APUBLICATION OF THE TRI-ANG MINIC NARROWGAUGE RAILWAY SOCIETY
6 Penmaenmawr Promenade Railway
Christopher White shares some slides that he recently discovered of a family holiday to Penmaenmawr in 1971
8 Tom Smith Number 16
David Matthewson documents the second Tom Smith locomotive that shares the shed with his TMNR - “Number 16”
10 My Tri-ang Minic Railway Stock
After being stored for over twenty-five years, Simon Turner gets out his Tri-ang Minic set
12 Train Rides by
Minic
Having found another part of the ‘TMNR puzzle’ Mike Slatter documents an original TMNR parts list and questionnaire
17 “Here’s One I Made Earlier!”
Barry Nixon describes some of the common TMNR modifications that have helped keep so much of the railway system preserved today
19 Classified Adverts
The latest TMNR classified adverts
FRONT COVER PHOTOGRAPH: Sharing the shed with a TMNR – Tom Smith locomotives number 21 and 16 are photographed on an autumn afternoon at the Lymden Lodge Light Railway, 2024. DAVID MATTHEWSON
OPPOSITE: Daisy ‘Doodles’ waits on the newly constructed station for a ride. MIKE SLATTER
EDITION TWENTY-SEVEN
Welcome to Edition twenty-seven of TMNR Times.
I can't believe how quickly this last year has passed - Our Jubilee Railway has made some progress – We now have a lawned area, small orchard of three trees and one and a half stations (the half being for our chickens!)
The photograph above shows Daisy, one of our rescue hens waiting on a scaled GWR bench at the main station 'Choseley' with only the picket fencing needing to be installed.
Ground works have started for the 'up' line and we hope to have both sides of the railway running independently by next summer, with the final challenge being the construction of two bridges over the stream that will join the line and make it complete. I look forward to when we will be able to return to full operation and welcome visitors to ride on our TMNR trains.
It is with sadness that we heard of the passing of former Minic draftsman Rodney Castle on 25th April 2024. Rodney had supported the TMNR Society for many years and would always 'twinkle' when talking about toys. He will be greatly missed.
Having produced twenty-seven editions of TMNR Times, content can sometimes be difficult to obtain so as always I remain very grateful to Peter Bryant, Barry Green, David Matthewson, Barry Nixon, Richard Pearson, Simon Turner, Christopher White and Peter Bing who have helped provide a wonderful collection of articles, information and photographs for this years edition of the magazine.
I do hope that you enjoy it.
Mike (& Megan)
Fast Waters NewestPassenger
Barry Green welcomed his new grandson on his ‘Fast Waters’ Tri-ang Minic Narrowgauge Railway in June. The latest addition to the family enjoyed his first Triang ride at one month old!
Barry advises with the other five grandchildren rapidly growing in size and the need for extra power and coaches, that he intends to work on restoring his twin motored locomotive and third Pullman coach during the winter bringing both into operation at the railway next year.
Zachary, along with his mother Caroline, having his first TMNR ride at the Fast Waters Railway, June 2024. BARRY GREEN
TMNRTrackDiscoveredDuringDemolition
Several TMNR track panels were discovered in the basement of a house that was being demolished on “The Bishops Avenue” in London during May.
One of the workmen posted a photograph of the track in a miniature railway Facebook group asking for more information about this unusual basement find.
The track appears to have been saved as it was later advertised for sale on Facebook Marketplace initially for £2000 with the seller reducing the price to £1200.
TakeABreakMagazine
In celebration of the British Hen Welfare Trust rehoming its millionth hen (to none other than HRM King Charles III), an article about “Hen Halt” featured in the October 31st (Issue 44) of 'Take A Break' Magazine. The article by Megan Slatter follows on from other articles written in support of the Trust and describes keeping chickens along aside a TMNR railway.
The magazine is still available online from some stockists.
RodneyCastle
Rodney started work as a model maker at the Lines Brothers factory in Merton in South London in the spring of 1952. He had taken one of his wooden model boats to his interview and was almost hired on the spot and was proud to be taken on for his very first position.
A new motorised line called Minic Motorways was developed, the concept being a motorway layout which was the same scale as the Hornby OO sized trains The Minic Motorways line included cars, lorries, buses, roadside buildings and road signs, etc.
As Minic grew, a new factory was built at Canterbury and in 1960 Rodney moved to b e c o m e t h e h e a d o f R e s e a r c h a n d Development (R&D) team at the new factory, being present when the TMNR was being designed and manufactured.
