I've finally been able to do some test footage for an upcoming film, to be made during the course of 2017. I am not putting any release date on it: it could be as far away as 2018.
However I couldn't let the 10th anniversary of The British Railway Stories go by without showing that I am still here, and I still care about our fans.
May I say, to everyone who has messaged me this week on Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, by email and elsewhere, welcoming the new footage and giving us all some great feedback, thank you.
It is truly humbling to know we're held in such esteem, and I want to reassure you that we won't let you down.
The original cast will return, with new additions, in due course.
For now, please enjoy the test footage, and let us know what you think of Allen's new look, which will match his form in Tale of the Unnamed Engine.
My life long love affair with the London & North Eastern Railway's B12/3 started with a trip to the North Norfolk Railway with my father and late grandfather in 1994. The locomotive had just been overhauled and recently repainted into its original apple green livery, and it being a favourite of my late grandfather's, we made the trip to see it on its home railway.
Like the Stirling Single and Flying Scotsman before it, this apple green steam locomotive made quite the impression on me, and after a trip behind it I was captivated.
8572 is known as "The Wandering 1500", because of a particular rail tour it ran in its final days in steam for British Railways. Always a favourite locomotive of rail enthusiasts, she was saved for preservation and more information can be found on her here.
After university, I joined "The Wandering 1500 Club" which eventually morphed into the organisation which today looks after the sole surviving example of James Holden's 1500, or Edward Thompson's developed B12/3 class under Sir Nigel Gresley's tenure-ship (dependent on whether you count the 1928 Beyer Peacock built 8572 as a Great Eastern or an LNER design).
Eventually a Hornby B12, albeit not numbered 8572 but 8579, made an appearance on my early model railway layout. Here's a picture of a very similar model, borrowed for the purposes of this review:
This model's origins lay in the Triang B12 of decades ago, the locomotive shortened somewhat to fit the standard Hornby 4-6-0 chassis, with many aspects of it somewhat off in some way. But I didn't know these things then: to me it was just my lovely apple green B12.
The wonderful thing is that I still have my original 8579: albeit it was completely repainted and then weathered as 61572 to appear as my beloved character, "Stephen" in The British Railway Stories, after appearing originally in apple green.
An inauthentic express blue model was also bought as a spare for filming, together with one of mixed traffic black liveried 61553, and both were sold several years ago. But I kept "Stephen..."
That original model has changed so much it's unreal. I always felt I improved on the Hornby model of the time when I was at university, but I was never satisfied with it. I had seen kits of the B12/3 built, and they all had various issues with proportion, like the inherited Hornby tooling.
You may notice in the picture below that I fixed a few issues, including the chimney and the frames to an extent...
Then last year the news came that Hornby were preparing a new model of their B12/3. If it was in the same vein as the beautiful D16/3 and J15 models of Great Eastern heritage that had come before, they'd be onto a winner, I said at the time.
Well, here it is.
The first thing that strikes me is the length. After being so used to the short and odd proportions of the original, the new model has an elegance and presence all its own.
The livery application is just beautiful, and the apple green shade used for this one matches Hornby's Claud Hamilton D16/3 for this too.
This for me is the best rendition Hornby have done for some time and the extremely fine lining to be found everywhere on the model really bring this complicated, but elegant, grouping era livery to life. The printing of the numerals and lettering on cab and tender are perfect, by the way, Hornby's best yet in my view. I just hope I can renumber the cab easily...!
Hornby sensibly reused their already tooled up Great Eastern tender, developed for the Gresley B17 and used behind this and the earlier D16/3 locomotives releases. The intention of the latest round of Hornby tooling has been clear in terms of reusing research and development. Joined up thinking at its absolute best. The all new tooling for the locomotive and its chassis are something special too.
For example, look at the beautifully moulded driving wheels. Possibly the best rendition of the Great Eastern style we've ever seen. Correctly, I might add, painted without a black centre to the driving wheels. Look at the piping under the cab on each side, and the westinghouse pump, reverser, the whistle, the beautifully separately touches such as these. No all in one moulding as per the old Triang tooling!
