My name is Graham Powell and I have enjoyed an interest in railways since I was small boy ....many years ago now. I have always been interested in railway modelling  and in the early 70's took up modelling  in Gauge 0. At the time very little was available for the scale and consequently I had to learn how to make things myself. Most of the models you will see on this website have been scratchbuilt in my small but well equipped workshop.  I hope you enjoy looking round the site which I add to as new models are built.

21st March 2012

A little trip into Southern territory. For some reason, I have always wanted one of these handsome engines. I did see some once in Bristol of all places on their way to being scrapped.

This scratchbuilt  model has home turned cast iron driving wheels. The bogie and pony truck wheels are by Slaters. The chassis has been filled with lead and the axles run in brass tubes. The motor is a Powermaster. The body is nickel silver with all the boiler mountings turned up from brass bar. The smokebox door was a resin casting I found in my junk box.The valve gear has all been cut out of nickel silver sheet. Not an easy engine to model with its three level footplate and taper boiler. Clearances are very tight between the valve gear and the middle set of steps but I am quite pleased with the overall outcome. Once painted in BR Black it will be finished as 31914 and it will be on freight duties  out in the garden.

 

 

* 3rd February 2012. At the bottom of this page is a picture of Nr 95 on its return from Fred Lewis after being weathered.*

March 5th 2012.

A little trip north of the border .Scratchbuilt Caledonian 782 class 0-6-0 tank locomotive. This has a compensated chassis of 18thou nickel silver using Slaters wheels with the body being made of the same material.The boiler mountings were home turned out of brass bar.  A Mashima 1833 motor plus 40:1 gears and a flywheel do the driving. Phosphur bronze wipers on the edges of the flanges for pick up. Not very fast but it does run very slowly and which willbe  good for its main job of shunting.At present its winging its way across the Atlantic to work on a layout in Pennsylvania.

 

Update. 18/3/2012

The little engine arrived in the USA after an uneventful flight. It was upgraded to business class apparently. It has now been painted and weathered by its owner Mr Brian Scace and is in operation on his rather nice railway.

 

 

 

Hunslet 0-4-2 tank engine built for the Timoleague and Courtmacsherry Branch light railway  in Ireland. Model made from a Tyrconnel Models kit obtainable from Alphagraphix .This kit can be built as a standard gauge locomotive or to suit the Irish broader gauge but I'm not sure how, as clearances are very tight on it. The connecting rod is also the wrong length . I made a new one from scratch. Apart from that, its a nice little engine that would look well on a Colonel Stephens or other variety of light railway.

 

 The single wheeler is another Irish loco from the same source based on some 2-2-2 well tanks built by Fairbairn of Manchester for the Midland and Great Western Railway. A nice little engine that needs to be driven carefully otherwise it goes off like a rocket. Despite its small size it will pull three four wheel brass coaches.

 

 

 

 48305 built and painted by myself from a David Andrews kit. Split axle current collection all round. Powered by a Cannon motor with an ABC gearbox. The superb weathering is by that master of the weathering art, Fred Lewis. ( Link to Fred's Welsh Wizard site on my links page)

 

 

 GWR King  6008 King James 2. This is another engine built specifically for running on my garden track. Consequently, its probably a bit over engineered!. Most of the cast iron wheels and the Leakey motor were obtained second hand. The middle drivers are sprung and the piston valves operate from  eccentrics on the leading axle. It all breaks down into manageable units for painting purposes.Engine and tender bodies were constructed from a Firmco kit which I purchased for £25 including the chassis.When the warmer weather arrives (!) it will be painted in the early blue livery.

 

 A model of an  industrial Garratt "William Francis" made from  the Avondale kit.The etched valve gear was virtually unusable so it all had to be scratchbuilt. It has two 1220 Mashima motors driving 40:1 gears with split axles  all round. The body etches went together well. Not an easy thing to build or get running properly . Not sure I want to build another one...

   

 

GWR Armstrong class locomotive Nr 16 "Brunel". Built from a Scorpio Models kit . Painted and lined by myself. The locomotive has split axle pick up on the tender and is fitted with a Zimo DCC chip and Ron Chaplin gearbox.The various plates and numbers are by Guilplates.A very elegant locomotive.

LNER A1 Pacific 60156 "Great Central" built by myself from a limited edition DJH kit. The superb painting and lining is by the models owner Mr W H Tooke of Plymouth.

 

Ready for the paintshop is a model of GWR nr 95 one of the old Rhymney Railway engines reboilered by the GWR in the 1930's.  The model has a compensated chassis made from 18thou tinplate. The body is mainly nickel silver and the boiler mountings turned up from brass etc. A small JH motor does the driving and it is  a very quiet and smooth running model. Its job is to pull a train of coal wagons on the garden railway.

 

 

 Number 95 now resplendent in its BR livery. A very nice little engine that runs extremely well.

 

 

 Here is Nr 95 now weathered by Fred Lewis. An excellent job with which I am absolutely delighted . Roll on summer when it can stretch its "legs" running round the garden.