Rodney was multi-skilled with whatever he
20August1941-25thApril2024
turned his hand to. He was a very good model maker in any material with very clean and accurate workmanship and he became an excellent mentor to all of the new model makers.
Over time he made a 'parts list' which was needed for every toy produced at Canterbury. He itemised every single component needed to make a complete unit, even down to a piece of Sellotape to stick down the box lid This eventually resulted in a very smooth-running production line, largely because of his careful attention to detail.
Peter Bing
Rodney riding in the rear Pullman coach at the TMNR Society Day at Birchley Railway, 2010. RICHARD PEARSON
Penmaenmawr Promenade Railway
CHR I S TO P HER W HI TE s h ar e s some slides that
h e r e c e n t l y discovered of a family holiday to Penmaenmawr in 1971…
CHECKING
i n m y fat h e r ' s diary, it ap p e ar s w e w e r e o n a weeks' holiday, s t a y i n g i n a friend’s caravan at Pendyffryn Hall in Penmaenmawr in August 1971.
I remember that the caravan was ancient and had v e r y l i t t l e insulation and was ver y noisy inside w hen it was raining.
The photograph of me riding in the TMNR train was taken on Sunday 8th August.
The railway was owned by Mr H Woodward a n d o p e r a t e d o n t h e P r o m e n a d e , Penmaenmawr, North Wales at a small amusement park. It consisted of a locomotive that was fitted with a large car headlight along with two Pullman coaches that were painted blue. The miniature train rides were priced at 3p!
The site also had a fairground and dad also took a picture of me on a fire engine which was on a merry-go-round.
Nine months later, on 21st May 1972, the
railway was advertised for sale in ‘The World's Fair’ newspaper and was purchased by George Coles for his private GeoDor Railway in Northamptonshire (See TMNR Times Issue 3).
Christopher White
Left: Riding in the Penmaenmawr TMNR with another young boy in 1971.
Above: Sat in the locomotive with the railway advertising boards in the background. CHRISTOPHER WHITE COLLECTION
16 TOM SMITH NUMBER
DAVID MATTHEWSON documents the second Tom Smith locomotive that shares the shed with his TMNR - “Number 16”
OK, this article is not strictly about TMNR but is about the Lymden Lodge Light Railway (LLLR) which runs mainly TMNR locos and stock and follows on from the article in TMNR Times Edition 25.
The Lymden Lodge Light Railway was set up in the late 1990s and based around a core of recovered TMNR equipment which was restored and rebuilt over the subsequent years.
One of the early problems was that I wanted to get something running as soon as possible! I knew Drummond Randall of the (now unfortunately closed) Birchley Railway, and whilst talking with him he mentioned he had an old battery electric loco that he had purchased but never really got working and would be happy to sell it to me if I wanted. So, on a subsequent visit to railway this large blue Bo-Bo
locomotive was pulled from the shed, a couple of old car batteries connected and away we went! A handshake and the deal was done.
A week later we arrived at Birchley with a Luton van and we struggled to load the loco. After some huffing and puffing she was safely loaded for the journey to her new home.
Arriving at the LLLR we were then faced with the task of getting what seemed to be an ever heavier loco on the track s, which was eventually accomplished by laying a few 2m track panels together and pushing the loco forward and then moving the last panel to the front. Phew! I think we counted about fifty 'push, lift and relay' operations but eventually loco and LLLR were connected.
The next day we fitted a couple of 12V DC
batteries and tentatively opened the very old school regulator – then remembered to take the brakes off! Movement in both directionsAmazing! Flushed with success we set the points and crept slowly onto the main line. Some gentle trials and numerous derailments then unfortunately revealed that trying to run a loco of this weight and wheel standards on TMNR track is not really recommended. So into the back of the engine shed she went, being dragged out for special occasions or for me to think of what might have been - and there she remains.
So what's the history of this loco? Well, in short she was built by Tom Smith and like many of Tom's creations has passed through various hands. All of his stuff was well built and yet simple to maintain. For those of you who don't know about Tom Smith, he was an engineer of extraordinary talent and prolific to match Working mainly in 7¼” but also 10¼”. He was born in 1936 and served in the Royal Electrical and Mechanical Engineers (REME) and worked on the Blue Streak missile project. By the mid1960s he had built some track and test loco chassis and in the late 1960s became associated with Cromar White. It was here that some of the early Tom Smith locos were produced and sold – notably the Hymek. From 1970 to around 1993 Tom built numerous locos, and some coaches – most based around the concept of a powered bogie.
