hit the "Buy now" button that one that combines my twin interests of the Isle of Man, and telephone kiosks. I might be...
View ArticleClik here to view.
Reconnecting the track
I'm not sure why there was a section of curve disconnected from the garden railway circuit. Nor do I know where the space rail clamps had gone. A quick order to Gardenrailways.co.uk and another packet...
View ArticleUnboxing: Hornby R8133 Timber Yard
I've not seen this operating accessory mentioned in the past - so here we go with an unboxing video. Thrill to the exciting action, but remember, no more then three logs!
View ArticleSaturday Film Club: Building a 1/4 scale flat four engine
I remember seeing this range of plastic kit engines for the first time at the London Toy Fair a few years ago.At the time I was happy they didn't make a VW engine. But now it seems this has changed,...
View ArticleClik here to view.
A nerdy day out in Rugby
Needing a to have a day out last Sunday, I finally got around to doing something I've been meaning to for years - taking some photos of Rugby cement works. While I'm sure many people will consider it...
View ArticleClik here to view.
The prefect boiler empty kit?
I'm getting in to running live steam models - far more then I expected to if I'm honest. They do need maintaining though and in my mind, one of the important post-run jobs is to empty the boiler of...
View ArticleClik here to view.
Smoke & Steam
Something new in railway publications launched last week - Smoke & Steam is a new bookazine from World of Railways.My contribution is a piece on weathering model steam locomotives. There's isn't a...
View ArticleClik here to view.
Concrete prefab huts
I know nothing about these buildings, other than when travelling to Rocks by Rail for some filming a couple of weeks ago, I new when I saw them I'd have to stop on the way home to take photos. Even...
View ArticleClik here to view.
Going modular in June Garden Rail
It's showtime! We look forward to the National Garden Railway Show, in Peterborough. One of the highlights of the display is a giant, modular layout built by members of the 16mm Association. We take...
View ArticleVideo: The Hornby 3 1/2 inch gauge Rocket coach
You know how it it - you buy a new model and feel the need to record an unboxing video to go with it. Well, this isn't exactly new - it's the G104 4-wheel coach from the late 1970s, but it's new to me...
View ArticleSaturday Film club: The Far Tottering and Oyster Creek Branch Railway
A really nice video covering the FT&OCR putting it in the context of the Festival of Britain. For those interested in the wider subject beyond the railway will enjoy the footage showing the sites...
View ArticleClik here to view.
Foghorn
I can't think of anything interesting to say today, so here is a picture of a foghorn on the Isle of Man.
View ArticleClik here to view.
Painting Tag
If you are a long-term Garden Rail reader, the name you will most readily associate with the magazine is my illustrious predecessor, Tag Gorton. For many, he is Mr Garden Railway, and as such, was...
View ArticleClik here to view.
The most Leamington Spa product ever...
In the past, I have been forced to explain to people that the life of a model railway writer doesn't mean being on the receiving end of endless free gifts from grateful manufacturers. However, it's...
View ArticleClik here to view.
Y8
The K's Y8 was the second loco kit I ever bought. I spotted it on the club second hand stall, it was within my meagre budget, and being small, I thought I could build it. Small locos can come with big...
View ArticleClik here to view.
Glazing over locks in BRM
June 2021 BRM sees me building a substantial model - a canal lock from JS Models. This is one of the bigger kits I've ever built and looks superb. I even nipped out to Hatton Locks for a bit of...
View ArticleClik here to view.
The BIG Hornby Rocket
Since we had a look at the large scale Hornby coach last Friday, I thought it would be worth a quick spin around the matching locomotive today. Produced between 1976 and 1978, the 3 1/2 inch gauge set...
View Article