HOn30 stock-list

The first steam loco on the roster is a Car Works imported brass model of SR&RL #23.

Until I stood this alongside a OO / 1:76 scale (which is an appreciably larger scale) WW1 trench supply 4-6-0T Baldwin (see WW1 Baldwin below) I hadn't actually realised just how big this engine was for 2ft gauge, only the South African Railways equipment comes anywhere near.

The model is in "as delivered" 1913 form with an oil headlight - which will need updating for my 1930-1950 time period. I will also need to install a DCC decoder and paint & letter it.

During 2007 I built a resin kit for a Plymouth switcher. Although based on the old Minitrains loco, the Funaro & Camerlango resin body kit is quite a passable model of a large 20-30t "catalogue" Plymouth DL - at the larger end of the 24" narrow gauge "critter" scale.

I have built this with a donor mechanism from an Arnold N scale DB Köf switcher, fitted with a Digitrax DCC decoder and LED head and reversing lights.

It is painted in a simplified MEC inspired maroon/gold scheme and numbered as #29.

In early 2011 I built a second Plymouth from the same F & C resin kit. This time I used a Mike Chinery chassis, Mike is a semi-custom chassis builder based in the UK. I have known Mike for a long time - his chassis are mainly built in 10.5mm to 16.5mm guages, as Mike is one of the longest proponents of 5.5mm scale narrow guage (either using 12mm or 16.5mm guage for 2ft nom. or 3ft prototypes). But he has also turned out a couple of 9mm guage chassis designed for putting under O9 kits.

This time I built the loco as a modernised engine - using features from the later MDT class. She's been adapted for road switching, ballasted to around 35t, fitted with a more modern Cumins or Gardner engine, and fitted for train air brake.

I intend to number her #30, and paint either in the Pine Green or Pumpkin Orange MEC paint schemes.

In 2007 I started scratch-building a Sandy River #7 0-4-4T Forney using a spare N gauge mechanism I had hanging around from the days when I was modelling in OO9. Its going to be a long haul, as I can only stand doing so much scratch building at a time - then I get bored and move onto something else. So far I have built the cab, frame and boiler around the suitably doctored (Graham Farish BR Class 08) chassis.

This chassis is going to be tricky to convert to DCC, the lower motor brush is live to the frame.

SR&RL #7 was one of the last of the small "early" era locos - it was retired before 1920 and left to decompose slowly in the "old stone fort" (the unfinished Philips & Rangelely roundhouse) at Philips. It was never modernised with air brakes, or electric lighting.

In February 2008 I added a Train & Trooper imported factory painted brass model of SR&RL #24, which only needs a DCC decoder and weathering.

The headlight is slightly wrong for this loco, but otherwise its an excellent model - but should be at the price!

During 2008 I re-built a 00n2 (009 / 1:76th scale) scale model of a Baldwin 4-6-0T WW1 military loco.

I have tried to imagine what the Sandy River might have done had it got one of these engines - it would have probably been used as a replacement for one of the worn out Eustis Forneys up in the forests, or as a switcher; as European roads found out they were not good in passenger service (at least not without a complete re-build).

The 009 model is one of two which I built when I had an, ultimately unfinished, layout in a previous house based on the Snailbeach & District Rly - an English mineral hauling railway which had two of these machines.

The basic body is from a 1970s GEM kit (GEM are a, now-defunct, British white metal kit manufacturer), running on a similar vintage Minitrix chassis. Due to the age of the chassis it has reduced side rod and valve gear detail - its something I'll live with for the time being as the chassis may well need replacing in due course. It is fitted with a Digitrax DCC decoder and micro LED headlight.

The chassis now appears to have developed severe wear in the leading axle slot, so whilst it runs fine forward - the gears bind in reverse. I have yet to identify a suitable replacement chassis.

Although now painted I have yet to letter her, I'm not sure whether I will number her #25 (next loco in the SR&RL sequence), or as one of the missing 'teen numbers; SR&RL numbering scheme skipped 11-14, no idea why?! Or whether to letter her for a fictious lumber company.

In 2008 I obtained a Roger Chivers RC75 "large Forney" kit from the B&F Hobby in the US. This kit is now discontinued, with only the smaller versions remaining in production in the UK. The etched brass cab and bunker of this kit are exact matches for SR&RL #9 - 1909 Baldwin 2-4-4T.

Because of the unavailability of outside frame N-scale chassis, this kit is being kit-bashed into SR&RL #8. #8 was in main dimensions identical to #9, but was a few years earlier (1907) and supplied with smaller cylinders and inside frames; this apparently made her unstable at speed, and therefore unliked by management, shops or crews. #8 was retired in 1923 following a roundhouse fire as beyond economic repair. As she was overhauled in 1919 and other locos in the fire were repaired this begs the question - why was she in bad condition as one of the newer Sandy River passenger locos?

I can find no published photos of her in her modernised condition - with air brake, steel plated cab and electric headlight. The contemporary account in Ride the Sandy River suggests she was, and H Temple Crittenden's scale drawing in The Maine Scenic Route shows her as such, and suggests she was modernised in 1919. Despite the lack of photos I intend to model her with the modifications done, but without the flare top to the bunker (which she apparently retained).

