The Great British Back to Back Gauging!!!

Oh no,,, here we go again,,, as if the great bake off wasn't enough we now have to suffer the great british pot throwers contest,,,,

"And the winner is,,,, " just nip out and make a cup of tea,,, your not going to miss anything of any significance  Percy Thrower" 
Wrong hobby I know but you know what I mean.

Anyway as a vehicle for the hobby of our choice to fight back I think we ought to have our own contests,,
so hows about:

The Great British Back to Back Gauging
The Great British Point Filing
The Great British Check Rail setting
The Great British Lead Weight Adding
The Great British Chassis Oiling
The Great British Real Coaling
The Great British coupling height setting

Somebody has obviously told our friends at the media that if you accidentally hit on a successful formula then the best thing you can do is flog the life out of it for the next 5 years.

Strictly Dancing,, Ice Skating,, Britains got talent [really,,, not from what I've seen] The X Factor,, they don't want to actually achieve anything they just want to be a celebrity,,,,imho,,, lets be politically correct.

I give in,, honest,, but I do have one suggestion which could be really good fun,,, you fill a studio with a complete cross section of modellers and some Jeremy Kyle type obnoxious git and start any one of the following conversations:

What is the real point of a 4 coupled sprung chassis,
Is P4 really Scalefour but on the cheap
Why can't we all revert to the old Hornby coupling
Is it really a valid railway if it's been built by 25 experts through some form of 4mm/1ft backscratching excercise.
Is Zepp Blatter actually a member of BRMSB,,, [I'm perhaps showing my age with that one,,, British Railway Modelling Standards Bureau,,,, what an august body that was,,, you didn't stand a chance of becoming a member if you didn't have a 6" engineers rule, & 3 x 3H Staedtler Pencils in your top pocket and leather patches on your sports jacket elbows]
Should kit manufacturers be deported if their instructions are not clear to a 6 year old with at least 4 clinically identified isms.
Was Iain Rice related to John the Baptist

You get the idea,,, the good news is we don't need a studio we can all do it on the web,,,, or even throught these pages,,, now what an august body this is!!!

I really feel much better now and the impending house move is progressing apace!!

SAD

Winters Coming!!!!

Well here we go again for another session of freezing sheds,,,, niagra noses,,, and being temperature controlled fun,,, this year I'm playing hard to get so have started while it is still relatively comfortable in't shed.

Now what we have here is the basic bones of the L1 Zeppelin / Crab chassis.

I've decided life's too short to be messing about with the monster motor in the bunker and drives shafts etc etc,, I did play with it and ended up with a VERY unbalanced chassis,,, which is not a good starting point for something I want to run nicely,,, so I apologise for wasting all your time but I have taken the easy option and thrown a Portescap RG4 into the big hole in the chassis and,, toot sweet,, voila,, Roberts your relative,,, half an hour later I had wheels spinning round at amazing speed.

Thats the technical bit sorted all I have to do now is throw a body together and we have one of my favourite Monster Tanks to grace the pastures.

We had a great time last Sunday the Potter Heigham finescale group all crammed into the car and we shot off to see Grantham at Grantham [there's a terrible echo in here] on it's first full show to the public,,,, it's going to be lovely,,, 35 odd feet of fiddle yard and some serious modelling of Grantham station,,, can't fail really,,, nice prototype,, a proper railway to base it on and some serious modellers pulling the strings,,, one to watch for sure.

I hope I've got time for a quick rant while I'm here,,, have you noticed that the news programmes and Blue Peter are merging together,,,, not only do they have to go to the dairy,, the farm,, the garage,, the shop,, the whatever,, and report on the latest development BUT they can't just tell us about the particular problem they have to get dressed up and have a GO,,,welding,, making liquorice sticks,,, putting sod off down the middle of a stick of rock,,, milking the goats,,, you name it they have to have a go,,, give it a rest will yer,,, you like a right pillock in that apron and the dayglo hairnet just is not you,,,, read the news then bugger off,,, for me that really will do.
I really am turning into the old man,,, bloody kids,,,,

Oh and by the way before I forget,,, I'm afraid we will not be at the Chelmsford show next month,,, it's a long story which I won't bore you with but let's just say it wasn't to be. I hope you don't miss us too much,,, there will be another one but I can't remember where or when,,, but don't worry I will and will post it at the top of the page as normal.

