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The childhood models we used to have and giving them a second life…
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I bumped into an old school friend the other day and he had a trunk of his old childhood model railway stuff in the back of the van which of course I had to have a look through…
Anyway he ended up coming round to mine yesterday evening with his 7 year old son Jack and we went through everything in the trunk to see what was useable so that he can set something up for his son at home (we also found time to have a bit of a play with Lapford which Jack seemed to be pretty exciting about
).
Marks Magical Trunk contained:
A load of 2 rail Triang track.
A few old Hornby and Triang buildings.
Some Triang mk1 coaches.
A couple of Hornby catalogues from 1978 and 1982 (pictured below)
One fossilised orange (believed to be of 1982 vintage).
One clockwork Hornby tank engine (minus key).
One Kitmaster maroon mk1 kit (part built and then sat on).
One Hornby controller (broken).
These few things (also pictured below) should be useable once they’ve had a service though:
1 HST including 1 Jouef and 2 Hornby mk3s.
1 Lima fake BR green four wheeled shunting loco (I remember having a BR blue one of these).
1 Hornby BR green 47 (which is
missing a gear wheel from the motor).
1 Hornby Tender drive maroon Patriot (with slightly seized loco wheels).
Catalogues:
Hopefully repairable stuff:
Fetch me the screwdrivers!
(Don’t worry about the cat, if it was N gauge he wouldn’t have his back to them).
Anyway he ended up coming round to mine yesterday evening with his 7 year old son Jack and we went through everything in the trunk to see what was useable so that he can set something up for his son at home (we also found time to have a bit of a play with Lapford which Jack seemed to be pretty exciting about
).Marks Magical Trunk contained:
A load of 2 rail Triang track.
A few old Hornby and Triang buildings.
Some Triang mk1 coaches.
A couple of Hornby catalogues from 1978 and 1982 (pictured below)
One fossilised orange (believed to be of 1982 vintage).
One clockwork Hornby tank engine (minus key).
One Kitmaster maroon mk1 kit (part built and then sat on).
One Hornby controller (broken).
These few things (also pictured below) should be useable once they’ve had a service though:
1 HST including 1 Jouef and 2 Hornby mk3s.
1 Lima fake BR green four wheeled shunting loco (I remember having a BR blue one of these).
1 Hornby BR green 47 (which is
missing a gear wheel from the motor).
1 Hornby Tender drive maroon Patriot (with slightly seized loco wheels).
Catalogues:
Hopefully repairable stuff:
Fetch me the screwdrivers!
(Don’t worry about the cat, if it was N gauge he wouldn’t have his back to them).
Last edited:
For me it’s probably my circa 1964 or 65 Triang catalogue with all its wonderful and evocative illustrations. I was lucky to get it signed by Richard Lines of Lines Brothers (Triang) in November 2019 just a few months before he passed away. He lived near to me and we spent a wonderful hour and a half in which he told me all about setting up the factory in Margate and developing all the products. This was concluded with an invitation to see and play with his train set. Wonderful!
What a wonderful anecdote and book to have.
Gloster
Established Member
The four-wheeled green shunter is of a German BR 211: BR here stands for Baureihe.
Ah yes. Didn’t Lima try and pass off a 33 as a CIE loco years ago too?
Edit - Found it!
Let me just ahem, open my catalogue (I must remember that it’s not actually my catalogue)…
Here we have that exact set:
You’d have been pretty made up to have received that I should think Cossie?
My first 'proper' set was a Lima Deltic with assorted freight wagons and a container crane that was a Christmas present - it would have been 1978 or 1979. The loco still exists, but I repainted it into BR blue, gave it a new identity and it ended up being my first attempt at using a detailing pack. At the time I thought I hadn't done too bad a job, but when I looked at it some years later I was a little (!) horrified.
I suppose we've all got to start somewhere.
I suppose we've all got to start somewhere.
I did some fairly atrocious detailing and painting jobs when I was younger.
One of the most bizarre things I did though was after doing all the pipes on one end of my Hornby class 25, I fitted the motor out of an old Jinty tank engine inside the body (after hacking all the clear plastic innards out of the way).
This was connected to an AAA battery via a push switch that you prodded through the exhaust port which I’d drilled out.
In my 12 year old brain this was meant to simulate the engine ticking over when the loco wasn’t moving.
I think it lasted until I decided not to waste my pocket money on AAA batteries…
"Model Railway Constructor" in the late 1950s suggested something similar with a small resistor in series with the actual drive motor so that applying a small touch of voltage to the track enabled the 'free' motor to run at slow speed without the loco moving. Turn up the voltage and the 'free' motor revved up as the loco started to move off.
I'm not too certain what happened to my early locos and rolling stock - possibly in a box over at my sister's, I must ask her the next time I'm visiting her!
