News from your model shop - 24th January 2021

Hello

Don't forget to read our latest modelling tips located at the bottom of the newsletter.

We have received the following message from Nigel: "I see that you've mentioned Evergreen Styrene plastic; please see attached image. The image is of the water tower that I've built this year. The tank is from a Ratio kit but, the 'I' section girders under the tank and the three pairs of legs are made from Evergreen Styrene. The legs have 3mm dia. brass rod cross members and the diagonal wires are .33 brass wire. The circular centres which the brass wires are fixed to is Evergreen Styrene tube cut into 3mm lengths". Click on the picture to see it in full size and access a lot more information on how the water tower was built.

 

 

This week in history - On 24th January 1955 the British Transport Commission produced a report on the Modernisation and re-equipment of British Railways proposing the replacement of steam traction by diesel and electric locomotives along with a large-scale re-signalling plan.

Peco have just released their latest catalogue. With more than 200 pages, it contains all the products from Peco, Modelscene, Ratio, Wills, Parkside and Tracksetta with full colour pictures and description. They have also added pages of information and tips on scales and gauges, baseboard building, wiring kit building and scenic work. As a new catalogue is released only every 3 years on average, this is a well worth investment. Click on the picture for more details.

 

 

We talk plenty about 00 gauge which we all know is the most popular gauge, and N gauge, commonly used to fit more in, but what is 0 gauge all about?

Many years ago, before 00 came along, 0 gauge was the mainstay for many modellers, but nowadays it is chosen rather than the norm. And it's not for the faint-hearted either, although there are numerous locomotives and rolling stock available that are ready-to-run, much of an 0 gauge world will need to be created from scratch, making it perfect for modellers that are ready for a challenge.

Luckily, some of the more complicated essentials such as track, points and signals have been manufactured for us, along with some smaller buildings like signal boxes and intricate models such as cranes and level crossings, but as far as larger buildings are concerned, it's pretty much down to your scratch building skills.

 

 

 

 

 

 

0 gauge also has a good offering of models used to dress scenes like figures, telephone boxes, fences and street lamps, and a good selection of details such as doors and windows to help with the models you do have to scratch-build so you are not completely on your own.

To summarise, although you will have to scratch-build a lot of an 0 gauge layout, there are plenty of models available to help with the essentials and the fine details, so 0 gauge can be challenging but achievable.

 

 

 

 

• How do you wire a smoke generator to your engine?
• Do I have to use the track mat that came with my train set?
• What is a Parkside wagon kit?
• Can I use WD-40 on my model railway locomotive?
• What are the parts of a train wheel called?