And so to “Number 16" – built in 1978 for a client by the name of John Locke, but unusually for Tom in this case, only the body work was
s up p li e d , w i t h Mr L o cke providing the bogie and motor. The design was similar to Tom's number 14 and was 6' long by 20” wide and 28” tall (1830cm x 510cm x 710cm). The customer fitted a 2hp compound motor and also regauged it from 7¼” to 10¼”. By 1971 it had been sold to the Watford Miniature Railway and then in 1982 it was bought by Drummond Randall for his line in Kent and by 1999 we bought it for the LLLR, where she still lurks, unrestored, in the back of the shed.
To be useful, she would need a modern electronic control system, ideally a new motor and a new paint job. But as a heavily engineered loco she would have a long life in front of her. So does anyone want to buy a solidly made and heav y 10¼" battery electric Bo-Bo loco? Collection only from East Sussex!
David Matthewson
Main: Tom Smith Number 16 on shed at the LLLR. Above: A close up view of the heavy motor.
DAVID
MATTHEWSON
For more information on Tom Smith and his 'Miracle Works' locos, see 'The locomotives of Tom Smith' by David Henshaw, published 2016 ISBN 978-0-9575651-1-1, available from h t t p s : / / w w w a t o b o r g u k https://w w w atob org uk/product/thelocomotives-of-tom-smith/
Tri-ang Minic My Railway Stock
After being stored for over twenty-five years, SIMON TURNER gets out his Tri-ang Minic set...
Ihave a single motor locomotive, two Pullman carriage bodies, one base for a carriage, four bogies and a 36 volt power inverter.
I brought the set from the then owner of the
Manor Park Miniature Railway at Glossop who was going to convert it to 7¼” gauge. The loco has a control unit allegedly from a forklift and at some point had been converted to collect power off of the rail from two skates fitted onto the front bogie.
I've had it since at least 1997 and did try to run it not long after acquiring it but didn't succeed at that time. As we only had a small garden and life got in the way it was put into storage. In 2023 we moved to a property with some land on the Lincolnshire coast and I am now getting to the stage where I can have a good look over the stock, repair it where necessary and hopefully lay down a multi gauge track to run it on.
I also hope to make a portable 10¼” gauge track so that I can take it to shows.
Does anybody recognise this loco from its operating day s? I believe it was used commercially but I can't remember where.
Simon Turner
Main: Moving my loco on my Massey Ferguson tractor. Inset: The forklift control panel. SIMON TURNER
MINICbyTrainRides
Having found another part of the ‘TMNR puzzle’, MIKE SLATTER documents an original TMNR parts list and questionnaire ...
EARLIER in the year I was excited to s e c ur e a T MNR b r o c hur e t h at had some fascinating accompanying documentation including a questionnaire and a Spare Parts list for in the individual components of the railway.
It appears that J. M. Gillin, from the public relations department at the Minic Canterbury factory had quickly responded to a request for
product information by Titan Film Productions Limited, based at Shepperton Studios in Middlesex.
The accompanying letter, dated 10th June, 1965 included a TMNR brochure, price list, and more unusually a set of four black and white publicity photographs, a questionnaire and a TMNR Spare Parts price list.
The questionnaire gives an insight into the technical specifications of the TMNR system and its load ability which makes for some interesting reading as these facts had not been published in any of the other factory literature.
It was however the spare parts list that excited me the most as this document not only gives details of some of the actual parts used in the manufacture of the system, but also gives the drawing numbers of the component parts of the TMNR which correlate to the drawings that have been published in previous editions of the magazine.
This document also helps to paint a picture of the cost of the TMNR production at the time and also provides an interesting insight into the expense in keeping a TMNR running in a commercial setting.
Hand written notes on the back of both the price list and accompanying letter seem to indicate the intention was to purchase several items. The notes on the back of the price list suggest that the intention was to buy at
least five Pullman coaches and a single motored locomotive whereas notes on the back of the letter price a twin motored locomotive, four Pullman coaches and a three-seater open “toast-rack” coach.
In my mind this document acts as another piece of the TMNR jigsaw, helping to bring together the various parts of information that I have found since starting the website, society and magazine.
I am grateful to its previous owner for passing the documents on to me so that I could publish them in this edition of the magazine and share for others enthusiasts to read and enjoy.
Mike Slatter
“Here’s
One I Made Earlier!”
THE simplicity of the TMNR locomotive and carriage construction is one reason that so many items have survived for over sixty years. It is also that simplicity that appears to have made it ideal for modification.
and replacement motors more efficient.
BARRY NIXON describes some of the common TMNR modifications that have helped keep so much of the railway system preserved today...