Night Night

Thank you Scarborough.

Well this shot just about sum's the Scarborough exhibition up for me.
By the time we were finished we were all pretty grubby,, happy,, and in good company.
In all the clubs exhibition promotions they keep telling everyone it is a "friendly" show.

That SDMRC has to be the understatement of the year.

Exhibition hall is less than 5 mins walk from Pickering station on the North Yorks Moor Railway.
In short we had a great time,,,great company,, lovely exhibition,,, nice venue,,, free Tea all day,,, high standard of exhibits and demonstrators and the night life in Pickering is not to be underestimated.

The highlight for me is a split decision,,, it could have been Madame Darling at the local chinese restaurant,, goodnight darling,, on the other hand it could have been discovering that Django Rheinhardt was not dead but playing in a pub in Pickering!!! Unbelievable but true!!

The lowlight was having to leave and drive through a monsoon on the A1 near Grantham,,, what is it about taking Salmon Pastures to shows and having to drive through monsoons,,, we had exactly the same last year at Tonbridge,,, it must be the dreaded global warming again,, and I blame all these factory's in Jangzhuan province having to make thousands of tons of flock every year to keep the GWR fans happy.

The liver & kidneys are slowly creeping back into their usual positions and unlike this time last week if I put my glasses on it actually makes a difference,,,,, what a weekend,,, if you didn't make it then you only have yourselves to blame.

What a CRACKER,,, and many thanks to all the lads at Scarborough & District MRC.

We will remember that one!!!! and just to get right up Swinedon's nose just look at what we rode on from Goathland to Pickering,,,,, it's true there really is a god.

There's more to life than buffers and shunting round Scarborough!!!!

You may well be wondering what this image is all about!!!!

A Good question,,,,, and bare with me on the answer,,, tomorrow we are off to set up for exhibiting at the Scarborough and District Show in Yorkshire this weekend 22nd & 23rd,,, now the first time I met the lads from Scarborough was at Barrow Hill Live a couple of years ago and I had the pleasure of watching them play pool,,, their take on playing pool is so,,,mmm,,, different,,,, that you had to be there to witness it.

I have not laughed so much for many years,,,, we watched them for so long that we lost time,,, and also forgot how many refreshments we had consumed,,, and by the time we crawled off to our pit's I am convinced the table was the same shape as above.

I am hoping that at some point during the coming weekend we will be treated to a re-run on how to play pool in a distinctive style,,,, if pool is not your thing then why not come and watch us play trains for the weekend instead,,,, I have packed my industrial strength Anadin and I know I will probably need copious amounts of them.

The roar of the crowd and the smell of a good stiff hangover,,,,,can't wait!!!!

My grandfather used to advise,,, "there's more to life than beer and skittles" and he was quite right,,, co's pool hadn't been invented.

Needless to say for those of a certain persuasion you can always play on a frilly masterpiece like this one,,,, it's known as the Swindedon!!!

Get a life WILL YER!!!!

Will the world please get get a grip and get some modelling done,,, what is with mobile phones,,, it drives me barmy,,, the art of conversation is rapidly becoming a thing of the past,,, I don't give a damn how handy they are they are starting to rule your lives,,, what is the fascination????

Couldn't sleep last night and found this article on't web which was basically advising if you want to increase your blog statistics you could try becoming a bit more controversial,,, I'll give em controversial,,,, "dear lady in local newsagents... this morning I would have probably purchased several things if you had found the time to put your phone down and actually speak to me!!! Ha Ha take that your rude person!!!!! 

Don't want to steal your thunder Albert but I think we are already there mate,,, credit where it's due,,, he came out with this one years ago,,  he was that clever he could probably have enjoyed P4. I wonder if he has leather elbow patches on that jumper!!!

Now this weekend we will be burning the midnight oil in preparation for the Scarborough Bash [you all knew it was coming] I can't wait,,, treading the boards in God's own back garden on Saturday the 22nd Aug and Sunday the 23rd,,,, I've been up't north 2wice already in the last 4 weeks,,, a Bahrain Reunion in York and then the caravan in the Yorkshire Dales,,, the omens tell me the Scarborough Show could knock the other 2 into a cocked hat,,,,, a game of pool is also threatened!!!!!

