Category Archives: Inspiration

Chiltern Model Railway Exhibition 2017 #1

Last Sunday, Allan, Derek and I paid a visit to the Chiltern Model Railway Exhibition at their new venue in Stevenage.  I saw the list of layouts on display and thought I would really like to go.  So I phoned … Continue reading

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Bognor Regis MRC show 14/01/2017

Took a trip to the seaside (not that we saw it) with Derek Atfield to visit the Bognor Regis MRC show.  Not the best I have been to, but there are always a few things of interest, and it was … Continue reading

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Three more links and a picture

Three more links….. Firstly the BBC describes….. ‘China freight train’ in first trip to Barking China has launched a direct rail freight service to London, as part of its drive to develop trade and investment ties with Europe. … The … Continue reading

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Dawson Station

Another delightful minimum space layout….. Dawson Station is my portable 1′ x 4′ n-scale model railroad layout and is based on the Hull-Oakes lumber mill located in Dawson, Oregon. Hull-Oakes, one of the last steam-powered sawmills in North America, is … Continue reading

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Odd modelling ideas #20171

A couple of interesting modelling challenges from the Daily Telegraph for the New Year…. First, the Crystal Palace Subway. It’s been more than 60 years since a train last pulled up to the forgotten station – but this beautiful underground heritage … Continue reading

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Book review – ‘The LBSCR Elevated Electrification’

A present to myself this Christmas was this little book…. Between 1909 and 1929 there was an overhead electric commuter service on parts of the London Brighton and South Coast Railway.  It didn’t get as far as Redhill – we … Continue reading

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Links to end 2016

If you, like me, are still working off the Christmas Day turkey (or cod for our Scandinavian readers….),  here are a few links to read. First the Southern Railways epic fail award #1.  If you can’t get it right on … Continue reading

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Minories #3 – alternative Minories…..

The last couple of posts on Minories have given enough ideas for any number of successful layouts.  But I’ve been playing around with the basic idea, and have a couple of ideas that could have some mileage. Firstly, Minories on … Continue reading

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Minories #2 – Out in the suburbs

If you leave London, and head to the other end of the commuter lines, a Minories like design, sort of ‘mini-Minories’ is another option.  Iain Rice published this excellent design, loosely based, I think, on the outer-London terminus at Caterham. … Continue reading

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Minories #1 – the original design

There are few model railway plans that can be deemed ‘classic’.  One surely must be the late Cyril Freezer’s ‘Minories’ plan.  The plan was the result a flash of inspiration whilst waiting for a train, then some doodling to try the … Continue reading

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