Steam In Beds 2008
Plans are well advanced for Steam In Beds this year, it will take place on Sunday 7th December 2008. It will follow a similar pattern to last year with all 16mm Members invited to run on the attending layouts, plus we will also be welcoming members of the general public to come and see the fun.
Catering will be along the same lines as last year, complementary Tea, Coffee and Biscuits etc.
As usual we will need plenty of willing hands to help set up on the Saturday from 3pm, and on the Sunday before the show opens and for clearing away at the end. As last year all BAGS members will be issued with a 'Steward' badge to help visitors identify members in case of questions or queries.
We are expecting the following Layouts to be exhibited:
Ridgmont, Prayle Grove and St Gennys (the latest version).
We are also expecting the following Traders:
Brandbright, Busy Bodies, Lineside Delights, Imp, Jons People, Atropos and Trenarren Models
Pete Newman will be organising the publicity through the Association Journal, Modelling Press, Local advertising and Flyers.
BAG's Website
As Pete had decided to step down as Webmaster we were looking for someone to take over the running of the BAGs Website. I now understand from Pete that Michael Walton has agreed to take it on. There are still a number of issues to be resolved but we hope to have them all sorted by the start of the new membership year.
Next Meeting
Just a quick reminder that our next meeting will be on the 7th September - and it will be 'Subscription Time'.
Steam on the Somesay Island Railway
Martin Shrubsole is planning a 'Steam Running Day' on his Somesay Island Railway on the 14th September 2008, all 16mm Members are welcome. See the attached sheets for a full description of the line and how Martin expects to organise the running on the day.
Cont.
All BAG members, and any other members of the 16mm NG Association, are invited to run steam or battery locomotives on Somesay Island Railway at Wing between 10:00 and 16:00 on Sunday 14th September 2008.
Some of you have visited Somesay Island in the past, or may have followed the story of how the layout has developed (over the past 10 years), on our website:
http://www.somesayislandrailway.org.uk
If so, you will know that the railway has been laid out so that it can be used to run an elaborate timetable, using battery power, and provide a way of keeping 20 or more operators fully occupied. In this form it has also proven to be a very effective way of raising money for the charity, Marie Curie Cancer Care. During 2005 to 2008 quite a lot of the railway has been re-built so that it can still serve its original purpose, but can also be used for the operation of 16mm Steam locomotives. The house locomotive is "Kachanga" the Roundhouse Fowler tender loco (radio-controlled) that Martin bought from Kevin. The changes to the layout have been made to give steam locos the chance to show off their paces.
SIR is all 32mm gauge track, a mixture of Peco SM32 and Tenmille. Minimum main-line radius is 42" (most is much larger radius) with some sidings of 36" radius. Pointwork is a combination of Peco, Tenmille and home-made. Frog angles are no 4 or larger, back to back measurements are to meet Roundhouse/Slaters’ coarse scale standards. At rail-head level clearances are for stock that is 115mm wide, and adjoining tracks are at 5" (125mm) centres. Martin’s experience with Kachanga is that a passenger train leaving the terminus at Port Pourri can make a trip round all of the nearly 500ft of route that is cleared for Steam Operation in about 10 minutes. Arriving back at Port Pourri, running round the train and turning the loco takes about another 5 minutes, making it feasible to complete two round trips on one boiler fill.
The route includes two spirals (one up and one Down), and at places trains frequently duck away behind plants, and take short-cuts that human drivers cannot follow. For this reason radio control is an advantage. Where manual operation is to be used, a slow running loco will not pose a problem, but a runaway Mamod will need both a launcher and a catcher. That said, probably the ideal loco for the route would be a Roundhouse or other R/C diesel. Only about 20ft of the 500ft main line is used in both directions, and there are appropriate signalling arrangements to avoid 'corn-field meets'. Otherwise trains can follow 'on sight'. Martin believes that by adopting a simple sequence schedule (which he has a lot of experience in preparing), it will be possible to operate an intensive and interesting service, with as many trains in steam as there are radio channels available. The number of loops available means that when a loco gets “out of breath” there is scope for it to seek refuge, without blocking the main line for other drivers.
Martin would appreciate advance warning of how many BAG (and other 16mm members) will take up the challenge of steaming around Somesay on 14th September, please ring 01296-688913 or e-mail: welaws@aol.com
Martin is keen to stress that this is an extra invitation to BAG and 16mm members. Normal 'Trains for Marie Curie Cancer Care' operations will take place on Saturday and Sunday 23rd and 24th August, and again on Saturday and Sunday 30th and 31st August. There will be NO service on August Bank Holiday Monday. Any BAG members who would like to join in on these dates should also contact Martin as above.
Chris Pretty - Secretary
A great time was had at the Cut-throat Wood Railway Open Day on May 31st. We raised £15.37 for the Ian Rennie Pepper Foundation, who provide nursing care for children with life-threatening illnesses. Well done everyone.
Pete Newman - Editor