Ingatestone is so Bracing !

Progress today on the storage and transport boxes for the two side boards – five and six. Tom and Maurice spent today adding the bracing to the side panels which will eventually be mounted on the skates and provide protection. I took the opportunity to do some wiring on the aforementioned boards, to get them …read more.

3 Red Panniers Project – Blog 2: It’s ‘EM’ Easy

Progress on L96 continues as I make preparations for detailing on the tank body. Meanwhile, I have started work on the second Pannier ‘L90’ which will be converted to EM (18.2 mm) gauge. For this, I have bought a Gibson conversion package which includes the following: OO/EM Wheel set + Axles Crankpins Coupling Rod Bushes …read more.

Library Additions – January 2016

Our library has one of the widest and largest ranges of books of books for railway modellers – covering prototype railways and modelling. The following list of books has recently been added. The library is open for browsing on Thursday evenings from 7-9pm (unless there is a lecture), and on our monthly open afternoons. Check out …read more.

London Model Engineering Exhibition 2016

We are delighted to have been invited to exhibit at the London Model Enginneeing Exhibition 2016 – held over three days from 15-17th January at Alexandra Palace – also home of the London Festival of Railway Modelling in March. There is a large cross-over between model engineering and model engineering – not only at the ‘big …read more.

3 Red Panniers Project – Blog 1: Farewell GWR

Red Pannier Tanks became a standard feature on the London Transport Network until the 70’s. Their small size was ideal for transporting goods across the Sub-surface network, many were seen trundling across the Metropolitan Line in the final years of Steam on the Underground. There has always been something about Panniers that I have found …read more.

New Year progress on Ingatestone !

Although we have been quiet over Christmas, that doesn’t mean that we have not been active on Ingatestone, as the photos will attest !   Progress since the last update:   Bob has been busy progressing the bridge nearer the country end of Ingatestone station and has started the drawing of Stock Lane bridge further …read more.

Track building – Part 1

One of the more frequent questions I get asked at exhibitions is how the track is built. Modelling in EM there isn’t much choice for anything other than plain track, but my track building goes back to my teenage OO days. Despite living only a couple of miles away at the time, I originally stumbled …read more.

The Model Railway Club

We are the world’s oldest Model Railway Club, established in 1910, and still one of the leading lights in the model railway world.  We meet every week, on Thursday ‘track nights’ at Keen House our purpose built club building in Central London, just a few minutes walk from King’s Cross station.   We welcome new …read more.

Manatee Bay

“Manatee Bay” is Eddie Thompson’s winning entry in the MRC’s 2015 layout challenge. It’s a fictitious H0 marine terminal (part of a larger layout) located on a river estuary on the Florida Panhandle operated by Seaboard Air Line Railroad.   The inspiration for the layout came from the March 2014 edition of Model Railroader which …read more.

Old Head

  “Old Head – County Mayo” is Nestor Middleton’s entry into the MRC 2015 layout challenge. The Location The railway came to this remote little part of County Mayo when the Midland Great Western railway of Ireland opened its line to Westport in 1866. Not before long, a short extension was opened to Westport Quay …read more.

Newton Peverill

“Newton Peverill” is Mike Lloyd’s entry in the MRC’s 2015 Layout Challenge.  It’s an N-gauge Great Western terminus, that whilst meeting the criteria of the challenge has been designed to be extended to 8’x1′ to make it more operationally interesting.    

“Narrow Gorge” – OOn3 microlayout

“Narrow Gorge” is Tom Cunnington’s entry in the MRC’s 2015 layout challenge.

Although not his first layout,, it is a first attempt at a number of techniques, including narrow gauge (all the kit-built stock is new for the layout), modelling cliffs and water, and trying to give depth in a very small footprint. It was also a bit of a rush, having previously decided (several times) that it would be a distraction from other projects.

It’s built at 1:76 scale, the same as OO, but with narrower 3′  gauge track – normally called “OOn3”

Here’s the diary of how it was built over 18 days, mostly an hour or two later in the evening (with apologies for viewers on some mobile devices – the photos keep rotating back)