I know exactly how you feel pal,, lovely,, contented,, at ease with the world,,, which reminds me I really must replace the bit of string between them 2 old tin cans!!! For the technical afficianado's please be advised I've been fannying about with my new airbrush,,, so why not come along and see if it's made a difference!!

Are you going to Scarborough Fair!!!!

Well we are,,, it's actually in Pickering but no matter,, rumour has it that it's a nice compact quality laden show,,, how the heck did we,,, no,, let's just enjoy it for what it is.

One of the main reasons we are going is to see if we can challenge Geoff of the Scarborough & District club to another game of pool,,, for those of you who missed our write up on the Barrow Hill bash in 2013 you have not lived until you have seen Geoff play pool,,, to say his cue action is an acquired art is probably the understatement of the blog,,, NOT TO BE MISSED.

Now that picture above which looks like the jigsaw you got from your Gran in 1965 is the Scarborough Spa Express,,, now when we were recently living in Huddersfield [ have you ever had yours felt,,, no not lately] the Scarborough Spa used to leave from Hudds station,,, and what a sight it was,,, now Hudds station is also worth a visit for anyone who fancy's having a nice pint and doing a bit of trainspotting at the same time,,, there is this incredible bar on the station which is jam packed with Railwayana,,, name plates,, number plates,, pictures,, lamps,, beer mats,, all manner of things related to our favourite form of propulsion.

Anyway 5 weeks this weekend we will be entertaining the masses yet again,,, with a few weathered old souls and a couple of boxes full of engines,,,, I went up to York last weekend just to check things out and I had forgotten how beautiful my home county really is,,, once again,,, can't wait for the Scarborough Bash.

Come and joins us,, it's in the holidays and good weather is guaranteed in North Yorkshire in August!!!!

What a loverly Jubbly pic of the Scarborough Spa Express,,, I do hope it is still running.

van - Gogh I'm not,,, or the Whipsnade chimp come to that,,

I have spent many a happy hour over the last 10 or so years "looking" at the  Badger airbrush I inherited from father,,, looking is very fitting,,, as that is all I have done with it,, look at it.

I have had several bursts of enthusiasm over the same period,, bought a cleaning station,, numerous wirey pipe cleaner type things,, I have more pipettes and squeezy eye droppers than ICI,, I have also invested in every possible book on the subject of weathering,, and weighty on information and possible downfalls they are too,, but I have never had the nerve to plug the wretched thing in and get down and dirty,,,
well until last Friday.

I am to painting what my pal Sepp Blatter is to common sense,,, I have no confidence in my own ability's at all,, this probably stems from my first attempts at painting an old Dinky Bedford van in about 1954,, I had decided I didn't like the bright yellow and it should be red instead,,,, from memory it was about 6.30am on a Sunday morning and I was well set up with my small tin of red enamel and a 1/2" brush was chosen as the applicator of choice,, and with this little studio all set up on a tray I returned to bed!!!!!

You know what is coming,,,,this 5 year old didn't really have the skills, or authority,  to paint on the kitchen table,,, never mind doing it in bed,,, it ended up all over the place,,, in my hair,,, on the pillow,,, the carpet,,, blah blah drip blah,,,,

Father was less than impressed,, and before you could say Terence Cuneo my backside was brighter than the chosen hue for the Bedford,,, after that little episode me and paint had this strange relationship,,, I hated it and was not interested in anything to do with painting after that.

Now active modellers and painting should go hand in hand,,, but not this one,,,  it is something I know I have to do but it is usually under self imposed duress,, it has to be done,,, but pleasure is always far away on the horizon.

I was also well into my 50's before I decided painting may be easier if I bought new tins of Humbrol rather than use the vintage rusty jobs I had kept hidden away for yonks,,, it was easier but I still can't say I was enjoying the process,,,

Last Friday after checking my astrological chart,,, tarrot cards,,, wind direction,,, and emptying the full contents of my bowels I flung myself at the airbrush with full gusto,,,, a Hornby N2 was chosen as the unlucky guinea pig,,, as it's in BR livery my logic told me if I made a complete hash of it I could always sell it on Ebay,,, and so to cut what is already quite a long story short I copy pictures of the N2 and as I had so much "fun" I then blasted a DJH J50 in the same manner,,, I do hope you like them.