Then there's the front end. Guard irons, correct piping, the smokebox diameter (yes, on the original model this was wrong too) and the chimney. The face of the locomotive is spot on. It looks every inch the B12/3. Most of the parts are already fitted.
One thing I lament about Hornby's recent releases is that the beautiful hook and coupling that the Thompson L1 comes with, isn't fitted to these models. I've stockpiled a number of these over the years to modify my LNER models as the part is just an additional nice touch to give the front end of my models more realism.
However I can hardly complain as the model comes with all seen below, plus the usual brake rigging and of course parts for the tender. One thing to note: fitting the black vacuum pipe on the tender rear will severely restrict the NEM pocket from moving with the coupling. I have since looked at this again and have tested it with a kadee coupling and the pipe fitted. No issues whatsoever which is a relief.
The proportions of the boiler, driving wheels and running plate are spot on too. Measured against my copy of an Isinglass 4mm drawing of the B12/3, I can see that the Hornby model is virtually identical in all major areas. One can legitimately argue, however, that the drawing doesn't entirely reflect real life, and it is in the real thing compared to the model that we see such incredible attention to detail.
There are potentially a few compromises. There are no cut outs in the steps, as per the preserved B12/3. This was a wartime addition for many B12s whilst being used on ambulance trains. There's possibly a few more - I don't believe the preserved model has the steam pipe cover on the left hand side that the model has, but I know many of its class members did.
Then you see that there's also space between the frames...
On several of Hornby and Bachmann's newest models, some attempts at modelling the inside cylinder setup has been made. I consider this Hornby's best effort to date, having studied 8572 at length whilst at the Bluebell Railway last November, for their most recent gala. What it does need, however, is some weathering which I will be happy to provide on my own model in the near future.
The front bogie has been cleverly engineered to give the least amount of daylight under the locomotive's running plate, whilst still being able to traverse tight model railway curvature. I tested this at length and you can see how the B12 performed in my video from a running in session at the Erith Model Railway Club.
You then glance into the cab and are greeted with what must be the most detailed cab of all time for a ready to run model. Every detail is there in miniature: and as per the lovely J15 from last year, you wonder how they'll top this with the next model. Something tells me the next LNER release from Hornby will look to top this, and do so quite spectacularly, but that's for another time...
So there you have it. Everything is as it should be and everything is in its place. It's a beautiful model and quite rightly, the old B12/3 tooling should be retired completely, or left in the Railroad range. As you can see above, the proportions of the old model are just all over the place.
The body sits far too high, buffers flying in mid air as all Triang locos and rolling stock seemed to. The difference in the frames and front bogie arrangement are stark, and look at the length of the boiler and the size of the chimney!
One could argue legitimately that the Triang model is in many respects closer to B12/4 with some minor modifications, but that's for another day...
Yet I know there will always be a place in my heart for this model. It came at a time when Triang, and then Hornby, were producing toys. It made its way into the catalogue and minor improvements, most notably to its loco drive chassis, produced a rugged model which captured the minds of many children in the UK. Flying Scotsman is probably the most produced model steam locomotive, but after being in the Triang and Hornby catalogues for around 30 years, this model must be up there with the best as well. Its last appearance was in a digital train set a couple of years ago.
There was one moment at my local club which made me laugh. On running in the new Hornby B12/3, I was asked by an older member if it still had the chuff-chuff sound box in the tender. As it passed us at speed I replied "no it doesn't". The gentleman shook his head gently and said "that's a shame. I always rather enjoyed it".
So did I. But perhaps one day Hornby will see fit to DCC Sound their B12/3 with the real life sounds of 8572. Now that would be a brilliant addition to the range.
I didn't think that Hornby could top their model of the North Eastern Railway's Q6 locomotive. I was wrong. The B12/3 is the best model they've ever produced. If you don't believe me, go take a trip behind the real thing then look at the model. You can almost hear the sights and sounds of the Wandering 1500 for real as it sits there on the track.
