A stroll through Railway Modellers past

[RichardT]

1 hour ago, eldomtom2 said:

Clockwork For OO - B. J. Leech of Farnsborough, in response to W. S. H.'s letter last issue, gives details of the products of A. & J. van Riemsdyk, who produce OO/EM gauge clockwork chassis

Ah! John van Riemsdijk (as he preferred to spell it) - still spoken of with awe by my older Science Museum colleagues when I joined the NRM in 1998. He had a very interesting life, and was given an obituary in The Guardian (by Tony Hall-Patch, another notable Science Museum figure):

 

https://www.theguardian.com/theguardian/2008/nov/27/john-van-riemsdijk

 

IIRC he wrote an article for the RM in 1975 about the challenges of designing the displays for the new NRM.

 

Richard T

[kevinlms]

1 hour ago, Enterprisingwestern said:

 

Why do you still wear school uniform?

 

Mike.

I get a kick out of it, although after nearly 50 years, it is rather threadbare. 

[Nearholmer]

7 hours ago, RichardT said:

John van Riemsdijk (as he preferred to spell it)

He produced a range of clockwork trams, and locos in 00 and 0, just either side of 1950. I have two of his 0 gauge locos, and they are both very finely made, both mechanism and ‘body’, but quite fragile compared with the big makers like Bing, Hornby and Bassett-Lowke. The 4-4-4T has quite a few aluminium parts, a material which I guess he chose both for lightness and availability at a time when there was excess in circulation when aircraft production dipped.

 

He spelled his name on the packaging with a “Y”, which I think was something his father had adopted to make life easier for English speakers.

 

Some pictures here JVR models http://www.binnsroad.co.uk/railways/vanriem/index.html But, the 0-6-0T at the end is possibly mis-attributed. I think it is more likely an earlier Walker-Fenn. The Walker-Reimsdyk 0-6-0T I have seen, including the one I have, are rather different. The 00 locos were similar to the 0 gauge 0-6-0T in general shape.

Mr Deane’s layout this month was a very influential one, giving us “The Deane Fiddleyard”. I’m always amazed by his layouts because he modelled some very obscure prototypes when information about them was really hard to come by.

 

 

 

Edited March 20, 2022 by Nearholmer

[eldomtom2]

5 hours ago, RichardT said:

Ah! John van Riemsdijk (as he preferred to spell it) - still spoken of with awe by my older Science Museum colleagues when I joined the NRM in 1998. He had a very interesting life, and was given an obituary in The Guardian (by Tony Hall-Patch, another notable Science Museum figure):

Thanks - exactly the sort of interesting information I hoped to encourage the posting of by starting this thread.

[kevinlms]

21 hours ago, eldomtom2 said:

Vol.1 No.6

Aug-Sept 1950

 

 

Placed on the next page without any comment whatsoever are drawings for a L.M.S. 15T. Box Van.

 

 

Intriguing, an LMS 15Ton Box Van is a rare beast indeed. Either it is a pre-grouping wagon, or perhaps a 6 wheel brake van?

 

Nothing mentioned here.

 

http://s548745873.websitehome.co.uk/msrsourcev2/tpagesrs/tlmsgoodswagon.html

[eldomtom2]

On 21/03/2022 at 10:21, kevinlms said:

Intriguing, an LMS 15Ton Box Van is a rare beast indeed. Either it is a pre-grouping wagon, or perhaps a 6 wheel brake van?

 

Nothing mentioned here.

 

http://s548745873.websitehome.co.uk/msrsourcev2/tpagesrs/tlmsgoodswagon.html

This is the side view part of the drawings. I suppose it is possible that the "15" is a typo.

Edited April 6, 2022 by eldomtom2
reuploading image

[Nearholmer]

I seriously wonder about that drawing. The positions of the outer axles look too close to the centre of the vehicle to give optimum carrying capacity or reasonable stability against ‘hunting’.

 

But, maybe it is Caledonian Railway diagram 115, which did indeed have the end axles “too far in”.

 

 

Edited March 21, 2022 by Nearholmer

[Pacific231G]

18 hours ago, Nearholmer said:

Mr Deane’s layout this month was a very influential one, giving us “The Deane Fiddleyard”. I’m always amazed by his layouts because he modelled some very obscure prototypes when information about them was really hard to come by.

 

"Portreath" was interesting and another smaller layout "based on and inspired by  Maurice Deane's layout"  (and a short walk from it in Bristol)  appeared a couple of editions later in Jan-feb 1951 . It was Cyril Freezer who later christened it the "Deane style fiddleyard" - remembering that in 1950 fiddle or offstage shunting yards were still something of  novelty. 

 

Portreath didn't actually last very long as in the February 1952' RM  Layout of the Month, Maurice Deane wrote that "It was only a matter of a few days after my return from the detailed survey of the Culm Valley branch  (Jan 1952 RM) that trains ceased to run on the Portreath Branch and track lifting began" fairly rapidly. He  used the same boards (with slight changes) and space for his very excellent model of the branch. The Culm valley layout didn't use a "Deane Fiddleyard" behind the terminus for that  but rather a fully scenicced shunting yard  in plain sight in front of Culmstock Station  - an idea that nobody else seems to have pursued that I've often thought should be. 

 

So far as I know Maurice (M.E.J.) Deane never used the  fiddle yard behind the terminus idea for any of his later layouts. Several of them, including Wantage and Rye & Camber did though have the authentically modelled terminus branching off inside a contnuous run with a run round/passing loop somewhere on it. 

[eldomtom2]

Apologies for the delay (in addition to the one caused by the site being down). Post on issue 7 coming soonish.

