Railway Modelling
Railway Modelling - the realistic way
Rice • £19.99 • (A)
'Catch-all' books are not always very satisfactory because of the tendency to cram-in too much, but this is (a) pretty thick and (b) by well-known expert Iain Rice, and is a very pleasant surprise. In fact, if Iain has left any question unanswered when it comes to 'O' to 'N' scales I will be shocked, as this is definitely a book for the railway modeller's reference library. 288 pages and 300 illustrations, the bulk in colour. Hardbound. Haynes Publishing
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Modelling Scotland’s Railways
Futers • £18.95 • (D)
Three exceptionally good books for railway modellers. The first is the most general, but is crammed with good ideas for model railways, small or large - all standard gauge, but some capable of being narrow-gauged. Modelling the British Rail Era includes some layout suggestions, but its main thrust is the changes that came about on the railways during the classic diesel and electric age, and how they should be embodied in layouts of this era. The final book is jam packed with hints, tips and ideas for modelling Scotland’s railways, from pre-grouping to the present day, with numerous layout ideas; despite being a Scot, I refuse to budge from my belief that Coniston is the ultimate station for a model railway (see The Coniston Branch in the ‘British Railways’ section), but many of the ideas here run it a very close second! Very well produced paperbacks, crammed with illustrations, drawings, diagrams and the like, many in colour. 96, 96 & 112 pages respectively. Santona Publications
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Baseboards for Model Railways
Morton • £12.99 • (E)
Whatever you do on top of it, a good baseboard really is critical to any model railway, so whether you are constructing that first model railway for your young son (or daughter), or are just starting on a 'mega' adult project to replicate the whole of the West Coast Main Line in N scale, you will gain from reading this (especially in the latter case). The author describes in detail the building of traditional solid top boards, but also covers making much lighter boards using less traditional material, as well as legs, alignment etc. Purely by chance the publication of this book came just after my son Alex and I had started making baseboards for our first, vaguely serious, railway, so we really can appreciate this book. However, in an attempt to keep the baseboards light, we worked out a design using plyboard, which doesn't appear here, although a similar idea is shown using Foamcore board. The first board seems rigid, and future ones will be neater now that we have both got the hang of using a router! 79 well produced pages full of drawings, sketches and photos, mainly in colour. Paperback. Ian Allen
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Maintaining & Repairing your Scale Model Trains
Volhard • £ 12.50 • (F)
Good, sound book on all aspects of keeping your model railway running smoothly - the book is American, but the message international. About half concentrates on locomotives, but the rest covers rolling stock, trackwork, point motors etc, and just about everything else. Must find the time to put what this book preaches into practice on my layout! 80 very well illustrated pages. Paperback. Kalmbach.
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Etched Loco Construction
Rice • £11.95 • (E)
Great book from Iain Rice covering, in depth, how to build locos from etched brass kits. Highly knowledgeable and readable and a “must” for anyone contemplating building locos from kits. 77 well produced and illustrated pages. Paperback. Wild Swan
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Whitemetal Locos - a kitbuilder’s guide
Rice • £ 10.95 • (E)
Around since 1989, this is still a first class guide to the not-as-simple-as-you-might-think business of assembling whitemetal kits. All aspects are well covered here, including the chassis, super-detailing and painting; whilst definitely intended for model railway locomotive kit builders, the techniques described here would apply to any whitemetal kit. 62 pages. 99 B & W photos. 20 sketches. Softcover. Wild Swan
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Carriage Modelling Made Easy
Jenkinson • £ 12.95 • (D)
David Jenkinson claimed that he was “fundamentally lazy when it comes to making models” which certainly doesn’t show in the end result. In this excellent book the author shows how to short-cut your way to accurate scratch built coaches in 4mm to 10mm scales. 130 profusely illustrated pages. Paperback. Wild Swan
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Practical Garden Railways
Jones • £19.95 • (B)