You can watch a video of the new Hornby B12/3 being run in here.
Video being uploaded.
Many thanks to the Erith Model Railway Club for hosting.
My final thought: I've always wanted a good model of the B12/3. Now I have an excellent model. It sits above my desk in my room, a reminder of the brilliance of Hornby's R&D at its best, and a lovely memory of my late grandfather and I stood together at the North Norfolk Railway in 1994, steam hissing gently from the engine he used to call "Stephen" in the stories he told me.
You can't buy that kind of happy memory. But you can get a model which prompts it. Thank you Hornby.
Thanks for reading: a belated Merry Christmas, and a happy new year, to you all.
It's with great pleasure that I present for the first time on this blog a locomotive class which isn't part of my overall modelling plans. I had no intention of buying a Hornby Raven Q6, and yet I now find myself besotted with the original and having ordered another, with both destined to become Tyne Dock examples in due course. So how did we get here?
That's one question. Perhaps a better one is why didn't we get here earlier? In the North of England there are many beautifully industrial railways with steam locomotives of various vintages that ran to the end of steam. The Raven Q6 is one of those, and luckily for us, one is preserved and currently running on the North Yorkshire Moors Railways.
There were some people who wondered if we'd ever actually get here in modelling terms. A specifically North of England steam locomotive made by a major manufacturer for the mass market. It's all well and good throwing in the odd elderly Shire class, or a Scottish liveried Black Five, or a Robinson D11 with a slightly different chimney and cab roof, but it doesn't escape the fact that for the North of England, and specifically the North East of England, model railways have been severely lacking in products, excitement and general all round recognition that the region exists.
Hornby and Bachmann have produced some buildings in their Skaledale and Scenecraft ranges (including specifically North Eastern style sheds, water towers, signal boxes and even Goathland station).
It is made even more strange when you consider that the North Eastern Railway (NER) in particular was one of the major components of what has been Hornby's money maker for some years: the London & North Eastern Railway (LNER). Sir Vincent Raven's designs built for the NER varied hugely from humble tank engines, fast Atlantics to the somewhat unwieldy Pacifics and the beautifully rugged freight engines. It's in this bracket that we find Hornby's latest steam outline model, the Raven Q6, answering the prays of many people who've hankered for a steam locomotive with that North Eastern pedigree.
Of course, it could have all been very different. There was also a "crowd funded" model mooted by DJ Models a few years back. Happily for modellers there's been no duplication this time around, and the Hornby model was pushed ahead for release in 2016.
Let's face it, when it comes to steam locomotives and particularly ex-LNER steam locomotives, Hornby has a track record by far and away better than anyone else in the market. Bachmann has come very close with a few of its models, most recently the Ivatt Atlantic, but Hornby's Thompson L1, B1, Gresley B17 and most recently the Worsdell J15 and Gresley J50 are on another level to everything else. They led the way with revamped models of the Gresley A3 and A4, and the rest followed. Truly, if you follow the LNER, now is the time to be a 4mm scale modeller. You will never be able to have it as good as it is right now.
Heljan recently released a model of the Gresley O2 fright engine at an entirely comparable price to Hornby's Q6. It however doesn't measure up very well by comparison, I am afraid to say. If you need a Gresley O2, this is the only game in town. It has a number of features which I personally do not like, and objectively speaking its overall finish is not particularly fine when compared to many of its excellent diesel electric locomotives (I cite Falcon and Kestrel - both beautiful models).
Given the Hornby Q6 has a similar wheelbase, overall size and is being sold at a similar price point makes it in my opinion a reasonable comparison of models.
But there is no comparison. Objectively speaking there is an incredible gulf between the two models. In almost every way possible, the Hornby Q6 is the superior model, even accounting for some potential detail errors (lack of capuchon, mechanical lubricator, etc). The fit, finish and running qualities of the Q6 just by far out strip any other steam outline model out there.
