Model Railway Forum

Hello all
I can not remember a time when I didnt have a train of some kind. Ive had a few firsts over the years. The very first was a Playcraft Clockwork 0-4-0 and some wagons HO scale. When the spring inevitably broke I all ready had a Black 0-4-0 battery powered Lego loco with a coach and a couple of wagons, blue rails too. I managed to acquire a fair bit of trackwork for this. Then when I was 7 or 8 I was given a Triang Hornby Princess Elizabeth set and a Jinty for Christmas. Unfortunely I no longer have the Princess but the Jinty and carriages survive. When I was 16 I was given the Mamod trainset for Christmas this I still have. My final first was when I was 20 and I was given a Silver King a N2 and a few other bits and pieces. That was the start of my interest in Hornby Dublo.

Around 1975 , Minitrix starter set with dock tank 0-6-0.
My Dad was in the RAF so I built a small layout on a fold away trestle table as we moved around alot !.

I too started with a Tri-ang R1 set in 1957 which was powered by two 6v Lantern batteries 996 type. I recall Xmas day morning taking the set to my uncle's home, where Dad and Uncle Harry set it up on the front room floor, ready for me to play with after Xmas dinner. I couldn't wait and rushed my dinner but I wasn't allowed to leave the table until everyone had finished eating! Then into the front room and was told to "Stand back" as Dad and uncle needed to check it worked correctly!
Hmm.... After about what seemed an eternity of watching the loco run around its oval of track, stopping, starting and reversing I was allowed to take control. Within an half hour or so the batteries died! But Wow! To me it was the best Christmas ever and probably the one I remember most of all

Many interesting stories, thank you!

My first locomotive was a Triang Princess Elizabeth 46201, which my dad bought for me second-hand in the early 70s. And here it is along with the two original coaches.


I know that it was bought second-hand because of the botch job someone made of painting it maroon over the original black. My dad would never have done that. When I dug it out of storage at my mum's three years ago, it unsurprisingly needed cleaning and oiling. It still runs, but rather poorly. I've deliberately laid a circuit of old (cleaned) Triang track so that I can run this and another elderly Triang locomotive. It's a pity that my dad is not still alive to see my layout. I think we would be well chuffed.

In 1953. It was a Hornby Dublo "Silver King" and tender, plus two coaches (still teak-coloured). The controller was a Kirdon Minor and the track was Wrenn, fixed to the floor (with drawing pins!) while I was asleep so I found it when I woke up on Christmas morning. How my dad did all that work without waking me I never found out.

The track obviously couldn't stay pinned to the floor permanently so I soon had a baseboard, made of hardboard (ghastly stuff!) and braced with timber. It wasn't long either before I got proper Hornby Dublo track. That Wrenn stuff was also dire.

In 1962 came the change to 2-rail (locos converted by The Southgate Hobbyshop (Beatties)). After the takeover by Lines Bros I shifted my focus to Europe, mainly to get more realistic models, and that's the situation today.

Cheers,
Artur

Something I forgot earlier was my VERY first train was a wood and tin push along engine running on four wheels, one in each corner, bearing no resemblance to any real train.

The only picture I have is a tiny image at the edge of a much larger picture.

The first model railway that I had was a Triang Jinty set with oval of grey track that my Father had mounted on a base board
for me to find on Xmas morning. It was about 1953 when the first Triang sets came out.
My school friends were surprised that my set had 2-rails where all theirs had 3. Hornby or Trix.
This set was not really expanded and later I replaced it with Hornby as I preferred the quality and in any case the local Triang dealer
was not easy to get to whereas two shops in the local town stocked Hornby.
Colin.

Hornby R538 Western Express Goods Set. Circa 80/81. Subsequently complimented by all sorts of secondhand stuff bought off exchange and mart (remember that).