All the books we have on garden railways are good, and have their own strengths, but this one is exceptional. For starters it is not ‘G’ Scale or 16mm NG orientated, but covers all gauges from ‘N’ scale up to 71?4” gauge, even if it is aimed mostly at the creator of a scenic, rather than a passenger hauling, railway. Secondly it seems to cover all aspects of garden railways in more depth, and as the author has been involved with garden railways for nearly 50 years, there is a lot of practical experience embodied in his words of wisdom. Lastly, it is a beautifully produced book with the vast majority of the illustrations in colour - somewhere around 365 of them. 224 pages in all. Hardbound. The Crowood Press
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Modelling in Gauge 1 Book 1: Electric Propulsion
G1MRA • £ 10.00 • (C)
Gauge 1 is generally considered a ‘live steam’ gauge, but it has always embraced electric propulsion for both simplicity and cheapness, not to mention clean and instant running. This excellent book brings together no less than 76 contributions of varying length sent over the years to the Gauge 1 Model Railway Association’s Newsletter on all aspects of building electrically propelled models of steam, diesel and electric locomotives, mainly scratch built. Well worth having, even if you model in smaller gauges. 110 A4 format pages heaving with photos, drawings, sketches and wiring diagrams. Softcover. G1MRA
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Modelling in Gauge 1 Book 2: John van Riemsdijk’ Contribution • £ 10.00 • (D)
John van Riemsdijk has spent a lifetime around railways - he was responsible for the curatorial setup at the National Railway Museum, and around model railways - after WWII he manufactured the clockwork mechanisms sold under the ‘Walker-Reimsdijk’ label and, after many years involved with Gauge 1, guided Aster through the design of many of their Gauge 1 locomotives and kits. His writings over the years for the G1MRA Newsletter on steam have been required reading by all members, and these have now been collected together into this book. There is much here on valve gears, boilers, exhausts and much else that is critical to the efficient running of model steam locomotives, as well as much more, all writing in a highly readable style. Whilst aimed at the Gauge 1 modeller, in truth there is an awful lot for any live steamer to enjoy and profit from here. This glowing review is not influenced, in any way, by the fact that John held my hand, and guided me throughout getting “La Locomotive a Vapeur” into print (honest!) - buy a copy and see for yourself. 118 page A4 format paperback with many photos and sketches. G1MRA
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Modelling in Gauge 1 Book 3: Freight Stock
£10.00 • (F)
Culled from over 40 years of the G1MRA ‘Newsletter’, here are loads of useful hints, tips, ideas, short-cuts and advice on building freight stock in Gauge 1 (but in fact applicable to the larger scales in general). Includes a number of drawings, plus large numbers of sketches and photographs. 96 pages in all. Softcover. G1MRA
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A Pictorial History of G1MRA 1947 to 2007
ed. Wrottesley • £11.00 • (D)
The Gauge 1 Model Railway Association was founded on the 9th May 1947, and looking at this very nice book commemorating its first 60 years, it is worrying to discover I have been a member for nearly half that time. There are a lot of faces and names here, which may limit this book’s attraction to those who have never been G1MRA members, but especially in the section covering the early years there are many layout photographs. 96 landscape format pages. Around 300 photos, both b & w and colour. Softcover. G1MRA
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Getting Started in 7mm Scale Narrow Gauge
Revised 3rd edition • £ 4.00 • (G)
Useful, magazine style book full of ideas and hints and tips for budding NG modellers in 7mm scale narrow gauge, many of which will also be useful in the bigger scales. Well produced with lots of photos, layout diagrams, stock drawings etc. 34 pages. The 7mm Narrow Gauge Association
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The Right Track
ed. Wright • £ 6.00 • (G)
Interesting book on different aspects of modelling narrow gauge railways, with lots of useful hints and tips. Quite a lot of this is devoted to ‘design’ in the broad sense, but there are also articles on super-detailing of models, scenery and buildings, the bulk of which applies to modelling standard gauge as well. 31 well produced and illustrated A4 pages. Softcover. The 7mm Narrow Gauge Association.
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Getting Rolling
• £ 7.50 • (F)
This 5th Handbook from The 7mm Narrow Gauge Association is ‘A Guide to modelling narrow gauge rolling stock....’ and very good. Subjects include building wagons & coaches from kits, in plastic and Plasticard, wood, brass and resin kits; other chapters include Festiniog Wagons in brass, scratchbuilding, building Cleminson coaches and converting Peco kits. Whilst the subject and scale are specific the skills are not and there is much here for all railway modellers. 62 pages, around 100 illustrations, a good number in colour, and drawings. Softcover.