For this review, I conducted some running in trials of the Q6 on 29 June 2016 and everyone at ERMS (Erith Model Railway Society) who examined the model was taken with it. But we were blown away by how incredibly quiet and competent the chassis is, without any modification. By contrast, my Heljan O2 runs extremely poorly and is much louder. I have previously been forwarded some screenshots of work done by others on the internet to improve their Gresley O2s and to me it's an excellent starting point for some modelling.
But the Hornby Q6 is better value for money. Less modifications need to be done, if any, to make it look like a proper LNER workhorse. It has a better motor and gearbox arrangement, separately fitted lamp irons, metal handrails and handrail knobs (Heljan's O2 has hideous plastic ones which look and feel cheap), sprung buffers and a plethora of other separately fitted details.
By comparison, Heljan's O2 has mismatching tender handrails, poorly designed outside valve gear, an incredibly misshapen chimney and a less than smooth drive in either forwards or reverse running. I feel like I could trust the quality control of Hornby implicitly with this release, which I can't say with Heljan's O2. The Hornby Q6 hasn't got the double fly wheel drive of the Worsdell J15, but it doesn't need it either.
Bear in mind, I have always previously praised Heljan for their excellent mechanisms and it is regrettable that such a high profile new release falls down in what is normally their strongest area (if we accept of course, some notable problem models such as the Clayton. Art imitating life more than we'd like!)
So does the Hornby Q6 measure up for accuracy to prototype? You bet it does. Surprisingly, this is a model which Hornby haven't laser scanned, preferring to climb all over the real thing and measure it up traditionally. Which I approve of wholeheartedly as you may find things which you don't get from a laser scanning device (a useful tool undoubtedly - but not infallible).
This means that in real terms, the Hornby Q6 model compares very favourably to scale drawings and photographs of the real thing. This model - like all in the first batch - carries a diagram 50A boiler (the later type fitted by the LNER) and a chimney without a "windjabber" or "capuchon".
It also has the mechanical lubricator fitted to the right hand side, and does not have a sandwich buffer beam fitted. It is in late LNER livery, with the plain yellow Gill Sans lettering and numbering that Edward Thompson introduced when chief mechanical engineer of the LNER.
The detail in the cab is absolutely bonkers: the boiler back head is possibly the most realistic and detailed I have seen on any steam outline model. It is extremely fine, and really only needs some weathering and a crew to complete the look.
If I have one criticism of the design of the model, it is that the tender is very light and possibly prone to derailing as a result. I have not however in eight hours of running this model encountered a single time that the model's tender derailed. So this criticism may in fact be unfair. It is easily fixed by adding real coal or liquid lead when the moulded plastic coal is removed to add weight.
There's a few other nit picky details I need to get out of the way at this point. Bear in mind, I'm an LNER modeller and as such I, and others like me, are going to be looking closely at these models for modelling purposes, and we may find more fault than others because we know what we're looking for.
(But I caveat that with fully accepting the Q6 isn't my normal fare and I have relied on my friends who have looked after the real thing to point me in the right direction of prototype photographs and film online).
Firstly, I'm pretty sure looking at the photographs I've collated that this Q6 (3418) should have a capuchon on the chimney. However when I asked Hornby about this, they replied that on this particular locomotive, they had evidence the capuchon had been corroded away and had taken the decision not to model it as a result.
It's a fair response in my view. In my time rustling through books (RCTS, Yeadon's, a few books on the North of England railways and my late grandfather's photo collection) there's a few photographs to suggest that the capuchon was damaged regularly on Q6s. Whether that justifies not modelling the capuchon on this locomotive, when they have such a chimney tooled up on the British Railway liveried models, is up to you.
Secondly, the mechanical lubricator. The RCTS (Railway Correspondence and Travel Society) series of books indicates that the type fitted to this model was post 1949, which is British Railways days. I've looked at photographs and I believe it's not wrong for a 1946 era Q6 to have this type of lubricator. However whether it is correct for 3418 is another matter. I simply don't know - I haven't as yet found a photograph of 3418 herself.
