[David Halfpenny]

I imagine many of you know this 61 year old Association well, but some may not.

On paper it's scope covers everything in 1/29 thru 1/32 scale and everything on 45mm or 1.75" gauge track.
That's just SO wide that in practice our focus is Standard (1435mm) Gauge with a strong British flavour and a fondness for live steam and garden tracks.


I've been a lurker here for some years and it's time I posted some stuff. The spur has been this new on-line editor feature which gives a few extra bells and whistles to the threads.


I hope you like these backwoods live steam locomotives, all owned (and built, modified or supplied) by our Members.
Please bear with me if things go haywire: I'm learning the ropes as fast as my old braincell can cope.
But if it works, you should be able to tell my favourite locomotive builder.
As in life, these industrial machines are a specialised byway rather than mainline staple.

So maybe if some of my friends read this they'll chip in with more typical Association motive power?


David
England

(David, I modified the URL on the last two images in this reply because they weren't displaying. Go back to Dwight's topic where you were testing things out and look for my reply where I show you which URL format works, SteveC mod.)

 

[Charles]

Dave
Good to have you here. Have read many of your postings on G1MRA. As we all can deduce from the photos you will have alot to contribute to this forum as well.

 

[AsterUK]

Nice one David. You'll find that you can post video as well as pictures. So check this one out.
Andrew



(Andrew, it seems that the Insert YouTube function still has a few kinks in it, but Shad is working on it. SteveC mod.) [/i]

 

[Jerry Barnes]

Welcome fellow G1MRA member! Good to have you here, I see the G1MRA is still not allowing emails, due to the 'big' crises.

 

[Charles]

David
Just for you and fellow members of G1MRA with interest in SG

 

[David Halfpenny]

Phew Charles, how do you drive that thing ? Burnt fingers? radio? It looks exiting anyway.


I also liked Andrew's video because it encapsulates the exhilaration that - in my experience - only Gauge 1 can provide. Well among model railways, anyway.


In this case it's the steam express in full flight, full of inner life and with a hint of danger. You can't do it with "ride-on" because the illusion is broken. You can't do it as well with electricity (though the sheer inertia of Gauge 1 stock is a driving challenge), and you can't really do it at all indoors. I suppose Gauge 3 could do it if one had a big enough estate, but Gauge 1 and its variants tick all the boxes for me - and I can still lift the locomotives! The sounds - exhaust bark and clickety clack - are so right, and with coal firing the smell is right too. Even the rain is right ;-)


There are other ways to get this elation, even from my beloved geared lokies.
They say that Shay racing is like snail racing without the suspense, but I can tell you that hurtling down a steep gradient with half a hundredweight of wet logs gathering themselves ominously on 'skels' behind somebody else's precious Shay - with no brakes - is white-knuckle stuff that takes a steady hand on the transmitter to get just the right amount of back-pressure in the cylinders.

The scream of the blower and safety valve on a coal-fired Aster steaming-up at nose level is another thing that raises my goosebumps:

The video also catches the sociabilty of the steamup. Until they got "cool" and self-propelled, my kids were very keen on the monthly trip out to join other families, with a bunch of other children and pets to play with - and occasional duties as Driver before a slap-up meal. Even now my sixthform daughter will bring her sunhat, homework and dog rather than study at home.



Hoping to grab more pictures this weekend.


David

 

[Charles]

David
The sights and sounds of gauge one can be engaging without being all consuming:


As to "snail races" we have the habit of rabbit racing:





Here is a good utube site for video of gauge one:

http://uk.youtube.com/group/smallscalesteam

 

[Alan in Adirondacks]

David, Andrew and Charles,

Thank you for the pictures and videos. I enjoyed the Aster A3 and Aster Jumbo in in that beautiful setting.

Best regards,

Alan

 

[AsterUK]

Hi Alan, glad you liked my video. So try this one which has been around for a while.
We plan to get some new ones soon!

Andrew

 

[David Halfpenny]

Bravo Andrew!

I tried to count the boxcars but lost it at 30 plus. Which is encouraging because a friend is running in a new Mikado and it's still not pulling as well as we hope it will in time. Here's a picture. It's fitted with a new coal-fired boiler - a neat device that avoids bothering to weather the model ;-)
David

 

[Charles]

David

Seems you enjoy coal fired engines so here are a few:

The above engine is a John Shawe conversion


From a grouping of photos we utilized to demonstrate how to coal fire:

At speed

NYC coal fired

John Shawe and son coal firing

Custom made Accucraft coal fired K27 by Justin

David Bailey coal fired kit Accucraft Ruby

This one escaped GB

Ryan and Harry operating coal fired K4

Mike Moore running a John Shawe coal fired conversion:

 

[Pete Thornton]

For anyone interested, here's the G1MRA website address:

http://www.gaugeone.org/

I can reccommend "Diamond Crossing", the 60th Anniversary DVD. Lotsa good UK trains and layouts.