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0n30 Annual 2008
• £11.95 • (F)
In truth, we don't usually 'do' Annuals at Camden, but the fact that the Harris males are trying to get a layout up in this scale has had an effect, helped by the fact that this is very good; whilst (obviously) 0n30 orientated, most of the 18 articles here will be of interest to anyone modelling narrow gauge, whatever the scale. I especially appreciate the way it gives you the nerve to do advanced surgery to commercial models ....... 86 all colour pages, full of photos and illustrations. Paperback. Carstens
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Carl Arendt’s Small Layout Scrapbook
Arendt • £12.95 • (F)
Carl’s previous book on building ‘micro-layouts’ was our best selling railway modelling book ever, so it is a real pleasure to have more from him! There are 100 layouts featured here, each a delight in its own way, and all SMALL - one only 1 foot square, and in G scale! The ideas are fabulous, and span all gauges, so don’t be put off if you haven’t much space to make your layout - buy this book and learn how to do something special. 64 pages. Loads of all colour photos, diagrams, plans and the like. Soft-cover and published by the author.
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Electrical Handbook of Model Railroads - Vol. 1
Mallery • £ 7.80 • (F)
NEW 3rd edition of this excellent book covering the basic electrical concepts for model railways, in considerable and very clear detail. Includes, amongst much else: Basic Electricity, Electrical Devices, Motors, Power Sources, Common Rail, Turnouts and Special Work, Basic Cab Control and Ratings of Resistors and Capacitors. Good solid information. 64 large format pages, well illustrated with photos and diagrams. Softcover. Carstens.
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Electrical Handbook for Model Railroads Vol.2
Mallery • £ 11.50 • (F)
4th edition of this great book. Covers cab control, transistor throttles, track circuits, signalling, lighting, sound effects etc. Softbound. Carstens Publications.
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Digital Command Control
Morton • £12.99 • (E)
DCC is the ‘new kid’ on the model railway ‘block’ and promises tremendous flexibility in operations. BUT it is complex, there are numerous systems and, inevitably, problems with compatibility, plus t’ain’t cheap. As I know from discussions within our local model railroad group, it is a bit of a jungle, and this book from Ian Morton certainly goes a long way to making the system, and options, clearer. 80 very well produced pages, with mainly colour photos, and diagrams. Paperback. Ian Allan Publishing
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Narrow Gauge Railway Modelling
Kazer • £ 16.95 • (C)
Lovely book, based on English and Welsh prototypes, but also applicable to
the modelling of any country¹s narrow gauge railways in the electric scales.
12 chapters cover everything from planning, survey work and presentation to
baseboards, track, bridges, buildings, signalling, scenery and rolling
stock. The results are mind-blowingly realistic and it is often difficult to
tell whether a photograph is a model, or one of the many, mainly archive,
photos of prototypes. Descriptions and conclusions are good and this is just
a lovely book. 100s of photos, some diagrams and a set of Corris drawings.
Very well presented paperback. Wild Swan
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The Isle of Man Railway - a modeller's inspiration
Winter • £14.99 • (D)
Ostensibly this is a book on modelling the 3' gauge Isle of Man Railway, but only 26 of its 130 pages relate directly to modelling, and the reality is that this is a superb photographic gazetteer of the railway, especially during two interesting periods in its history - the 1950s and the 1970s. There is an informative text, but it is the 400 plus photographs, the majority in colour, which are the core of this very well produced book. A4 format paperback. Peco Publications
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Do It Yourself Vacuum Forming
Walsh • £ 8.85 • (E)
Not aimed specifically at model railway builders, but with great potential in this hobby, here the author describes how you can set up to do simple vacuum forming for around £10.00, and how to build a two stage high vacuum system that can form up to 1/4” thick plastics for £35 to £45....... Chapters include the basics, heat sources, vacuum sources, forming equipment, plastics, molds, forming and finishing. 128 pages. Paperback. Published by the author
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Landscape Modelling
Norman • £ 9.95 • (E)
This book has been around for a while, if not in this List, and is extraordinarily good, being full of great ideas, ‘how-to’ and common sense. Covers not just how to make a supremely realistic landscape, but how to plan it, how to build decent baseboards, tree making, and presenting your finished masterpiece. All in 66 very well illustrated A4 format pages. Softcover. Wild Swan
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How to Build Realistic Model Railroad Scenery
Frary • £15.95 • (D)
The first two editions of this title were ‘staples’ in this section for years, and now we have a completely revised and updated third edition. Needless to say this edition is even better, and not just because all the illustrations are in colour. There is a huge amount of useable information here on planning a model railway layout and making sure it has excellent and realistic scenery. The fact that this is an American is totally irrelevant, as model railway (or railroad) scenery can be planned and built using similar methods wherever model railways are dreamed of! High quality, 144 page paperback with 100s of colour illustrations. Kalmbach.
