Play Day at GEC Miniature Railway...
Howdo everybody. Today, after another invite from my friends at the GEC Miniature Railway, I went along to their wooded site at Allard Way for their "Play Day". On arrival I saw that the recently-acquired Sweet William locomotive was already on site, as was Petrol loco "Sammy", the battery "Warship" and the battery Y7 Tram; "Toby". Over on the 5" steaming bays, one loco; a Midland Compound 4P 4-4-0; was raising steam. After a chat with some of the members and a cuppa' (freshly served as usual by the Tea Room Ladies!), I noticed a new arrival. Over in the car park, snuggly tucked away in the back of a little Corsa was a beautiful 7.25" 'Paddington'. 'Paddington' is effectively the 7.25" version of "Speedy"; a model of the infamous and very powerful GWR 15XX outside-cylindered Pannier Tank's. The model, numbered 1501 (the number of the only surviving full-size example), was soon unloaded and stabled on No2 Road at the prep area (see pics above and below). This beautiful model was lovingly built by her current owner and was fantastically detailed throughout. Below, you will see the cab. Note the Combined Steam & Vacuum Brake lever, as per standard gauge practise, located on the backhead as well as the highly detailed water gauge glass (including protector!)...
After her owner had had a ride around the track to familiarise himself, the 'Paddington' was readied for running. Once 30 minutes or so had passed, she was ready. I must admit, the size of this loco was considerable, even compared to the Sweet William. This bulky model is said to weigh around 300lbs! (Bit much for a Corsa I would have thought but it fit just right!). 1501 was soon "off shed" and had a lap or two before coming off for lunch, much to my surprise. Meanwhile, the Sweet William, which had been purchased by a member a few months prior, was steaming up on No1 Road. The blue 0-4-0, accompanied by a small tender, has now been affectionately named "LUNA", after the owner's grandchildren (some form of anagram I believe). Anyhow, "Luna" was soon in steam and did a couple of laps with Stuart on the handle, hauling one of the normal coach rakes. "Luna" is spotted on No1 Road below... 
Later in the afternoon, whilst my friend Dave was driving Tony's 4-4-0 Compound on the 5", I was offered a go on "Luna". Echoing much evidence of her 5" gauge sister ("Sweet Pea"), "Luna" is of a simplistic design, carrying a Marine boiler as standard. However, when I accepted the chance to have a drive, I didn't realise just how different she would be. The main thing to remember is that, though the grate is shallow for the size of the loco (as with "Sweet Pea"), the firebox is very long and wide (unlike "Sweet Pea"!). Therefore, "Luna", though she steamed very well, required quite alot of coal to cover the grate; Stuart reckoned around 8 shovel-fulls or so. Anyway, with 2 loaded coaches behind, we set off. The engine barked well and was happy to be "notched up" whilst also not wasting too much water from the boiler. However, not being used to the engine or the smaller tender, I did encounter a few problems of my own doing! Heading off down the hill, I gave "Luna" a bit of regulator to keep the train moving at line speed. However, as I had not anticipated the overall length of the firebox, I had accidentally allowed a sizeable hole to form at the front-centre area of the box. Therefore, steam pressure was compromised and the full pressure of 100psi dropped to around 70-odd. By now, we had reached the Triangle at the end of the line and so time was left to put coal on the fire and add a little water using one of "Luna"s very reliable and very high capacity injectors!...
On the return run, once the train had been started and the loco "notched up", there were no problems. I was surprised how well "Luna" rode the track and, in fact, how well her small tender rode the track! Afterall, as yet, I have only driven a few 7.25" loco's so am still getting used to the feel of them as it were. Though the concept is relatively the same as 5" gauge, and indeed full-size, each engine is completely different and you have to learn as you go. In the end, we arrived back with 80-odd psi and the injector 'on' so no problems as it were. I thanked Stuart for my drive round the 7.25" on colourful "Luna" before returning to Dave on the 5". After a couple of laps around the raised track behind the Compound it was time to pack-up. Dave disposed of the 4-4-0 whilst I cleaned off the dust, oil and general grime picked up during her day's run. Earlier in the day, I also had a very enjoyable 8 laps or so on the 7.25" battery Y7 Tram which I had never driven before. "Toby", as the loco is known, was very responsive, simple and pleasant to drive; thank you to Ian and Gary for the privelage. At just gone 6pm, after helping Dave load the Compound back into Tony's trailer, I left for home; thanks for the lift, Gary! Much appreciated! I must extend a vote of thanks to the members of GEC for yet another invite and yet another enjoyable day out. I must also, as always, thank the "Tea Room Ladies" for, "yes, you've guessed it"; all the tea! Thank you for reading folks, Good Evening all...
