Table of contents for Summer 2024 in Model Rail

I am writing this in mid-June, and so far the summer of 2024 has not done much to tempt one outdoors. Indeed, it seems whenever I’ve gone outdoors it has forced me back inside with a downpour. I do enjoy my garden, however, and I live opposite a garden centre, my garden being the former Up platform of Barnwell station. Last summer I received a surprise bequest from a friend of my late younger brother and I decided to spend the money on installing a pond. I had a garden pond as a child and I loved the railways and ponds of Bekonscot model village. I still have my ‘O’ gauge ‘Railway Children’ layout standing, disused in a shed. There is insufficient space in the shed to operate the complete…

In April, Bachmann Europe announced its entry into the British outline 7mm scale narrow gauge market with a range of locomotive, rolling stock and accessory products. This news set my mind thinking about dipping my toes into ‘O’ gauge modelling. With my roots firmly in ‘OO’ and ‘HO’ modelling, I’d been thinking about trying ‘O’ gauge for the past few years, but the limitations of space have always put me off. However, modelling narrow gauge operations in the same scale offers much more potential, as it removes the need to cater for the minimum curve radii and bulk of standard gauge trains. Bachmann has adopted ‘NG7’ branding for this emerging range of narrow gauge models, making it clear that they’re rendered to 7mm scale/‘0’ gauge (or 1:43.5 scale), ensuring full…

Reviews ◆ GAUGE ‘00’ ◆ MODEL Bachmann Branchline 35-821ASFX Class 31/1 31149 Railfreight ‘red stripe’ ◆ PRICE £199.95 (DCC-ready), £309.95 (DCC sound), £359.95 (DCC Sound Deluxe) ◆ AVAILABILITY Bachmann stockists Web www.bachmann.co.uk The arrival of Hornby’s super-detailed Class 31 in 2005 brought plenty of excitement but there was always a nagging feeling that the 1980s-era Lima version captured the essence of these characterful diesels more accurately. If only we could combine the best elements of the two versions to create a perfect‘31’! It was no wonder, therefore, that Accurascale’s forthcoming Brush Type 2 gathered plenty of attention, as it promised to surpass all previous attempts. And yet, Bachmann’s Class 31 announced earlier this year looks to have pipped it to the post, with models due to reach stockists imminently. The…

Like so many staple GWR classes the large ‘Prairie’ tanks owe their origin to Churchward and his ‘31XX’ class, the first of which appeared in 1903. Some 80 examples were produced, 39 in 1905-6 and 41 more, with larger boilers, in 1906-8. Nos 3100-49 were renumbered 5100 and 5111-49 in 1927. To fill the need for more locomotives in that category, Collett introduced his ‘51XX’ class, Nos. 5101-10 and 5150-9 in 1929-30, and added more up to 5199. Having filled the gaps in the initial numbering, more new locomotives built between 1935-48 were numbered 4100-80. Between 1931-5 70 more examples with boiler pressure raised from 200psi to 225psi were numbered 6100-69. The increased boiler pressure gave them a little more sparkle when operating suburban services in the London and Birmingham…

The Robert and William Hawthorn company began building steam locomotives in the 1830s, originally for the Stockton & Darlington Railway and, by the 1870s, had opened their St Peter’s Works in central Newcastle. Soon afterwards, the company merged with a local shipbuilding firm, A. Leslie & Co., to form the Hawthorn, Leslie Company. While shipbuilding remained a core facet of Hawthorn, Leslie, with many vessels built for the Royal Navy at its Hebburn works on the South Bank of the Tyne, the company also continued to develop its locomotive business. Much of the output consisted of steam locomotives built to order for UK and overseas customers. Hawthorn, Leslie also created several of its own standard designs, including an array of 0-4-0 saddle tanks. Hundreds of similar 0-4-OSTs were built from…

◆ GAUGE ‘TT:120’ ◆ MODEL Horn by TT3012M BR ‘Princess Coronation’ No. 46234 Duchess of Abercorn, BR lined green ◆ PRICE f167 99 ◆ AVAILABILITY Selected Hornby stockists Web www.hornby.com The latest locomotives to enter Hornby’s ‘TT:120’ range are the LMS ‘Princess Coronation’ 4-6-2s, with three different versions produced to cater for the LMS and BR eras. Also commonly known as ‘Duchesses’, Stanier’s beautiful ‘Pacifics’ make a welcome addition to this emerging range, offering a pleasing contrast to the ex-LNER locomotives hitherto available. Our sample is a 1:120 scale rendition of No. 46234 Duchess of Abercorn in lined BR green with later-style emblems. Also available is No. 46232 Duchess of Montrose in BR green (with early emblems) and LMS No. 6231 Duchess of Atholl in Crimson Lake, without smoke deflectors.…