Then there's the smokebox door. On some forums there's been doubt about whether it should have been this type of smokebox door or the larger, more bulbous later one as fitted to the British Railway versions. Happily I've found a large number of 1946-49 era Q6s in photographs fitted with this door, so I am content to say it's most likely accurate, if not for 3418 then at the very least for a classmate in this period.
The numbering and lettering on this version looks a smidgeon anaemic to me. However the colour and shape of them looks accurate. That is the most minor point possible.
The biggest criticism of this model I have seen is that as an LNER liveried model it doesn't represent the largest period possible as it has a diagram 50A boiler and not a diagram 50 boiler which has many different details including, but not limited to, washout plugs, safety valves, dome placement, and so on and so forth...
This is a fair criticism if what you expected was a pre-war Q6, but Hornby haven't sold it as such. It's definitely post war and its condition reflects that. In order for Hornby to model a fully pre-war Q6, it also requires tail rods to the cylinders, possibly a sandwich buffer beam, original NER buffers (and not the square based group standard ones fitted) amongst other minor details.
I asked Hornby if they were going to produce this type, and they stated a pre-war version with the 50A boiler type is definitely being on the cards. I suspect (and this is my view, not one Hornby have offered) that an LNER liveried Q6 was always going to be needed for the first batch, but to maximise the tooling available a post war one was easier to produce than a pre-war one. There's nothing wrong with that intrinsically, but if you model the LNER 1923-46 then this Q6 isn't accurate.
That takes nothing away from what is the model of the year, for me at any rate. I've never known a model to look so comfortable pulling a train or be so quiet and smooth when doing so. The chassis is a testament to Hornby's current design ethos, and the sharpness and accuracy of the body shell a testament to Hornby's tool makers.
For me, Hornby are at the top of their game once again. The excellence of the K1 and J15 last year have continued into 2016 with the superb Q6.
Of course this is all set against the current backdrop of Hornby as a company being in dire straits. The situation is grave.
All I can do, as a railway modeller who understands the value of Hornby as a company, is encourage those closet North Eastern modellers to buy the Q6s and the 21 ton hoppers in spades. They are both excellent models, and no doubt this won't be the last Darlington built model to be released by Hornby in the future.
For the sake of the hobby, we need Hornby to survive. We can do this by helping them to understand when they get it wrong - and by supporting and praising them when they get it right, like any other manufacturer.
At the end of the day, I'm not paid to write these reviews and I have absolutely no interest in mincing my words. I've previously always been very forthcoming with constructive criticism where it was required - see Hornby's Great Western heavy tanks or their Duke of Gloucester models to name but two that felt the wrath of my keyboard - but equally we've got to praise and support them when they get it right, because it's to the advantage of all of us in the hobby that Hornby as an entity survive.
I don't normally give scores on this blog, but if I was to give a score out of ten, this would be a nine: not perfect, for like any model there are people like me and more knowledgable than me who will know a few details are wrong, here and there. But the overall quality of the product and its performance by far out strip any other steam outline model on sale today.
Some time ago I started work on modifying one of Hornby's Railroad P2 locomotives into a streamlined variant. The identity of this engine has been picked, but it won't be immediately obvious which P2 it is.
Today I've been mostly concerned with adding handrails, the lubricators and generally tidying up the cuts made in the body shell to fit the A4 front end. It's nowhere near a patch on Graeme King's excellent P2 conversion (which you can find on the LNER forum) but it serves.
For anyone interested, I've used Bachmann V2 valve gear, virtually unmodified, using the same Hornby hexagonal screw to fit the valve gear on as is used on the normal Caprotti valve gear normally found on the base model.
As you may have guessed, my model will be wartime black once all of the modifications are done.
