RAILWAY OF THE MONTH

Rowington for Shrewley
As a lifelong aficionado for the Great Western Railway, Dick Hewins created this circular double-track system as a showcase for his extensive collection of 4mm scale locomotives and stock.

PLAN OF THE MONTH

Macclesfield Hibel Road
CThis compact but busy joint station in Cheshire was suggested as a layout plan as long ago as 1955; Jules Attard has turned it into reality in N gauge.

PLUS ALL THE LATEST NEWS & REVIEWS...

RAILWAY OF THE MONTH

Bournemouth West
This near-to-scale 4mm model of the former Somerset & Dorset Joint Railway terminus was recently acquired by Kevin Babey, Chairman of the Salisbury & South Wilts Railway Society.

PLAN OF THE MONTH

Cwm Bach
Chris Morris recalls the background to this N gauge shelf layout, which is being made portable in order to appear at the Warley at Statfold exhibition in October.

PLUS ALL THE LATEST NEWS & REVIEWS...

RAILWAY OF THE MONTH

Slattocks Junction
Tony Williams and Ralph Robertson of the Manchester Model Railway Society explain why the group's P4 layout became "a lesson in how not to build a model", yet has evolved into a superb evocation of the Calder Valley line.

SCALE DRAWINGS

Wainwright L Class 4-4-0
To complement John Cockcroft's build of one of these South Eastern & Chatham Railway locomotives, we present scale drawings and accompanying prototype notes by the late Ian Beattie..

PLUS ALL THE LATEST NEWS & REVIEWS...

RAILWAY OF THE MONTH

Somerset & Dorset in the garden
Simon Kennedy has created an impression of the much-loved Somerset & Dorset Joint Railway in O gauge in his garden, with automated digital control.

PLAN OF THE MONTH

Gledholt Junction and beyond
David Smith is constructing an impressive three-level 00 gauge system incorporating locations in the Huddersfield area where he grew up, with the most advanced section so far recreating Gledholt Junction on the Leeds to Manchester 'Standedge Route'.

PLUS ALL THE LATEST NEWS & REVIEWS...

RAILWAY OF THE MONTH

Dead Man's Lane
A love of the contemporary railway scene - and the yellow-liveried Network Rail test fleet - combined with a tour around the Rail Vehicle Engineering Limited site at Derby, inspired Mick Bryan to recreate this and the neighbouring East Midlands Trains depot in 4mm scale.

PLAN OF THE MONTH
Gallows Close Goods
Chris Martin describes how he recreated this slice of Scarborough in N gauge, including diverse freight facilities, and local passenger and holiday traffic.

PLUS ALL THE LATEST NEWS & REVIEWS...

RAILWAY OF THE MONTH

Ropley
Chris Cleveland explains how he overcame a number of challenges to create a model based on the locomotive headquarters of the Watercress Line in Hampshire. The layout captures faithfully many of the smaller details that can be observed at heritage railway sites across the UK.

PLAN OF THE MONTH
Carterton
Limitations on available space can often prevent the modelling of a real location, but Chris Chewter found a way to create an evocative 00 gauge cameo of this former Oxfordshire station in a scenic footprint measuring just 6' x 2', using PECO bullhead track.

PLUS ALL THE LATEST NEWS & REVIEWS...

RAILWAY OF THE MONTH

Grantham
This 1930s portrayal of the East Coast Main Line has been a firm favourite at exhibitions since it made its debut on the circuit in 2015. Ahead of its appearance at the York Show this Easter, Graham Nicholas reflects on his experiences of taking the layout on the circuit.

PROJECT OF THE MONTH
Kirkby Stephen East
In the second half of his article describing the construction of a super-detailed Princess Royal Class 4-6-2, John Cooper-Smith builds, details and paints the locomotive body and tender.

PLUS ALL THE LATEST NEWS & REVIEWS...

 

RAILWAY OF THE MONTH

Eastfield
This gargantuan 70' x 40' recreation of Glasgow Eastfeld diesel depot is due to make its exhibition debut at this year's Model Rail Scotland show. Graham Blount explains why Mick Worrall and the South Tyneside O Gauge Group embarked on the ambitious project.

PROJECT OF THE MONTH
A Princess Royal for Camden and Kilsby - Part 2
In the second half of his article describing the construction of a super-detailed Princess Royal Class 4-6-2, John Cooper-Smith builds, details and paints the locomotive body and tender.

 

PLUS ALL THE LATEST NEWS & REVIEWS...