[eldomtom2]

Sorry, I know I said I'd get the next entry up soonish, but a bunch of things in my personal life have come up and I have to put this on indefinite hiatus. It will return at some point, though.

[kevinlms]

On 23/04/2022 at 04:56, eldomtom2 said:

Sorry, I know I said I'd get the next entry up soonish, but a bunch of things in my personal life have come up and I have to put this on indefinite hiatus. It will return at some point, though.

Don't worry, it's been 70+ years, so we can wait a little longer!

[kevinlms]

On 16/02/2022 at 09:37, eldomtom2 said:

Having recently purchased a digital subscription to Railway Modeller, I thought it would be interesting to go through the entire archive (at least for the first few decades), discussing the articles and hopefully spurring discussion on the history of the hobby.

 

Vol.1 No.1

Oct-Nov 1949

 

 

 

However the next article makes up for the somewhat boring nature of the rest of the issue, as it is Building a Railway for a Film, by Bill Treb of Allan Brett Cannon Ltd. This covers the construction of a model railway for the 1949 film Obsession, starring Bret Newton. Does anyone have this film? It would be interesting to see video of the layout, as anything more beyond the film and the photographs in the article will not turn up, as the layout was destroyed after filming.

 

 

I went looking for the movie today and found it. Some good shots of the layout and the story line is quite good too. Easy to see where Columbo comes from.

 

The intermittent Russian (subtitles?) is a mystery of it's own.

 

 

[kevinlms]

On 16/02/2022 at 09:37, eldomtom2 said:

Having recently purchased a digital subscription to Railway Modeller, I thought it would be interesting to go through the entire archive (at least for the first few decades), discussing the articles and hopefully spurring discussion on the history of the hobby.

 

Vol.1 No.1

Oct-Nov 1949

 

Price: 1/6

 

Published by Ian Allan Ltd.

 

Editor: G. H. Lake

 

The Editorial is provided by G. P. Keen, Chairman of the Model Railway Club. He hopes that the new magazine will provide the hobby with "strong foundations". By these he means encouraging realistic operation (a bugbear that is still strong in the present day) and providing scale drawings of rolling stock.

 

The first article is Part One of The Irish International Railway and Tramway System by Mr. and Mrs. Cyril L. Fry. This was back in the days when model railways were Railways - having "railway" in the name of one's layout is rare enough these days, but no-one now (and I expect few then) would go to the bother of making a crest for their model railway and getting it approved by the Heraldic Department of Dublin Castle! The actual layout itself is an impressive O gauge effort intending to be a "museum" of Irish railway history - though one does wonder what the London Underground station in it is doing!

 

Next is an article from "Ixion" on Steam Locomotives in Miniature. This is a fairly generic overview of building miniature locomotives for the time, and as I know little on the subject I shall refrain from commenting further. The primary point of interest to me is at the end there is an invitation for readers to say whether or not they would be interested in a series of articles about building the then-brand new 1500 Class in miniature - a reminder of how long RM has been in print.

 

H. Chase, Chairman of the Birmingham Model Railway Club then writes on Joining A Club. The arguments he presents for joining a club are much the same as the ones you'd find today.

 

The first in a series of Ten Minute Model articles covers building a loading gauge with brass rail and brass strip, which can supposedly be achieved with the expense of just a few pence. Notably the scale is not mentioned despite precise figures being given.

 

Another first, this time from a much more long lived series, are Scale Drawings for an LNWR invalid saloon. The accompanying blurb notes that it is especially appropriate for a first attempt as "you have a good excuse for leaving it at the end of a siding should it run badly when completed".

 

Finishing the trilogy of hopeful recurring sections is Pre-Grouping Railways No. 1: GER. This is a selection of photographs of various GER buildings, presented without context (not even the location) except a caption stating the blindingly obvious.

 

Next is Model RailROADing by Reg Perrin. This is another article where there isn't much to say about it, it's just a brief overview of American railroads and the NMRA.

 

However the next article makes up for the somewhat boring nature of the rest of the issue, as it is Building a Railway for a Film, by Bill Treb of Allan Brett Cannon Ltd. This covers the construction of a model railway for the 1949 film Obsession, starring Bret Newton. Does anyone have this film? It would be interesting to see video of the layout, as anything more beyond the film and the photographs in the article will not turn up, as the layout was destroyed after filming.

 

For the final "proper" article, "Terence Cuneo writes some anecdotes on his Gauge One Garden Railway". This is fairly dull, as are most descriptions of people enjoying themselves.

 

Finally there is the section especially interesting to the present-day reader, News and Reviews of the Trade. About half this is devoted to trying to sell the reader on Trix Twin, to such an extent that one wonders if Ian Allan had shares in them. In other news, Leeds Model Company releases an O gauge trainset for £12 10s, Peco releases flat-bottom OO track, and A. W. Hambling & Co release their range of BILTEEZI card kits.

Looking at my free reprint of 'The Railway Modeller' for Vol. 1 No. 1, I see an ad for 'The Woodgate Engineering Co.' (Page 25).

It starts off with a suggestion of buying a 'robust 12V DC, 5 pole motor with Alcomax Magnet and 2 point fixing'.

It also goes on the mention 'asking your local Model Dealer to show you our range of Driving wheels to 18, 21, 24 and 26mm sizes, both 2 rail insulated and 3 rail non insulated at 1/7d. and 9d. each.

 

Now I've never heard of 'The Woodgate Engineering Co.' before, but it does sound rather like the basis of the Romford range. It it possible that Romford is TWEC with a new name/owners? The motor being pre Phantom?

Edited May 30, 2022 by kevinlms
Fixed company names as back to front!