The P2 Steam Locomotive Company is delighted to exclusively announce the publication of an all new book on the P2 class locomotives in conjunction with Ian Allan Publishing. The book, written by the Trust's researcher and archivist Andrew Hardy will feature new and unseen photographs, letters and other material never previously printed making this the must read book on the class. A contribution from the sale of each book will go towards No. 2007 Prince of Wales. This will be higher if bought direct from the Trust. Pre-orders are available now through the Trust for publication in May 2016 with no money required until final publication. To pre-order or for more information please email andy.hardy@p2steam.com I would like to assure readers of my blog that this book is worth purchasing. It is, in my opinion, the most balanced and fair account of these locomotives ever written: it includes never-seen before archive material, and the fact that its sale directly contributes to the building of no.2007 Prince of Wales is a further bonus. Quite frankly, if you love the locomotives of Sir Nigel Gresley, you need this book in your collection. Until next time.
With the news that a ticket for Scotsman's inaugural run is going to cost £450, here's a letter I can finally publish after five years which shows what could have been.
In the end, I fear I'll be dreaming of being on that train on 25 February 2016...
Well, that's it ladies and gentlemen. The last copy of Tale of the Unnamed Engine left Sidcup earlier today, bound for Nova Scotia in Canada. We released the paperbacks for the first time in August 2013 and two and a bit years on we find ourselves with only our stock allocated for our stockists left.
To say that today was a difficult day was an understatement. We did, after all, print and bind 2000* copies with help from Tony Lord of the London College of Communication, Blackheath's Binders, and many more besides.
I think I speak for myself and Dean when I say that we thoroughly enjoyed bringing this volume to print after releasing it as an eBook back in the summer of 2012.
I'm so very grateful to everyone who bought a copy of the book. For those of you who didn't get a copy, have no fear. Email us on copleyhill@outlook.com, and if we have any left from returns or similar from our stockists, we'll be in touch.
All that is left to say, is that these has been the first story we told...and we're getting closer to the second one, day by day.
Here's some artwork Dean has been working on - the faces haven't actually been illustrated yet, the shading is the colour of the smokebox. Note also that the steam and smoke is yet to be done too, but there's so much rich detail in the picture already. I think you can guess what railway these engines come from!
Until next time.
*Actually, it was 35 boxes of 60 books each, which is 2100 copies. The overspill comes from printing, we had to make sure we had enough for 2000 books to sell!
One of the things that I find wonderful about this hobby is the research. You can turn up many interesting combinations of locomotive name, number and form.
A case in point: Thompson's B1s. Built by Darlington, Gorton and North British, they all had some detail differences including smokebox rivets, style of and placement of works plates and the smokebox door type.
Bachmann's latest, unnamed, apple green Thompson B1 no.1123 was the subject for my latest round of modelling. Having purchased a number of these at a knock down price, I went through my preferred books for research on the class. The Power of the B1s, Yeadon's Register and the RCTS' LNER volume 2B all featuring some interesting prototypes.
I had already made a model of class pioneer Springbok and two more of the deer namers caught my eye for different reasons.
B1 no.1039 was featured in Yeadon's Register with an unusual difference to its classmates. The photograph in the book shows it coupled to one of the ex-Raven/Gresley Atlantic six wheel tenders. These tenders were a close, if not perfect match for a V2's group standard tender. Since I had a number of these spare, I took the opportunity to remove the shaded LNER lettering using some water and a glass fibre pen, and add Gill Sans plain lettering instead. The base model's tender will go to another Thompson related project in due course.
1039 had electric lighting, but the base model does not. I removed the lamp irons and used some bits from a spare Replica Railways B1 body shell that did have the electric lighting fitted. It's not a perfect match for the original style Thompson lighting system but it'll do in terms of representation. Some wire was added to the right hand side of the boiler and fitted next to the stones generator on the running plate, also taken from a spare Replica B1 body shell.
The original chimney was cut off, and the smokebox filed down, for a brass cast Gibson's B1 chimney with a much nicer profile to be fitted. Superglue of the semi-quick drying kind was used to allow some time to fiddle around and make sure it was fitted properly. Fox Transfers provided the nameplates and works plates for this model and these were duly added using the same process.
