Bron Effans

I have often considered buying another Ready to run locomotive as they are often more reliable that models that use older motors and motion. I already have the Bachmann Baldwin "590" which is one of my favourite locomotives. Hovever, two things have put me off buying anymore Ready to run and they are: Cost The cost of the average ready to run model is around £120- 130 which is considerable when you are trying to build a railway on a tight budget.  Choice It is apparent that 009 modelling is becoming more mainstream however choice, at the time of writing, remains rather limited to either a Heljan L&B locomotive, a Baldwin of some form or the Bachmann Thomas the Tank Engine range. There isn't yet a lot of variety to choose from, but that will soon change.  My mind was changed recently thanks to some very generous family members who bought me two very fine examples of RTR stock. I was given a Bachmann Baldwin in GVT livery and a new example of Skarloey to conve...

I have reached the point of finishing the exterior of my first Zillerbahn carriage conversion. This one is my interpretation of Carriage 2060 from the Welsh Highland Railway. This carriage was originally from Romania I believe and needed some alteration for use on the Welsh Highland Railway. I have created my own homage to this carriage using the Carriage with the rounder windows. It is longer than 2060 so I have given it the moniker of 2070 and will build an interior in the future. Carriage 2070 on the right of the picture before conversion and relivery. I have tried to replicate the livery of the Welsh Highland using Indian Red and Cream to mimic their livery. I started the process off with my traditional undercoat using Games Workshop layering paint as a primer coat for the new livery. The Carriage in it's new base coat using paints from the Games Workshop paint range.   I then began the process of applying the new livery which was a very time consuming process...

I watched the latest episode of moving pictures today. https://youtu.be/zS2YtEPVZwk  I was inspired by the site of the newly restored Baldwin 608 and it’s run from Porthmadog to Beddgelert. I have always been an admirer of the Baldwin’s and made it a priority to get one for myself on Bron Effans. I chose a rendition of 590 just because I loved how it looked in its livery and it’s connection to one of my favourite narrow gauge railways.  I decided it would be a bit of fun to try and recreate some of the sites seen in the video with my own carriage rake and Prince locomotive. Here are some photos of me trying to capture some of the magic I saw in the clip. 

The other day I mentioned that I had ordered myself a Bachmann Baldwin "590" for my railway. I have always had a fascination with these wonderful looking locomotives and bit the bullet and ordered one for the layout. It arrived the other day and looks completely magnificent. I cannot fault this model in any way shape or form. It has a superb amount of  and the way that it runs is simply fantastic. It is also quite a bit bigger than any of the other motive power so it will have no issues in hauling a full set from the fiddle yard to the station.  Pulling the full rake of carriages Double heading with No. 1 As it turns out my second purchase of the A1 boxcab diesel was not as large as I had thought. It is a lovely model and I am not in anyway complaining about it. It is just is not as bulky, compared to the other two diesels. I am going to put this on hold for a while and convert it into a permanent way inspection vehicle, much like the Permaquip on the Vale of Rhei...

After successfully selling off the three Langley Lynton and Barnstaple carriages and the Lilliput locomotive, I decided that it might be wise to buy something newer so that I could ensure a reliable service on the line. I’ve always had a soft spot for the original Welsh Highland locomotives so I decided that I would invest in a copy of the Baldwin 590. I must confess I am not struck with the Welsh Highland red edition coming out this year. So I’ve ordered what must be one of the few remaining black editions. I’ve heard nothing but good things about these models and I can’t wait to get my hands on my own. It has broken the bank a little this month so no kits. But the focus of my time off in July is to sort out the track situation. All I need to complete Effans Uchaf’s trackwork is two more sets of points. So it’s looking like that will be the last big spend for a while. Just look at it though.... Image courtesy of Rails of Sheffield webstore.