A Grand Day Out
NG Trains Blog
by Paul Martin
2w ago
Archive Image Yesterday was the 2024 Narrow Gauge North Exhibition at the Pudsey Civic Hall and I attended, as usual, with the EDM Models trade stand. It was a excellent show by all account but because I was there on my own I only glimpsed bits of it (mostly on trips to/from the loo).  What was great was to catch up with customers and spend much of the day just talking. It was the memories feature on Facebook that reminded me that I didn’t take any photographs during the day hence the image of our stand from 2018. For some excellent pictures of the show I can recommend you have a look a ..read more
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Lionheart Lights – someone’s a bit dim
NG Trains Blog
by Paul Martin
1M ago
As I am still in the midst of the biggest regauging project I have ever taken on things with the otherwise superb Lionheart  Lynton & Barnstaple models the issues arising seem a bit relentless. The latest – the carriage roofs don’t fit properly in the DCC fitted coaches. This only affects the ones sold as DCC controlled lights by Dapol/Lionheart. The DC ones are fine.   Naturally, Dapol have used their own Imperium Function decoder and the problem is its a bit too fat. It fits between the lighting strip and the roof and forces the lighting strip to bend down which in turn stops t ..read more
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Wheely Wepetitive
NG Trains Blog
by Paul Martin
2M ago
There was a lot of enthusiasm for the subject when Lionheart Models announced their L&B models. After a long wait the models have arrived and they are superb. In a small corner of the modelling world their was additional excitement when they saw this statement. For the first time a manufacturer was offering RTR O14 stock or at least stock designed to be convertible easily. The models were announced in September 21 and delivered in December 23 and throughout many were asking how the O14 compatibility was to be delivered and no answer was forthcoming. I was fortunate enough to be able to spe ..read more
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The Creamery
NG Trains Blog
by Paul Martin
4M ago
This is another story about laser cutting but I have dressed it up as a modelling post with a recycling slant to make it about the birth of a new layout. Henmore Dale as at York Model Railway Show 2013 We, the Trent Valley Group of the 7mm Narrow Gauge Association , used to exhibit a large 0-16.mm layout of the Henmore Dale Light Railway. It was last exhibited at York Exhibition, Easter 2013. It was a large layout that needed many hands and a large van to go anywhere and it couldn’t be set up in anyone’s home. At the end of that exhibition some of the layout was damaged and created a rethink ..read more
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More Zapping
NG Trains Blog
by Paul Martin
6M ago
Those that follow this blog will know two things: I recently designed and had laser cut parts for my own baseboard on the Brimstone RR which led to a follow up job to design, get cut and build the baseboards for the new Henmore Dale Railway. When I go to Wales I stay with Phil Traxson of Port Wynnstay fame and that I drive trains on the Festiniog Railway. Both of these things have led to more designing and laser cutting. First up was my mate and FR Ops Manager, Tickle, wanting some modular boards that would fit in a Ikea Billy Book case shelf so he could display his models when the weather w ..read more
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Beamish Transport Weekend
NG Trains Blog
by Paul Martin
6M ago
The weekend of 9th & 10th September was the late season Transport Gala at Beamish Museum. There was also a photo charter on the Friday which meant lighting all the engines up a day earlier. The transport gala encompasses the entire site with traction engines, vintage cars, lorries buses and motorbikes (and probably lots of other stuff) all circulating around the site. I was there to be a driver on the colliery railways so this report is mostly about that. On the narrow gauge railway we had two visiting engines and two home based engines although for the Friday we only steamed on of the hom ..read more
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All the Gear and No Idea
NG Trains Blog
by Paul Martin
7M ago
Sometime a go I designed the `Micro Drive’ creating a drive with a coreless motor and 54:1 gearing. It was aimed at providing a replacement drive for the Agenoria Quarry Hunslet kits I own and sell. It was necessary for two reasons. The first was that the Mashima motors that the kit was designed for are no longer available. The second that coupled with the 30:1 gears the high revving small Mashima wasn’t ideal for a quarry shunting locomotive as it was too fast a combination.   As soon as this was available one of my regular customers started musing on whether the `Micro Drive’ would fit ..read more
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Translate this scene into a US setting
NG Trains Blog
by Paul Martin
8M ago
Ok, odd title but bear with me. This starts with a what will seem like a holiday report because, in a way it is. I am just back from two weeks driving on the Festiniog Railway. One new service for this year is the quarryman train which starts in Blaenau and the loco and stock live in the railways Glan-y-Pwll depot. Putting the coaches away involves the loco going very close to the end of the line beyond which a bridge is missing. Having seen it from the footplate I decided on an outing on my day off to see it from the other side and timed my visit to be when one of my colleagues was putting th ..read more
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Chelfham Buildings
NG Trains Blog
by Paul Martin
10M ago
More info about the new Dapol kits will appear here soon ..read more
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Engines
NG Trains Blog
by Paul Martin
10M ago
Photo:; David F Boughey The week before the bank holiday was an interesting one for me. Starting with the two day model show at Minffordd at which I was doing a kit building demonstration. A feature of the weekend was a “do” to celebrated the 90th Birthday of the organiser Paul Towers. There was an evening train to Tan-y-Bwlch for a meal on which I was invited. I was definitely not driving the train. Well, not until the Wednesday before after which we ended up with more engines that carriages. Three locomotives to two carriages. I’ll explain that in a moment but first……   One of th ..read more
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