Very earliest train set was an "Eveready" model of a tube train, bought circa 1950 or 51 by my father, apparently to entertain me (but he played with more often than I did!). It lasted a relatively short while - construction was very lightweight and after several years the Zinc alloy driving bogie started crumbling away. We then moved over to Triang/Rovex models.
A different era from mine but fascinating John, thanks for that.
The comment about your father made me chuckle!
Seeing those old catalogues has reminded me I've somehow ended up with a set of ones of a similar vintage (1978-1981) from a lot of books I bought not too long ago. Amazing to see what was on offer then - and then even better to find a price list in one of them! £23.99 for a GWR 'King' from Lima in 1980 - about £110 now.
I did some number-crunching (well, fumbling with a spreadsheet) not too long ago and found most of the engines on my railway are what you might term 'vintage' models. But the thing is, it's amazing what you can do with them if you've got a bit of time and patience (and perhaps a rainy day fund, for when that one bit of a Ringfield motor pings off into space...). They're ideal for setting up a small layout for a younger person really; love that idea.
All this with the caveat of me being one of the few people on this forum not to remember the days of Lima, Triang, or Airfix's 'Railway System'...
-Peter
I did some number-crunching (well, fumbling with a spreadsheet) not too long ago and found most of the engines on my railway are what you might term 'vintage' models. But the thing is, it's amazing what you can do with them if you've got a bit of time and patience (and perhaps a rainy day fund, for when that one bit of a Ringfield motor pings off into space...). They're ideal for setting up a small layout for a younger person really; love that idea.
All this with the caveat of me being one of the few people on this forum not to remember the days of Lima, Triang, or Airfix's 'Railway System'...
-Peter
Seeing those old catalogues has reminded me I've somehow ended up with a set of ones of a similar vintage (1978-1981) from a lot of books I bought not too long ago. Amazing to see what was on offer then - and then even better to find a price list in one of them! £23.99 for a GWR 'King' from Lima in 1980 - about £110 now.
I did some number-crunching (well, fumbling with a spreadsheet) not too long ago and found most of the engines on my railway are what you might term 'vintage' models. But the thing is, it's amazing what you can do with them if you've got a bit of time and patience (and perhaps a rainy day fund, for when that one bit of a Ringfield motor pings off into space...). They're ideal for setting up a small layout for a younger person really; love that idea.
All this with the caveat of me being one of the few people on this forum not to remember the days of Lima, Triang, or Airfix's 'Railway System'...
-Peter
£110 (equivalent) for a Lima King is quite interesting. There’s a Lima one on eBay for £119 at the moment and a brand new Hornby one for around £90.
The one thing I know is that I wouldn’t dare touch the innards of a modern one if it went wrong yet I’d be pinging those tiny springs from a Lima one into oblivion at the first opportunity if it wasn’t running properly.
I'm not sure I'd want to pay that much for a model which seems to carry what I can only assume to be Lima's attempt at recreating BR Experimental Express Passenger Blue by squinting and looking the other way... (actually, not sure if the one on eBay is the blue or green one - the blue is probably my favourite, but so long as it doesn't border on radioactively-bright)£110 (equivalent) for a Lima King is quite interesting. There’s a Lima one on eBay for £119 at the moment and a brand new Hornby one for around £90.
The one thing I know is that I wouldn’t dare touch the innards of a modern one if it went wrong yet I’d be pinging those tiny springs from a Lima one into oblivion at the first opportunity if it wasn’t running properly.
I know exactly what you mean - one of the things I like most of all about older models is being able to open them up, poke a few bits (or rather poke the whole thing so much it comes apart), and then solve the problem in an afternoon. Now you need to send it away for Barry back at Hornby (other locomotive engineers are available*) to fix it over the course of a fortnight
-Peter
*(I mean, calling Barry an 'engineer' is probably a step too far...)
This is the thing - last time he had a look at my Pannier tank (insert Kenneth Williams GIF here), I was sent back a Southern Railway 'Lord Nelson' - somehow entirely made from the pieces of a GWR 57xx. It would've been clever if it'd worked.
-Peter
I wonder what you’d have got if you’d sent him Kenneth Williams?
(actually we’d probably best leave this where it is)
Erm. Yes, one model I always seemed to have kicking around when I was a kid was the old Hornby/Triang Hymek.
I must have had a few them over the years because I remember having at least one green one and a blue one too.
One of them packed up at some point and I took it in for Pete (don’t you dare lean your bike on my window!) Lindsey at the Exeter model shop to have a look at.
It had one of those solid metal motor bogies and after leaving it with him for a week he managed to get it to run unbelievably well. Really quiet and smooth…
I seem to remember that those bogies were magnetic and used to stick to the track slightly?
I've had my eye on a couple of those Hymeks on eBay recently. Saw one a couple of years ago and plus, it's Triang - it'll be one of the few things left after a nuclear war (and it'll probably still run too)
Never knowingly had a Triang model with that magnetic thing, but I've seen some videos about it and I think it was called 'Magnahesion" or something (some play-on-words of "magnet" and "adhesion" I believe). Designed so models could get up banks or pull longer trains, I assume.
