railwayrod

Having diverted from Ramchester to the steam fair I thought it was time to show Howard's latest bit of work for the signal box. This is a resin casting which I think I purchased from Invertrain a while ago and now sporting a coat of paint with details picked out . These are cruel enlargements but once inside the signal box they will hardly be seen. Rod

My understanding of the stationary engine on wheels is that it is essentially a stationary engine mounted on a "trailer" which would need some sort of power unit (i.e. a traction engine or steam roller) as opposed to being self moving. It was a large machine with a very tall chimney which presumably would have to be removed when it was being towed. Rod

A couple more pictures from Saturdays Steam Fair. A stationary steam engine on wheels. And a steam lorry. Rod

Hi Martin. You are very welcome to come and see Ramchester and enjoy an operating session (and perhaps some of Maggie's cake) Send me a PM beforehand so we can fix up a suitable date. Rod

I did notice the layout when browsing through magazines in WH Smiths the other day and agree that the new owner has made some nice improvements. However he needed something very good to start with and that was down to you. Are you going to Telford this year? Rod

Hi John. What a lovely way to travel to this show. Well worth the effort and supporting a steam railway to boot. Howard and I really enjoyed the day with plenty to see and lots of interesting stalls to view. Will fix up another day for you to come round and have an operating day very soon. Rod

While Maggie went off for a day out with her friends Howard and I visited Torbay's annual steam fair a large event set just off the main road to Brixham and occupying several fields with a large arena area for the various machines to parade around. There were something here to please everyone from small children to senior citizens. Apart from the range of steam powered machines there were many side stalls dispensing tea/coffee/cakes etc and various vans selling other refreshments. A full fun fair, old cars. commercial vehicles, tractors, motor bikes etc, etc. In short a great day out. Just to give you a flavour of the event here are a few photos of some of the exhibits. Rod

I have "press ganged" Howard to complete the interior of the signal box. When the box was made by my good friend Robert it came with a fitted stove, a shelf of instruments, and fully painted lever frame and levers - non of which were glued into place.. I felt that a few more levers were required together with a desk, chair,and other fittings. Some time ago I purchased several packets of LNWR levers an another base for them. I also purchased the recently produced PECO signal box interior kit which I thought might provide even more bits for the box. All in all I now have enough? bits and pieces to fully equip the interior. The photos show our starting point and as the work progresses I will keep you all updated. And here is a picture of Howard hard at work on some of the bits. The gun is behind the camera!!!! Rod

The Jinty looks really good. Next time you are in Devon bring it along and we can photograph it arriving in Ramchester on a special! Rod

Forgot to mention. Howard is a classical fan while my taste in music is very wide but I really like the late 50's and early 60's. Great stuff! Rod

Hi Gismorail. Nice to see you making a new start and I look forward to watching developments. Your fiddle yard is somewhat similar to mine and I seem to remember you posting a photo of it on my Ramchester thread. Until now I had assumed that you had a complete layout so this is a nice surprise. Rod

Glad to hear that the layout has been taken over by a new owner and won't just be scrapped. Very sorry to hear that you are involved in a house move and that we will not be seeing your fine work on RMweb for the foreseeable future. I hope that everything goes well and that you will be back as soon as you can. I am sure that all the followers of your various threads will agree with me when I say that your work has been inspirational and that we will all miss you. Rod

I agree with Giles. That is nice. Rod

Thank you Paul and Bob for your valued support and comments. Railway modelling is indeed therapeutic and often I get totally lost in a project or operating session. This is where DCC sound comes into its own as to see and hear the Black 5 and its train coasting into the station is reminiscent of my school boy days standing on Rugby station watching the huge amount of traffic passing through its busy environs. If only photography had been cheaper then as I would have taken far more photos than I did. Ah well happy days, it is nice to dream. I suppose that I count myself lucky as at least I was there at the time and able to experience first hand the thrill, smells and action of a very busy main line junction station. Rod

During the past few weeks Howard has been working on improving the scenery around the coal yard. We had decided that the road looked far too dark so he set about lightening it and titivating the surface as well as making some changes to the stream and its surrounding areas. Here are some pictures of the result of his hard work. I must apologise for the quality of these pictures which are not up to my usual standard but I hope you will enjoy them anyway. Rod

I like the driving trailer David, cant wait to see the finished article. Great work. Rod

Nice to see the progress that you have made Giles. The layout is looking really good and I look forward to seeing more of it soon. What is your loco that is coming? Rod

Chris. I like your idea of using 4mm scale lamps for buildings. I would never have thought of that but now I can see that some of my buildings on Ramchester will be so fitted. Thanks for the suggestion. Rod

Your layout is coming along nicely Howard. Rod

Having been subjected to a second operation on my malignant mole plus the removal of two lymph nodes I am now awaiting the results of the biopsie. Despite this Ramchester continues to provide a much needed service to its inhabitants who seem to use the trains far more than average. Today I caught up with the afternoon goods hauled by Jinty 47357 and watched it shunt its train into the sidings under the watchful eye of the shunter. Upon arrival the driver detaches the brake van and puts it into the short siding at the end of the run round loop. It then proceeds to shunt its train and removing the loaded wagons from the goods shed. The yard looks very busy as wagons are moved around ready for their next journey. Finally for now the loaded wagons from the incoming train are gently moved into the goods shed ready for the attention of the staff. All for now. Rod

Hi Giles. If I had known that you were at the Exeter show we could have met up for a chat and to arrange your visit to see Ramchester. Never mind I will be in touch very soon after my hospital surgery on Monday. Rod

Hi Rod. I really like WKT. It oozes atmosphere and generates an aire of a busy station with plenty of action to watch. Keep up the good work it is wonderful to see your progress. Rod

Hi Steve. Really nice work on both the loco and the layout. Don't know how you find enough time to do all that you do! However please keep it up as it is a nice thread to follow and I for one really enjoy it. Rod

Hi Chris. Never mind what is behind the story, it is not relevant to me at least. What is important is that I enjoyed the tale and cannot wait for the next installment! Rod

Well here I am again. This time with some pictures of Peter Martins second locomotive that he brought along last week. I need not say what it is as it will be obvious from the photos. I know Chiss Klein will do so immediately as it is one of his productions. This is a superb model and in its blue livery looks absolutely stunning. Here she is standing in the platform road ready to depart for the off stage industrial complex. The crew get the go ahead and ease the loco along the platform... ... and moves out onto the main line. she leans into the curve, gives a toot on her whistle and enters the tunnel. What a lovely model almost makes one want to model an industrial complex. Rod