One modification I have made to all of my Bachmann B1s is to remove the original, large, plastic coupling bar from the tenders. I use Hornby's Railroad Scotsman metal drawbar, available as a spare online, and these are coupled through the tender's drawbar and through the locos to be screwed in. This closes up the gap nicely without making it impossible for the models to go round corners.
The other B1 being worked on, Addax, was also shown in the same book with a very nice combination of BR numbering and full LNER livery. I repeated the process for this model, with the one additional being the smokebox numberplate fixed in the normal position. This will need repainting as the brass numeral effect isn't accurate.
The nameplates and numberplate for Addax came from Modelmasters and though I dislike the brass effect on the smokebox door am ultimately happy with the shape and style of both. The comparison between Fox Transfers and Modelmaster etched plates is interesting. I can't say that I have a particular preference but it'll be Fox from now on as they have a better selection of the B1 names available at present.
So here then are two variations on the same theme made that look similar and have similar detailing but ultimately are different and individual.
Springbok, Steinbok and Addax will be joined by a few more in due course no doubt. For the moment, an older split chassis apple green B1 Sir William Gray keeps them company, making a quartet of named apple green B1s for my work in progress layout.
When finished, the three deers will be weathered and coaled and with crews fitted, and will no doubt enjoy a mixed bag of work on the layout. I am already imagining a few different freight and passenger formations they could be seen on.
Ultimately for me, the LNER has always been about Thompson's plucky B1s. Although only an LNER liveried locomotive class for around 6 years, they epitomise the post-war LNER rather well and they are - one must admit - very handsome machines.
Many say it's Thompson's only design memorial, both in actuality and in quality. I don't believe the latter myself, but one cannot argue with the fact that it's the engine Thompson is best known for.
And when all is said and done, it's the locomotive the LNER needed - and got.
So to start us off in this sixth update of the year, here's a few images of no.11 Empire of India which is nearing the finishing straight. A lucky find by a contributor has happily led to me getting the roof and tender painted correctly!
That is, with the tender painted black above the beading, and the roof painted black down to the edges.
Overall I am really happy with her and she'll get a run out at the Erith Model Railway Club this week.
Now we move onto the big steam event of this year. Talyllyn 150. I was very gratified to be able to go with a couple of close friends (including one Ryan Hagan of the Sodor Island Forums) and we enjoyed seeing all of the different shades of red on offer!
Of course, the two guests from the Ffestiniog and Welsh Highland Railway were Russell (making a first trip back, and a first trip in steam) and Prince. Both very handsome engines which I admire greatly. The compactness of Russell is astonishing towards the front end!
What's a trip to the Tayllyn without seeing one of the old ladies? Talyllyn herself looked resplendent in her new livery, which I personally thinks suits her the best of all the liveries I have seen. Much better than that lined black...!
Of course there was one engine who wasn't going to be in steam, and sadly Sir Haydn will have to wait a little longer for his overhaul...
I don't think I have ever admired a narrow gauge engine as much as I did Talyllyn that day. The vast majority of my photographs she's in somewhere! Looked fabulous. Nearest the camera is Douglas who I generally ignored the whole day. Sorry Douglas!
Russell is an astonishingly powerful locomotive for its size, but one of the quietest operators I've heard for a good long time. I doubt that'll be the case when she's running on her home railway!
Then of course, there is the other old lady, looking utterly resplendent in a matching livery to her sister.
Dolgoch really looked rather wonderful. It does beg the question, what livery will we see them in for Talyllyn 200...!!! (If I live that long!)
I did manage to sign a few of our books and generally meet and greet anyone who wanted an autograph. There was one chap named Lewis who made my day by recognising me sitting in one of the coaches! Thanks Lewis, you really cheered me up that morning :)
Finally, we have a new stockist! The Corris Railway has agreed to take ten books on and they will have them within the next week or two.
This brings our number of stockists in the preserved railway world up to four. To that end, I am preparing a new part of the website giving links to these railways and advertising them a little better our end.