-Peter
D821
Member
My dad had a set up in the 80s, thinking back, he must have spent a lot of time and effort on it but I think he had got rid by the time I was about 10 or 11. I think a work colleague bought them.
ISTR having a Deltic, 'Royal Scots Grey', 'Morning Star', a class 9F (had to look that up) and black 6-wheeled steam locomotive that I can't remember much about. I hope someone is enjoying them still.
ISTR having a Deltic, 'Royal Scots Grey', 'Morning Star', a class 9F (had to look that up) and black 6-wheeled steam locomotive that I can't remember much about. I hope someone is enjoying them still.
I still have my first Hornby engine from Christmas 1979, a LNER B12. It came with a circle of track + siding and 7 wagons.
it still worked the last time a tried a few years ago.
That was a very happy Christmas.
Next best was when I got a Large Logo Mainline 56, I still have that as well. The thing used to do warp 9 lol
it still worked the last time a tried a few years ago.
That is the one.
That was a very happy Christmas.
Next best was when I got a Large Logo Mainline 56, I still have that as well. The thing used to do warp 9 lol
Well I took them all to bits tonight to get rid of the fluff and clean everything. It was a very pleasant experience actually and my nostalgia circuits were at maximum tingle!
I was amazed at the condition everything was in under the dust.
Once I’d freed up the wheels on the Patriot and given it a bit of attention it ran beautifully.
The HST in bits:
Not very helpful:
The little shunter is fairly smooth for a Lima motor now after it’s had a clean up of the armature and a tiny bit of oil. The HST and 47 are also running very sweetly with working lights as well:
I thought there was a gear wheel missing on the 47 but it was all present and correct actually, although I did replace a couple of engine room windows that had disappeared:
I’ve sent a few video clips to my friend Mark and he seemed pleased as punch so it’ll be nice to think of them being used again.
I was amazed at the condition everything was in under the dust.
Once I’d freed up the wheels on the Patriot and given it a bit of attention it ran beautifully.
The HST in bits:
Not very helpful:
The little shunter is fairly smooth for a Lima motor now after it’s had a clean up of the armature and a tiny bit of oil. The HST and 47 are also running very sweetly with working lights as well:
I thought there was a gear wheel missing on the 47 but it was all present and correct actually, although I did replace a couple of engine room windows that had disappeared:
I’ve sent a few video clips to my friend Mark and he seemed pleased as punch so it’ll be nice to think of them being used again.
61653 HTAFC
Veteran Member
Congratulations, at 12 years old you invented DCC Sound!
My own youthful misadventures involved trying to repaint a Lima 09 into grey, but using paint which was far too dark (IIRC it was "Battleship grey"). The paint was also applied with a brush far too thickly, making the shunter look like it had been caught in a mud flood.
Marginally better were my attempts to repaint some of the non-authentic wagons that had come with my original set, though even those weren't brilliant. Not bad for a kid I suppose.
Now, those wagons in their original form are selling for quite stupid prices on Ebay... I mean, who wants a rake of vans branded with that disgusting "Mighty White" bread that our mums were conned into buying back in the 80s and 90s?
pieguyrob
Member
- Joined
- 27 Oct 2018
- Messages
- 571
I had one of those vans, and, yes the bread wasn't nice. I still have the locomotives and wagons from my first train set.
My first was a late 80's hornby set with 37063 in railfreight grey with freight wagons. My second set was the intercity 225 set which was combined with the other into my first layout. I also had the hornby 110 in green. I'm glad I resisted the urge to detail the 37. The thought passed through my mind in the 90's.
I actually have one of those Triang/Hornby Hymeks somewhere. It was given to me by one of the older members of our local model railway club after I'd helped him assemble and run his layout at an exhibition. I never really did anything with it because it was I was leaning more towards Scottish Region stuff at the time.
I've had my eye on a couple of those Hymeks on eBay recently. Saw one a couple of years ago and plus, it's Triang - it'll be one of the few things left after a nuclear war (and it'll probably still run too)
Never knowingly had a Triang model with that magnetic thing, but I've seen some videos about it and I think it was called 'Magnahesion" or something (some play-on-words of "magnet" and "adhesion" I believe). Designed so models could get up banks or pull longer trains, I assume.
-Peter
I'll have to dig it out and check to see what condition it's in.
It was "Magadhesion" and was introduced in 1961, according to Pat Hammond's book "Triang Railways - The Story of Rovex Volume 1". It was an adaption of a system first used by the American firm Lionel. The wheels were fitted with steel tyres which the magnets between the wheels then attracted to the steel track that was used on the Triang track system. Apparently first developed for the A1A-A1A Brush Type 2 model in 3mm scale (TT gauge) which had problems with drawing realistic loads without Magadhesion assistance!
And here’s the evidence of Magnadhesion from my c1964 Triang brochure!- Status