Now the moral of this is 2fold,,, don't use enamels in bed,,, and,,, 61 years is a longer sentence than the train robbers got,,, so just bite the bullet and get on with it,,,,, I really could get used to this painting lark

Ely,,, what a lovely place and great exhibition.

What a lovely place,,, great exhibition,,, friendly people,,, cracking selection of beer's and picturesque in the extreme,,,, in short we had a wonderful time this weekend.

No major problems except yours truly forgetting to put quite an important piece of track in place before installing the trams,,,, end result,,, a rather pronounced CLUNK when we tried to run from the fiddle yard onto the main layout,,,, more haste less speed and all that.

We knew were in for a good weekend when David read the 2 page "exhibitors guide" on the journey down there,,, of the 2 pages of guidance 75% of it was where the decent hostelry's are,,, now that is what we call useful information,,, and it was used with good effect,,,, a half decent pepper steak with all the trimmings for £9.95 was a real bonus,,,, value for money in the extreme.

We arrived on the Friday afternoon and were surrounded by willing people offering to help carry our goods and chattels into the hall,,, no wonder we were up and running in record time.

Some exhibitions just feel right and Ely is definitely one of them,,, I can also now put a face to the name of Jonathan Weallens from the LNER forums,,, we have exchanged notes on several occasions but it is much nicer to chat in person,, he also graced the pastures with a lovely Sentinel steam railcar which ran beautifully,,, now there's another job on the hit list,,, rebuild the sentinel!!!! In comparison mine is rough in the extreme.

Have checked the stats page again and we are still attracting "all sorts" of followers from Russia,,, I curiously returned the compliment to see what the downtown Moscow clubrooms look like and got a bit of a shock,,,, they had some lovely blonde models who were in very relaxed mode,,, in fact most of them were horizontal,,, and to be honest I'm surprised they get time to do any modelling what with polishing all that leather and oiling all those chains etc etc.

Another bunch of likely looking lads about to visit Ely

Now here's a bunch of likely looking lads,,, it's the Salmon Pastures Industrial Tiddleywinks Team,, [ if you click on the pic you'll get a much better view] known as "The SPITT" locally and they are just about to have a quick flick up and practice before the forthcoming semi-final against the Ely Cathedral Deathwatch Beetlers,,, come on you all knew there'd be a bit of an advert involved somewhere along the line,,, by the way we are at Ely & District Model Railway Club exhibition on May 16th,,, which is about 3 weeks this coming weekend.

That guy second from the right kneeling on the front row with the industrial thumbscrew is a bit of a poor loser,, and he carry's that around with him at away matches to "motivate" the lads a bit and it seems to have worked as they haven't lost an away match this season.

Have you also noticed there is only one person not wearing a hat,, and she's right at the back standing under the arch,,, she's just finished slicing the oranges for half time,,, and she's about to go back to the candy floss machine which is connected to that belt driven thing wizzing round at amazing speed ,,, it must be motoring as it's vibrated most of the grout out of those bricks,,, those were the day's no Elf & Safety,,, and nobody cared two hoots if you wanted 350HP motor driving your candy floss machine.

I had a run in last week with our Elf & Safety chappy,,, he was claiming the chisels were a bit too sharp to be given to kids,,, it's not often I'm speechless but this one caught me unawares,,, I told him not to worry co's our kids will soon knock the sharpness out of them,,, like they always do,,, we've got some chisels that have more handle than blade they have been sharpened that often,,, he seemed happy enough with my explanation and went back to teach French,,,,

Anyway if you fancy a laugh come and join in the fun down here on the pastures,,, did I mention we were at the City of Ely Community College on Saturday 16th May 2016.

The railway is back on it's own legs and I've even plumbed it all back in before we take it all down again for the next bash.

I'll post the result of the tiddlewinks later,, but to say we are confident of a win is an understatement.

And here's a quick NewsFlash,,, I've just checked the stats for the last 24 hours and of the 10 people who viewed the Salmon Pastures Blog,,, 6 of them were from Russia!!! Oh ho,,, keep your eye's out for the bears flying past,,, I dread to think that I've upset good old Vladimir himself,, perhaps he'll ride down here on his horse and take a look himself at some genuine imperialist modelling,, I can lend him a shirt as it's still pretty cold in the shed where the pastures lives!!
Bye bye and have a nice day.

Trainwest Melksham Exhibition

What a wonderful time we all had at Trainwest,,, as this picture very clearly shows.