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MAGAZINES
Narrow Gauge Downunder • Quarterly • Sample copy £ 6.95
This really top-notch magazine changed editor/publisher in 2005 and is now even better - larger, some colour content, and being published quarterly. Whilst it has an Australasian ‘feel’, it also covers American and British narrow gauge regularly, with occasional forays into the European scene as well. Around 50 pages per issue.
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Two high quality modelling magazines from America. Narrow Gauge & Shortline Gazette is bi-monthly and covers shortlines, narrow gauge and logging lines, mainly American, but with occasional forays elsewhere in the world. N Scale Magazine is bi-monthly, covering American standard gauge modelling in N Scale. If you have never seen them, send for a copy and see for yourself! All are available from us on a regular “standing order” basis.
FILM
Detailing and Improving RTR Locomotives and Coaches
App. 195 mins • DVD £17.99
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Four brilliant DVDs on building 4mm scale, or OO gauge, locomotive kits, showing the construction of an `LMS 4F brass kit from Alan Gibson, a GWR 61xx 2-6-2T whitemetal kit from South Eastern Finecast and an A2 Pacific 'mixed' kit from DJH. Part 1 covers: chassis making, quartering wheels, arranging pick-ups, making and securing coupling rods, installing motors, fitting ponies and bogies, initial body and tender construction and first steps in detailing. Part 2 covers: building the smoke box, boiler and firebox and detailing these, fixing and detailing chimneys, detailing the cab, forming smoke deflectors and handrails, building the tender, outside motion, cylinders and valve gear assembly and finally test running and fine adjustments. The skilled and amusing presenter is Tony Wright, the assistant editor of British Railway Modelling. In Part 3 Tony is joined by professional model painter Ian Rathbone. This intrepid duo then demonstrate Re-numbering and re-branding, Applying transfers, Fixing Nameplates, Aerosol painting, Sable brush painting, The use of an airbrush, Hand lining with a bow pen and fine brush, and Varnishing and finishing to exhibition standard. Whilst Part 3 is aimed at the OO/HO scale modeller, what I like about it is that many of the points covered apply to painting in much larger scales. Part 4 covers the detailing and improving of RTR locos and coaches very well, and is extremely useful if you want to add extra detail to your proprietary items in both N and OO scale. All these films are definitely Hot Stuff!
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Modelling Landscapes Part 2
App. 120 mins • DVD £18.99
In the same series as the films above, but concentrating on the landscape a model railway runs through, rather than the locomotives and rolling stock. Presented by Barry Norman, well known modeller and author, Part 1 considers: researching the prototype, layout design, baseboard construction, laying and ballasting track, shaping landforms, laying grass and landscaping. In Part 2 Barry looks at making road surfaces, a country lane and ‘planting’ a cornfield. He also creates water effects, hedges, a variety of trees and a forest. PLUS he takes you on a personal tour around one of his major inspirations - the unbelievable layouts at Pendon Museum. These are great aids to making a really realistic layout.
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Building Buildings
App 200 mins • DVD • £18.99
This is No. 7 in the Right Track series above, and carries on in quality, both of instruction and production, from the others. In this DVD Geoff Gilbert, a noted architectural modeller, shows just how he creates fantastically accurate structures, using cost-effective, easy to follow and entirely practical methods - all well displayed here.
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