Direct Rail Services opened the doors to its Carlisle Kingmoor depot on July 6, with a ticket-only crowd taking advantage of the (mostly) sunny weather to enjoy the sight and sounds of a modern locomotive shed. DRS’ open days are always a great value day out, with the biennial events (usually alternating between Kingmoor and Crewe Gresty Bridge) offering a family-friendly experience. An impressive array of traction was on display, reflecting the nature of the freight operator’s current fleet, which is now dominated by Class 66 and 68 diesels, plus the bi-mode Class 88s. It’s a shame that the classic Class 20s and ‘37s’ are no longer with the operator, and just a single Class 57/3 was present. That said, with DRS’ ‘66s’ now over 20 years old - and…

After slashing the prices of our Heljan ‘PWMs’ during July, this time we’re offering a pair of our exclusive steam locomotives at bargain prices. The offers are open throughout August and both include free UK postage so grab yourself a bargain today! EDITOR’S PICK 1 LNER ‘J70’ No. 68226 Designed by the Great Eastern Railway’s James Holden and built at Stratford Works in 1921, No. 129 was one of the last GER 0-6-OT tram locomotives, a type created initially for the Wisbech & Upwell Tramway. Featuring a short wheelbase, 3ft lin wheels, outside cylinders and Walschaerts valve gear, the timber body contained a conventional steam boiler, with cabs at either end. Equipped with cowcatchers and full side skirts from new, No. 129 was sent to Ipswich shed to work the…

Unusual scenes captured by the lens of Chris Nevard It’s a little-known fact that a railway once ran past Stonehenge and was used in the construction of the world famous stone circle. Here we have the last train leaving the construction site. Alas, due to budget constraints, the stone circle was built to half the size of the original plans and, being a rush job, many of the stones are misshapen and broken due to the poor quality of the concrete used, which has fooled many into thinking it’s a neolithic monument. The A303 now runs along the course of the railway.…

Workbench EXPERT MODELLERS SHOW YOU HOW This should have been a tale of a reasonably straightforward locomotive repainting project. Sure, the Europhoenix/Rail Operations Group livery is a little more complex than some, but the difficulty lies in adding the main logos, which would surely be just a case of sourcing suitable decals. A Heljan ‘O’ gauge Class 37/4 would form the basis of the project and I got straight onto Colin at Rainbow Railways to ask if he could do me some suitable transfers. Several weeks later, the decals arrived in the post and they were excellent (as usual!). While waiting for the transfers, I treated the Heljan bodyshell to several detail modifications to replicate the ROG ‘37s’ more accurately, with the marker lights and headcode panels filled and new…

PROJECT 1 MARKED IMPROVEMENT: RECONDITIONING A KIT-BUILT CHASSIS I’d been musing recently that it had been some years since I last built a steam locomotive chassis kit. It prompted me to dig out some of my previous attempts, and the first that came to light was a diminutive LNER ‘J72’ O-6-OT, consisting of an etched metal chassis under an enhanced Bachmann bodyshell. The model was created in 2014 and, while I was really pleased with it at the time, it was placed in a box and stored in various locations. Several house moves later, there’s a good chance that it will finally start seeing some regular use. Alas, a quick inspection revealed that the oil and grease had congealed and dried out, resulting in a stiff mechanism. Rather than keep…

“What makes this layout great? This layout gives you a tangible sense of scale. The people look tiny compared to the locomotives, and here the locomotives look tiny compared to the shed. You really feel as though you are looking at the site from a hot air balloon.” Modelling to a deadline adds a whole new dimension. Every time something doesn’t quite go according to plan, you glance up at the calendar - two months to go. On the opposite wall, the clock, normally an innocuous device, glares down at you menacingly as you refill your static grass machine for the seventh time. Tick, tock, tick, tock. ‘Why won’t this post stay upright?’ you think to yourself as beads of sweat drip off your forehead, the heating on full blast…

The first 20 Class 31s - known originally as Brush Type 2s - were ordered as part of British Railways’ Pilot Scheme and entered service from 1957. Their performance convinced BR to place repeat orders, with Brush turning out another 243 examples by 1962. While the early production locomotives differed little externally - from the Pilot Scheme batch, a change of control equipment was made to improve compatibility with other diesel types. There was also a subsequent move away from the increasingly obsolete disc headcode method of train reporting, in favour of a four-character headcode box atop the cab. Originally, they were powered by 12-cylinder Mirrlees diesel engines, but the decision was made in the late 1960s to re-engineer the entire fleet with the English Electric 12SVT powerplant. The Type…