May I introduce Achilles Davis,,the latest member of our operating team.
Within a period of around 30 minutes he managed to:
1, streamline the afternoons operating schedule,
2, sail through his operators theory exam,
3, go from apprentice to fully fledged Top Link exhibition operator.

His enthusiasm was infectious and his knowledge of Messr's Bachman and Hornby's products was not just impressive,,, for a 4 year old it was simply staggering.
There is obviously a risk letting untrained people anywhere near a controller,, especially at an exhibition,, but not on this occasion, he not only shunted in and out of the engine shed but onto and off the turntable,,, which is something we all struggle with,,especially later on in the afternoons!!!!
Now I am a strong believer in parental guidance and it is plain to see that Achilles is receiving some pretty solid guidance from somewhere,,, well done to all concerned,,, he is welcome to join us at any future exhibitions,,, and I have to wonder if he can solder as well as he can control a train, please advise.

Another highlight relates to this,,, the actual Salmon Pastures Blog.
I have long been of the opinion,, and have expressed my concerns through various previous posts,,, that nobody actually reads this concentrated codswallop,, well that was until this weekend at Trainwest.

I am delighted to announce that I have now actually met 2 people who not only read it but also announce in public that they enjoy reading this rubbish.
What a bonus,, so this is paradise,,,I am quite simply over the moon,, never has my boo been so tickety.

To Mr & Mrs "Stephen" [pity about the Swinedon jumper,, but never mind] I offer a heart felt warm and cuddly thankyou,, my life is now complete,, and as discussed I will return to more regular posts,, some of which may even mention progress on the railway,, but one never knows what may take my fancy and be perceived as a justified cause for a quick rant.

Try this for size,,,I know I'm already sick to the back teeth with all the bovine manure coming out of various political protagonists, and apparently we are not even half way through the glorious campaign yet!!!
Well jolly-dee and GOOD OH.
I'd rather watch repeats of Wilfred Pickles Gardeners World than this current HooHaa.
Give it a rest will yer.
Doubtless by the time our election is finally over we will all be invited by the BBC to become enraptured, enthralled, involved, whatever by the forthcoming American Presidential Election,, in fact they've already started by getting excited this morning about Mrs Clinton nominating herself as the US's head honcho, sorry but I can't get excited about UK politics,, never mind our cousins over the water.
Auntie B,,,, we've got very nearly 18 months before all this colonial stuff this becomes boringly significant.
Stop,, Cut,, Edit,, Stanley knife needed RIGHT NOW.

Now as "informed editors" should offer a "balanced view" then here is a small progress report on the latest technical developments down here on the pastures.

The new cottages appear to have been very well received,,, they certainly stopped people peering into the fiddle yard,, the new tram,,, mmmm,,, not a roaring success,,, it looks wonderful but ran like roaring inflation,, in that it was wonderful going uphill but absolutely hopeless coming down again.
Having watched it I wouldn't want to be a passenger on it coming down Fiddle hill,,, the diecast body is obviously far too heavy for the length of the wheelbase so for the second day it was back to the lightweight plastic original as bodged together by yours truly,, compared with the diecast model it looks pretty naff but it offers a much smoother ride,, so it's back to the drawing board with the ways to improve the tram.  

Now I know I have also mentioned this before,,, but once again we got far more questions about the tram than the railway,,, can I repeat,,, I know "NUFFINK" about trams it is only there to support the railway.

Their just ain't no justice,,, and to make matters worse the tram was outvoted by a mile by Lizzie Ward the Elephant,,, again I know even less about elephants than trams!!
We had 1 tram & 1 elephant on view,,, and approx 25>30 engines,,, and what do people want to talk about,,, the tram or the elephant.

After helping us last year at a show, Andy an old RAF pal, sent us a bicycle bell which we could ring just before the tram sets off from the stop. Just like the real thing. Thanks Mr B.
So at Trainwest we plumbed it in and tried it,,, and so we are proud to announce we have a new award:

"The Broadfield Bell",,, an award for the psychologically challenged, disadvantaged, unhinged, and completely tone deaf & I qualify on all counts,,,and so does Andy,, it was a roaring success,, it made us, and more importantly, the paying public smile a LOT.
By the afternoon of the second day all 3 of us were ringing the bell even if people weren't watching us,,, now that is scary,, [visualise a quick hunched Charles Laughton type character,,,"The Bells the bells,,, {slobber} Esmeralda,,, the Bells"
Sheer madness but pretty typical of exhibition life down here on the pastures.