 

RAILWAY OF THE MONTH

Wellpark
This 00 gauge layout by the Scottish Diesel & Electric Group, set in the suburbs of Glasgow in the 1980s, is due to be on show at the Model Rail Scotland exhibition in the city on 23, 24 & 25 February.

PROJECT OF THE MONTH
A Princess Royal for Camden and Kilsby
John Cooper-Smith describes the construction of a Stanier Princess Royal Pacific for his EM gauge layout Camden and Kilsby, Railway of the Month in the May 2023 Railway Modeller.

 

PLUS ALL THE LATEST NEWS & REVIEWS...

 

RAILWAY OF THE MONTH

Tiverton Junction
Peter Fosberry describes the Culm Valley Model Railway Club's replica of this once extensive Western Region junction, which is on public view twice a month just a few miles from the real location.

PROJECT OF THE MONTH
Westhill Road station building
Southern modeller Graham Muspratt describes his scratch-build of a key structure, the station house and booking office, for his new, under-construction 4' x 18" layout in 4mm scale.

 

PLUS ALL THE LATEST NEWS & REVIEWS...

 

RAILWAY OF THE MONTH

Ellerton Road
Alan Turner recounts the story behind this 7mm scale pre-Grouping Midland Railway layout, which has been constructed over the past two decades by the East Staffordshire Group of the ScaleSeven organisation.

PLAN OF THE MONTH
Hayling Island
Ray Newman rekindled childhood memories of the 41h-mile Hayling Island branch - which closed 60 years ago - by creating a faithful depiction in 00 of the line's characterful terminus..

 

PLUS ALL THE LATEST NEWS & REVIEWS...

 

RAILWAY OF THE MONTH

Potters Bar & South Mimms
Phil Clarke chose to replicate the glamour of the East Coast Main Line during the 1930s, when Gresley's A3 and A4 Pacifies reigned supreme, with this digitally controlled system housed in a loft space.

PLAN OF THE MONTH
Tunbridge Wells West
Andy Offen has fulfilled a dream by modelling this former London Brighton & South Coast Railway station in Kent as it appeared in the BR steam era, in N gauge.

 

PLUS ALL THE LATEST NEWS & REVIEWS...

 

RAILWAY OF THE MONTH

Westcliff
For his pre-Grouping Great Western layout, Richard Butler imagined how West Bay in Dorset might have appeared had it developed into the thriving holiday resort envisaged by the original promoters of the railway.

PLAN OF THE MONTH
Abbots Ripton
To mark this year's centenary of the 1923 Grouping, Josh Williams suggests an East Coast Main Line layout set in the first year of the London & North Eastern Railway's existence.

 

RAILWAY OF THE MONTH

Ashdan Junction
A passion for the Western diesel-hydraulics and memories of the 1970s BR blue era led Barry Platt to create this fictional West Midlands station, with an emphasis on entertaining the public at exhibitions..

PROJECT OF THE MONTH
A Peppercorn K1 in N
With no ready-to-run model of these Eastern Region Moguls in 2mm scale, Ian Cairns set about creating his own from a 3D-printed body and proprietary locomotive and tender chassis.

 

MAKING TRACKS III - MILTON KEYNES CENTRAL

Pete Waterman and his forthcoming event
Pete Waterman details how he and the Railnuts team have recreated the present-day Milton Keynes Central station for the the forthcoming Making Tracks III event at Chester Cathedral.

RAILWAY OF THE MONTH
The North Bucks Narrow Gauge Railway
Alan Rega takes us on a journey around his live steam, 16mm narrrow gauge garden railway, which has been nearly 30 years in the making.

 

ASHBURTON

What happened to the classic 4mm layout?
Chris Lamacraft's EM gauge model of this classic Great Western branch line terminus was retired from the exhibition circuit 25 years ago - but it has now found a home on the former Ashburton branch itself. 

RAILWAY OF THE MONTH
Bournemouth Central
After 50 years away from railway modelling, David Pinch revived his childhood interest in the hobby and set out to create this impressive 00 gauge reinterpretation of a classic seaside town station. 

CORONATION SPECIAL!

 RAILWAY OF THE MONTH
Camden & Kilsby
Well-known railway photographer John Cooper-Smith takes us on a tour of his mammoth West Coast Main Line layout in EM gauge, incorporating Camden locomotive shed and several other real locations.

PLAN OF THE MONTH
An industrial branch line
Graham Nicholas suggest a layout combining open country and an industrial site, suitable for portraying areas such as the South Wales valleys or the North East coalfields.