The kit is designed (as most HOn30 and 009 kits are) to fit a N scale "donor" mechanism. The intended chassis is from the Bachmann Docksider, which is also now discontinued. After considering various options I bought a mechanism from a British cottage industry manufacturer, Nevile Kent, trading as N-drive Productions. The mechanism is intended to be a direct replacement for the Bachmann chassis - but it isn't, and modifications need to be done to both the chassis and body.

The main issue is that on the Bachmann chassis the motor sits behind the rear set of drivers, whilst in the N-drive mech it overlaps considerably. The Mashima can motor is a tight fit in the cab front opening even when eased, and the opening in the bottom of the cast boiler would need to be opened out considerably. The other issue with the N-drive chassis is the wheels - they are too small scaling to 30" (8.5mm), not the correct 35" (10mm). However because of where the motor is mounted, scale wheels would not fit as the rear pair would foul the underside of the can motor.

The cast boiler supplied in the kit is around 1.5 scale feet too short (presumably to fit the unmodified Bachmann chassis). This was just too noticeable for me, and I have replaced the boiler with a scale length version from styrene tube. I made a wrapper out of 20 thou styrene and extended that down to hide the motor. This does make it look like the firebox extends too far forward, but with the walkways, air compressor and tanks added its not too noticeable.

I also didn't like the cylinders supplied with the N-drive mech and have fabricated new styrene cylinders, together with new slide bars and cross-heads from scrap brass. The replacement cylinders were epoxied in place on the cast saddle/pilot deck. I later soldered a yoke, made from scrap brass, to the chassis frame which makes the slide bars a lot less vulnerable. I had to cut back a mil or so into the back of the saddle to clear the end of the frames, and as these are live I also insulated it with a 10 thou styrene piece.

The N-drive is supplied with a large piece of plastic attached at the front and rear (designed to be cut to fit the particular kit being used); the front piece was removed altogether and the rear cut to fit the rear tank frame. The driving chassis (the N-drive) is attached rigidly to the rear tank frame just as in the prototype, with the boiler and cab/tank being removable for access and held in place by three 2-56 screws.

The rear tank is supported on a home made truck - the sides are brass Meridian Models SR&RL tender truck castings, the bolster scratch built from black engineering plastic, and the wheels are Kato split axles from a N scale passenger car truck (the truck as supplied has too long a wheelbase - see early construction photo). The isolated side frames collect track power and are connected with flexible light gauge wires. The truck is sprung and has a degree of sideways play through a curved slot in the frame. As a result the loco will take a 12" (300mm) curve.

I considered a sound decoder for this model - a Soundtraxx Tsunami Micro and small round or oval speaker might just have fitted, but in the end I opted for a standard DCC decoder (Digitrax DZ143). The headlight is an Ngineering 2x3mm golden-white LED programmed for Rule 17 dimming (not prototypical on the Sandy River - but I like my locos to run like that). I also added a red LED in the firebox area on the green F1 function lead and programmed it with random flicker effect.

The loco has been test run and it performs well being able to sustain a barely perceptable crawl over dodgy loose laid track without stalling. Despite quite a bit of weight for its size it doesn't haul that well and is prone to slip easily, I had to carefully adjust the rear truck to get as much of the weight as possible on all 4 drivers. I will need to try to get some more weight in the boiler.

I have added quite a lot more detail over that supplied in the Chivers kit. With just rear tank hand rail, air hoses, cut levers and cab glazing left to add she will be taking a trip to the paint shop shortly.

I haven't built an entire loco from a kit for a while, and have thoroughly enjoyed the process. Most of all I particularly enjoyed rediscovering my soldering skills, which have been used throughout this model, aren't that bad at all!

The most recent acquisition is an etched brass kit from Victors Models for SR&RL #19 - the Sandy River's first Prairie type. The kit is of her in her earlier years, and will need a few detail modifications for my later timescale. Victors Models went out of business before they could produce anything else in HOn30

As a standby I bought a Minitrains "Baldwin" 0-4-0ST - based on an industrial prototype. The Minitrains range of mass produced HOn30 models weren't great runners when first released in the late 1960s / early 1970s, and they certainly haven't aged well.  I did manage to find one without the cracked worm gears, so it ran for a while after - after a fashion - only for the cast chassis to crack and fail with Zamac "cancer".

Maybe the new chassis BCH have put under it in the latest revision and re-launch will be better - it couldn't really be much worse.

Freight cars: so far are mainly injection moulded plastic flat car kits, some modified with pulpwood racks or low sided gondola bodies and a couple of 28ft boxcars by Roger Chivers (a well known British "cottage industry" model maker). These are a joy to make, go together quickly and make good, whilst not competition winning, models. Unfortunately Roger seems to have lost interest in HOn30 and has ceased production. In early 2011 it would appear that he has in fact sold the range to his son, Simon, who states he will be reintroducing them under his SlimRails banner

I have also acquired some old cast resin "craftsman" kits for flat- and box-cars, and a more recent Sandy River caboose kit - which has been made up as #551.

Passenger cars: so far consist of a generic resin kits for a combine and passenger car, and 1970s resin kit for a WW&F combine.

Of the resin kits only the generic 45' combine (Railway Recollections) has been made up to date and turned out to be a true "craftsman" item requiring lots of extra detail not supplied in the kit and considerable "fitting" of the resin parts.

I used cast/etched brass British made Meridian Models trucks for this kit, and scatch-built the end railings from soldered brass wire, with under-frame details from the "parts box". The car has an interior built from an cut down IHC car interior kit, with a scratch-built stove and Preiser figures.