Crickey Stephen,,, what am I going to waffle on about next time!!!!

Oh and he's another "westerner cracker" of the new bits,, I'll post some more when I've caught up on sleep!!
If it ran as well as it looked I'd be the happiest bunny in the Kingdom,,, one day SAD,, one day.
And new photo's are always good at finding what needs attending to,,,, & after looking at this one I've already found a couple of days work before we tread the boards again on the 16th of May at Ely!!
Keep watching and you can even pass comments if you like!!

Oh ye of little faith!!!

Well we finally got there,,, The New Entrance,,, it first got a mention in an October 2013 post and today I have actually finished settling it into it's new home,,,, as you can see it was a bit of a rush getting it down before the spring shower,, but we made it.

Have also added to the flavour of the scene by giving it a couple of gas lamps,,,, which I have to say I am absolutely delighted with,,,, I have a picture of a GCR street lamp which had a particularly large glass bowl and I'm sure the lads at the Ying Sin Egg Noodle and Miniature Lamp Company have copied it just for me.

How our oriental friends manage to churn 3 of these out for under £10 is a complete mystery to me but please continue,, they are absolutely spot on.

Cleverly you can use them in 4mm and 7mm,,, for us 4mm types you have a street lamp with a large glass bowl,,,,just what I want,,,  for 7mm you get some post extensions and yours are taller but with a smaller bowl,,,, clever,,, clever clever,,, but compared against the pic I have they look spot on.

Nobody can miss the new entrance now,,, it looks like Blackpool down there in the half light,,, we are having the official opening of the new entrance at Trainwest Melksham this weekend.

Please come along,,, I still need someone with a sharp pair of scissors to cut the ribbon.

If you do make it please say hello.

SAD and the Pasteurized Gang.

Pictorial Update

Hello reader,
If you now move your eyeball about 6" to the left you will see the "gateway to Flickr Oblivion button"
Please press it,,, just for once,,, I have spent the past couple of evenings [it's too damn cold in the shed] sorting out many of the pictures and have surpassed myself by setting up a couple of new albums.

Please have a browse through and you can even leave a comment or 2 if you are that way inclined.

It has also been suggested that I have an album of all the different locomotives with a bit of a description,,,, if this is of interest then please leave a comment or 2.

Just so there is no confusion I can confirm I have a C12 tank [[there must be at least 20 pics of it!!!!]]

Hello,,, Goodbye,,, and perhaps thanks for taking a little peek at life behind the scene's down here at the pastures,,, Oh and by the way,,, less than 4 weeks to go before Trainwest,,,, April 11th & 12th,,,,
Don't panic Mr Mannering don't panic,,,, we will be more than prepared.

Hope you like the new initial picture,,, how can you fail to like yet another pic from "The Westerner" and nothing at all to do with the subject on view!!!!!    Wonderful,,,, thanks again Alan.

PS:
By the way Alan,,, what have you done with that the row of shops which are Mafeking Terrace,,, have they gone on holiday??

The Wild West

As Trainwest Melksham approaches at ever increasing speed I thought it necessary to do a bit of research into what we are likely to find on our first visit to the West Country and so I took myself off to the "Pastures Library",,,and found various little nuggets of information hidden within those dusty shelves.

Now I know the show is dangerously close to Swinedon but I never would have believed I would find within just 5 minutes of starting  a picture of the world famous locomotive design team.

The chap on the left is Mr Collett,,, coincidentally the one in the middle is also Mr Collett and would you believe so is the one on the right as well,,, now I've seen this photo it answers various long standing questions I have had about the appearance of the vast majority of their locomotives.

Then I found a Wiltshire dictionary and that revealed all manner of words I had not come across before,,,

and to cap it all off I also discovered that I am not alone in spending considerable amounts of time trying to streamline & re-organise my workspaces in both the shed and garage!!!

For me this little gem just about sums up the organised chaos which is commonplace down on the pastures,,,, and I am sick to the back teeth with spending endless hours looking for things I know I have but cannot quite remember which strategic location they were last left in which would be handy at some point in the future.