RAILWAY OF THE MONTH
York
Peter Kirmond reveals how he modelled the instantly recognisable train shed at York, in a 2mm finescale layout which is due to make its exhibition debut at the Easter York show.

PLAN OF THE MONTH
The Harland Light Railway
Carol Flavin, who took part in The Great Model Railway Challenge on Channel 5, reveals the plans for her next layout - this time in OO9, and named in memory of her late father who introduced her to the hobby. 

 

 

 

 

  

 

Scale Drawings
Axminster station footbridge 
Craig Tiley describes the new footbridge at the former LSWR station, with 2mm scale drawings produced by the Peco studio.

RAILWAY OF THE MONTH
Lockerbie 
James Cochrane describes the OO gauge West Coast Main Line layout that he built with the assistance of Andrew Campbell and other members of the Glasgow & Wesr of Scotland Model Railway Club.

PLAN OF THE MONTH
Mailingpark West
A third-rail OO gauge layout set in Kent during the closing years of the Network SouthEast era, which is being built by Craig Porteous and the 57 Study Group.

 

 

 

 

  

 

Scale Drawings
Monkton Combe Station
Craig Tiley describes the station building on the Camerton branch in Somerset, famous for its appearance in¬†ԪøThe Titfield ThunderboltԪø, with 1:120 scale drawings by Max Brayne.¬†

RAILWAY OF THE MONTH
Newton Heath Works 
Mike Baker describes how he and Martin Finney created this 7mm scale exhibition layout, inspired by the narrow gauge railways that once served the extensive ball clay industry on the Ilse of Purbeck. 

PLAN OF THE MONTH
A continuous run  - 1970s style
Following our booklet on modelling Britain's railways in 1970s, Kevin Russell suggests a continuous run layout for the period, in an 8' x 5' space and double-sided with a central backscene. 

 

 

 

 

  

 

Scale Drawings
Holden Class S56 0-6-0T (LNER Class J69)
A classic Great Eastern Railway tank engine stalwarts of the famous 'Jazz' suburban services, described by Toby Jennings, with scale drawings by Ian Beattie. 

RAILWAY OF THE MONTH
My Life with Trains
Pete Waterman's chart-topping successes actually came long after the roots of his railway interests were laid down, as he reveals in this exclusive interview with Senior Editor Steve Flint.

PLAN OF THE MONTH
Nantymoel
Joshua Williams looks to the valleys of South Wales and suggests that they potentially offer more scope than the usual West Country Great Western branch terminus. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Scale Drawings
BR Standard Class 3MT 2-6-2T
The BR Standard Class 3MT was rendered extinct in 1968, yet a new-build example is due to appear at the Warley show. Toby Jennings describes the Class, alongside scale drawings by Ian Beattie.

RAILWAY OF THE MONTH
Barton Road
Memories of Journeys to the West Country provided the inspiration for Benn Pollard to create this pre-TOPSera urban scene in an unorthodox T-shape footprint. 

PLAN OF THE MONTH
21st Century Penrith
Steve Flint considers this West Coast Main Line station in Cumbria as the setting for an N gauge layout project depicting the post-Privatisation era.  

 

 

 

 

 

 

Scale Drawings
LMS Class 2P 4-4-0
Toby Jennings describes these characterful Midland Railway-derived four-coupled tender locomotives, with accompanying 4mm drawings by the late Ian Beattie. 

RAILWAY OF THE MONTH
Monksbury
Tony Conlay describes this magnificent London & South Western Railway terminus, which has been constructed in 7mm scale by the Cornwall O Gauge Group as an extension to an existing layout. 

PLAN OF THE MONTH
Constructing a cathedral in 7mm scale
Robert Kosmider was first inspired to build a model of Chichester Cathedral in early 1990s, but nearly 30 years elapsed until he finally made a start. 

 

 

 

 

Scale Drawings
Modelling LMS 42' parcels vans in 4mm
Ian Nuttal couldn't resist the challenge of upgrading a Lima OO gauge ready-to-run model. This constructional account is accompanied by scale drawings prepared by Steve Croucher from originals by Arthur Whitehead. 

RAILWAY OF THE MONTH
North West steam in the garden
Having dreamt for many years of one day recreating his childhood memories in O gauge. Peter Holland built this large twin-level system with outdoor running. 

PLAN OF THE MONTH
Summerseat
Chris Ford outlines the history of this passing station on the former East Lancashire Railway route north of Manchester.

 

 

 

 

Scale Drawings
The Lancashire & Yorkshire 'Dreadnought' 4-6-0s
This month we present one of the company's most imposing locomotive designs, drawn and described by the late Ian Beattie.