Howdo everybody. Today, after another invite from my friends at the GEC Miniature Railway, I went along to their wooded site at Allard Way for their "Play Day". On arrival I saw that the recently-acquired Sweet William locomotive was already on site, as was Petrol loco "Sammy", the battery "Warship" and the battery Y7 Tram; "Toby". Over on the 5" steaming bays, one loco; a Midland Compound 4P 4-4-0; was raising steam. After a chat with some of the members and a cuppa' (freshly served as usual by the Tea Room Ladies!), I noticed a new arrival. Over in the car park, snuggly tucked away in the back of a little Corsa was a beautiful 7.25" 'Paddington'. 'Paddington' is effectively the 7.25" version of "Speedy"; a model of the infamous and very powerful GWR 15XX outside-cylindered Pannier Tank's. The model, numbered 1501 (the number of the only surviving full-size example), was soon unloaded and stabled on No2 Road at the prep area (see pics above and below). This beautiful model was lovingly built by her current owner and was fantastically detailed throughout. Below, you will see the cab. Note the Combined Steam & Vacuum Brake lever, as per standard gauge practise, located on the backhead as well as the highly detailed water gauge glass (including protector!)...
After her owner had had a ride around the track to familiarise himself, the 'Paddington' was readied for running. Once 30 minutes or so had passed, she was ready. I must admit, the size of this loco was considerable, even compared to the Sweet William. This bulky model is said to weigh around 300lbs! (Bit much for a Corsa I would have thought but it fit just right!). 1501 was soon "off shed" and had a lap or two before coming off for lunch, much to my surprise. Meanwhile, the Sweet William, which had been purchased by a member a few months prior, was steaming up on No1 Road. The blue 0-4-0, accompanied by a small tender, has now been affectionately named "LUNA", after the owner's grandchildren (some form of anagram I believe). Anyhow, "Luna" was soon in steam and did a couple of laps with Stuart on the handle, hauling one of the normal coach rakes. "Luna" is spotted on No1 Road below... 
Later in the afternoon, whilst my friend Dave was driving Tony's 4-4-0 Compound on the 5", I was offered a go on "Luna". Echoing much evidence of her 5" gauge sister ("Sweet Pea"), "Luna" is of a simplistic design, carrying a Marine boiler as standard. However, when I accepted the chance to have a drive, I didn't realise just how different she would be. The main thing to remember is that, though the grate is shallow for the size of the loco (as with "Sweet Pea"), the firebox is very long and wide (unlike "Sweet Pea"!). Therefore, "Luna", though she steamed very well, required quite alot of coal to cover the grate; Stuart reckoned around 8 shovel-fulls or so. Anyway, with 2 loaded coaches behind, we set off. The engine barked well and was happy to be "notched up" whilst also not wasting too much water from the boiler. However, not being used to the engine or the smaller tender, I did encounter a few problems of my own doing! Heading off down the hill, I gave "Luna" a bit of regulator to keep the train moving at line speed. However, as I had not anticipated the overall length of the firebox, I had accidentally allowed a sizeable hole to form at the front-centre area of the box. Therefore, steam pressure was compromised and the full pressure of 100psi dropped to around 70-odd. By now, we had reached the Triangle at the end of the line and so time was left to put coal on the fire and add a little water using one of "Luna"s very reliable and very high capacity injectors!...
On the return run, once the train had been started and the loco "notched up", there were no problems. I was surprised how well "Luna" rode the track and, in fact, how well her small tender rode the track! Afterall, as yet, I have only driven a few 7.25" loco's so am still getting used to the feel of them as it were. Though the concept is relatively the same as 5" gauge, and indeed full-size, each engine is completely different and you have to learn as you go. In the end, we arrived back with 80-odd psi and the injector 'on' so no problems as it were. I thanked Stuart for my drive round the 7.25" on colourful "Luna" before returning to Dave on the 5". After a couple of laps around the raised track behind the Compound it was time to pack-up. Dave disposed of the 4-4-0 whilst I cleaned off the dust, oil and general grime picked up during her day's run. Earlier in the day, I also had a very enjoyable 8 laps or so on the 7.25" battery Y7 Tram which I had never driven before. "Toby", as the loco is known, was very responsive, simple and pleasant to drive; thank you to Ian and Gary for the privelage. At just gone 6pm, after helping Dave load the Compound back into Tony's trailer, I left for home; thanks for the lift, Gary! Much appreciated! I must extend a vote of thanks to the members of GEC for yet another invite and yet another enjoyable day out. I must also, as always, thank the "Tea Room Ladies" for, "yes, you've guessed it"; all the tea! Thank you for reading folks, Good Evening all...
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