We really are looking forward to Trainwest, which just in case you forgot is on April 11th & 12th and if you can't afford an exhibition guide then just look for the stand that has very little on top and spends most of it's time giggling,,, but,,, it has to be said we are all very aware of how seriously Wiltshire takes it's railways and therefore rest assured it will be very meaningful giggling,,, well at least in the morning sessions.

Why not come along and join in the fun.

Lizzie Ward,,, or a severe case of elephantitus!!!

Now I'm sure some of you will remember an ealier post highlighting "Lizzie Ward",,, as seen above,,,she used to do delivery's from the steel works around the turn of the last century,,,, now,,, you may wonder what an elephant was doing working in a steel works,,,, well most of the heavy horses had been loaned to the Army and as the same people were ordering copious quantities of weapons and munitions the demand for heavy haulage was at an all time high so some brainwave decided if they can't use horses he knew a man with a circus who had an elephant and perhaps that would be a suitable replacement.

It was more than suitable it was ideal and Lizzie became a bit of a celebrity in Sheffield,,, and it is also rumoured that the local rose growers won just about everything when Lizzie was in town.

Well it's just too good an opportunity to miss here at the Pastures so we have decided to honour her achievements in model form and here she is.   

Now a long time ago I was gainfully employed by the good old motor trade and I thought I had come across most of the bad jobs in the motor industry but thankfully I was never asked to service an elephant!!!

On a more serious note if you'd like to meet Lizzie then come and meet her at Trainwest Melksham on the 11th and 12th of April,,,, which is 6 weeks this weekend.

Old Bangers and Flea Pits.

Happy New Year Reader,,,,, now go and get some modelling done.

Anybody who has been there will know exactly what this is,,, or was,,, about 3 years ago our good friends at Arriva,,,, arrived in Malta with a GRAND Plan for progress,,, promptly got the government to cancel all the old buses, most of which were family businesses,, & replaced them with "state of the art" replacements,,,, as against the "state of the ark" originals and proclaimed that progress was guaranteed for the island,,,,,

18 months passed by and Arriva,,, de-arrived and cleared off back to UK as they couldn't make a profit,,, Ha Ha ,,, those old buses did more for the Maltese tourist industry than most things but "the experts knew better",,, unfortunately there is little chance the old bangers will come back but having just spent the festive season there it wasn't the same,,,, most of them were like Triggers Brush,,,, 16 heads and 42 handles but but but,,, the experts knew best,,, although there is a lobby afoot to bring some of the best one's out during the summer tourist season,,,, but don't hold your breath!!!!

Anyway I have packed my shorts & flip flops away and it is back to watching the sheds version of the northern lights dribble down my nose whilst modelling and getting ready for TrainWest at Melksham in April,,,, it's all getting rather exciting,,, the houses are built and in situ [apart from some gutters and downpipes] and even the long ago built cinema has found a permanent resting place,,,, I built it about 6 years ago,, I just had to after finding a picture of it on't t'internet and the significance is I remember going there when it was a thriving and archetypal flea pit.

The very thought of it makes me itch,,,, that memorable pervading aroma of Brylcreem, over heated popcorn, and stale beer breath,,, happy days. I can't remember what it was I went to watch but "The Elite" pronounced "theelite" was famous for having the 3 Stooges between the adverts and the news and then again before the main film,, who needs cineplex and a small mortgage for a bag of sweets.. it's all RRRUbish.

We are really looking forward to Melksham,,,, we should be alright as we are bringing our own tame Westerner with us to translate,,, he's from down that way originally which probably explains his fascination for scenery and chocolate & cream and cleanliness,, as mentioned in my previous blog  [lagging behind the target of 14th Feb 2013] they all look the same to me.
I'm actually rather pleased to announce that my Lagging behind the Target blog is the most viewed issue of all time,,,, it's all good light hearted fun winding up my western and RCTS colleagues,,, I don't really mean it,, well not while they are in earshot.

Anyway I will post some pictures of recent progress [after Westerner has visited again with his digital box brownie] and if that isn't good enough you really ought to come along and complain in person at Trainwest Melksham on 11th & 12th April 2015.

Reminder to self,,, I really must get the sports jacket deloused and dry cleaned  and replace my resplendent rainbow display of RCTS multi coloured pens and draughtsmans propelling pencils,,, You never know I might even give the old 6" rule a polish!!!!
We need to be presentable when within spitting distance of Swinedon!!