esngblog

There seems to be an American layout at every show these days.  Perhaps not surprising, as the quality of the models, and the value for money, is high.  I started modelling American ‘N’ about 15 years ago as the models coming out of the USA were of much better quality than the early UK offerings.

There was some USA stock on the second-hand stalls.  I came away with an early Kato F3B.  I will repaint it in Lehigh Valley colours, and will be happy even if it is a poor runner.  I want it to run between an RS2 and an RS11 Alco, so it could just as well be a unpowered unit.  I was relieved when one trader sold his new Kato Illinois Central E8A+B and 11 or so coaches.  I added up the price for all four bits of the train and decided I couldn’t justify buying it – but kept going back for another look.  The VIA blue and yellow version that replaced it on the stand was nice, but not as beautiful as the chocolate and orange IC train.

But back to the layouts.  This simple module is an essay in understatement, and so realistic.

The main American layout was an N-trak circuit.  This three-track module system has been connected to the N-club modules some years, but this time it was an independent display.  This allowed a little super-power to be on display, with five units heading a 150 car goods train.

But my favourite layout was a Canadian Pacific based model, logically situated on the Canadian Pacific coast.  This ticked all the boxes for me.  It had a simple design, with long narrow modules, plain scenery but with well modelled focal points – look for the bear, the afters from a train crash, the wood chipping plant and the bridges and causeway below.

But best of all was the working car float, that moved through real water to take cars from one bank to the other of the bay.

Today, just a few photographs of the many N-club modules that were on display.  A reminder – here’s the end board of the N-club module – the module can be of any length or indeed radius.

This enormous station layout is a regular at the Stuttgart show.  Every year that goes by seems to have more detail added.  The combination of a scale length main line station, complex trackwork, and finely detailed buildings – and trams – takes a lot of beating.

This extensive loco shed is also a regular on display.  One can see the potential of a modular layout – this shed would make a reasonable stand-alone home layout, but can be linked up with other peoples boards for a big show.

This flying junction wouldn’t fit in so well at home.  The young operators are looking for the next train.  Behind you…..

The ‘helix’ is always a focal point of the show.  Two of these modules raise the running lines above head height, and enable the public to get ‘inside’ the modular layout, or just to form a main corridor through the layouts.  It is also the focus of attention when a train gets stuck or derails near the top, requiring a step ladder and stopping all running for a while.  At least this year there were no breakaways coming back down the spiral at ever increasing speed.

Feeling a little blue?  just about everything was lit, from floodlights to car lights on this module.

I liked this shed with overhead catenary.  A very attractive building, and the locomotive nearest the camera was programmed to shuttle in and out of the shed.  It would also make a good interurban shed…..

The more one looked, the more good modelling could be found.  Here we have interesting bridges, buildings and a harbour, and some N-gauge vines and vegetables.

And of course, railways are meant to carry essential supplies.  Peanuts into the UK, Imperial Mints out.  No wonder we have a deficit….

ESNG ran our usual four track N-mod circuit for the four days of the show.  It was linked to the main N-club double track modular layout by a pair of junctions.  This allowed the inner three tracks to run our own stock, but the outer track received (and sent back) stock from Europe (no UKIP here!)  However, running the outer junction from Europe was the most stressful job for the operators.  Occasionally, three or four trains were coming from all directions, sometimes accompanied by the train owner telling you where to send it.  Being the gentlemen that we are in ESNG, we refrained from the obvious answer….

Looking down the exhibition hall, one gets an impression of its size.  We were missing a few railway trade stands, as the Stuttgart show this year clashed with that at Cologne.  This was probably a good thing, otherwise Neil would have spent even more money.  As it was, the shelves were looking a little bare by Sunday.  Our cameraman has also caught the ESNG members in their natural habitat.  Sometimes, the little fellows act very shy, hiding from the camera and making strange hand gestures (with apologies to David Attenborough.)

ERIC went PW this year.  We always try to ‘theme’ ERIC the roundhouse, and this year permanent way stock was on display.  I enjoyed running my Delaware and Hudson PA1 and a rake of seven streamliner coaches.  The Deltic also looks good!

Raysden is always worth a look.  The GWR railcars automatically shuttled back and forth for four days on the branch line without a hitch.

Derek’s Union Street was back on display this year, with a real London Underground train on the subterranean subway line.  Corgi produced a model close to N gauge for the London Olympics, that was quickly motorised by Derek.  They had a little trouble with the disco in the railway arches – due to the hall voltage drop, the light show was green only – perhaps it was zombie night?

Duncan’s ‘Westminster’ graced the T-track circuit for another year.  Try counting the rush hour commuters….

Finally, the chairman was in a destructive mood.  He opened our access gate when Thomas was hiding in the tunnel and he popped out on a one way trip to a concrete floor (Thomas, not the chairman).  Thomas RIP.  Frighteningly, we then began to observe a pattern, when the chairman repeated the trick with the Harry Potter Hogwarts express.  Fortunately, a little magic from Harry (and Derek) got the train running again.

For the next week or so I will blog through the Stuttgart show.  I’m wasn’t quite clever enough to ‘live-blog’ it all, so I’ve come back with a load of photographs, and I’ll post a few chosen ones.

Maxine and I arrived in Stuttgart about 16:30 on the Friday, after a simple journey from Redhill, thanks to the delights of ‘Germanwings’.  We moved hotel this year to the ‘Wyndham’, that is 5 minutes walk from the airport and 5 minutes walk from the Messe where the exhibition was being held.  Having checked in, we walked across to the Messe, where most of the punters were leaving – the halls are open from 10:00 to 18:00.  We arrived to greet the ESNG team, and immediately turned around and left – with everyone else I hasten to add.  First for the N-club group photograph.  This reminded me of wedding photographs as it did go on a bit and they lost all the required important people at the critical moment.

Then we headed for the S-Bahn train station to catch a smart red DB train towards the city centre.

We had been invited to visit a Stuttgart model railway club, the Modelleisenbahn Stuttgart.  Fortunately, our German friends do abbreviation – MECS is a lot less of a mouthful!  On arriving at the appropriate S-Bahn station, one follows an exit corridor, and enters this rather anonymous door.  Once inside, there is an extensive clubroom, in the area above the station escalators and tracks.

The club layout is an extensive and operationally intensive HO layout, with a long main line and a single track branch off.  Much of the layout is complete, but some new areas are still under development.  I noted the two layers of storage sidings/staging under the layout, accessed by a helix.  The helix is a common device in the USA to move between layout levels, but we rarely have enough room for this in the UK.

Whilst visiting, we were well looked after by MECS and fed and watered in a small club dining room.  Although the layout was HO, there were several tables of N gauge stock for sale.  I resisted a ‘Flying Hamburger’, despite a very good price (I do this every year at Stuttgart – they are very attractive early DMU’s, but there is no way I need one).  Derek and Allan were less restrained and waded in, and Allan spotted the Swiss luggage van that he has been hunting for two or three years for President Martin.  This was snaffled very quickly, and made a good evening even better.  We were amused to see one of the traders from the Messe show buying up some stock, no doubt for sale at a profit the next day.

Then it was back on the train and a short walk to the hotel.  Next post I’ll get into the Messe itself.

Well, I haven’t got there yet, but here are some photographs from Allan, taken on Wednesday during the show set up day.  It never fails to amaze me how any model railway show comes together, when an empty hall and load of bits of railway are transformed into a high quality show.  And even more so when the empty hall is this big.