Some conversions involve installing petrol engines although this is not the easiest thing to do to a TMNR due to the small amount of space in the locomotive.
The most common modification found is probably the conversion of locomotives from the original two-rail pick up to an alternative and more reliable power source.
The simplest of these is to install one or more 12 volt batteries as a direct replacement for power to the TMNR electrics. In recent years, electronic control has become more common
At least one locomotive had the body widened to accommodate these mechanics and to give more room for the driver. That widened loco was converted by Mike Clement and described by him in the Autumn 2014 issue of TMNR Times.
Above: Mike Clement’s widened petrol enginefitted TMNR. BARRY NIXON
To a s t r a ck c ar r i a g e s appear in many guises and stripping out the seats creates an immediate 'flatbed' truck and one example is even known to exis t as a Hovercraft carrier!
T h e o r i gin al d e s i gn features three seats (all facing forward) which is suitable for small children but it is a simple task to remove the middle seat to create more leg room for l a r g e r p a s s e n g e r s Changing the layout from thre e for ward-facing seats into two face-toface seats provides more
leg room for adult passengers. Pop a picnic table in the middle and you've got an instant dining car!
I've seen fewer conversions of Pullman coaches other than regauging from 10¼” to 7¼”. A number of locos have been regauged too since 7¼" has become a common club-track and garden-railway gauge That's exactly what happened to the loco previously owned by James Gilbert that ran at the Saffron Walden
Society of Model Engineers club track at Audley End and as photographed on the cover of the Spring 2017 issue of TMNR Times.
There are also a number of examples of repurposing rather than conversion. At least one locomotive and Pullman coach body became planters at an amusement park in Ireland once they were no longer used as a ride. Although they lost their bogies in the process, the bodies survived and were subsequently saved by Peter
Mi ke S l a t t e r ' s o w n repurposing of some of his TMNR equipment has involved less dramatic c h a n g e s b u t h a s demonstrated creative thinking. His rescued excommeric al chickens have a unique playground featuring a TMNR Pullman coach, and based on all the photos he's published on Facebook the hens thoroughly enjoy it!
Barry Nixon
Above: An overgrown TMNR Pullman used as a plant pot. PETER BRYANT Bryant.
Below: A 7¼" converted TMNR bogie using 12v motors. BARRY NIXON
CLASSIFIED ADVERTS
COMPLETE TMNR RAILWAY - £OFFERS
A very rare opportunity to purchase a complete, working and upgraded 10¼" TMNR railway (as featured in edition 26 of TMNR Times) consisting of:
1 x TMNR Twin motored locomotive (ex-Butlins Pwllheli) upgraded with two Bosch 1hp motors; 2 x TMNR11 Pullman Coaches;
1 x TMNR13 Open Three-Seater ‘Toast-rack’ coach;
1 x TMNR12 Replica 4-Wheeled box van for batteries, electrics with charger; 90 x 30' (approx) oval of Cromar White aluminium rail on plastic sleepers; 2 x Left Hand Points; 1 x 20' (approx) Siding; 1 x 30' (approx) Siding;
Large collection of spares to include: 10 x Lengths of Cromar White rail; 3 x Replica flat bases; 6 x Replica bogie frames; Original 40v DC GEC motor, rheostat speed controller and switches; 1 x Milk float charger upgraded to 50v off load, 40v on load; Box of spare chains, sprockets, chain splitter, bearings etc; Archive letters, adverts, bills and documents plus all replica signs in and on shed;
Contact Bob Vickery at: robertvickery539@btinternet.com
10¼" GAUGE OVAL OF TRACK & SPARES - £FREE
An oval of 10¼" steel bar track designed to fit into a 30 x 50 foot area. Joints rusted will need cutting to remove.
Includes three further 9 foot lengths of track, wooden sleepers and gauging bars. £FREE. Location Harrow, North West London.
Contact John Lawes at: jlbelmont1948@gmail.com
TMNR STYLE 3' METAL BASES - £30 5' METAL BASES - £40
Steel ‘Tri-ang style’ bases measuring either 3 or 5 foot long by 18 inches wide, 4mm thick with folded sides and square ends. Several available £30 and £40. Location Harrow, North West London.
Contact John Lawes at: jlbelmont1948@gmail.com
TMNR TIMES BACK EDITIONS - £5
A limited number of back editions of TMNR Times Editions 16, 17, 19, 20 and 26. Priced at £5 each + P&P.
Contact Mike Slatter via the TMNR Society at: mike@tmnr.co.uk