Opening the box News Twenty years since the existing Farish LNER ‘V2’ 2-6-2 tooling was released, Bachmann Europe has announced that a whole new ‘N’ gauge version will soon be appearing. One of Sir Nigel Gresley’s most successful locomotive designs, the ‘V2’ is commonly referred to as ‘the engine that won the war’, owing to its contribution to the national effort during the Second World War. Equally at home on freight, parcels or passenger work, the ‘V2s’ operated across most of the LNER (and later BR Eastern Region), with over 180 examples entering traffic. The all-new Farish model will feature an intricately detailed bodyshell, and the tooling caters for the original monobloc cylinder casting as well as the later version, with three separate cylinders. Additionally, three different LNER tender types…

“What makes this layout great? ‘Forever’ layouts tend to receive Plenty of care and attention, and this is no exception. Paul has spent 13 Years carefully crafting each aspect of this build and you can see the results. Nothing looks out of place and everything has a purpose.” Building a model railway is a labour of love. Each part has been carefully planned, carefully designed and carefully placed over a period of many years. Paul Taylor started building the baseboards in 2010 for what was intended to be his ‘forever’ layout, but a house move means ‘Marazion and Mounts Bay’ is now awaiting reassembly. “When I started to build the layout I didn’t think we would ever be moving house, so I gave the baseboards the real belt and braces treatment…

“What makes this layout great? ‘Badger’s Wharf’ is certainly different to the layouts we normally see in Model Rail. Usually, ‘N’ gauge provides scope for a better track-toscenery ratio, but Kevin has shown just how small a functioning ‘N’ gauge layout can be. It really is the scale for both ends of the spectrum! Clothes? Check. Underwear? Check. Sun cream? Check. Model railway? Wait, what? The lure of taking your model railway on holiday with you might not be a common one, but for Kevin Smith it’s become such an essential item that it’s not just on his packing list - he’s designed a layout specifically for it. “I always take a small layout away with me when we travel around the country in our motorhome. I did have a…

◆ GAUGE ‘N’ ◆ MODEL Sonic Models S2103-06 GWR ‘5101’ Class 2-6-2T ◆ PRICE £129.95 ◆ AVAILABILITY Rails of Sheffield Web www.railsofsheffield.com My 1964 Abc Combined Volume, which is the only survivor of my spotting books, shows that I had ‘copped’ 33 out of the 47 surviving ‘61XX’ class 2-6-2TS. I had also seen a fair few of the ‘41XX’ series ‘Large Prairies’ but most of those had gone by 1964. Though I was not a big ‘Prairie’ fan at the time, I remember them fondly now, owing to a number of encounters back in the early 1960s. I watched one (I have it logged as No. 4109 on March 21 1964) shoving No. 6932 Burwarton Hall and a train of loaded ballast hoppers up Sapperton bank past the now…

Reviews ◆ GAUGE ‘OO’ ◆ MODEL Dapol •4S-024-005 Hawthorn, Leslie 0-4-0ST, NCB lined blue •4S-024-009 Hawthorn, Leslie 0-4-0ST Wallaby, Australian Iron & Steel maroon ◆ PRICE From £126.36 each ◆ AVAILABILITY Dapol stockists Web www.dapol.co.uk With small tank locomotives proving enduringly popular in ‘OO’, Dapol has made a good choice in the Hawthorn, Leslie 0-4-OST, which was initially announced just over two years ago. The model is based on some of the hundreds of diminutive locomotives built by the Newcastle firm between 1899-1924, for a wide variety of customers in the UK and abroad. As the real things were built to order, Hawthorn, Leslie’s ‘standard’ design did see many variations over the years, with cab profiles and cylinder and wheel dimensions tweaked to suit specific tasks. Dapol has produced nine…

Reviews ◆ GAUGE ‘00’ ◆ MODEL IRM • 1255 CIÉ 12T corrugated open wagons Flying Snail Pack 3 • 1257 CIÉ 12T corrugated open wagons Roundel Pack 2, • 1283 CIÉ PWD flat wagons Roundel Pack 1 ◆ PRICE £77.49 per triple-pack ◆ AVAILABILITY Irish Raiiway Models Web www.irishrailwaymodels.com The first of Irish Railway Models’ ‘OO’ gauge wagons, based on Oliver Bulleid’s ubiquitous triangulated chassis, has arrived in the form of triple-packs of corrugated opens and flat wagons. Perhaps better known for his work on the Southern Railway in England, Bulleid was made Chief Mechanical Engineer of Coras lompair Éireann (CIÉ) in 1950 and he soon set about modernising many aspects of Ireland’s railway. A standardised wagon fleet was one of his main achievements, with several thousand vehicles built around…