November News

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Track re-laying on ABB continues with the new lengths tested by running a couple of timetables. There were no derailments and the previous random uncouplings did not re-occur. Next comes painting and ballasting, then blending in.

Tuesday evening was the first in the month and so time for a Zoom session. Albyn gave us an account of the Grwyne Fawr reservoir railway which finished at 1,800 ft in the Black Mountains. Steve Bell featured weird and geared locos from the USA involved in logging, sugar and even fish. LBH showed scenes around Newport through the ages up to the present day.

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B**lasting away

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Another quiet week which has mainly seen work on various track items.

On Cwm Carno ballasting has now moved on to the main line with a different product used to show the well cared-for sections of track. It will be toned down later on.

On ABB the track into the Provender road and Coal road has been uneven for some time with wagons running away down the slope away from the baseboard joint. This has also led to uncoupling of trains as the Dingham couplings move up and down. So Mr.C decided relaying was the answer. The layers of blue card are raising the base level with 3mm thickness needed in places.

The last turnout is to Scale 7 standards and produced by 3D printing the base with the timbers, joining webs and chairs all in one print. The rail is then slid into the chairs making the end product more accurate. However, it is still possible to produce unsatisfactory ballasting and LBH has returned to it for a second attempt.

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Let there be light

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Monday and TAFKATYS and Andrew N connected up the lights for Cwmcarno station. The lights will need to be toned/turned down.

Tuesday was a little destructive as Mr. C removed the troublesome track from the colliery sidings and will attempt to lay it for the third time.

On Friday a select three of us were present. The curve seems to have gone in well. Both sets of rail ends need to be soldered into alignment before testing. Wagonman started some ballasting. The mix was one found among our resources and suits the unloved end of a siding well.

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05 October

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Monday was more stock checking and coupling adjustment whilst Andrew N installed the lamps on Cwmcarno.

Tuesday was a Zoom meeting featuring Col. Stephens and his railcars from Albyn, a selection of photos including the Monmouthshire Railway Society at Blaenavon and Glascoed from Mr C and LBH completed showing his haul of pictures.

On Saturday 10th LBH took Crindau Pill (still a work in progress) to the Scale Seven show at Mark near Bridgewater. We were able to get some movement, answer questions and chat to people.

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Into the fourth quarter

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After the intensity of two exhibitions on the same weekend – quite a stretch for small club like ours, thing have quietened down a bit. Here we see Alastair working on an ex-LMS Stanier 3P 2-6-2T.

and LBH spend a while wiring up Crindau Pill before it goes to to the ScaleSeven Group’s National Show next week in Mark, Somerset.

Meanwhile Mr C was fettling some of the stock that underperformed at Swansea and High Wycombe.

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Cwm Carno at Sforum ’26

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Cwmcarno made it to Scaleforum 2026 to compete in the Jubilee Layout Challenge, despite some worries earlier in September.

And it all fitted into a normal family car – one of the criteria of the Challenge

We of course started things in the traditional manner (pity the tea always seems to get cold!)

Whilst the scenery was representative rather than detailed it still looked like South Wales as some visitors said. The running of the stock was less than perfect but nevertheless trains moved through the landscape.

Thanks to RedKiteRail for these three photos.

For the last hour on Sunday pre-grouping stock was to the fore.

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Pressing on

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Only a week to go until Scaleforum so minds are concentrated on getting groundwork showing some vestige of colour.

The halo is off-scene having its lighting tidied up.

With more ground work done its beginning to look more like a bit of the valleys.

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September Starts

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OK, the first report from Monday actually happened at the end of August, but lets not let it spoil an alliterative headline.

Mr C has finally assembled enough bits and pieces to stick outside the workshop on ABB.

On Tuesday the Zoom session featured Steve B from the middle of France with a mix of 6 wheel carriages as breakdown vans, Welshpool and Wrexham. Mike E visited northern Spain for the eclipse and also the railway museum at Gijon. There he took lots of pictures of industrials of various gauges and some weird valve gear arrangements. Also there was a proper transporter bridge nearby and we considered a club pilgrimage there in the future. LBH showed a varied mix of photos, mostly undocumented so we had fun trying to work out what and where.

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